Arts & Industries Building
SPECIAL SALES NOTE: Registration for this event will end on Monday, July 2 at 2 p.m. for all web, phone, and in-person orders.
Enjoy a night of fine cuisine, wine, and gorgeous music with Gourmet Symphony in the historic Arts and Industries Building. After the Centennial Exposition of 1876 in Philadelphia, many of its displays were donated to the Smithsonian, and some of the proceeds from the exposition—the first World’s Fair held in America—were used to build the structure. Inspired by that historic connection, both the menu and the program celebrate the intersection of ethnic backgrounds. The orchestra, led by Artistic Director John Devlin, offers a program of works from composers who immigrated to the United States, including Béla Bartók, Antonín Dvorák, and Gustav Mahler. Devlin introduces each selection and provides background on its composer.
An exile from Hungary during the Second World War, Bartók came to the United States in 1940; his Romanian Folk Dances, a reminiscence on the traditional folk dances of his homeland, is among the program’s selections. Dvorák is a Czech composer who moved to New York in 1892; the orchestra performs his most famous masterwork, the “New World” symphony, drawing from the time he spent on American soil. Mahler immigrated from Vienna to New York on his appointment as music director of the New York Philharmonic in 1908, and his Songs of a Wayfarer is the main selection of the evening. An intimate yet dramatic work, the song cycle showcases a singer and orchestra, with text on themes of family and loss.
In addition to the repertoire of classical music selections, a seated three-course gourmet dinner, and wine pairings, guests have the opportunity to meet and mingle with the musicians. Be a part of an innovative concert format that the Washington Post calls “the highest-end dinner music anyone could experience.”
Please contact us to accommodate dietary restrictions or allergies with the featured menu below.
MENU
WELCOME BEVERAGES
Sparkling wine, lemonade, and sparkling water
(Charles de Fère Jean-Louis Rosé, Boisset Collection, Burgundy, FR)
FIRST COURSE
Shrimp ′n Grits
Crispy black-eyed pea and grits cake topped with poached shrimp and served with papaya, baby greens, and toasted pumpkin-seed salad
(Bernier Chardonnay, Loire Valley, FR)
SECOND COURSE
Summer Schnitzel
Crispy pretzel-crusted chicken schnitzel served with roasted potato salad and red cabbage and asparagus slaw
(Jadot Beaujolais Villages, Burgundy, FR)
DESSERT
Roasted-Apple Palatschinke
Hungarian-style crepe filled with roasted apples served with whiskey, caramel, and cinnamon mascarpone cream
Coffee
