Here at PA Eats, we’re honored to have a talented team of movers and shakers, each individually diverse with talent in fields of editorial, photography, social media, design and more. With each member vital in making our delicious wheels go round, our owners Mary Bigham and Jason Tremblay decided it was due time to celebrate a successful 2012, by hosting a food-and-drink-infused affair at Teikoku Restaurant.
Teikoku features two attractive private party spaces under their Newtown Square roof, in addition to a spacious dining room, bar, and even a sushi bar. For our party, we nestled in their Silk Room, a space that has the ability to host up to 70 guests and is furnished with eye-catching touches like glowing silk lanterns, wall sconces, and antique wood carvings.
Being that the Win Signature Restaurants Group knows how to throw a party, we were lucky to have esteemed sushi chefs craft a signature Dish Roll just for us. The creation, which received rave reviews amongst our team, packed lobster meat, asparagus, and avocado—all of which are wrapped with soy paper and layered outside with salmon and avocado. The icing on the cake? A Thai-Chile Vanilla sauce that bumped this impressive concoction over the top.
Teikoku was kind enough to share additional rolls with our team—both of which have celebrity statuses around these parts. The Chay Roll, fine-tuned with spicy tuna, scallion wrapped with avocado, tempura crunch and spicy mayo, happened to be one of my favorites, as was the Godzilla Roll, a one-of-a-kind combination of shrimp tempura and BBQ eel topped with avocado, strawberry, honey and crushed macadamia nuts.
Rounding out the menu for the affair was a fine lineup of excellent small plates, which included Phyllo-Wrapped Shrimp finished with pineapple salsa and spicy plum sauce; Seafood Risotto crafted with shrimp, bay scallop, mussels, edamame and popped with Trout caviar; Braised Beef Short Rib bites layered with garlic mashed and red wine reduction sauce; and Sashimi Tuna Bruschetta accented with dill aioli—all layered on a crispy tortilla.
Since the Dish staff happens to be huge advocates for the local beer and wine industry, our special guests for the evening included Victory Brewing Co.’s President and Brewmaster Bill Covaleski, Black Walnut Winery‘s winemaker & CFO, Lance & Valerie Castle, and Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant‘s President Kevin Finn.
Appropriately so, the event’s drink menu included a diverse lineup of wine from Black Walnut, including wine in a keg (even Victory’s Bill was impressed; photo evidence below), as well as Victory’s Headwaters Pale Ale, Baltic Thunder and Golden Monkey.
A special awards’ ceremony rounded on the post-holiday celebration, with the following awards being presented to Town Dish staffers:
The Behind the Scenes Queen Award went to Shannon Smith. “Shannon Smith is organized, detail-oriented and follows through with grace. No task is too small for this multi-talented rockstar and accounting whiz. She lines ’em up then knocks ’em down with style and a smile.
The Creative Crusader Award was presented to Angela Corrado. “Her first name is marketing, her last name is creativity and her middle name is sales… but it’s spelled A-N-G-E-L-A C-O-R-R-A-D-O. She’s a Jill of all trades and driven for success — she’s our Creative Crusader.”
The Photo Bomb Award went to Nina Cazille. “She wears a camera on each hip and shoots to kill. Nina Cazille is our lethal weapon, taking killer photos that capture our hearts and our stomachs.”
The Renaissance Man Award was presented to Jim Breslin. “Jim Breslin has Main Line sophistication with DelCo grit. He looks cool holding chopsticks, chicken wings, a beer mug or a wine glass. He’s a published author, proven editor and has an amazing entrepreneurial spirit. This Renaissance Man can hang with the Dish ladies and still be a Man’s Man.”
Lastly, it was a terrific honor and I am so humbled to be awarded the year’s Golden Dish Award. “The Golden Dish Award is presented to an individual that, like a unicorn, is magical, beautiful and one-of-a-kind. Amy Strauss embodies all of these qualities along with professionalism, drive, passion and talent.”
It wouldn’t be a Town Dish event without Mizfam Photo.Video.Design Photo Booth, which was a fun-filled accessory to the lively celebration.
A sincere “thank you” goes out to the spot-on team at Teikoku for hosting an incredible bash! Find Teikoku at 5492 West Chester Pike in Newtown Square, or learn more online at TeikokuRestaurant.com.
Photographs credited to Nina Lea Photography & Mizfam Photo.Video.Design. View more scenes from the recent Town Dish party here.
