Summer Intern BBQ
July 25th, 2006 | by Loretta |If I haven’t mentioned it before, let me say it now– I’ve been working for the City of New York for this summer. And it turns out, they always throw a BBQ for their interns, where the mayor takes a picture with each one of us.
Hosted at Gracie Mansion, the home of the mayor since LaGuardia I believe, interns ignored the heat and humidity after work today and trekked over to East End Avenue for some pretty good eats.
The variety of food was not vast, but hey, what can you expect? I think I spotted the head chef in charge of catering for events at Gracie Mansion, but I did not do my research the night before (I came across it weeks ago…) and wasn’t sure if it was him. Had I known for sure, believe me, I would have introduced myself, shook his hand and tried not to faint at the realization that I’m talking to a head chef. So alas, I missed out on a great opportunity.
The food was spread on the both sides of the garden in front of Gracie Mansion, and the food was the same except on the left side, they had a table for Kosher food which I did not discover until I was hunting for yummy dessert.
We started off with green salads, pasta salads, grilled veggie salads.
Ok, huuuuge tip (as I have learned from watching Food Network’s Party Line with Dan and Steve on Sunday mornings) when hosting a buffet-type of event with not that many dishes on the table, it’s a great idea to put things at different heights. Really! They used Scrabble and other board games to create elevation on the table. It really makes a big difference than having everything on the same table.
Also, have a theme! The theme for this BBQ seemed to be summer fun, because there were gumball machines (that worked!) as centerpieces on a few tables and candy strewn over the refreshment table, etc. Just very color, very festive overall.
The bow-tie/farfalle pasta salad consisted of pasta, cherry tomatoes, cilantro, tossed in olive oil with other herbs.
As for the grilled veggie salad, there were grilled peppers, zucchini, yellow squash, eggplant and a more. These were also seasoned with salt, pepper, olive oil, etc.
After salads, there was a selection of protein: baked beans and charred/roasted chicken.
The chicken was a variety of black and dark meat. I thought I got a piece of dark me, and I was pretty sure of it. But it was rather dry and over salted. It also tasted…burnt. 
For this reason alone, I’ll refer to it as charred/roasted chicken.
The baked beans were yummy, however. You can’t really go wrong with slow-cooked beans, that were thick and sweetened with molasses or brown sugar (or so I think…)
Before the protein, they had more carbs. Tender jalapeno corn bread!
This was definitely my favorite, not just because they were stacked in step pyramids. The corn bread was tender and flecks of green were dispersed throughout the bread. Also, very evenly baked and good consistency throughout the bread.
For people who wanted more meat, there were hot dogs and hamburgers, staples at any American BBQ. Each grill was manned by two chefs.
They were friendly and did not mind when I asked to take a picture of their fine work.
Grill fans, please note their strategy: different columns of patties were at different stages in cooking. It’s a one-man flipping station. And also, the hot dogs stayed warm in an aluminum pan.
There was a table with buns and condiments for those who wanted to indulge on a freshly grilled burger or hot dog.
I took a picture of a burger I did not eat, because I though the opportunity was rather irresistible.
Good lighting, good contrast in color, good variation in texture– how could I resist!?!
I digress.
As mentioned before, I did not come across the Kosher table until my hunt for dessert began.
Had I known I miiiight have indulged on a sandwich instead of eating charred chicken.
On the same table, I found my favoritest cookie-that’s-really-a-cake ever. Trapped in a clear plastic cage.
So I set some free!
Yes. I have gotten used to my camera so much that one-handed photography is getting better. (If I can get over the blood and body fluids issue, I might reconsider becoming a surgeon.)
Before indulging on my favorite babies, I did sample their brownies, chocolate chip cookies, oatmeal cookies and fresh seedless watermelon.
The cookies were crispy, but the recipe tasted a lot like the Tollhouse one I typically use. Also the brownies tasted like the ones I make from the Hershey’s cocoa container. Never mess with a classic.
I prefer my watermelon with seeds. But oh well.
But wait! There’s more. The mayor also got us gelato and Italian ice from Ciao Bella.
This, I decided not to have. ::shrug::
All in all, it was a very pleasant evening spent meeting some other interns who would throughout the city. And the average 4 seconds we each got to spend with the mayor (who has very soft hands and good skin complexion, btw) was the fastest, busiest and most confusing 4 seconds of my entire life.
There he is. The mayor of New York City and the man who had us fed well.
(I love this picture the mostest, because he’s looking right at my camera. :O)