About Last Night: 10th Anniversary Dinner at Lacroix

It was a meal that will never be repeated. Outside of the massive small-plate food events (like Feastival or Philly Cooks), it was probably the most impressive collection of chefly talent gathered together under one roof in recent Philadelphia history. It was proof of how much lasting influence one kitchen can have across an entire city.

It was the Lacroix 10th anniversary dinner, which brought together ten chefs from Lacroix’s past and forced them to all cook together in a single kitchen, putting out a single 10-course tasting menu for just 80 (or so) diners fortunate enough to have gotten reservations. And lucky for us, COOK photographer and man-about-town Yoni Nimrod was there to witness it and come back with pictures.

So if you didn’t make the scene last night in Rittenhouse Square, here’s just a little of what you missed…

The menu itself is really something of a collector’s item. It answers the question: What do you get when you take ten chefs and let them loose in one of the most well-stocked kitchens in the city?

The funny thing is, it took them twenty minutes to agree that it was just an empty plate, and not some new invisible scallop foam invented by Jason Cichonski.

Johnny Mac from Pub & Kitchen rolled in to lend a hand last night.

Lee Styer’s lobster over golden beets with truffles was one of the best dishes in a night full of best dishes.

Townsend Wentz from McCrossen’s Tavern getting his plates ready for their veal cheeks and sweetbreads.

Fred Ortega, Lacroix’s executive pastry chef, finished out the night with cardamom chocolates and salted caramel.

Lacroix [official website]