What sells out even faster than Ben Folds tickets?
Last night's Penn Alumni Club of Philadelphia event, which, with a private tour of famed French restaurant Lacroix, a three-course dinner and an intimate discussion with Psychology professor Paul Rozin, sold out in fewer than 24 hours.
Eighteen Penn alumni were escorted into the bustling kitchen of new executive chef Matthew Levin and treated to champagne, frogs' legs and Levin's personal philosophy on food.
Then, whisked back into a private dining area, the alums mingled and networked over veal and salmon while Rozin discussed his recent research on American and French food cultures.
In the "very abundant country" that is the United States, food is constantly available, and quantity is often favored over quality, Rozin said.
"We've created a world where you can just sit on your can and have food just go by all day long," he said.
The French, on the other hand, savor food and "think of it as something you experience," Rozin continued. The difference is smaller portions of higher quality and more attention and structure given to eating, he said.
Rozin's discussion was complemented by the "experience" of the three-course French meal that followed.
After the talk, while Rozin snapped a photo of the chocolate tart for his records, Levin, who has been executive chef of Lacroix for nine months, joined the Penn alumni at the corner of the table to discuss his plans for the "new regime" of the
restaurant.
Levin wants to bring in a younger crowd to "change the culture" of Lacroix. To do so, he has changed the waiter uniform, updated the music selection and, as a tribute to Philadelphia restaurant culture, is considering BYO nights a few times a week.
For a restaurant that has the sommelier introduce the wine selection in his thick French accent and the dessert chef explain the apricot drizzle, Lacroix is a "serious dining experience" that Levin hopes to make "fun and lively."
No longer is Lacroix the "stodgy restaurant that my parents would come to on their anniversary," said Levin.
And as much as Levin has plans for the future of Lacroix, Andrew Rosenthal, co-chairman of the Events Committee of the Penn Alumni Club, has plans for the future of the club. Rosenthal hopes to draw more alumni to similar events in the future, hosting three private restaurant tours a year from here on out.
Puja Suneja, a 2001 Wharton alumna who attended the dinner at Lacroix, thinks the Penn Alumni Club is "making great strides" with their new program of events.
All in all, with "a top chef, a renowned professor, a top restaurant [and] a behind the scenes tour," Harris Romanoff, the second co-chairman of the Events Committee, wrote in an e-mail, last night's event was "like a decadent creme brulee!"
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