I was at a wedding dinner just a couple of days ago.
Posh hotel, gleaming luxurious cars parked like a showroom out front, uniformed concierges I could mistaken for Kublai Khan. Outside the dinning hall proper, fine wine, cocktails were served by tuxed waiting staff. Some of the guests were tux'd as well, there must be a couple of ambassadors. Unusual numbers of Western guests. Very hi-so, I would say.
Let's take a look at the very well appointed menu, beautifully printed on fined monogram paper. Hmm... let's see, pan fried scallops in a mango sauce for starters. Then a soup painstakingly concocted by the master chef, cream of something exotic or other. The main course was a choice of breasts of chicken, free-range and corn-fed I would assume, or a grilled fillet of fish caught in icy cold waters 5 thousand miles away. The last item on the menu was a piece of dessert the hotel was famed for, then gourmet coffee and hand-picked tea named for English aristocrats.
The waiting staff were attentive, well-trained and, well, unobtrusive. Meals were served on the proper sides of guests, glasses were refilled without being asked. The cutlery were polished, and glasswares unblemished.
The MC was a university mate of the groom and his speech was, well, I wished I could speak like him, articulate and humorous. The bride's father gave a short speech and had everyone laughing. Everything was timed to a fault. Although the dinner stretched quite late, there wasn't awkward intervals where guests wonder when the next dish would arrived.
The entire affair impressed, from the crystal chandeliers to the sound system, from the food, and the fine wine to the bride's designer gown. Damn, it must have cost more than a grand for a table. Lots of face.
It would have been a lot more impressive, in my opinion, and a lot more face if I do not have to pay for it. You can say it's sour grapes on my part, but really, how is it when the guests are the ones paying for it, the 'face' goes to the hosts?
I've gone to a unique wedding where the newly wedded wore jeans and sweats, at a non-airconditioned seafood restaurant. Hands were used to pull apart the chilli-crab claws. It was messy, the food was delicious, the guests boisterous from the free flow of beer. The bride was teased endlessly, the groom swayed unsteadily at the end of the night. But dammit, it was one wedding I really enjoyed and I think there was no less the spirit of celebration for the couple.
What do you guys say?
