Last weekend we drove up to Dana Point for a wedding reception for Bert's cousin. She and her boyfriend finally tied the knot this past September and had a beautiful destination wedding in Moorea, Tahiti. Niiiice
Due to, uh, insufficient funds, we didn't go. However, for the family and po'folk that couldn't make it, the bride and groom held this awesome welcome back reception.
Of course, I couldn't help but take a photo of the "Tits" - the San Onofre nuclear power plant. Did you know Bert once took a tour INSIDE this place? The walls at some points are 15 feet thick. He was only on the outer part of the inside; this was when he used to work for a power engineering company years ago. I wonder if there is a "Sector 7-G" in there...or an evil overlord a la Mr. Burns?
We took the 5 up to the PCH...
The restaurant was in Dana Point...
Mosaic as you pass the bridge...
And we're here...at the Salt Creek Grille off the PCH.
We got there a little past 3 pm. It was supposed to be "semi-formal" but we found out at the last minute and I sure as hell didn't want to wear a dress. It was going to be outside and most likely cold. The reception was held on the outdoor patio of the restaurant. There were about 10+ table tops there. But before I get to the "tablescapes", here's the cupcake tower...topped with beautiful deep red roses.
Ooh, little silver dragees". I thought those were outlawed in California....
Back to the tables, which were topped with black table clothes and napkins. Each guest had his/her own name card with a glittery chandelier design. The centerpiece was a gold branch hung strings of crystals and hanging tea lights, along with roses tucked into the branch. Ha, someone's red gift bag is on the table, marring the look.
Here's another shot...
The women's name cards had a hanging crystal...ooh, swanky eh!
There were close to a dozen beribboned roses encircling the centerpiece.
We noticed that the kids did not have a place card. Turns out that the kids and some teenagers got to be in their own private room with a tv in it. TC, of course, was pretty excited about being in this private space with her cousins. There were two tables set up for the "kids". They also got served hors d'oevres (shit, did I even spell that right?) in this room. I think they were watching "iCarly" or something.
Here's the view from the balcony...
which also had a nice fire pit...
One of the appetizers the caterers were offering were stuffed mushroom caps. The other (not pictured) was a rolled up cone thing filled with meat. I know my description sounds pretty crude and basic but that's what it was and it tasted good! I wish I had more of those cone things! That's my Bro in law's hand by the way.
Bert and I went over to the bruschetta serving station...
This was really good - I loved the bread because they were toasted quite nicely and had a slight garlic flavor to them. I only got two toasts but I really wanted six. Okay, ten. But I really only had two.
Aaaaand, here's the happy couple. She looked gorgeous with a sideswept half-updo with strategically placed tendrils of hair. She looked amazing and beautiful! Bert's cousin wore her same dress that she brought to Tahiti - look at those ruffles and feathers!!! Only a beautiful young'un like her could pull off that look!
Here's the back view...Oh to be young (and skinny) again!
My wedding dress has never been cleaned. What's the point - I'm never going to wear it again, it certainly doesn't fit me (I can't even pull it past my hips, no lie), and I definitely don't want TC to wear it when it's her time. My 1995 dress will be waaaay out of style by then and my daughter will probably want her own dress, not her mom's moldy ass dress!
But I digress...Whenever there's an open no host bar, we're there. Here's Bert's beer and my glass of Chardonnay, which surprisingly, I liked. It was probably unoaked because I was able to drink it without gagging and spraying the wine out like a crazy water sprinkler. Seriously, the wine was smooth and a welcome shot to my system. Hey, remember, we had the McRib earlier that afternoon? McSnack!
Salad was served first - spring greens with tomatoes, sliced granny smith apples, candied pecans, and balsamic dressing. Unfortunately, the salad already had dressing on it, so I picked at the dry parts.
Bert got the beef with mashed potatoes and vegetables. I don't remember what type of sauce was on the beef, but it was really delicious. Plus the meat was so soft and tender - melt in your mouth tender!
My entree was the Halibut with the same starch and sides. Turns out that the kids inside got the "adults" meal because ten kids who were sitting outside got the "kids" meal (Chicken Fingers with Fries). So it's a good thing TC got the "adults" meal, even though she couldn't finish it. Fried entree with fried sides specifically for kids seems de rigeur these days because there is the lame assumption that kids won't eat vegetables (unless it's a french fry) or non fried meat. We'd prefer that she be exposed to regular food and not shit deemed as "kid" food. Woe to those parents who cater to their kids' every whim and give them fast food, soda and shit all the time. Good luck with your monster, I say.
The reception included speeches by the father of the bride, the mother of the groom, as well as a slideshow of their wedding ceremony in Moorea. It was really cool because the groom was brought to the beach by an outrigger canoe with Tahitians in "full regalia". The scenery was just breathtaking - the footage shown in the video as well as the professional photographer's framed shots of them scattered in the reception area. Their dj was also pretty good - he played a lot of old school and mixed it up a bit too. I thought it was cool when he played some late 80's freestyle, the Covergirls, "Show Me", along with Color Me Badd's "I Wanna Sex You Up". Where's the Dan Band now? I kept thinking of the wedding reception in "The Hangover"!
Man, I haven't been to a wedding reception in ages; we, along with most of our friends got married in the mid to late 90's. Everything's more "modern" now with wedding/reception videos edited up until the very last moment instead of rickety slide show on a VHS tape. There was the bouquet toss as well as the garter toss (where of coure, the guys made a big show of NOT wanting to catch the garter).and then the cake cutting (there was a tiny cake on top of the cupcake display).
Guest got to serve themselves cupcakes if they wanted one. Here's ours:
It was a lovely reception and basically a reunion for Bert's side of the family. TC got to see her cousins on Bert's side and I got to chat with my SIL (the one who lives in the OC). We ended up leaving around 6:30 and made it home just in time to watch the new Simpsons Tree House of Horror TV Special!
We'll have to check out the eats Dana Point and neighboring Laguna Niguel next time.
