Just after walking into the grand opening party for Brasserie Margot at the Four Seasons Atlanta — hosted by General Manager Nancy Chacron and featuring DJ Salah Ananse and bespoke sketches by Stephanie Gentry — I had a glass of champagne and an assignment.
“Would you join our host committee?” asked Fashionista Camp founder Marian Goldberg, active with Dress for Success Atlanta and the Alma Domestic Violence Foundation.
The consummate connector is not shy about drumming up support in that quintessential Atlanta way, and the launch of Brasserie Margot felt quintessentially Atlanta, in the friendships rekindled and new ones begun.
While enjoying bites from Executive Chef Jon Novak and treats from Pastry Chef Eric Snow, the guests at the January party — including members of Atlanta’s diverse and dynamic arts, business, cultural and creative communities — also enjoyed one another.
Credit: Kimberly Evans
Credit: Kimberly Evans
Channel 2 Action News anchor Karyn Greer was among them, as was Philip Rafshoon. He’s the Midtown Alliance’s director of member engagement; we met when he ran Outwrite Bookstore & Coffeehouse, which closed in 2012.
Drew Brown was there. We met when he was with Atlanta Peach Magazine; he’s now senior director of visual media at SCAD Atlanta and hinted at the celebrity SCAD might score as this spring’s commencement guest.
Meals on Wheels Atlanta CEO Charlene Crusoe-Ingram, caterer Sean O’Keefe and med spa visionary Otto John Stupka also were among the guests, as was publicist Meg Reggie, whose clients include Georgia Skin Specialists.
Credit: Kimberly Evans
Credit: Kimberly Evans
“It seems like yesterday that you passed the heated pool full of scantily clad mermaids in freezing temps and made your way into the eight-car garage, past the Atlanta Falcons QB and near the dance floor of this hip hopper’s house and said, ‘Hello, I’m Jennifer,’” she told me in a note afterward.
True. All true.
The evening unfolded in that unmistakably Atlanta way: a cozy blend of old and new. Guests delighted in French onion soup tartlets, steak bites with peppercorn, mini cones of tuna tartare, deconstructed beef bourguignon and crepes. The bar made cocktails while servers circulated with red, white, bubbles and Brasserie Margot’s custom Bière, a collaboration with New Realm Brewing Co. The spot feels like an exquisite jewelry box, with delicate lighting and sumptuous furnishings enhancing the experience.
After an evening celebrating the past and future (for a time I shared a table with Lisa Rayner, whose memoir, “Shelf Life of a Trophy Wife,” is due out this spring, and the affianced April Milliken and Josh Bearden), I stopped at the “post office.”
A table festooned with Brasserie Margot matches featured a mini mailbox and signature stationery; guests were invited to pen a note to whomever. I sat right down and wrote myself a letter, so I would remember the joy of an evening spent with friends I’ve known forever in this gorgeous new place.
It was a love letter to Atlanta itself.
Credit: Kimberly Evans
Credit: Kimberly Evans
Deputy Managing Editor Jennifer Brett has worked at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution for 27 years; one of her past roles included reporting on celebrities and entertainment.
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