Special Events

PRIVATE PARTY: PRIVATE CLUBS STRIKE A DELICATE BALANCE BETWEEN ACCESS AND EXCLUSIVITY

BY LISA HURLEY

THE BOCA LAGO Country Club, in Boca Raton, Fla., has just launched an advertising campaign designed to boost outside event business. But the club is treading carefully ...

SITE LINES: MIND YOUR MANORS

More stately mansions make superb event sites.

The Flood Mansion, commissioned in 1915 by James Leary Flood — son of silver baron James C. Flood — and designed by architectural firm ...

SITE LINES: ISLANDS ON THE SCENE

Running away to an island resort has tremendous appeal. Here are three appealing options: The Ritz-Carlton Kapalua, Hawaii; Kiawah Island Golf Resort, South Carolina; and The Aerie Resort, British Columbia.

FOOD FOR FETES: BEACHY MENUS ARE A SHORE THING

BY LISA HURLEY

A BASH AT THE beach is always fun. And as this month's column shows, you don't need a real beach to throw a beach party. The Balboa Bay Club & Resort, a 132-room hotel and private club located on the water in Newport Beach, Calif., plays to its strength — a private beach — with its clambake menu.

SITE LINES: PARTY GARDENS FOR GARDEN PARTIES

Elegant gardens--Descanso Gardens in Los Angeles; the William Paca House and Garden, Annapolis; and the American Horticultural Society at George Washington's River Farm, Alexandria, Va.--give events a breath of fresh air....

SITE LINES: ALL THE WORLD'S A STAGE FOR SPECIAL EVENTS

Events take stage at the Orpheum Theatre, Los Angeles; New York State Theater at Lincoln Center; and the Saenger Theatre, New Orleans. Go a little theatrical with these dramatic event venues, each offering style to leave your guests star-struck.

FOOD FOR FETES: BOFFO BUFFETS AT TAVERN ON THE GREEN

BY LISA HURLEY

FROM ITS DEBUT in 1934 through its $10 million face lift in 1976 under legendary restaurant impresario Warner LeRoy, Tavern on the Green remains a long-running hit in Manhattan. Even the trend-chasers of the Zagat Guide label Tavern on the Green “possibly the city's best site for a large party.”

SITE LINES: NEW VENUES IN NEW YORK

Recently opened New York hotels offer a range of exciting event venues. Here we profile the Ritz-Carlton New York in Battery Park; the Westin New York at Times Square; and the Hudson, in the nifty fifties....

GUEST ROOM: JILL CROSS, BEVERLY HILTON HOTEL

Jill Cross

WHEN SHE LAUNCHED her career in hotel catering 17 years ago, Jill Cross had one aim: to be catering director of the Waldorf-Astoria in New York or the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, Calif. The West Coast won when she joined the Beverly Hilton team in 1997. Here, she shares secrets of her special event success.

The HOTEL Special Event Marketplace

EDITED BY LISA HURLEY

EXOTIC VENUES ARE exciting, but for a dependable venue offering every event amenity, it's hard to beat a hotel. Yet there is little hard data on the significance...