In a setting that blended the club’s elegance with the feel of a Saint-Germain-des-Prés style celebration, FICS guests enjoyed bistro offerings and the opportunity to appreciate the 2008 Beaujolais Nouveau harvest, along with other wine selections and premium French vodka.
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Terrace umbrellas provided the feel of a Parisian bistro to Dupont Circle, home to The Washington Club. Adding to the atmosphere was live music from the
Burnett Thompson Jazz Quartet. |
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Patrick Moulet, the Chef de Cuisine at Georgetown’s La Chaumière restaurant, served cassoulet stew – a trademark dish in France’s southwest region. It was prepared with white lingo beans, canard confit, Toulouse sausage and braised lamb – topped with bread crumbs. The dish’s authenticity was ensured with the experienced touch of Moulet, who is a native from this area of France. |
Arthur Ringel, the Executive Chef of Washington, D.C.’s Napoleon Bistro and Café Bonaparte, readies his sausage offerings for the evening. The merguez grillés (grilled spicy lamb sausage) was prepared with fresh lamb, red chilies, garlic salt, black pepper, pork fat and a touch of beef as a binder – then stuffed in a lamb’s casing. After a multi-day aging process, the sausage was ready for its grilling to order at The Washington Club, and was served with Dijon mustard on toasted French baguette slices. The saucisse française de pays (French country sausage) was made with fresh pork and pork butt, seasoned with shallots, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, parsley, salt and pepper, then aged. It was served with whole grain mustard on baguette slices. |
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Other restaurants participating in the FICS’ Beaujolais Nouveau evening were the Bistrot Lepic restaurant and wine bar, which provided a selection of braised beef, purple mashed potatoes and rice; and Pesce Restaurant, serving a seafood salad composed of shrimp, squid and calamari that was prepared under the guidance of Executive Chef Arnaud Perreau. Adding to the event’s gastronomic tour was seared salmon & braised cabbage from Frank Simu, Chef de Cuisine of The Washington Club — who also prepared a full buffet of French bistro specialties for the celebration. |
Hugh Cossard, owner of Food Expression in Burtonsville, Maryland, samples the onion and bacon tart provided by the Michel Richard Citronelle restaurant. Cossard’s Food Expression is a marketing consultancy that provides a broad range of services to organizations in the food industry, including market analysis and strategy, merchandising strategy, domestic/international food trading, buying and exporting. |
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Zina Mashin, the President of Maryland-based importer Emperor’s Brand, provided premium French vodka for the FICS event, which was served straight up and offered in trendy cocktails. Her selection included Winter Palace vodka, shown in this photo, which is made of 100 percent pure grain wheat grown in northern France. It uses water from a source in France’s Cognac area, and is distilled six times for high purity. |
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Local pianist Burnett Thompson brought together an international quartet for an eclectic evening of jazz and tango. He was joined by violinist Emily Leader, Argentinean Bandoneonist Juan Pablo Jofre Romarion, and bassist Eric Wheeler. |
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