Red carpets are usually characterized by their lack of food. And even the moments leading up to the walk down the red carpet are limited to little bites and nibbles: celebrities in hotel room robes picking fruit off a room-service tray or sipping water through a straw on the way to the venue. It’s no wonder then, that once celebs made their way up the pink carpet steps of last night’s Met Gala, some might’ve scanned the venue for a sign of food. Luckily, they weren't let down.
According to a press release for the Costume Institute Benefit (AKA the Met Gala), shared on Man Repeller’s Instagram story, the sit-down dinner was catered by Olivier Cheng, one of the best caterers in New York City.
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The menu included appetizers consisting of baby shrimp toast with lemon, horseradish, and watermelon radishes; an asparagus tart with celery leaf pesto, and tomatoes stuffed with green goddess panna cotta. An entrée of filet of beef with beet horseradish crema was accompanied by a tomato rye tartlet, haricots verts in citrus balsamic garnished with orange flowers, braised rainbow carrots with thyme and a mascarpone potato purée.
As for wine, guests could choose between a 2017 Terre Nere Etna Bianco “Le Vigne Niche Calderara Sottanna,” and a 2015 Bruno Giacosa, Barbera d’Alba “Falletto.” In layperson’s terms: white or red.
The whimsy was reserved for dessert. Guests were served gianduja (chocolate hazelnut) cake at the table that as shown on Lili Reinhart's Instagram story, looks like a little blonde character holding its arms in the position of a tea pot. Flamingo cookies and espresso were served to guests as they left.
Minus the dessert, this is exactly the kind of menu you’d expect to see at a 71-year old museum benefit on the Upper East Side. But with a theme like camp and looks like those served by Billy Porter, Lady Gaga, and Hamish Bowles, you’d think the menu would be just as extravagant and over-the top. A camp-themed gala conjures images of towering cakes overflowing with frosting, a feast brimming with juicy fruit, rows of glossy hamburgers, and chalices overflowing with warm fries. But in the end, we think the red carpet looks served make up for the culinary dullness.
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Some celebrities came prepared to snack no matter what. For example, Tiffany Haddish confessed to People that last year, she was hungry all night because they didn’t serve enough food. So this year, she brought a Zip-loc bag full of chicken in her bag.
“Oh, you wanna see the chicken in my bag?,” she asked People. “When I’m hungry, my attitude’s not good. So I said: ‘Imma be prepared this year’.” She tapped her matching zebra print clutch and said, “So I brought chicken.”
“I don’t know if you know this,” she said tipping her hat, “but I got my own seasoning salt.”
Haddish said that her zebra-print suit gave off maximum “throwback Pimp-erella” vibes and that she felt like, “Patti LaBelle, but on some pimp stuff.” And if Patti LaBelle had graced the pink carpet last night, we think she would’ve brought with her one or two of her famous pies to share with starving celebrities.
By the time the after party rolled around, Katy Perry went from being the candelabra from Beauty and the Beast to dressing up as a literal hamburger. Considering how much celebs love eating burgers after red carpet events, the ensemble makes total sense.