Host Phillip Thomas asked chef Taylor Alonso, from the local restaurant the Bellport, to prepare two different paellas for his guests. The seafood version is topped with squid-ink rice.
Lunch was served on the screened-in porch overlooking Bellport Bay.
Guests sipped on pisco sours while mingling in the garden.
The host Phillip Thomas on the porch.
Radley, a chocolate Labrador Retriever, joined in on the fun.
Sava and Roger Thomas, Phillip’s parents, pose in front of their prized roses.
Home-furnishings dealer Dennis Miller and Studium president David Meitus flank Thomas’s childhood friend Jaime Foster Lee.
Thomas commissioned calligrapher Rory Kotin to create splatter-paint invitations. “I love the spontaneity of the pattern and how you can see the artist’s hand,” he says.
Kotin also created menu cards for the appetizers.
Baked escargots on artichoke hearts was an appetizer.
Jamón serrano–wrapped melon was an appetizer.
Zucchini pizzetta with Asiago cheese was an appetizer.
Guests then moved to the table for the first course, gazpacho. “What’s better than a nice chilled soup in the summer?” says Thomas. “It’s the perfect way to kick off a meal.”
Phillip Thomas, Jaime Foster Lee, Roger Thomas, Milan Hughston, and Michael Foster converse at one end of the table.
One of the paellas was made with chicken and chorizo.
The chef presented a salad course with a variety of New York State cheeses.
For dessert, guests devoured mango flan topped with chocolate and caramel. Thomas sourced the stoneware plates, bowls, platters, and cups from Can Saló, a small shop he recently discovered in Cadaqués, Spain. “I purchased a variety of dishware that are all different, but complement one another,” he says. “It’s my new favorite store!”
The lunch was a worldly affair, but the location was all-American.
