Weekend Special - Jacqueline Cambata Designs

GREAT GATHERINGS
Weekend Special
DESIGNER MELANIE TURNER KNOWS HOW TO WOW
GUESTS WITH ELEGANCE, AMBIENCE, AND MEMORIES
WRITTEN BY KRISSA ROSSBUND
P H OTO G R A P H Y BY E M I LY J E N K I N S FO L LOW I L L A N D P ET E R K R U M H A R DT
PRODUCED BY LISA MOWRY
M
ark your calendar for Saturday night. Any Saturday
night. Atlanta-based Melanie Turner is hosting dinner.
She started this weekly routine a few years back when
she developed a template—same time, same place,
same menu, different people—that enables her to entertain in her city
home as much as she does at the beach. And when it was time to flaunt
her design talents at the Atlanta Symphony Decorators’ Showhouse,
she aptly re-created one of her schemes in the dining room.
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February+March 2015 T
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GREAT GATHERINGS
Get the Look
We assembled variations on
Melanie Turner’s table scheme to give
you options that are equally stylish.
“Monaco” reverse-painted glass charger from
10 Strawberry Street (tenstrawberrystreet.com)
“My dinners are about people, not the
elements,” the designer says. “I purposely
invite guests who don’t know each other so
I can make introductions. Even though so
much about each dinner is the same, the
guests always provide a new experience.”
With perfectly square proportions, the
dining room needed something to soften its
hard corners. Melanie selected a round
table to lend a visual cushion, and used two
layers of fabric to cover it—a linen underlay
and a quilty, ivory-colored topper. Porcelain
dinnerware from Melanie’s grandmother is
embellished with delicate gold flowers and
anchored by gold-plated chargers that echo
the scalloped edges of the plates. Brass candlesticks mingle around a moss-filled bowl.
“We have dining rooms, and they should
be used,” Melanie says. “It’s what connects
us as humans. The key is not to overthink.”
For more information, see sources on page 118
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February+March 2015
“Flourish” bisque dinnerware in white from
Jacqueline Cambata (cambatadesigns.com)
“Vetro Gold” footed fruit bowl from Arte Italica
through Replacements (replacements.com)
Practical pleather cushions on fully upholstered
dining chairs with casters lead to long,
comfortable conversations. “When one person
leaves the table, the magic of the conversation
is broken,” says designer Melanie Turner.
Covered in tulle for a party-ready ambience,
the “Adriana” crystal chandelier from Ralph
Lauren Home sparkles in the round mirror
above the fireplace. A soft palette of taupe,
ivory, pale pink, and green emerges from
paneling that is original to the 1923 house.
The round mirror is by Formations.
GREAT GATHERINGS
Menu
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Quinoa Salad with
Toasted Pine Nuts
and Preserved Lemon
Grilled Herb-Stuffed
Filet Mignon
Eggplant and
Feta Casserole
Baklava with
Honey Yogurt
Grilled Herb-Stuffed
Filet Mignon
Recipe by Chef Pano Karatassos of Kyma in Atlanta
(buckheadrestaurants.com/kyma)
Steak For a savory trio,
serve the filet mignon
with Eggplant and Feta
Casserole (recipe at
traditionalhome.com)
and a side of cherry
tomatoes charred on
the grill in a grill pan.
Salad Preserved lemons
add a sprightly, salty
note to this quinoa salad.
Multicolored quinoa adds
visual interest.
Wall panels Mural panels
depicting architecture
along the shores of the
Mediterranean were
hand-painted when the
1923 house was built, and
left in place as part of the
showhouse decoration.
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February+March 2015
6 (6-ounce) beef tenderloin steaks, about
1½ inches thick
8 tablespoons butter, softened
4 teaspoons finely chopped fresh parsley
4 teaspoons snipped fresh tarragon
4 teaspoons snipped fresh chives
1 clove garlic, minced
½ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Fresh snipped rosemary sprigs (optional)
Make a pocket in each steak by cutting
horizontally almost to opposite side.
In small bowl combine butter, parsley,
tarragon, chive, garlic, ½ teaspoon salt, and
¼ teaspoon pepper. Spoon butter mixture into
pastry bag fitted with large round tip. Pipe
mixture into pockets.
Season steaks with salt and pepper. For gas
or charcoal grill, place steaks on grill rack directly
over medium heat. Cover; grill 8 to 12 minutes
for medium-rare doneness, turning once.
Garnish with rosemary. Makes 6 servings.
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FOR ALL THE RECIPES IN THIS MENU, GO TO TRADITIONALHOME.COM/RECIPES