Anna Wintour is notoriously specific about what she will and will not eat. And she makes that well known even at the Met Gala.
During the biggest night in fashion, three items will never appear at dinner: garlic, onions, and chives, the New York Post reported on Tuesday. So while celebs dined on an impressive menu Monday evening, it didn’t include those alliums.
“Those are three things I’m not particularly fond of,” Wintour told the Today show on Monday.
While the Vogue editor in chief didn’t expand on why she banned the three ingredients, some have hypothesized that it’s simply personal preference. She’s similarly banned parsley in the past, the Post noted, because it can get stuck in people’s teeth. And bruschetta is also a no-no, because it’s messy and could potentially ruin a guest’s outfit.
“She doesn’t want the food to affect the breath of the celebrity guests. Also, there are several people that are actually allergic to the allium family of bulbous plants, which is rare but possible,” Josh Jackson, the executive chef of Great Taste Catering in Los Angeles, told Parade about the ban on garlic, onions, and chives. “But that’s maybe a stretch … The real reason must be she doesn’t want to see chives in the guests’ teeth. It’s understandable.”
So what did A-listers eat on Monday night? The menu was devised by the caterer Olivier Cheng with nods to the Met’s exhibition “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion.” The dishes were inspired by fairytales like Sleeping Beauty, with an emphasis on romance and the ethereal, Cheng told Vogue ahead of the event.
The first course was a spring vegetable salad with elderflower foam, raspberry vinaigrette, olive crumble, and butterfly-shaped croutons. That was followed by a main course of filet of beef topped with a tortellini rose. And dessert was a take on the poison apple from Snow White, although nobody had to worry about ill side effects: Almond cremeux was shaped into a miniature apple then covered in a red mirror glaze, with the whole thing placed on a walnut-flavored “leaf.”
It sounds like a culinary spectacle that fit right in alongside the extravagant gowns, impressive watches, and jaw-dropping jewelry on display last night. A feast fit for a queen, king, or princess even.
Culinary Masters 2024
Don’t miss the food event of the year. Register for Robb Report’s Culinary Masters now. Or, for more information on Robb Report experiences, visit RR1.
