New York: Lifestyle – Dinner At Home with Peter and Laurie

"Dinner parties are a venue for sharing discoveries and ideas in a warm personal and creative environment"

New York: Lifestyle – Dinner At Home with Peter and Laurie. French born New York based entrepreneur, Laurie Mallet and artist, designer and a serious collector, Peter Rittmaster graciously receive friends in their Chelsea loft. Their understated yet elegant lifestyle, which is more European than American, reflects their interests in the Arts. In fact the sophisticated couple are both at home in social and artistic circles on both sides of the “Pond”.

Above. Ozone Socks president and CEO, Laurie Mallet sports an antique Peruvian Sterling cuff and Peter’s latest necklace made from Tibetan beads. Twisting vocabularies, Peter Rittmaster’s wears the Classic Albert Slipper in blue velvet with silver barbed wire embroidery.

http://www.ozonesocks.com/

http://www.rittmasterart.com/

Dinner At Home with Peter and Laurie – Drinks

Spinach and Cheese Mousse - LesTrois Petits Cochons

Salmon Rillettes - Lobster place - Chelsea Market

Multicolor Biodynamic Carrots - Hawthorne Valley Farm

Mionetto Prosecco D.o.c.

The Loft. Though the loft is full of curious and interesting works of art it isn’t overcrowded.  The collections and works of art are beautifully displayed and render an elegant coziness and warmth to the room.  And wherever the eye rest one could spend hours. In fact, you can easily spot the couple at the New York Flea Market, or at the most glamorous auction houses and as this wasn’t enough, even on eBay, for Peter’s collecting vein is never saturated. 

The Collections: Antique Edge Weapons. Peter as a long time collector of antique edge weapons has turned his eye towards 1920 -1940 with these Sushi knives made by famous Japanese sword makers, artistically replacing the older damaged handles with his updated designs.

 

The Collections: Antique Edge Weapons. Peter's latest artworks are these Baby Blades, a series of knives with miniature babies on the handles composed entirely of hundreds of little plastic baby dolls. They sit on a table together with and antique Fourteenth Century Japanese Samurai helmet.

 

The Collections: Antique Edge Weapons. In the kitchen a collection of carbon steel chefs knives from 1890 Sabatier to modern Bob Kramer. Peter eschews stainless and all knives made after 1987 when recycled steel was introduced.

In the Kitchen. Laurie puts the finishing touches to an assortment of wild mushrooms from the Union Square Farmer’s Market.  Her mushrooms are lightly sauteed with organic red shallots and extra virgin olive oil and are served on an 1950’s black and white designed plate. Laurie sources the best and freshest ingredients and does hardly anything to them, the flavors speak for themselves.

 

The Menu

Wild Stripped Bass

Mushroom Casserole - Braised Endives - Nerone black Italian rice

American Artisanal Cheeses - Laurie's salad

Sarabeth 's Creme Brulee

The Table. Their dinner services and chargers needed a new twist, hence these amuzing Seletti Hybrid plates, the Sterling candlesticks are by Cartier and sit on the table together with crystal goblets. John Masheroni designed the table in the 1960s, the surface is in English Burl Wood, which is like the one used on the Rolls Royce dashboard. The cane-work chairs are, French Louis XVI.

 

 Wild Stripped Bass

Alaea - Sea Salt of Hawaii

 

Peter entertains guests with amusing stories and anecdotes at the table

 

The All AmericanCheese Plater

Bent River by Alemar Cheese

soft cow 's milk cheese in a Camembert style made in Minnesota

Rush creek Reserve by Upland Cheese Company

Raw milk Vacherin style cheese made in Wisconsin

Pleasant Ridge Reserve by Upland Cheese Company

Raw milk Alpine style cheese like Comte or Beaufort

To accompany Laurie's salad, all the American Cheeses are from "Lucy's Whey”  in the Chelsea Market and are served on a fifties ceramic painter’s palette.

Sarabeth 's Creme Brulee

Reptile Salad Plates - Anthropologie