The Soirée des Grands Philanthropes by Portage

The Soirée des Grands Philanthropes, produced by Portage & nominated for “18th Soirée des Grands Philanthropes. Tribute to Alain Lemaire and Robert Tessier,” was an opportunity to pay tribute to outstanding individuals from Quebec’s business community. 

For the 2nd year in a row, Portage had to reinvent the concept by adding a hybrid component. Honoured personalities, members of the Honorary Committee, and guest artists, onsite at the Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth Hotel, were able to share, via a Live Broadcast, the official part of the evening with 700 participants who enjoyed their gourmet dinner from the comfort of their home.

The room at the Fairmont, The Queen Elizabeth Hotel, was transformed into an elegant, refined venue with splendid floral arrangements, creating an elegant and warm atmosphere for those attending the onsite portion of this event, but it’s the menu & the creative solution to providing a gourmet experience at home that stood out for me.

The menu created by chefs Maxime Delmont & Baptiste Peupion (Chef at the Rosélys and Executive Chef at the Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth, respectively) was truly a highlight & included;

• Organic Pacific Salmon, semi-cooked, citrus sauce with Galangal.
  Golden beet terrine, herb butter, candied tomatoes, tayberry purée, roasted pine nut crumble.
•  Roasted Boileau venison, quinces, braised parsley roots & carrots, Grenville fondant potatoes, Gai Lan cabbage, cubeb jus, squash purée Le Pizy cheese loaf, pear chutney with honey, spices, rusks.
•  Fig & grape tarte Tatin with honey & Kaos apple-chocolate, calvados, caramel crisp, fleur de sel.

This year, coordinating the delivery of 700 dinners across the province proved the biggest challenge. Fairmont, The Château Frontenac, delivered 70 dinners in the Quebec City Area, & Fairmont, The Queen Elizabeth’s catering service, delivered 630 dinners in the Greater Montreal Area, all within 6 hours on the day of the event.

The refrigerated boxes, sponsored by CASCADES, were custom-made for the event.

The 5-course gourmet dinner was already presented for service on provided dinner plates. The box set-up was designed so the plates would not move during delivery. The team offered a ready-to-serve concept to ensure that at-home participants could follow the live broadcast without the hassle of preparing dinner. Only the main course, served with its delicious sauce, required fifteen minutes in the oven.

Congrats to everyone who helped make this event a great success, & good luck at the Canadian Event Awards Gala from  Liberty Grand Entertainment Complex on Sept 28, 2022. The CEA Gala is the last event of CSE Live 2022, EventFest, Canada’s premier event for Canadian event professionals and can be found here.

Get your tickets now at CSElive.ca.