Dinner for the Waleses

White House Photo

Amidst all the excitement this week about Halloween and church services, I forgot to mention that the President and Mrs. Bush had some foreign relatives in to lunch and later to dinner on Wednesday. The President's cousin from England, HRH The Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, was in town to show off his new wife, HRH Camilla, Princess of Wales (but for public relations purposes currently going by her subsidiary title, Duchess of Cornwall).

My efforts to pull strings and call in favors were to no avail in getting an invitation to the black tie dinner at the White House, or even to the larger group invited to the "after dinner entertainment." The Bushes have had so few state and formal dinners, there are just too many major contributors waiting in line for tickets to such things, and poor little me didn't have a chance, especially since they only had 100 guests.

So, for those of us who missed the dinner party, here's what we missed:


Dinner Menu in Honor of Their Royal Highnesses
The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall


Celery Broth with Crispy Rock Shrimp
Newton Chardonnay "Unfiltered" 2002

Medallions of Buffalo Tenderloin
Roasted Corn
Wild Rice Pancakes
Glazed Parsnips and Young Carrots
Peter Michael Pinot Noir "Le Moulin Rouge" 2002

Mint Romaine Lettuce with Blood Orange Vinaigrette

Vermont Camembert Cheese and Spiced Walnuts

Petits Fours Cake
Chartreuse Ice Cream Red and Green Grape Sauce
Iron Horse "Wedding Cuvée" 2002

Reports are that the tables were set in gold silk cloths each decorated with large white phaeleanopsis orchids with camelia leaves. They used the Clinton china (that gaudy stuff Hillary picked out with the wide gold borders and the gold picture of the White House in the center).

I get the impression that Yo Yo Ma must be a Republican, because once again he was called upon by the President to play his cello after dinner, along with pianist Kathryn Scott.

It was a fairly low-key event for a black tie White House dinner, and there's been virtually no news coverage here in the District. I'm told Mrs. Bush looked lovely in her lacy, off-the-shoulder, satiny-looking red dress with a stunning antique garnet necklace, though some of my more acerbic friends thought she looked a little old-fashioned with the bows on the dress. The Princess wore a long, deep sapphire skirt with a matching velvet jacket trimmed in irridescent blue bugle beads and a diamond drop necklace I'm told is worth over £400,000 (that's about $700,000 American). My friends were disappointed that she didn't wear a tiara. She must be in a blue mood, cause she wore a blue suit to the luncheon that day, too.

So, I guess it's time to put my tuxedo back in the closet.