Photo courtesy Diner en Blanc - Richmond via Facebook
Nearly 30 years ago in France, long before there were flash mobs, there was a little thing called Dîner en Blanc. A seemingly spontaneous gathering of friends, all dressed in white, suddenly descending on a select spot, kept secret until the last minute, to break bread and share a drink.
It was these gatherings, covered in travel and food magazines, that caught the eye of Dîner en Blanc Richmond co-host and organizer Ayana Obika.
“I always loved themed parties where people dressed up, and [I] am obsessed with the spontaneity of flash mobs,” she says. “Arriving and then disappearing suddenly.”
Richmond, with its love of festivals and food, would be perfect for this, she decided. She watched these parties for eight years as they grew in popularity.
Initially small gatherings, the dinners have exploded into a phenomenon spanning the globe. The Paris event now regularly attracts more than 10,000 white-clad participants, while cities such as Washington, D.C., have a waiting list of more than 13,000 eager to join.
Yes, there’s a rub: You can’t just show up. You need to be invited. Without a direct invite, you wait. To participate in New York’s Dîner en Blanc, some have waited for the call for years and continue to wait.
A first-year event, such as the one in Richmond, is a little different. Sure, it still helps to get invited, but going to the Richmond website and joining the “waiting list” doesn't mean you’ll necessarily stay there. The odds are heavily in your favor that you’ll score a spot (two, actually, as everyone comes as a couple) on one of the 15 buses that will leave from various spots around the city on Aug. 5. As a bonus, once you’ve secured your spot ($35 plus a $9 membership fee per person), you can invite another couple to join you next year.
The result, according to another co-host, Christine Wansleben, is “part picnic, part art exhibition,” with the crowd coming together for fellowship and a gourmet meal at the secret location.
For the food, well, along with your chairs and table, you can bring your own, or you can order ahead and have snacks provided by Belmont Butchery or drinks from Shoe Crazy Wine. Either way, this visually stunning inaugural event should prove to be a major summer event.
And yes, wearing white is de rigueur. Not cream. Not ivory.
