Hospitality experts organised a night in a museum event to showcase one of the Scotland’s public gems as a venue for private events.
Prestige Scotland, a division of Sodexo Prestige, working in partnership with the National Museum of Scotland, invited guests from the corporate events sector to the evening, the first time the pair have hosted such an experience for industry professionals.
The 35 hand picked guests normally spend their time organizing high profile events, but instead were treated to a view from the other side. As well as enjoying a behind the scenes tour of the museum’s wealth of treasures.
They also enjoyed an a la carte meal, designed to show the museum’s potential as a venue for conferences, awards ceremonies, gala dinners and private parties, with a capacity of up to 1000 diners.
Stunning Backdrop to Match the Cuisine
The historic building – which reopened in 2011 after a £47m restoration – provides a stunning backdrop. Diners enjoyed a three course meal created by talented chef Tom Beauchamp, who recently joined Sodexo Prestige from Michelin Starred restaurant, Andrew Fairlie at Gleneagles.
He created an elaborate menu inspired by the banquet served at the first Oscar Academy Awards ceremony in 1929.
Tom said: “My inspiration really derived from the venue itself, as it has been used to host an array of spectacular award ceremonies.
“Given the clientele in attendance I wanted to ensure that we provided them with a dining experience in line with the magnificent surroundings of the National Museum of Scotland
“I found the menu from the first ever Oscar Award ceremonies in 1929 which I used as a basis for my menu, while bringing it into the 21st century by incorporating my own contemporary twist.”
Modernizing Classic Dishes
The original Academy awards menu consisted of eight courses, one of which included a simple salad of lettuce and tomatoes with French dressing.
Tom’s modern take on this dish incorporated the behind the scene’s tour and guests were invited to watch the kitchen team preparing their amuse bouche/hors d’oeuvre, consisting of a variety of garden salad flavoured liquid shots; Little Gem Espuma, Tomato and Lemon Fondue, Mustard Seed Crumble and Isle of Arran Rape Seed Oil.
The museum is open to the public daily until 5pm and many industry professionals were cautious of time constraints this may pose when hosting an event at the museum. The event demonstrated how the venue was prepared and ready to host a pre-drinks reception by 6.30pm. The Sodexo Prestige team was delighted with the positive feedback from attendees.
Lindsay Brown, Marketing Manager at Visit Scotland said: “It was a thoroughly enjoyable night from start to finish and it was fantastic to see the twists put on the theme.
“To gain inside knowledge of what occurs behind the scenes was enlightening and the professional set up proved for seamless delivery of a very successful evening.
“It was inspiring to be able to go behind the scenes and watch the professionals in action, being served the amuse bouche in the kitchen was delightful.
“The menu itself was creative, appetising and visually appealing, my compliments to the chef.”
World Class Venue
With its spectacular Victorian Grand Gallery, the National Museum of Scotland is no stranger to major awards ceremonies and high-profile gala dinners. However, the building offers a selection of venue options and can host a wide range of events from intimate gatherings to exhibitions and conferences. The array of rooms to choose from includes the Grand Gallery and Entrance Hall, Auditorium, the Hawthornden Court and Kingdom of the Scots.
Prestige Scotland is the corporate dining, hospitality and events division of Sodexo Prestige and partners with 17 top class venues in Scotland – and 50 across the UK – including The National Museum of Scotland.
Other partners include Hampden Park Stadium, the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, HamiltonPark and Perth Racecourses. Prestige Scotland also provides catering for The Open Championship, one of the world’s biggest golfing events.
