Apero'lympics: a party/game in Paris

It's a perfect 10 from Sophie Guiton!

Hello! Hello!

It’s still party time over here at xoxo Dorie headquarters. Last week it was a tea-sandwich party — if you didn’t get a chance to see the glorious spread that Mary Dodd arranged in her garden, jump over now: It will make your heart sing. This week, it’s an Olympic-watch party. It’s an apéro dinatoire and it’s one of my favorite ways to share a meal with friends.

An apéro dinatoire by any other name is … girl dinner, dips for dinner, an indoor picnic (it’s what I always call it), “heavy” hors d’oeuvres or, to use a word I don’t hear much anymore, a buffet. Except it’s French. It’s a mash-up of aperitif and dinner, a way to have friends over without fussing

Not that the New York Times didn’t fuss and make a spectacular spread for my story, How to Eat Like You’re in Paris for the 2024 Olympics (gift link). 

nytcooking

A post shared by @nytcooking

And not that my friend Sophie Guiton didn’t go for the gold — and nab it — with her Olympics party. I’ve got another edition coming to you in a couple of days — think of it as Part Deux — with simple ideas and recipes for hosting an apéro dinatoire for the Olympics or just because it’s a Monday, but I wanted you to see Sophie’s party as soon as possible. It’s just so wonderful.

Tout le monde a bien joué le jeu!

— Sophie Guiton

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She’s Got Game

I met Sophie in Paris a few years ago and I fell in love with her immediately: Who wouldn’t love someone who’s smart, funny and has an incandescent smile. Now I love her even more because she is such a clever host. When Sophie and her boyfriend Augustin decided to throw a party to celebrate the opening of the Paris Olympic Games, they captured the international spirit of the games and invited each of their friends to bring a dish from a different country. There was a “sign up and declare your country” spreadsheet. There was a name for the party — the Apero’lympics — and a logo and a special drink: Aperolympics Spritz.

As a good host, Sophie held back on choosing a country and a dish until she saw what her friends had picked. That the country she was born in was still up for grabs meant that Sophie repped TEAM USA. A conspiracy among friends? A happy coincidence? No matter — the party needed chocolate chip cookies. Really, doesn’t every party?

Sophie!

Here’s the menu from the party:

• 🇺🇸 USA: Mac & cheese / chocolate chip cookies

• 🇵🇹 Portugal: Apple with sardines, lemon and orange zest / vinho verde wine

• 🇬🇷 Greece: Horiatiki (Greek salad)

• 🇫🇷 France : Assortment of fromages, saucisson, baguette

• 🇱🇧 Lebanon: Hummus, baba ganoush, pita bread

• 🇹🇷 Turkey: Borek (spinach and cheese)

• 🇰🇷 Korea: Kimbap / soju

• 🇯🇵 Japan: Mitarashi dango (sweet rice dumplings)

• 🇲🇽 Mexico: Guacamole, chips

• 🇮🇳 India: Samossa

• 🇩🇪 Germany: Potato salad / herb butter, bread

• 🇮🇹 Italy: Burrata, assortment of hard cheeses and cured meats

• 🇮🇷 Iran: Fesenjan (pomegranate and walnut stew with seitan)

I know, I know — we all wish we’d been there.

And since the fête and the feast were for the Games, there were prizes for the best dishes — medals, too.

And the winners were …

• 🥇 Gold / champagne: Korea (kimbap)

• 🥈 Silver / wine: Iran (fesenjan)

• 🥉 Bronze / beer: Turkey (borek)

Apero’lympics podium

The morning after Sophie wrote to say:

The soirée was a big success! I was thrilled by how invested everyone was. In French, I would say “tout le monde a bien joué le jeu.” (Everyone played the game well.) It was a real culinary voyage and we had a very copious buffet. I could have organized a second competition to see who had the most creative ways to spice up leftovers.

Leftovers! A.k.a. the after-party.

Thank you, thank you and merci, Sophie, for sharing all of this with us. You get my vote for the gold!

Next up, ideas for an easy apéro dinatoire for us ordinary mortals. I’ll see you back here later in the week for that. In the meantime, you can find me watching Céline Dion sing Edith Piaf’s “Hymn to Love” from the Eiffel Tower again.

Question: If you’d been lucky enough to be invited to Sophie and Augustin’s party, what country would you have chosen? What dish would you have brought?

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