Spring Dinner Party: Cinco de Mayo at Gracias Madre

Last week, Jenni Kayne and I invited a handful of ladies to join us for an early evening Cinco de Mayo dinner at Gracias Madre. Jenni, the LA-based fashion designer and tastemaker, suggested we join forces and unite LA in Bloom and her site Rip&Tan for a night of gorgeousness. With their extensive menu of killer margaritas and vacation-like vibes, we settled on the vegan Mexican restaurant Gracias Madre for the setting. For flowers, we called upon Hollyflora who created tropical-inspired arrangements in shades of coral and fuchsia, with trails of fern and variegated green leaves. For linens, we covered the long table with my Green and Pink Striped Tablecloth and used our Striped Tea Towels as napkins. Dinner was served family style and included Hearts of Palm “Crab Cakes”
, Quinoa & Black Eyed Pea Salad and Sopes. And in an effort to take it all to the next level, we got our very on LA in Bloom x Rip&Tan custom cocktail. See below for recipe…

Sparkling Dry Cucumber Lime Agua Fresca By Jason Eisner at Gracias Madre

Ingredients For the Sparkling Dry Cucumber Lime Agua Fresca:
1 Large Cucumber
6 cups water
1/3 Cup Lime Juice
3 oz Agave Nectar
1 Pinch Salt
2 Dashes Lime Bitters

Directions: Rinse the Cucumber well and leave the skin on. Chop the Cucumber up into pieces and add all ingredients to a VitaMix. Blend well. Using a fine mesh sieve, strain into a pitcher. Add to any carbonation machine, and carbonate.

How to Build The Cocktail:
Add 1.5 oz Tequila Blanco to a shaker with a tiny bit of crushed ice. Shake and strain into a single rocks glass. Add fresh crushed ice, and a spear of fresh cucumber dipped in lime juice and sparkled with sea salt and chili to taste.