Dinner at the Arboretum - Superb Christmas Gift

For Christmas, we received tickets to a "Garden to Table - Chinese New Year with Imoto" dinner at the Dallas Arboretum and the night has arrived.  Upon our arrival at the Arboretum, we are directed by signs to an Event Parking area that allows us to walk directly into the "Tasting Room" and bypass the entrance entirely.  Greeted at the door by servers clad in black, a white sangria is placed into our hands.  There is a long table to one side of the room and it is beautifully decorated.

A quick walk over for a closer look-see while Mister holds my drink and talks with other guests.  I LOVE the decor and the menu looks wonderful.  With it being the year of the Rat, I decide to look up some information on the entire process and discover that it is their version of the zodiac.  Instead of the signs we are all familiar with, they use simple animals.  This year, the Rat - which is the first of all zodiac animals.  According to one myth, the Jade Emperor said the order would be decided by the order in which they arrived to his party.  The Rat tricked the Ox into giving him a ride.  Then, just as they arrived at the finish line, Rat jumped down and landed ahead of Ox, becoming first.  In the terms of yin and yang, the Rat is yang and represents the beginning of a new day.  In Chinese culture, rats were seen as a sign of wealth and surplus.  Because of the reproduction rate, married couples also prayed to them for children.  They are also seen as clever, quick thinkers; successful, but content with living a quiet and peaceful life.

We just barely missed the opportunity to take pictures of an amazing sunset.  It was happening as we drove here and was drop dead gorgeous.  The twilight stage has hit and I step outside for a couple of pictures in the garden.

The pre-dinner chat comes to an end and we are asked to take our seats as the doors to the kitchen demo area open.  Kent Rathbun takes center stage and shares his story and some information about his new restaurant, Imoto. 

He then talks a bit about tonight's dinner and begins a demonstration on making dumplings.  When he finishes, he asks if anyone would like to try and make one and my hand shoots up sooooo quick.  Up I go and have the chance to visit with him for a bit and learn how to make a dumpling.  They are not near as hard as I set myself up to believe and perhaps these will make an appearance in our home sometime soon.  They really are pretty easy to do and I love them steamed.

Our night continues with more demonstrations, but I refrain and give others a chance to learn too.  During the entree, beer is served and I just had to take a picture of the bottle.  There is a 3D Buddha formed on the bottle.  Very fun.

All of the food is wonderful, BUT this dessert is simply divine.  So, so good.

I can't believe how quick the night went, but Kent stayed the entire time and talked with us, answering tons of questions about the industry as a whole.  What an all-together excellent evening.  A quick chance to visit one on and one and they good-bye.  Loved it all.