Imagine being invited to the best dress-up party ever--with really great food.
It's every girl's dream, and last weekend, restaurateur and fashion aficionada Elizabeth An and couture curator Christos Garkinos of DecadesTwo.1 made it real for a glittering group of invited guests from across Orange County society, who gathered for a sumptuous feast and fashion show at An's South Coast Plaza restaurant, AnQi.
An, whose family owns Crustacean restaurant in Beverly Hills, has long nurtured the belief that beautiful clothes and great food are complimentary. So, when Bloomingdale's asked her to put a version of her family's successful pan-Asian dining destination in their major OC store, she decided to make her new restaurant a place for fashion alongside the food by installing a full-scale runway.
"I've always believed that food and fashion go together," said An, who owned a clothing boutique in San Francisco for a time. "There's something for all the senses: Great music, beautiful clothes and food."
For her premiere event this fall, An invited Garkinos -- know for his connections to the closets of Hollywood's rich and famous -- to show his stunning designer clothes. HauteLook joined as a sponsor.
Garkinos stood proudly by the side of the runway Friday as a beautifully turned-out audience exclaimed over the designer glitz making its way past as they dined elegantly on Asian-inflected seafood. Afterward, Garkinos -- whose DecadesTwo.1 store is not only LA's premier high-end resale shop, but also a destination in its own right -- threw open a pop-up store inside AnQi for two days of fantasy-fulfilling shopping. (Actresses Selma Blair and Tracee Ellis Ross came down from Los Angeles to browse and dine.)
There was an element of pure delight in seeing two of the hottest contemporary trends--pan-Asian cuisine and pop-up stores--brought together in a beautiful setting. The real joy, though, was in an experience any girl would treasure--being invited over to your best friend's and finding that her dress-up chest was overflowing with designer glitter.
Images provided by Elizabeth An.
Follow Tina Daunt on Twitter: www.twitter.com/englishmuse
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