At Wilder, dinner is served with a side of literary exploration.
The popular Rittenhouse restaurant is hosting a quarterly book dinner series where acclaimed authors like Jo Piazza, Liz Moore, and Emma Copley Eisenberg join guests for an intimate evening of food, drinks, and conversation.
The diverse menu, prepared by Executive Chef Ryan LaFrance and Beverage Manager Tom Brander, is inspired by the featured books, and the ticketed dinners include a moderated conversation with notable authors, open Q+A, and a five-course dinner.
The book dinner series was the brainchild of owners Brett Naylor and Nicole Barrick, who wanted to do a collaboration with other local artists and authors.
“They asked if I was interested in putting together a menu based off ‘The Sicilian Inheritance,’” said LaFrance, referring to the novel by bestselling author and award-winning journalist Jo Piazza. “I really enjoy doing these one-off things and tasting menus. It gives me a platform to be creative based off a guideline to do spin offs from.”
Wilder typically announces the book dinners via their newsletter and Instagram. Tickets are $110, which include dinner and a copy of the book. A portion of proceeds also benefit charity.
So far, the series has tackled eats and reads, including ‘The Sicilian Inheritance,’ with Jo Piazza; ‘God of the Woods,’ with Liz Moore (proceeds went to Mighty Writers); and ‘Housemates,’ with Emma Copley Eisenberg (proceeds went to Blue Stoop).
The next book dinner is slated for September, featuring author Leni Zumas.
“The owners have sourced authors and we’ve been keeping it local, as much as possible,” LaFrance told Metro. “The more that we do, the smoother it gets.”
LaFrance added that the ‘Housemates’ dinner with Emma Copley went particularly well. “That one was based off the idea of this road trip around Pennsylvania. This one was a bit harder for me personally to find the connection to my cooking style and food to put with it, but that made it a lot more fun. It left a bit of room for creativity.”
Some dishes reflected LaFrance’s interpretation of what the author described characters eating in the book; other times, he pulled ingredients mentioned in the story and reimagined them into something entirely new.
Throughout the meal, there’s always good conversation, LaFrance notes.
“Usually, the author’s talking throughout the dinner, and then at the end it opens up for any conversations they want to wrap up with,” LaFrance explains. “It’s open format typically throughout the meal. The author will bounce around the table to be able to talk to the majority of the group because there are 20 people at one large table.”
