Pictured at the White Rose Ball at the Dearborn Inn are escort Shane Danyko (left) of Trenton, debutantes Haley Feher of Livonia and Veronica Kontos of Southgate, and honored guest Linda Enyedy of Southfield.
By Evelyn Cairns
Despite one of the worst snowstorms of the season, nearly 250 guests from throughout the Detroit metropolitan area braved the weather Feb. 5 to attend the Hungarian Arts Club’s annual White Rose Ball (Feher Rozsa Bal) at the Dearborn Inn.
Young women of Hungarian descent are traditionally introduced to society at the ball, which also features a formal dinner, the introduction of an honored guest, a presentation of arts scholarships and the performance of the Palotas, a Hungarian court dance, by current and previous debutantes.
Making their bows as the event were Veronica Kontos, of Southgate, Haley Feher of Livonia, Nicole Kovach of Milford, Lillian Mihalak of Lake Orion and Alexis Enyedy of Beverly Hills.
Additional dancers included Elizabeth Goodfellow of Riverview and Christina Marchelletta of Dearborn.
Lynda Enedy of Southfield, known as the Michigan Hungarian expert, was the guest of honor, and Maxwell Geissler and Justin Rito were the scholarship winners.
Mardi gras event slated
TV’s Grand Event, the new Trenton banquet and catering center, will kick off the Mardi gras season March 2 with New Orleans drink and small-plate specials and music by the Tartarsauce Traditional Jazz Band.
Doors will open at 4 p.m., and the band will play from 6 to 9 p.m.
Formerly the Trenton Hotel, a stagecoach stop in the 1800s, the Grand Event is also open for drinks and small plates on Wednesday and Thursday evenings.
Music is provided by local bands on Thursday nights. There will be a $5 cover charge at the door for the March 2 event only.
Two special drinks will be offered at the Mardi gras kick-off: the rumbased Hurricane, and the Sazarac, a popular bourbon specialty, according to Chip Fater, Grand Event manager. Among the small-plate offerings, he said, will be jambalaya.
Fater, a certified sommelier, is also continuing his longtime relationship with Opus One, where he has served as bar manager, wine steward, maitre’d, dining room manager and general manager.
Trombonist Ron Kischuk is the leader of the jazz band. Tartarsauce is considered Detroit premier jazz band and is the official band of the Detroit Tigers, Fater said.
TV’s Grand Event, at 2651 W. Jefferson, is owned by Victor and Stacey Stroia, who also own TV’s Deli & Diner in Trenton.
Coming up . . .
March 1 — Meeting of the Downriver Arts & Crafts Guild; 6:30 p.m. at the Southgate Veterans Memorial Library, 14680 Dix-Toledo; the meeting is open to the public; for more information, call Maureen Cassidy Keast at (734) 777-6109 or e-mail [email protected]
March 14 — Class in The Henry hotel and Leslie Jacobs Associates Cooking with Style series, “Fabuloso Cocina Mexicana: The Most Fabulous Mexican Cuisine”; 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at The Henry, formerly The Ritz-Carlton; $120 (dinner only, for guests of students, $75); for reservations, call Leslie Jacobs at (248) 646-4517 or Colin Berens at (313) 253-4357.
March 16 — St. Patrick’s Buffet at the Fifty-One One Restaurant of Henry Ford Community College, 5101 Evergreen, Dearborn; lunch seatings from 11 a.m. to 12:45 p.m.; dinner, 6 to 7:45 p.m.; the menu will include such Irish specialties as corned beef and cabbage and shepherd’s pie; $13 per person; for reservations, call the college Hospitality Department, (313) 206-5101.
March 22-April 3 — Musical, “Les Miserables”; a new production based on Victor Hugo’s classic novel about the survival of the human spirit; tickets, starting at $39, including parking, are available online at www.Tickemaster.com or www.BroadwayInDetroit.com; or calling Ticketmaster at (800) 982-2787; for more information, call (313) 872-1000.
March 26 — Southern Great Lakes Symphony’s “Backstage Pass 2” fundraiser, featuring music food and drinks; 5 to 10 p.m. at the Wyandotte Arts, Cen-ter, 81 Chestnut St; for tickets, $30, $50 and $100, call (734) 671-8343 or go to www.sgls.org.