We all know that creatives work best in numbers, and creative Jove Meyer is an event planner and designer who champions that ethos. When Jove founded Planners Dining Club back in 2014, his vision was to bring together some of New York’s top event planners to dine as a community, experiencing first-hand what it’s like to be a guest at a beautifully planned and designed event. His dinner parties provide creative environments where there’s a warm comradery built among the city’s cream of the crop event gurus.
Jove collaborates on planning and design with a rotating list of venues and vendors, always with the intent to introduce guests to spaces and services they may not otherwise be aware of. We recently caught up with him for the full back story on his get together approach to networking and how these industry dinner parties began.
Can you give us a little background into why you started the Planners Dining Club?
Four years ago I was invited to a catering tasting to try out a brand new caterer, I went and to be honest it was not a great experience at all, so an idea was born to never taste alone again. The next caterer that invited me for a tasting I offered to bring 5 or 6 other planners, they were delighted and the first planners dinning club event was born. Years later the events have evolved from simple tastings to fully designed productions with decor, flowers, stationery, rentals, flowers, entertainment, etc.
Why is it important to you to gather with fellow creatives?
In the world of weddings there are many events for all vendors and nothing out there specifically for planners/designers so I am thrilled to create a place where we can gather and experience vendors first hand. When we gather it is so much more than just trying the food and experiencing the design and entertainment, we get to connect, share and inspire one another. We can talk about our upcoming projects and share our excitement, but also ask for help or ideas as well. Only good things come about when creatives gather!
Why did you choose this venue for this specific dinner party?
West Edge is a beautiful space and relatively new so we wanted to get it on planners radars. Creative Edge Parties catered the event and it is there space so it was a natural fit to partner with them on space and food. West Edge is located in Chelsea right on the High Line, the energy of those passing by plus the water views made it an amazing space for the gathering!
What about the decor? What went into this stunning design?
With each of these events I want to push the envelope of design and do something fun and out of the box that most of our clients will not allow us to do. As creatives we seek to make original designs and this event was no different. Being that this event was in the winter we wanted to warm it up with color! The inspiration started with the brand new colorful velvet chairs from Patina Rentals, from there I partnered with the super talented Doan of A.P. Bio. Her work is out of this world and so fun, I wanted her to really go for it and do something that made her soul happy and she really knocked it out of the park. From the custom teal acrylic runners to the tropical fruits styled on the tables she nailed it. I have an obsession with installations and dreamt up a calder inspired one with banana leaves and Doan made that happen so beautifully!
You mentioned food is central to these events, what did this particular menu look like?
Food is at the core of these events and Creative Edge Parties knocked it out of the park! They put their best foot forward in designing their menu to be not only delicious but interactive and unique.
Menu:
- Golden Egg –Smoked Truffle Custard
- Sip & Dip:
- Chicken Tortilla
- Butternut Squash
- Cheddar Broccoli
- Tattooed Halibut with Jasmine Sticky Rice and Preserved Baby Eggplant
- Medicinal Sorbet
- “Hot Chocolate” Cake
- Coffee & Tea
Can you share anything about upcoming events with us?
Our next planners dining club event is a more intimate gathering of 18 with a chefs table tasting menu by Naturally Delicious. When it comes to design, think pink. I am so excited to fully embrace pink and play with it in a fresh way to make it modern, but still embrace its fun and flirty nature ;) Beyond the design of the space and table I may have requested a pink dress code as well!
Credits
Planner/Designer: Jove Meyer Events | Caterer: Creative Edge Parties | Venue: West Edge | Flowers: A.P. Bio | Stationery: Foxy & Winston | Rentals: Party Rentals LTD | Specialty Rentals: Patina Rentals | Entertainment: LUX Artists | Artist: A.E. Kieran | Photography: Sasithon Photography of The Wedding Artist Collective
