Franey Memorial: Culinary Fireworks

They came to celebrate a life and left exclaiming that they had been a part of the celebration of a lifetime.

A reported 530 guests filled a glistening Tavern on the Green in Central Park Monday night in memory of the renowned chef Pierre Franey, who died at the age of 75 in October.

The restaurant had been closed all day as more than 20 chefs, who came from as far as Paris, 11 culinary arts students from three schools, and the house staff worked in preparation for the event - five hours of extraordinary food and wine, tributes and toasts, screenings, and music and dancing, which climaxed with the singing of "La Marseillaise," and a burst of sparklers from each table's floral centerpiece.

LeRoy The Host

The host was Warner LeRoy, Tavern on the Green's proprietor, one of Mr. Franey's many longtime friends and colleagues. And, although speaker after speaker described Mr. Franey as a person of simplicity, who, for example, preferred to say he was a "cook," the fireworks seemed entirely appropriate.

In his spoken words and reminiscences in a memorial program, Mr. LeRoy described a stuffed striped bass that he once had helped Mr. Franey prepare. "Then he decided wouldn't it be fun to bake a souffle on top, which he proceeded to do to an absolutely dazzling effect," Mr. LeRoy said.

Family, friends, and colleagues described Mr. Franey repeatedly and with feeling as a man who, in the words of Jean Vergnes, a chef and Springs neighbor, was "unselfish with his enormous talent."

"Lucky Pierre"

The three Franey children and the producer of his Public Broadcasting System show, Charles Pinsky, touchingly described how simplicity and skill combined to make Mr. Franey a happy man whose life and work were one.

"My father was a man content with himself," said his daughter Diane Schaldenko. "He focused on what was in front of him," said his son, Jacques Franey.

Mr. Pinsky, whose edited film clips of Mr. Franey, screened on television monitors throughout the rooms, brought sighs of recognition from the crowd, called Mr. Franey, "Lucky Pierre."

"Lucky Pierre made his own good luck. [He] was the master of serendipity. He became a TV star at the time most people think of retiring," he said.

Natural Teacher

Pierre Franey lived in Springs for more than 40 years, and took an active part in the community. He steamed, sauced, and served mussels and clams at the annual Springs Fisherman's Fair and spoke or gave demonstrations for the East Hampton Historical Society and Guild Hall.

In one of the written tributes, the chef and author Michel Gueard said Mr. Franey's "warmth and courteousness were allied with a rare knowledge of that science, a minor art, to which he was devoted. In his work he had the gift, which denotes the natural teacher, of bringing out what was essential and understandable to his audience."

Edward Gorman, a part-time East Hampton resident who was among the speakers, said Mr. Franey would answer every one of Mr. Gorman's culinary queries with, "All you do is. . . ."

Claiborne's Kitchen

For many years, he and Craig Claiborne, the food writer for The New York Times, had spent leisure hours cooking in Mr. Claiborne's East Hampton kitchens. Coveted invitations to their Saturday night meals mixed celebrities, family, and neighbors at the dinner table.

In more recent years, the men had had a falling out and Mr. Claiborne had been ill. He received an ovation on Monday when Mr. LeRoy, noting his presence, praised his work as having "revolutionized the way Americans think about food and eating."

As for the menu Monday night, it was created by the French chefs Paul Bocuse, Gerard Boyer, Alain Ducasse, and M. Ducasse's sous chef, Frederic Vardon, by Paul Prudhomme and Roger Vergnes, and by:

The List

David Bouley of the eponymous Bouley,

Daniel Boulud of Restaurant Daniel,

David Burke of the Park Avenue Cafe,

Patrick Clark of the Tavern on the Green,

Sottha Khunn and Jacques Torres of Le Cirque,

Jean Louis Palladin of the Rio Grande in Las Vegas,

*Charles Palmer of Aureole,

George Perrier of Le Bec Fin in Philadelphia,

Jean-Jacques Rachou of Le Cote Basque,

Andre Renard of the Essex House,

Andre Soltner, formerly of Lutece, and

Jean-Georges Vongerichten of Vong and JoJo.

(All of the restaurants are in Manhattan unless otherwise noted.)

To Die For

Among the dozen hors d'oeuvres served, this participant exclaimed over tuna spring roll with soybean coulis and fried Belons oysters. She also was ready to go to heaven over the soup course, a consomme with fois gras ravioli and black truffles and Mr. Franey's own recipe for a coulibiac of salmon, which was included in the program with Mr. Franey's own remarks about it.

"I have spent countless hours in restaurant kitchens assembling this glorious dish. Craig Claiborne once called it 'the world's greatest dish.' . . . It requires the preparation of several different recipes before it can be assembled and baked, and it cannot be completed in one day. . . ."

The evening ended with what was called Dessert Storm, a loose translation of La Tornade de Desserts.

Among them was a confection in the shape of a stove in black and white chocolate with two small pans on the burners and a backsplash with a line drawing of Mr. Franey.

And, the champagne and wines, which were contributed in part by Amagansett Wines and Spirits, were Perrier Joust Flour P Champagne, 1989, Trimbach Riesling, 1994, Louis Jadot Chassagne Montrachet Blanc, 1990, and Chateau Grand Arose, 1988.

The evening's proceeds will benefit the College of Culinary Arts of Johnson and Wales University, the Culinary Institute of America, and the French Culinary Institute.