DeSpains Offer New Dishes, Digs

by Talk Business & Politics ([email protected]) 109 views 

Champagne-filled test tubes and chocolate rivers are just part of everyday life for event planners.

At least they were last year for The Event Group, which featured both as part of Mercy Hospital’s grand-opening. The Event Group handled 87 full-service events in 2008.

In other industry news, Don and Susan DeSpain moved Cuisines Gourmet to Go to a new location, the Pepsi building on 52nd Street in Rogers. The biggest benefit, Don DeSpain said, was “a fully equipped, hotel-sized kitchen.

“Our business has just continued to grow,” DeSpain said. “We’ve really upgraded the quality of our facility.”

The facility also features a 60-seat bistro that offers coffee and pastries in the morning in addition to its lunch menu. The décor features work of local artists.

Cuisines Gourmet to Go ranked as the No. 1 event planner on the Business Journal’s annual list (click here.)

Another component of the DeSpains’ business is their “meal solutions market” that offers to-go meals of various sizes. DeSpain said the meals range “from comfort food to heart-healthy food to chef-prepared food.”