Review: The Carpenter’s House ‘Sunday Best’ brunch & art auction
Originally published on The JOLT News on March 26, 2026
Being a romantic, I cannot help but give way to my imagination. I love the feeling of daydreaming and growing excited for events to come.
In the past, I would feel disappointed when events were not as good as what I imagined they would be. The more I interact with the Thurston County arts scene, the more that tendency has gone to the wayside because our artists always seem to take my breath away.
Last week, I wrote an article giving you a sneak peek at the “Sunday Best” brunch & art auction at The Carpenter’s House (read here). Today, I come to you awestruck, impressed, and grateful for the way I got to witness this group of creatives fulfill their dream and rise above what I imagined the event would be like.
Combining elegance with friendliness, high caliber art with warm hearted hospitality, and fine dining with community all made “Sunday Best” a truly unforgettable event.
I applaud the teams at The Carpenter’s House, Coalescence Event Services, Chef Lela Cross, Ellen Wanamaker, Gillian Smee, The Flower and Vine, Whispering Wood Design, and all other parties for creating such a breathtaking experience.
A refreshing brunch
The five-course “Sunday Best” menu had a spiritual quality to it, like the whisper of the wind, a call of the wild, or something to that effect. There were flavors inspired by the Pacific Northwest, top notch herb and vegetable gardens, and elevated comfort food.
Being gluten and alcohol free, I was abundantly grateful for the way the Coalescence Events Services team, kitchen team, and drink curators all looked out for me and made it possible for me to enjoy just about all that was being offered.
Chef Cross, Wanamaker and Smee truly outdid themselves in bringing artistry to the plate. I hope their menu inspires you to be more creative in your kitchen, just as it inspired me!
Course one was dedicated to celebrating seafood with smoked trout escabeche, prawn aguachile and green goddess drink, which contained cava, lime and kiwi. A true palate refresher, this course felt very bright.
Course two contained a bruschetta with tomato jam paired with “Shot 75” which had lemon, vodka and Crémant de Bourgogne. The only thing I tasted from this course was the tomato jam, and I was perfectly content with that.
Course three had ingredients that I would not normally enjoy together or separate, but that was made delicious by Chef Lela’s craftsmanship. The salad had roasted carrot, pickled beet, tangerine, goat cheese, and a citrus vinaigrette. This was paired with a hibiscus, mandarin, and vanilla “Sunset Mimosa." All were delightful!
My favorite coarse hands down was number four with the shirred egg and pork belly paired with the Herb Garden mocktail. I had never had a shirred egg before, and now I am unsure if I would eat eggs any other way. Chef Lela, please send me your recipe!
The pork belly was cut like the thickest, most glorious bacon imaginable, and it truly made me want to cry with joy.
The Herb Garden had essences of garden herbs paired with lemon. It was very light and had the perfect balance between savory, citrus, and alkaline. I remain impressed.
The final course was dessert! We had goat cheese and honey gelato by Sofie’s Scoops, an espresso truffle, and orange mousse all paired with a Samayra Espresso Martini. The gelato contained pleasant notes of vanilla and instead of the martini, I got to enjoy alcohol free bubbles — the perfect note to end on.
Awe-inspiring artists
The art auction contained a variety of stylings, including watercolor, acrylic, oil, and texture paintings along with wood work and mixed media.
Throughout the auction, I had the chance to hobnob with fellow event attendees, and I loved hearing what pieces, artists and stylings stood out to them. Our conversations reminded me again and again that art can be found everywhere, but that beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
Each artist deserves to be praised, but my favorite artists were Talia Mazzara, Teonna Manson, Asha MacDonald, Kim Saltiel, Margaret Lemke, Melanie Watness, Sharon Giles, Lacey Buckley, and Cindy Petersen and Patty Mitchell from Whispering Wood Design.
I went home not only with a heart of gratitude, but with a 200-year-old Douglas fir piece from Whispering Wood Design. The note that went with the piece said “Douglas Fir is the blocker of unwanted forces and a symbol of rebirth, resilience, peace and love. It is connected to good health.”
May these blessings be evident in your lives.
https://www.thejoltnews.com/stories/review-the-carpenters-house-sunday-best-brunch-art-auction,28622