Trading Filet Mignon for Chicken Pot Pie

“It’s somehow considered kind of gauche now to be too aggressive about the décor, and the price, of galas,” he said. “Rather than a seven-piece combo, what about a D.J.? Rather than filet mignon, country food: shepherd’s pie. Rather than have the extravagance, what’s better than chicken pot pie?” Wilderstein’s big fund-raiser this year will be a tea dance with light fare, as opposed to a full, costly dinner.