Now that the congressional campaign is officially in full swing, you, too, can break bread with South Carolina Democratic hopeful Elizabeth Colbert Busch and her satirical-PAC-founding TV show host sibling, Stephen Colbert. The panache of said meals, however, will vary drastically by ZIP code. Case in point: Colbert is co-hosting back-to-back fundraisers for his sister Feb. 23-24. The first round of revelry will take place in New York City — where Colbert tapes his faux conservative newscast, “The Colbert Report” — and will feature a general/private reception ($1,000 and $2,600 contributions, respectively) at the Upper West Side apartment of a Colbert Busch supporter, followed by a private chef’s table dinner ($5,200) at Boulud Sud. Boulud Sud, owned by award-winning restaurateur Daniel Boulud, features imaginative Mediterranean-style cooking, including pastry-wrapped venison-foie gras pâté bolstered by pickled ramps and seared Maine diver scallops complemented by blood sausage and Granny Smith apples. (“Boulud Sud is the Manhattan equivalent of a private yacht anchored off Monaco, serving the food of Sardinia, Greece, Tunisia, Gibraltar, Beirut. And you are invited along,” then-New York Times dining critic Sam Sifton raved in 2011.) Not 24 hours later, Colbert Busch will go native, hobnobbing with Southern supporters at a new, state-of-the-art bowling and entertainment complex (think: vintage video games, skeeball and multiple bars) dubbed “The Alley.” Those wishing to roll a few frames with the candidate may do so for as little as $250, though more elite packages, including a private reception with photos and a personalized book signing ($1,000-$2,600) are certainly on the table. As of right now, private dinner plans for the Charleston crowd remain in flux. An Alley employee suggested hanging around there, hailing as proven crowd pleasers the house bacon cheeseburger (half-pound of beef, American cheese, house-cured bacon), signature wings (rubbed with a green chili powder and brown sugar proprietary blend, slow roasted, chilled and then fried; served “wet” with house-made hot sauce or more dry rub) and green chili nachos (sharp cheddar-jack cheese blend, braised pork green chili, crema, chimichurri).
