LONDON, Ontario, Dec. 31 (UPI) -- The presidential inauguration of Barack Obama in Washington next month will be marked by a Canadian fine-dining restaurant gala in London, Ontario.
The owner of the Aroma restaurant, Felipe Gomes said he is charging $100 per ticket for the Jan. 20 "New Birth of Freedom Gala," 25 percent of which will go to charity, the London Free Press reported.
A silent auction will include 120 bottles of port with labels commemorating the former Illinois Democratic senator and possibly, signed copies of his autobiography, Gomes said. Proceeds will be split between Big Sisters and Big Brothers in London and in Obama's hometown of Chicago, the newspaper said.
Various televisions will carry the events in Washington and elsewhere, Gomes said.
He said his menu was also designed to honor presidents of the past. For George Washington, there will be pumpkin soup, mixed green salad for Franklin Roosevelt smoked trout for Abraham Lincoln. To honor John Kennedy, Gomes will serve chocolate grenache, made with a type of red wine grapes. To honor Obama's Hawaiian heritage, dessert will be grilled pineapple and mango sorbet.
