How Wolfgang Puck Catering Is Shaping Crystal Bridges Dining with Lauren Eck

You don’t usually walk into an art museum wondering what you’ll eat but once you’ve spent a full day at Crystal Bridges, food becomes part of the adventure. We’re joined by Lauren Eck, Regional Vice President of Sales for Wolfgang Puck Catering, to talk about the new partnership at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and what it means for museum dining in Bentonville, Arkansas as the campus grows and visitor expectations keep rising.We get into the ethos behind Wolfgang Puck Catering and why it lines up so naturally with Crystal Bridges and The Momentary: accessibility without lowering the standard. Lauren shares how “elevated” doesn’t have to mean expensive, how thoughtful hospitality starts long before someone sits down to eat, and why great people matter even more than great recipes. We also talk about designing food and beverage that complements exhibits, supports all-day exploration, and welcomes everyone including guests with dietary restrictions.If you care about farm-to-table dining, local Arkansas ingredients, and the future of hospitality in Northwest Arkansas, you’ll love the behind-the-scenes details, including how the team sourced farmers market strawberries for the Crystal Bridges gala. Lauren also teases what’s ahead as experience-driven dining grows, from roaming small plates to big plans leading into 2027.Subscribe for more stories about Bentonville, share this with a friend planning a visit, and leave a review so more listeners can find the show.A New American Town is here to help you plan your trip to Bentonville, Arkansas. From guides, events, and restaurant highlights. Find all this and more at visitbentonville.com and subscribe to our newsletter. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X, and LinkedIn.  You can listen to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify, CastBox, Podcast Casts, Google Podcasts, iHeartRadio, and Podcast Addict.