Date: 2026-10-01 08:08:40 | Story: Tiffany Adams | Photography: Rett Peek |
Inspired by the beauty of the season, event planner JoBeth McElhanon orchestrates an end-of-hike brunch at Wildwood Park
“Life starts all over again when it gets crisp in the fall.” The famous line from F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby struck a chord with event designer JoBeth McElhanon. “I think there is something that happens—especially in the South—when the cool air hits. It’s like we get a fresh, new breath of life,” the owner of Lilias & Olive event company says. This new perspective and longing for time outdoors inspired her to gather a group of girlfriends for a hike along one of the trails at Wildwood Park for the Arts in west Little Rock that ended with a well-appointed picnic-style brunch.
“Arkansas is truly beautiful in the fall, and there are so many opportunities to get outdoors,” JoBeth says. Wildwood became a special place for her family during COVID when they were looking for nearby trails where they could enjoy fresh air—and it’s remained a favorite. “With the cooler temps, it’s a great time of year to get outside with friends and then finish the morning with a beautiful, elegant brunch,” she says. “It’s kind of a mix of rustic and refined.”
While the look is sophisticated, the prepwork was simple. Starting with easy-to-pack melamine plates that she found at Tanarah Luxe Floral’s Pavilion in the Park location, she built a scheme of green and brown tabletop pieces and accented it with hints of plum. “These are the colors of my home, so I shopped my kitchen and tabletops to pull everything else together,” JoBeth says, noting the practicality of using what you have on hand. She also selected a menu that is not time intensive and travels easily—a harvest salad with roasted chicken, apple and fig crostinis, and a sweet and salty trail mix. “Entertaining can be grand or you can scale it back. There are lots of details that make it your own and make it work for you. This is elegant, but it’s also attainable,” she says.
While picnic tables abound on the trails, JoBeth reserved this space through Wildwood Park for her gathering.
Palette Play
JoBeth sourced custom napkins and tablecloths from online fabric retailer Spoonflower. “The marbled pattern is a fresh one I ran across on a trip this summer,” she says. “It’s like an elegant camouflage but also reminds me of the inner lining of a new book, which I think about in the fall.” Little Rock’s The Mommagrammer personalized the napkins in a coordinating hue, while MV Design Co. created the invitation and menu card.
Organic Fall Mix
JoBeth worked with Tanarah Luxe Floral on a centerpiece that incorporates the chartreuse and plum table accents and has a whimsical, free-form nature. “The idea was to have this very wild autumn flair to it,” she says. Sunflowers with plucked petals, dahlias, and greenery mix with pears, which also tie back to the salad recipe. JoBeth made good use of extra pears, grapes, and artichokes as seasonal table décor that adheres to the palette.
Set the Scene
Pieces that have an elegant appearance but won’t break during transport, like the melamine plates, were key to the setup. Small leaf-shaped bowls hold JoBeth’s special Maple Cranberry Chocolate Chip Trail Mix, a favorite of her family’s. While she had the linens made, she chose colors that coordinate with her home and ordered them in sizes that fit her tables to be able to reuse them down the road.
RECIPE: Autumn Harvest Salad
with Brown Butter Roasted Chicken and Warm Apple Cider Vinaigrette
SHOP
Chicken
1 stick of salted butter
3-4 fresh sage leaves
1 rotisserie chicken,
deboned and chopped
Dressing
½ cup apple cider
½ cup apple cider vinegar
¼ cup honey
2 teaspoons dijon mustard
½ cup avocado oil
1 large shallot, diced fine
1 teaspoon fresh thyme
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
salt and pepper, to taste
Salad
4 cups baby spinach
4 cups baby kale
1 cup Asian pear, sliced or diced
1 cup butternut squash,
cubed and roasted
½ cup feta cheese
½ cup dried cranberries or
pomegranate arils
½ cup pecan halves, toasted
PREPARE
Start by preparing the chicken. In a small saucepan, melt butter and toss in sage leaves. Allow butter to melt thoroughly and begin to brown in color. Remove from heat, discard sage leaves, and toss butter with chopped chicken.
To make the dressing, combine apple cider, vinegar, and honey in a small saucepan on medium heat. Stir until honey is dissolved. Continue stirring and slowly add in dijon mustard and avocado oil, followed by shallot and spices. Place in a mason jar to store and keep warm for serving.
Assemble all salad ingredients in a large bowl and toss to combine. Add the chicken, cover with dressing, and toss again to coat thoroughly.
Find the recipe for the Harvest Apple and Fig Crostini shown here and Maple Cranberry Chocolate Chip Trail Mix (shown above) on the At Home in Arkansas blog (athomearkansas.com/blog).
