Pilgrims' progress; Thanksgiving in a Manhattan loft is a down-home affair when Kyle Maclachlan mans the stove.

Byline: William Norwich

As is the case on most special occasions, a lot needed to be accomplished before the dozen or so guests arrived tonight.

"Buy the flowers; get the cheese and the wine," said Desiree Gruber, an uber-public relations executive whose company, Full Picture, masterminds the careers of everyone from hoteliers to supermodels.

"And finish decorating the apartment," added Desiree's husband, the actor Kyle Maclachlan, laughing.

In the spirit of the show tune from Mame that says "we need a little Christmas, right this very minute," the bicoastal Gruber-MacLachlans wanted a little Thanksgiving-well, actually, the full meal, candlelight, crystal, and flowers-right this very evening in their three-bedroom loft-style space in the Chelsea section of Manhattan. Real Thanksgiving, America's most deliciously democratic of meals-a holiday for people of all faiths, creeds, and colors-was still a few weeks ahead.

"In New York, we eat in restaurants so much," said Kyle, "as opposed to Los Angeles, where it is part of the culture to have people in because everyone seems to have a lovely or cool house to entertain in."

Before Kyle could start cooking, assisted by private chef Hank Tomashevski, he and Desiree went shopping early morning for orange roses with floral designer Raul Avila at Gary Paige's shop in the flower market. Next stop was the Burgundy Wine Company for potables-a Domain Drouhin 2002 pinot Noir would do nicely-and then Citarella on lower Sixth Avenue for cheese and olives. As for tonight's menu, it was traditional MacLachlan family Thanksgiving fare, handed down from Kyle's father.