Gourmet picnics featured in gastronomic fundraiser

Les Dames d’Escoffier, an international organization of women leaders in food, beverage and hospitality, this month has its B.C. chapter spearheading its mission to promote education, scholarship and philanthropy.

And they’re doing it in a tasty way.

Les Dames BC is excited to announce their summer fundraiser program: “Picnic and Bubbles” for two, a fun experience in collaboration with restaurants across the province inviting guests to support women in hospitality by picnicking with participating restaurants in Vancouver, Penticton and Kelowna and 50% of the proceeds will go to Food Banks BC.

How does it work? Each pair of guests will choose which restaurant they want to order from. Then, they arrive at their scheduled pick-up time between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. on Aug. 21 and saunter off to enjoy their picnic at their ideal location.

Take your picnic to your backyard, favourite picnic spot or maybe one of the local Okanagan beaches.

Tickets are $150 (for two), must be purchased in advance, and your picnic includes a main dish created by your chosen restaurant, two side dishes, dessert and “bubbles”. A number of picnics have already sold out, so don’t delay.

Here in the Okanagan, the choices are delicious.

The Naramata Inn is offering Buttermilk fried Yarrow Meadows chicken, Jerseyland organic cheddar biscuits with cultured butter, Lotz provisions black garlic honey drizzle, a tomato, stone fruit and basil salad, plus a farmer’s potato salad with smoked trout, pickled mustard and dill. For dessert? An orchard fruit shortcake, and the bubbles are Bella Estate’s Ancestrale Chardonnay.

The Broken Anchor, known for its southern-style creations, is (of course) going with double fried chicken, scallion Hushpuppies with spicy maple aioli, triple cheese macaroni and cheese, and a pecan and apple salad. Dessert is a “bake at home” peach cobbler and your wine is a Blanc de Blanc from Kitsch Winery. Seating will be available onsite if you decide to purchase this picnic.

Penticton’s Time Winery continues the chicken theme with a jerk (half) chicken and roasted yams, and a kale caesar salad with roasted garlic dressing, peppered bacon lardons, toasted parmesan, garlic herb croutons. A lemon tart and chocolate chip brownie rounds out your dinner, all paired with a bottle of Evolve’s Pink Effervescence from the Time Family of Wines.

And finally, we have Sunny’s Modern Diner in Kelowna (pickup will be at the Okanagan Table), with a fried Falkland chicken and Rossdown Farms turkey wings, with a blueberry ginger bbq sauce, spatchcock Cornish game hen, a Dijon nugget potato salad with turkey bacon, corn on the cob with smoked pepper and lime butter, celery root and cabbage slaw, and Sunny’s buttermilk biscuits.

If you have room, dessert is an Okanagan Red Haven peach melba with raspberry sauce and vanilla bean ice cream. This feast is paired with Monte Creek winery’s sparkling rosé.

Start packing the picnic blanket and napkins.

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.