No surprise that last night’s Taste For Hope was a resounding success. A foodie favourite that regularly sells out weeks ahead, the fundraiser for the Shepherds of Good Hope is also a popular philanthropic night of fun and networking for the city’s top chefs.
The night saw 18 top chefs set up appetizer stations, highlighting their skills with the most tasty and delicate mouthfuls — tacos, bao, and tasty topped crackers, as well as miniature bowls of curry and savoury oatmeal. Thyme and Again, a huge player on the catering (and philanthropic) scene was on hand with lots of dessert choices.
When not mingling and partaking of the food and drink, the 350 guests cruised the silent auction — prizes ranged from museum passes to botox treatments and karaoke nights to private dining experiences — and bid at a live auction.
What stood out for us in the sea of brilliant bites?
Most Surprising
Fraser Café educated guests on the versatility of jackfruit, serving up a mini steamed bun filled with pulled jackfruit, fermented soy barbecue sauce, white miso tahini slaw, cashews and micro cilantro.
Prettiest Table
Simple but effective, Raw Pulp + Grind enticed guests with a simple display featuring three of their most colourful juices. The rows of mini cups looked like the yellow, pink, and green flag for a fictional tropical country.
Lightest Bite of the Night
Stofa’s bite was a cool concoction that felt so very light yet contained a myriad of complementary taste sensations. Nordic shrimp, peas, lime-pickle dressing, lime leaf mayonnaise, sweet pickled Lebanese cucumbers, all balanced on a rice puff. Brilliant.
Most Canadian
Chef Stephen La Salle pulled off the most Canadian of appetizers with maple sugar-soaked Arctic char atop a flapjack. His station was also serving up taffy on the snow.
Dessert Winner
They may have been tucked away in a corner, but sweets lovers soon discovered Thyme and Again’s dessert station. While everything moved fast, the salted caramel cheesecakes disappeared almost faster than they could be replaced.
