by TRISH KELLY
Act Out
When the Vancouver Food Policy Council hosted “Using the Vancouver Food Charter in your Neighbourhood” at Cedar Cottage Neighbourhood House in November, school nutritionists, passionate gardeners, and even a man named Garlic converged to do some food brainstorming. The room buzzed with ideas: attendees germinated a community kitchen, garden, and a monthly tea party to engage aging gardeners in their area. Last year, Vancouver City Council passed the Vancouver Food Charter, as a sort of manifesto describing how we can create a just and sustainable food system. To learn more about how the charter can help your neighbourhood, attend one of the two Food Charter workshops hosted this month: Jan. 23 at Mount Pleasant Neighbourhood House (800 E. Broadway), or Jan. 30 at Kits Neighbourhood House (2325 W. Seventh Ave.) Details: shared-vision.com/events.
Eat Out
As retailers limp through the dark days of post-holiday credit card burnout, Vancouver foodies are frantically securing reservations at the best restaurants in town to enjoy special three-course menus complemented by fabulous B.C. VQA (Vintner’s Quality Alliance) wines. Dine Out Vancouver 2008, which this year runs for three glorious weeks from Jan. 16 to Feb. 3, doesn’t release its official list of participating restaurants till after SharedVISION goes to press. However, I persuaded Tourism Vancouver to tell me which Ocean Wise restaurants will be taking part. In the $15 menu category, you’ll find Green Table member Rocky Mountain Flatbreads. False Creek’s Aqua Riva has whipped up a $25 menu, and Trafalgar’s Bistro menu is a steal at $35. Not only is this year’s DOV longer, there’s also a Facebook group you can sign up for, which gives you the latest news, plus an extensive network of other food enthusiasts to salivate with. Info: tourismvancouver.com .
Eat In
I have to admit, I’ve never had a crush on a coffee company before. But I’ve fallen hard for Victoria’s Level Ground Trading. Not only does Level Ground sell exclusively fair trade beans, but they also hawk the best dried mango—also fair trade—this side of Manila. If you have a soft spot for stories about women overcoming adversity, you’ll love Level Ground even more. The mango, branded as “Frutos de los Andes,” is grown and dried in Colombia by marginalized women from the township of Cazucá. The majority of these women are the sole wage earners in their families, supporting both their children and aging parents. Level Ground ensures they get fair wages, health care benefits for their families, and school scholarships for their kids. Level Ground sees their Frutos program as a chance to help women get a leg up, and fully supports their future career aspirations, offering micro credit loans—among other benefits—to Frutos employees. Available at Whole Foods, 925 Main St. (West Vancouver); IGA, marketplaceiga.com; and Capers, capersmarkets.com. Info: levelground.com.
Trish Kelly eats and writes in Vancouver. She loves homemade perogies and fancy dinners in Kits, and will eat a stomachache’s worth of dried fruit on a dare. At her request, SharedVISION donates Trish’s freelance fee to a local food-focused non-profit. This month’s recipient is A Loving Spoonful (alovingspoonful.org ), a volunteer-driven organization that delivers frozen meals and snack packs to people with AIDS who are housebound.
