Many of you will have heard of the Stop Community Food Centre, whether it be from the carpal tunnel syndrome you experienced while trying to nab tickets for their annual Night Market or whether you had a major chef crush on Chris Brown (formerly the Stop’s Food Enterprise Coordinator, AKA catering chef) who’s now started his own catering company, the Citizen.
While the Night Market is no doubt their most popular and most accessible event (tickets ringing in at only $65 a pop), it isn’t the only fundraiser that draws in the crowd.
This past Wednesday saw the return of the Big Night at the Green Barn, which took place at Artscape Wychwood Barns and featured a nonna-inspired family-style feast prepared by Chris Brown (The Citizen), Lorenzo Loseto (George Restaurant), John Sinopoli (Ascari Enoteca and Table 17), and George Taluri and Branko Vrbaski (Noce).
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Guests were greeted with a glass of Cave Spring bubbly while Oyster Boy shucked some succulent oysters. La Coquine provided sumptuous bites of escargots wrapped in buttery puff pastry as well as a throwback to the Roaring Twenties with deviled eggs. The Wild Ass White, a blend of semillon, sauvignon blanc, riesling and gewürztraminer was the perfect pairing.
The sit-down part of dinner was a four-course endeavor with gooey arancini, smoked trout, fancy fried chicken, and biscotti and coffee from Reunion Island.
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The emcee sparked conversations about his involvement with food and shared stories of returning home late in the evening where his Italian mother would ask him “Che cosa hai mangiato?” (What did you eat?)
Attendees dug into their pockets and purses by purchasing $50 keys, one of which would unlock 100,000 Aeroplan points. The silent auction, for those who had their eyes on bigger ticket items, saw Chris Brown’s lot racking in a grand total of $10,000 (between 2 buyers) who can now relax and play the role of a great host(ess) since Brown will personally go to their homes and prepare a dazzling meal. The event raised a grand total of $180,000 with proceeds going to support programming at The Stop’s Green Barn – everything from urban agriculture to community cooking classes.
The Big Night at the Green Barn will return June 2015. For a list of The Stop’s upcoming events and happenings, check out their website.
Will you be attending The Big Night next June? Let us know in the comments below or tweet us @ViewTheVibe.
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