Work, Food, Life

Somedays a girl has to make a difficult decision between her future and her other future. Sunday, September 14th I was faced with that decision. On on hand, the World MBA fair was at the MTCC...and for someone considering an MBA it presents a jam packed afternoon of talking to recruiters, weight the merits of different schools and contemplating a life on another university campus. However, Sunday, September 14th was also the second Evergreen Brickworks Picnic.

The Evergreen Brickworks is one of those projects that you cannot help but love. Their goal is to raise $55 million to transform the Brickworks heritage site into an international showcase for urban sustainability and green design. So far they've raised $40 million - so they're only $15 million short. As someone who works in fund raising I have a deep appreciation of the work they do. So much so that I'm applying to work with them. But that's not what this post is about.



This post is about the 2nd annual Brickworks picnic. Since my student budget doesn't allow for $100 tickets to the event I volunteered 4 hours of my time greeting people and directing them to the bathrooms. In return I got sample incredibly produce and creations from over 30 local producers and top chefs in Toronto.

Ranging from grilled ontario peaches with a spicy lamb stuffing, beautiful kobe burgers and rabbit sausage to maple and ginger frozen yogurt, blueberry sorbet dished up on vine leaves and caramel apples the variety was astounding and everything was beautiful. While the morning was slightly humid the afternoon was hot and summy - perfect for sipping mill street organic beer and sampling lovely goats cheeses. As a bonus, one of the lovely chefs give me a couple of pounds of organic Berkshire pork shoudler that he had grilled for the house warming party I threw with my room mate.

While missing the MBA fair was a bit disheartening I don't regret it in the least. Few things are as lovely as spending a late summer afternoon making new friends, sampling local organic produce and engaging with some of the friendliest chefs in Toronto. I'm looking forward to the picnic next year. Maybe I'll even have a hand in planning it.