Where: The Bentway. Located under the Gardiner Expressway on the lands of Fort York National Historic Site, running from just east of the Fort York Visitor Centre (250 Fort York Blvd) to Bastion St.
When: Every Thursday, June 13 – August 22, 2019. One seating at 6:30-8:30pm
Cost: Pre-registration is requested at thebentway.ca/communal-table. Help ensure there is no food waste by reserving a spot in advance for $12. (Walk-ups welcome if there is availability). In the spirit of this program and The Bentway’s ‘Communitas’ Season, guests are asked to bring their own dishes and a non-perishable food item for donation to local shelters.
Details: The Bentway will host weekly communal dining opportunities curated by The Depanneur, a Toronto event space and innovative culinary talent showcase. Exploring Toronto’s diverse culinary traditions, the Communal Table is for friends and neighbours to come together, share a delicious meal, and make new friends!
Featuring a roster of local chefs with exciting culinary creations, each Communal Table experience offers a distinct menu, a friendly welcoming vibe, and live musical performances.
– June 13: The first Communal Table dinner is with Toronto chef Jamie Kennedy, a pioneer of sustainable gastronomy, and features a Farm-to-Table menu showcasing local produce from Ontario farmers.
– June 20: Ojibway chef Shawn Adler of Pow Wow Café presents a dinner menu to complement the 7th Annual Indigenous Arts Festival (at Fort York, June 18-23).
– June 27 and July 25: The Newcomer Kitchen, initially founded at The Depanneur in 2016 to provide a social and economic opportunity for Syrian refugee women, quickly became a hub for the women to meet, create a community, and make home-cooked meals together. The women of Newcomer Kitchen will host two dinners at the Communal Table, serving a selection of traditional Syrian home cooking.
– July 4 and August 1: Both of the Paella Nights, with chef José Arato of Pimentón Spanish and Mediterranean Fine Food, will feature a giant paella prepared onsite, along with a selection of tapas, accompanied by a Flamenco performance.
– July 11 and August 8: Filipino chef Erwin Joaquin of Big E Hawaiian Grinds, will host two Pinoy Kamayan Dinners at the Communal Table. A Filipino feast consisting of meat, seafood, garlic rice and more is served on banana leaves and eaten by hand.
– July 18 and August 15: Chef Tsewang Chodon of TC’s Tibetan Momo will prepare traditional Tibetan and Himalayan cuisine, including her own handmade Momos, a south Asian dumpling native to Tibet, made from local ingredients.
– August 22: The final Communal Table of the season is another Farm-to-Table meal, from rebel chef Greg Couillard who shook up Toronto dining in the 80s, with a menu full of Caribbean flavours including his famous Jump-Up soup inspired by the first Caribana parade in 1967.
More Info: www.TheBentway.ca @TheBentway @TheBentway