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<\/a>At Culinaire, local restaurants provide samples of their classics as well as concoctions they create specially for the event.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re doing pork-stuffed apple fritters just for Culinaire,\u201d says Jeff Heatherington, owner of PIG BBQ Joint.<\/p>\n
Heatherington has been in the industry for 14 years. He was mainly involved in fine dining until he starting up Pig five years ago.<\/p>\n
\u201cI decided to take the same principles I had with fine dining and apply it to southern BBQ,\u201d says Heatherington, adding that Victoria\u2019s restaurant industry is unique with a plethora of high-quality restaurants with affordable prices.<\/p>\n
Even though Culinaire is food-focused, a large variety of local breweries and wineries will be involved with the event as well.<\/p>\n
Neil Cooke-Dallin of Salt Spring Island Ales says west coast Canadian beer is constantly heading in a positive direction.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe now use all locally grown and 100-percent organic ingredients in our beer,\u201d explains Cooke-Dallin. \u201cWe are also working with local herbalists so we can recreate ancient blends of brew.\u201d<\/p>\n
Each admission at Culinaire includes 10 tastings, with additional tastings available for $1 each so guests can have a chance to try a wide variety of pairings.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery year there is a great variety of foods available from different cultures and with different influences,\u201d says Gurney. \u201cMy hope is for guests to have the ultimate tasting experience while being introduced to local industry talent and finding new favourite restaurants in the process.\u201d<\/p>\n