Feast of Fields is celebrating its 32nd year as the annual, multi-farm food festival celebrating local food and drink. Held across three geographical areas, there is a festival for Metro Vancouver, one on Vancouver Island, and another in the Okanagan Valley. Every year another farm is chosen to host and its achievements are highlighted during the occasion. This year, after a last minute switch up, that farm was at UBC for Metro Vancouver’s festival.
Run by Farm Folks and City Folks, proceeds raised from these events “allows them to develop and operate programs that connect, empower, and inspire people to strengthen BC’s sustainable food systems”. (As taken from the event website).
As for the event itself, Feast of Fields is a wandering gourmet harvest festival. The only one held at a farm with each participant equipped with a wine glass and linen napkin in hand. For $10, it is highly recommended that you also purchase one of their branded serving boards with built in wine glass holder. This offers a surface to stack your small bites on, as you collect samples of beverages in your wine glass. And the Feast Cedar Boards also make for a great commemorative keepsake.
The event has “guests strolling across farmers’ fields, through barns, past tractors, and around chicken coops, listening to live music, and tasting gourmet creations from top BC chefs, farmers, fishers, ranchers, food artisans, and beverage producers”.
There were picnic tables out in the sun, and a few pockets that offered covered seating and dining. At other locations you are advised to bring your own picnic tables and chairs to make a day of the festivities.
We arrived one hour early for the VIPs only hour, and were determined to capitalize on the sparser traffic by sampling all the food and getting our photos and videos before going back for round two of our favourites. The following is all that we saw and had, plus a few notes, in the order we tackled them. Unfortunately there was so much more that I didn’t get a chance to get to that day.
Dessert to start with a classically done, extra spongy and moist carrot and beet cake square. Topped with a generous amount of whipped cream cheese frosting from Firehouse Cafe in Aldergrove.
Nicli Pizzeria + Bar in North Vancouver was serving up samples of two of their popular pizza options. The bacon jalapeño popper pizza with cheddar cream cheese, jalapeño, fior di latte, and crispy bacon bits. They gave each slice a flash bake in their portable pizza oven so that the crust was extra crispy and the cheese still gooey. This was the most filling of all the bites.
I loved how robust the Tealeaves display looked with copper pots and dispensing taps. I was especially drawn to their bubblegum popsicle flavoured tea, and thought it highly original.
The Bitter Harvest table had both Chef Chad Rattie and Chef Benoit Cecil serving up their own one bite creations featuring radicchio.
One was crispy and tangy, the other juicy and slightly bitter, as their name promised.
H-Tasting Lounge had a Whipped stracciatella with Bayshore harvested honey, lemon zest, confit heirloom tomatoes, porcini dust, and in house grown cultivator herbs on a sesame crisp. This was a light and summary play on chips and salsa with cheese.
Roasted foraged mushrooms on puff pastry with onion, soubise, aged padano, and house pickles by The Apron, working out of the Westin Wall Centre at the Vancouver airport.
Sauce and Pantry featured their line of pestos in tomato and basil on mini naan canapés with cucumber, corn, feta, and micro-greens.
Natural Pastures Cheese served up mini cheese boards sampling a variety of their cheeses.
They were conveniently stationed beside the Noble Ridge Winery table. Where they had a lovely sparkling to pair with all the cheeses. This was literally “The One Sparkling”.
Atome Bakery were slicing up bites of their from frozen baked goods with a chocolate twist and liege waffles.
Ayapacha made “Three Sisters in a Bite”. Summer Squash Scarpaccia, White Bean Purée & Succotash of Corn & Heirloom Tomato. The name comes the generations that indigenous peoples have planted corn, beans, and squash together. These are known as the “Three Sisters”, as they grow in harmony one supporting the other, thriving as a community.
I liked the humour in Foamer‘s Folly Dad Beer so had to try it. They also have a Mom’s Beer, but it wasn’t available here today.
At Kizzy’s macaron she was sampling popular flavours like caramel, fuzzy peach, skittles, strawberries and cream, honeycomb crunch, mocha, vanilla, lemon, lavender honey, and pineapple coconut.
I was extra lucky to be able to get my hands on her secret macaron. This was an ice cream sandwich made with macaron shells, created to mimic the popular and nostalgic drumstick ice cream cones. With a dollop of caramel at the core of the vanilla ice cream centre, and its chocolate dipped shell with crushed peanuts, she nailed it.
New kids on the Block, Hazel’s ice cream were passing out mini versions of their ice cream bars, available at select Safeway locations. It was either a strawberry cheesecake or cinnamon toast crunch. Given the rarity of the latter, I had to give it a try and was not disappointed. This was best eaten, frozen when the cereal and chocolate crust are still crunchy.
Coquitlam’s Doughnut Love made doughnut holes in either chocolate, lemon, or cinnamon for sampling.
Chop and Chew had a whole meal available. Guests were able to choose one of their sausages between the Sake Sesame Chicken, Chorizo Verde, or Vegan sausage. Each sectioned and sandwiched on a fresh baked bun with coleslaw and Papi’s Pickles in the shape of coins. I cannot turn down a green sausage and got the intended heat right away.
They were also pouring samples of their very own pale ale from tap. This is made in collaboration with North Vancouver Black Kettle Brewing.
And the Ernest Ice cream team were scooping out mini cones of their vegan peaches and cream with actual peach chunks and a coconut cream base.
There was also a booth dedicated to sapling from a handful of local brands. This included spice rubs from Tripe Smoke, sauces from Umami Bomb, and beverages from Peak and Vortex.
Seacider was the only apple cidery on location, pouring alcoholic and nonalcoholic options. The Witch’s Broom caught my attention for name alone.
Once again, there were a lot more vendors I failed to try. However, our one hour VIP time elapsed, and our VIP farm tour was beginning so we took a break to do that.
During which we learned the history of the land acknowledging its stewardship. I was surprised to learn that UBC used to have his own dairy farm and creamery, but this cause significant Eco damage. It is now green academic land, created, and maintained as a teaching farm. This is land to conduct research on, and maintain community involvement through farmer’s markets.
Rest of the three hour event was spent in leisure, enjoying the rest of the beverages, taking in the live music, and partaking in the silent auction. What a great day, and a great way to support local farms and farming communities.
farmfolkcityfolk.ca/feast-of-fields
