The weekend has finally come, and you’re pondering on what to do. Maybe it’s even the middle of the week and you just feel like doing something different. Some people prefer to put on a movie; others may visit some friends or be out hitting up the bar. Regardless of how you spend your free time, we all feel the need to do something that will change things up in our hectic lives. We have provided the ultimate guide to the best events to attend before the end of 2016.
Whether you live in Toronto, Montreal or Vancouver, you’ll find information about the tastiest upcoming events near you. You don’t have to live directly in the city to spice things up. All the locations provided are driving and subway accessible, or have plenty of close proximity hotel options. You can stay overnight or make it just a day trip. The duration of these events are flexible and fairly long, so everyone gets a chance to experience it.
If you appreciate food and wine like we do, than these events will surely be next on your bucket list.
Toronto:
Toronto Food & Wine Expo
Event: Toronto Gourmet Food & Wine Expo
Where: Metro Toronto Convention Centre North Building, Toronto
When: November 17-20, 2016
Link: http://www.foodandwineexpo.ca/sitepages/
About:
Toronto brings the tastiest experts together for the 22nd annual Gourmet Food & Wine Expo. This 19+ event is a cocktail party of industry experts. This expo will offer international gourmet cuisine, exotic delicacies, cutting-edge wines and cocktails, craft beers, and many more vendors. Vendors will be providing food, drinks and items for you to try for yourself. There will also be interactive tasting sessions, cooking demonstrations by celebrity guests, and live entertainment.
Whether you work in the industry or just love to indulge, this is the perfect place to pass your time. You have the opportunity to network and learn from media and industry professionals, explore your palette and widen your food and drink passions. This renowned event will let you experience the very best in bartending, serving, cooking and tasting.
The Toronto Chocolate Festival
Event: The Toronto Chocolate Festival
Where: Toronto
When: October 15 – November 6, 2016
Link: http://www.torontochocolateshow.com/
About:
If you’re a chocolate lover, than you surely don’t want to miss this. Take a walk through Toronto and explore the finest chocolates being sold in Canada. Local vendors will be offering delicious samples and great deals to fill your belly and stock your cupboards with the very best of Toronto’s chocolate. Use the “Chocolicious Discovery Passport Coupons” to view the available deals of all participating chocolatiers, pastry shops and restaurants in the GTA.
This city-wide event is celebrating its 11th anniversary this year. Choose from a variety of chocolate related events that are entertaining, educational and fun! Chocolate Afternoon Tea will be held every weekend over the duration of this festival at the Omni King Edward Hotel, located at 37 King Street East. Please call ahead to book a reservation.
The Toronto Luxury Chocolate Show will take place on November 6 from 11:00 AM – 6:00 PM at Roy Thompson Hall. Attend this one-day event to meet other enthusiast, explore vendor options or just participate in the activities. Some events include chocolate eating contests, free chocolate making classes and demonstrations, and even wine and chocolate pairing!
The ChocElite and ChocOlympics are also events included in the show, but may be schedule outside of event hours. Toronto’s finest chefs team up with celebrities to serve a full course dinner infused with chocolate for ChocElite. At the ChocOlympics, you will be entertained by the best chocolate warfare with competitors such as firefighters, police and paramedics.
Montreal:
Montreal Taco Week
Event: Montreal Taco Week
Where: Montreal
When: October 15–22, 2016
Link: http://tacoweek.ca/index_en.html
About:
Montreal offers the freshest options with their annual Taco Week. Taco lovers all around the city come together to share, taste and make their week all about tacos. This event is unique because there is no live entertainment, admission tickets or specific grounds this festival takes place.
Mexican restaurants, bars and bistros participate in the event by following Taco Week’s guidelines. Each restaurant is to design a Taco plate and charge no more than $10.00 for it. Montreal celebrates Mexican cuisine and culture by inviting both restaurant owners and consumers to unite in cheap Taco tasting all week long. Visit their website and download their passport to view participating locations and enter their Taco adventure contests. Between beet tortillas, Mexican beer battered cod, and cheesy quesadillas; you will surely never find a shortage in affordable and mouth-watering Mexican dishes.
Montreal Vegan Festival
Event: Montreal Vegan Festival
Where: Bonsecours Market, Old Montreal
When: November 5 & November 6, 2016
Link: http://festivalveganedemontreal.com/2016en/
About:
You don’t have to be a vegan to indulge in the many offerings to taste at this upcoming festival. For the 3rd year in a row, Montreal hosts this event in order to bring all foodies together. This is an opportunity to discover the healthy way of going vegan and to experiment by tasting and exploring the health, ethical, and environmental aspects of veganism.
This is a free event where people can have access to the expositions, culinary demos and conferences. More than 50 exhibitors will be present showcasing their businesses and products. Photographic presentations, heart-touching stories and educational speeches are only a few of the appearances taking place at this festival. Visit their website to get more information on participating exhibitors and to view the presentation schedule.
Vancouver:
Whisky/Beer/Spirits Hopscotch Festival
Event: Whisky/Beer/Spirits Hopscotch Festival
Where: Vancouver
When: November 21–27, 2016
Link: http://www.hopscotchfestival.com/vancouver/events
About:
Don’t miss the biggest combined Whiskey and Beer festival across all of Canada.
The 21st Annual Hopscotch Festival will be offering Whisky, Premium Beer and Spirits, along with gourmet food all week long. Be prepared to taste some of the best alcoholic liquids around. Not only will you get to sip a variety of flavours, but you have the chance to learn about them too!
The Hopscotch Festival will be offering Master Classes where you get to discover products developed by brand and industry experts in an informative tasting session.
Whisky and beer pairing dinners, brewery tours, and BBQ parties are also a few other events that will happen during this celebration. Visit their website to check out the event schedule and buy your tickets before they sell out!
The main event, Grand Tasting Hall, will be taking place at the Pacific National Exhibition Forum. This main event will run Friday November 25 from 6:00 – 10:00 PM, and Saturday November 26 from 1:30 – 4:30 PM and 6:00 – 10:00 PM. Offering a plethora of alcohol, food and musical entertainment, your ticket will include entrance and your first five tasting tokens. Tasting tokens cost just over a dollar and is the only form of currency during this big event. Check out their website to view the 400 plus exhibitors and products that you could be sampling!
UBC Apple Festival
Event: UBC Apple Festival
Where: UBC Botanical Garden, Vancouver
When: October 15 & 16, 2016
Link: http://botanicalgarden.ubc.ca/events/event/apple-festival-2016/
About:
For the 25th year in a row, this is one of Vancouver’s most anticipated festivals. As BC’s favourite fruit, people will get the chance to learn and taste the varieties of apples available. This event will be free for children 12 years and younger, and only $5 for everyone else! Selling 36,000 pounds of apples and over 50 varieties of apple trees, it’s no wonder they have the best apple display in Canada.
A physical display of nearly 200 apple varieties that are still grown in BC will be showcased at this event. There will be demonstrations of grafting and cider-pressing, educational speeches and Master Gardeners will be available for those seeking to discuss some expert advice. The children’s area will be full of painting, games and stories and the Botanical Garden will also be available for attendees to experience.
With the food, crafts, live entertainment and scarecrow contest, you don’t want to miss it. This family-oriented event will be running from 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM on both days, and will surely keep you drooling.
These events are not only directed to food and drink enthusiasts alike, but are also calling on all Vancouver, Montreal and Toronto bartenders or servers. You may even bump into our event staffing team there. Have a chance to explore your horizons and expand your knowledge of the food and hospitality industry. Network, explore and learn all for the benefit of your belly!