Jamie Kennedy has been much on my mind recently. I\u2019ll tell you why in July. Meanwhile, he and his pals are having a party and everyone\u2019s invited.
\nBack in the late \u201980s and \u201990s \u2013 the era of the independent, superstar chefs \u2013 Jamie and his BFFL, Michael Stadtl\u00e4nder, stood in the outfield \u2013 visionaries and lonely activists for many of the causes that today seem de rigueur. Now the world has caught up and Jamie has come into his own as guru to the new generation of socially aware, collaborative chefs. It\u2019s not just that he looks younger than most of them: he\u2019s ubiquitous at the small, righteous events that the young idea puts on around town, raising money for various causes. Perhaps his financial troubles last year forced him back into the trenches (how great to see him with a pan in his hand every night at Gilead Bistro); but really it\u2019s something he has always done, providing leadership and inspiration to the next generation.
\nBut about the party\u2026 Jamie sent out a press release the other day. Rather than paraphrase it, I\u2019ll simply share the message.
\nJamie writes: \u201cWell the hot summer weather is here, and it\u2019s setting the stage for an exciting event I\u2019m hosting next month. I\u2019d like to invite you to join me at a Communal Table, taking place on Saturday June 19th at the inspiring heritage site of the Evergreen Brick Works. Some of my friends and colleagues, whom you likely know well \u2013 Keith Froggett, Anthony Walsh, Brad Long, Michael Dixon, Adam Colquhoun, Yasser Qahawish and Crosstown Kitchens \u2013 ar coming to take part. I hope you’ll be there too. \u201cI\u2019ve always wanted to create a unique, celebratory dining experience situated around a very large communal table, and now the time has come. We’ll be dining on the cusp of the summer solstice, and there isn\u2019t a better time to take in and savour the exquisite tastes of our very own southwestern Ontario flavours. My team and I will be preparing a four-course sit-down dinner, featuring the finest seasonal produce of local food artisans. Prior to that we’ll be enticed by a stunning cocktail setting where my friends will each create delectable, signature canap\u00e9s. This gastronomic tour-de-force would not be complete without a selection of our region’s wines and beers, specially chosen for the event by me. So please come take a seat at our table, and join us all for this unique, not-to-be-missed culinary event.\u201d
\nIt sounds like a blast. A potentially heroic evening. Here are the details.
\nDATE: Saturday, June 19, 2010.
\nTIME: 5 pm ~ Reception with Jamie Kennedy’s partners in gastronomy featuring canap\u00e9s and libations. 6.30 pm ~ Four-course sit-down dinner prepared by Jamie Kennedy Kitchens.
\nLOCATION: Evergreen Brick Works, 550 Bayview Avenue, Toronto.
\nTICKETS: $200 per person.
\nTickets can be purchased online at www.jamiekennedy.ca, by phone at 647.288.0680, or at the Gilead Caf\u00e9 & Bistro (4 Gilead Place, Toronto).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Jamie Kennedy has been much on my mind recently. I\u2019ll tell you why in July. Meanwhile, he and his pals are having a party and everyone\u2019s invited. Back in the late \u201980s and \u201990s \u2013 the era of the independent, superstar chefs \u2013 Jamie and his BFFL, Michael Stadtl\u00e4nder, stood in the outfield \u2013 visionaries […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[108,91,94,1],"tags":[22,29],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jameschatto.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/163"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jameschatto.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jameschatto.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jameschatto.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jameschatto.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=163"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/jameschatto.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/163\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2137,"href":"https:\/\/jameschatto.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/163\/revisions\/2137"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jameschatto.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=163"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jameschatto.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=163"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jameschatto.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=163"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}