The evening of June 8th 2023, brought 60 hungry, art-loving, foodies to the Kitchener Waterloo Art Gallery to enjoy delicious tapas-style food and drink pairings inspired by our current exhibitions. This sold-out event is always a hit in the community and the 14th time was no exception!
Feast for the Senses 14 brought Fire Master winner Matthew Kershaw to the gallery. Matthew is the Executive Chef of Other Bird, owner of Rapscallion & Co., The Mule Restaurants, Burro and Hunter & Co. Matthew's background is steeped in Michelin stars and haute cuisine. Still, he doesn't care for fine dining pretentiousness. Instead, he pairs big-flavour-probably-bad-for-you cooking with charming hospitality in laid back settings. Joining Matthew as Sommelier was Ashley Grant.
As guests arrived, they were welcomed with a Bottega Prosecco to enjoy while they mingled with friends and were tempted by the tantalizing smells drifting down the corridor from the kitchen where Matthew and his team were hard at work.
Matthew and Ashley joined KWAG curator Darryn Doull on a tour of the selected works, where they explained their selection and what inspired the food and drink pairings. After the tour, it was time to feast!
The first course was a Mock Turtle Soup paired with a Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio Wine which was inspired by Adad Hannah’s All Was Vanity a beautiful piece in: In Search of a Loss of Self, curated by Soheila Esfahani and Mélika Hashemi. The second course was ‘Blanquette in a blanket’ (white veal stew with poached egg and cream under a crêpe with herb salad) paired with William Fevre Petit Chablis Wine which was inspired by Norman Laliberté’s Totem also in In Search of a Loss of Self exhibit. The third course was ‘The Woman Behind the Scenes’ (oxtail and stewed greens hidden under a cap of pomme purée) paired with Wakefield Shiraz Wine which was inspired by Jessica Karuhanga’s Black Holly Hock Presents the Revolution Will Not, which is part of the Jessica Karuhanga: Blue as the insides exhibition. The final course was dessert! A delicious banana pudding with dark chocolate ganache and cocoa nibs was paired with Inniskillin Late Autumn Riesling Wine to finish off the night. Dessert was inspired by Jessica Karuhanga’s Kiss the Sky also part of the Jessica Karuhanga: Blue as the insides exhibition.
Are you drooling just reading this? Disappointed you missed out on this amazing event? Feast for the Senses 15 will be taking place in November 2023, so make sure you follow us on social media and sign up for e-news so you can snag your tickets as soon as they go on sale!
While the food may be gone, you can still visit us to view the selected works! Jessica Karuhanga: Blue as the insides is on view until 6 August and In Search of a Loss of Self is on view until 10 September. As always, admission is free to the gallery.
Images of Feast for the Senses 14 by Scott Lee.
