Dine with a cause at #DinnerPartyYVR!
Putting a creative spin on the typical ‘dinner party’, Dinner Party YVR is a charitable cooking event where local hobby chefs host dinner parties simultaneously in their homes to raise funds to various charities. This simultaneous dinner party happens on Saturday, April 9th, 2016!
· Since launching the event in 2013, DinnerPartyYVR has doubled in size
· 100% of each $50 ticket will be donated to the host’s chosen charity
· This year’s event is estimated to raise over $20,000 for local organizations; four times that of the inaugural DinnerPartyYVR
I sat down with Annika Reinhardt, Co-Founder of DinnerPartyYVR!
Why DinnerPartyYVR?
DinnerPartyYVR had been percolating ever since 2009, when I met my co-producer at a not so chance meeting at a dining event. We connected on the 3 topics close to our hearts: our love of food, connecting people and doing good.
Meanwhile our professional lives were taking us deeper into those areas, me with Social Bites — helping organizations do-more-awesome in the world by developing social impact initiatives that stick, and Crystal with connecting people through community building for companies like Yelp and Chimp. One day, we circled back on our passions, and bam: the biggest, boldest, and most philanthropic dinner party was born.
Doing good while enjoying a home-cooked meal and meeting new & interesting people, it doesn’t get much better than that!
“Throwing a dinner party for charity may not be groundbreaking, we just cranked it up a notch to create maximum impact while making the statement that Vancouverites are actually very welcoming and that our city is pretty fun! We wanted to create an event where Vancouverites would connect in a true and simple fashion while contributing to the community. The home is where we feel safe, the kitchen and the dinner table is where conversations flow. It’s natural, it’s engaging, it’s what we’re meant to be doing. Converse, enjoy, connect.” – Annika Reinhardt (Social Impact Creator)
How did you find all the participating chefs?
You can sense a hobby chef is in your midst… they are keen on meeting new and interesting people and raising funds for their favourite charity. We are very fortunate to have many hobby chefs return year after year. They really love DinnerPartyYVR: it’s a way to host a fundraising event while being part of a larger community. We also have a lot of charities that host dinners which gives them a great opportunity to drive awareness and connect with those supporting their cause.
We appreciate all the work our hobby chefs put into this event, and we want to support them as much as we can on their cooking journey. We create opportunities for hobby chefs to connect with one another before the big day. Our friends at Whole Foods Market invite them to special butcher and cheese workshops, and store tours, plus they generously donate a $100 gift certificate to shop for their dinner. We invite them to Hobby Chef Huddles hosted at Cressey’s Sterling Presentation Centre,where we do special tastings with Serendipity Winery, Howe Sound Brewing and DRY Sparkling soda.
Are there specific guidelines as to how many dishes and what kind of cuisine is to be served?
We encourage hobby chefs to cook what they love. Hosting a dinner party should be fun and cooking what you know best will ensure your meal will be a success. We have many different cuisines featured each year, this time Middle Eastern & Latin seem particularly popular. Meals can be multi-course or might be served family style. There are really no restrictions, but some do create spectacular dietary restrictive menus like Vegan and Gluten-free. What you won’t find on a hobby chef’s menu is dessert, because those are served by talented artisans from Heritage Canadian Bakery and Andrea’s Oven at the after party, hosted at MakerLabs.
There are a variety of charities being supported here – from the SPCA to Children’s Hospital! Do you think individuals are more likely to choose a dinner based on the menu or based on the charity supported?
I think it’s a little bit of both. What’s important to us is that diners are open to learning more about the charities that are supported. We’ve heard the most moving stories, from the love for a newly adopted SPCA dog to honouring dad and his struggle through cancer; there are many reasons why hobby chefs choose their causes. Over the years DinnerPartyYVR has supported hundreds of charities and I feel like I’ve learned a lot about great causes in Vancouver and across Canada. With the help of Cressey Development Group, our returning presenting partner, we raise awareness for amazing organizations doing wonderful things in the community is definitively something we strive for.
“Our goal is to connect Vancouverites that might otherwise not have met over great food and conversation. We’ve had people that met their future boyfriend, mentor, business partner or some great new friends to hang out with. We always invite our charity partners to participate ensuring they get to know the hobby chefs & diners that are supporting them. It’s important to hobby chefs to raise funds for their causes, and we are able to provide a platform to do just that. We are aiming to raise $20,000 this year, which will bring our total charitable contribution to over $50,000. Not bad for a little in-home dining event!”
Definitely something new to do for a date night or with a group of friends! Head on to DinnerPartyYVR to find out all the participating chefs and charities you’ll be giving back to!
#DinnerPartyYVR