We buy from British Columbia farmers wherever the season allows. That is not only a sourcing preference — it changes what is on the menu, and it is the reason the same catering menu tastes different in June and in November.
Spring is the thin part of the year and the best part of it: asparagus, the first greens, radishes, rhubarb. Menus lean on what is bright rather than what is abundant, and a bowl built in May has more raw vegetables in it than the same bowl in February.
Summer is the easy stretch — berries, tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, stone fruit, corn. Cold-pressed juices are at their best here, and outdoor catering suits the produce as much as the weather.
Autumn brings the roots and the squash, and the food gets warmer without getting heavier: roasted root vegetables, turmeric cauliflower, beets. This is when the menus read most like the kitchen actually cooks.
Winter is storage crops, brassicas and greenhouse growing, which is where careful sourcing earns its keep. We would rather serve a good stored carrot from the Fraser Valley than a tired one that has crossed a continent.
If you are planning something months out, this is worth a conversation rather than a menu. Tell us the date and we will tell you what will be worth eating on it.
