It was a beautiful night last Thursday for an al fresco meal, and the table d’hôte menu at Catered Affairs did not disappoint. The meal was part of a hyper-local community event created by owner of Catered Affairs, Natalie Castellas, and Darlene Collin of My Local Markets, on the Kemptville Campus. While Natalie was serving up her delicious food on the patio outside the cafeteria building, Darlene was running an artisan market, chock full of scrumptious local food and other items like handmade jewelry and artisanal soaps. Not only were the two events being run at the same time, Catered Affairs used many of the food items offered at the market, in their dishes.
I had a caprese salad with fresh local tomatoes, creamy bocconcini cheese, and house-grown basil pesto. There is nothing quite like tomatoes and basil, fresh from the garden. It has to be one of my favourite combinations and Catered Affairs’ caprese salad was no exception. The presentation was also gorgeous, with the bocconcini cheese interspersed between the thick slices of bright red tomatoes, garnished with a sprinkling of microgreens and balsamic, the fresh basil pesto and crispy baguette croutons. Summer on a plate if you ask me.
For my main dish I had crispy chicken, stuffed with local cheese on top of fettuccini with market vegetables. It was also beautifully presented, and the chicken was extremely tender and flavourful. The fettuccini was creamy, but light and cooked to a perfect al dente, while the green beans wrapped in a zucchini blanket, were crunchy and sweet.
As much as I enjoyed my main meal, the piece de resistance was definitely the warm blueberry and peach crisp with both vanilla and beet (I know, cool right?) ice cream. You could tell that the blueberries and peaches were fresh and in season, as they were extremely flavourful without one overpowering the other. The crumble top was rich and thick, with just the right amount of sweetness. Topped off with the cold ice creams, it was a dessert truly made in heaven.
The meal was served with a smile (you could tell, even through the masks) and everyone was happy to go the extra mile to make sure we enjoyed our experience. Beautiful weather, great company and, of course, delicious food, prepared with love. For a locavore and self-proclaimed foodie, I could not have asked for a better experience for my first time at Catered Affairs. I will definitely be back!
Catered Affairs not only offers great weekly meals on their patio, they also have many take-home options. To learn more about Catered Affairs and order online visit their website at www.cateredaffairs.ca.