Editor’s Note: Oh, Summer rains. They are so refreshing. While Mother Nature is giving us little cool down today, it’s the perfect time to hit two of the hottest event on the Eat Real. Eat Local 30-Day Food Challenge.
Natural Pastures Cheese Company kicks off its Featured Producer events with the first of its Taste The World of Cheese series. Hand-stretched mozzarella demos will be at 11 a.m., Noon and 1 p.m. at 635 McPhee in Courtenay. You can sneak some award-winning cheese action in on your lunch break:)
We are also excited to kick off the Know Where Your Food Comes from Tour of educational open houses at Anderton Therapeutic Gardens. From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. folks can drop by the gardens, check out the community plots, take part in some lovely, fun activities including intergenerational storytelling, light refreshments and more. Even with the rain, it sounds like a lovely way to spend the day. The gardens are at 2012 Anderton Road in Comox.
Most of our Featured Restaurants take Monday off to sleep in and enjoy. But, if you are looking for a lunch local, try out Anderton Bistro-Pub. Can’t take the kids as its pub status means adults 19 and older. Time to call the girls to catch up.:)
Speaking of eating, check out these eco-friendly disposable plates that I am currently seriously digging:
Picnics are tricky these days. Used to be we’d throw a pile of paper plates and some plastic cutlery into a box, pack up the cooler and head for the closest scenic table and benches.
But, lately, when I look at the trash can packed with disposables that can’t be recycled - heck, those plastic knives are surely gonna outlive generations of picnic lovers – it makes me rethink the way I go about one of my favourite Summertime activities.
It’s seriously challenging to find recyclable disposable picnic gear. Then, I start thinking about paper and corn (for the biodegradable “plastic” ware) and how expensive all of that is – all for a simple picnic – and it makes me want to throw a blanket on the living room floor and take a nap instead of play outside.
I want picnicking to be easy. Not me lugging a pile of silverware and heavy plates around.
So, I went on the search for something that is still disposable, comes from a renewable resource that isn’t taking up major crop space that could be used to produce food (like corn-based products) and discovered Bambu Veneerware.
In my head, the Bambu plates live somewhere between plastic – which all signs point to being seriously unhealthy – and paper plates – most of which are not recyclable.
Certified organic, this bamboo product is a renewable resource made with fair trade standards in place and I tend to lean this direction when it comes to the disposable plate thing.
They aren’t inexpensive, especially when you think they are disposable. But, seriously, wiped off after a meal (don’t soak them) you can get at least five or six uses out of them (in my experience) before they head to the trash and fully bio-degrade within six months (according to the corporate packaging).
The plates are light, VERY sturdy (no collapsing plates at the BBQ) and REALLY lovely, which means that while you might not buy Bambu plates for every picnic-like occasion, they are great for Sunday dinner with grandma, a small party or other fun. They come in packs of eight (8) in large and small sizes.
Are they always going to work? No, not for the price in my opinion. Decking yourself out with 50 Bambu plates for a big family BBQ is not going to seem worth the investment.
But, these Bambu plates seem a solid solution for the occasional outdoor event for which lugging the dishes out doesn’t make any sense at all.
You can pick them up locally at stores like The Green Room at Fourth Street and Cliffe Avenue in Courtenay.
I’ve got a set of dinner and snack-sized Bambu Veneerware plates to give away today. The question is, if you could replace one thing on a picnic that you would normally throw away, what would it be and what would you use as an alternative?
Stacey won the journal and soap from yesterday’s giveaway. Thanks for jumping in!
This giveaway is closed. Dawn won!
Photo courtesy of Bambu Online
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To be honest we don’t have any picnic throw aways for our family these days. I have a great soft cooler bag that can fit anywhere and I keep it loaded with cloth napkins, regular cutlery and the Ikea bowls and plates that I didn’t want to recycle when they still had a use (but wanted to get the plastic out of the house). When we get home I wash it all up and put it all back in the bag for the next time. It works great for us and really cuts down on waste. My biggest problem is what to do with a crowd…. It is soooo easy to fall back on disposables. I was thinking of watching the thrift stores for cheap cutlery to have on hand for such occasions. Great topic!
For me it’s the plates. You can’t do anything with after they’ve been used. The cutlery you can wash and use again as crafts or with clay and playdoh but the plates once they are food stained that is it.
I would replace the food containers, I am a bit lazy and usually just go buy a chicken meal or something before we go, so I would make somthing at home instead, put it in reusalbe containers. I have some of the bambu plates and I love them, I got them for Brandon so I didn’t need to use plastic, and yes I love that you can reuse them again and again before you compost them.
Plates and food containers. We have some compostable plates but they are made from corn.
I am trying to find a balance when camping by using corningware plates but that only works when there are just 4 of us. We are going on some big family outings this summer and I am dreading the waste we will generate.
Plates for sure. Everything else we take is either reusable or recyclable. Which reminds me… we haven’t gone on a picnic yet this year!
Definitely plates. We, too, have corn-based plates, real cutlery, cloth napkins, all packaged in a neat backpack/cooler but yes, this is only good for four. For larger groups we’ve gone with paper plates but I really don’t like the fairly generic designs (or the Disneyeque themes either) and the few times I’ve found plates that were slightly aesthetically pleasing, they cost a bomb.
The Bambu plates look lovely and being ‘wooden’ they would appeal to the junior tree-huggers of our home.
We love picnics!
I concur about the plates. They are the hardest to figure out an alternative that doesn’t weigh a ton. We usually get around this just by taking handheld foods whenever possible – wraps, sandwiches, crackers, etc. But there is something extra yummy about potato salad in a park somewhere!
As a quick aside, we just got back from a fabulously wet hour at the Anderton Gardens. The girls had so much fun! The wishing well and the labyrinth were big hits (if there is ever a “speed labyrinth” event let me know as I have two contenders!), as was the giant puddle. We will definitely be heading back on a sunny day soon to check out the butterfly garden, where there is a nice fairy trail according to my little fairy experts.
Food containers. We have not found an alternative that is light weight. Sandwiches or fruit are so much more enjoyable if they are not squished to bits. We have a soft sided cooler that we take everywhere with light weight reusable plates, cutlery and napkins tucked in the front pocket, but we don’t like how stainless steel water bottles and 2 small children can squish the picnic.
I would replace the napkins and cutlery that you are given (and need) when getting a takeaway. The bag is always overloaded with condiments, enough napkins for a small army and those little knives that don’t seem to cut anything. In a perfect world, I would always be READY; a bag in the trunk with regular cutlery, napkins, and perhaps all the extra condiments that pile up in my fridge from previous meals out. I seem to be able to do it once and then the washing gets done but it is rarely put back in its place!