Toronto Vegetarian Food Fair

Who: VN Trade Show Manager Lyndsay Orwig and VN contributor Moira Nordholt

What: Toronto Vegetarian Food Fair

Where: Toronto, ON

When: September 10 to 12, 2010

Why: To hang with fellow vegetarians in our neighboring country up north

The Scoop: Being the Trade Show Manager, I go to a lot of shows throughout the year. They're all great, don't get me wrong, but I was really looking forward to heading to the Toronto Vegetarian Food Fair. I've only been to this culturally diverse city once, which was a treat. I'm very lucky to have a good friend there, Tonya, so I was expecting a great time, and boy was I right!

A couple hours before the fair began, I was able to check out Fresh, a popular, mostly vegan restaurant. The weather was great, so Tonya and I dined al fresco, which was a delight! The most interesting thing on the menu? The Quinoa-Battered Onion Rings for sure. They were so delish, I forgot to take a picture before I devoured them.

The Deluxe Burger with Coconut Curry Sauce. Yum!

The Food Fair is a three-day show completely free to the public, and includes a ton of vendors, including Gardein, Vitamix, Luna & Larry's Coconut Bliss, and Sequel Naturals, to name a few. It's also located at the Harbourfront Centre, on Toronto's waterfront, which is gorgeous. Not to mention that it's held in the most perfect time of the year, autumn. Being from the East Coast, I miss my seasons, and fall was always my favorite, so it was amazing going back to that, even if it was only for a few days.

The enthusiasm for the vegetarian lifestyle was all around, which is always great to experience, and I met a lot of great people, a couple being strong leaders in the veg movement including Carol J. Adams and Jae Steele. Fun times were definitely had, so much so that I didn't even feel like I was at work. If you are in the Toronto area a year from now, be sure to check out the festival—you won't be disappointed!

The Food Issue was a big hit!

Vegan in Victoria

Who: VN Editorial Assistant Lisa Mickleborough
What: A Canadian ex-pat returns for a weekend of love and leisure
Where: Victoria, BC, Canada
When: March 7–9, 2008
Why: To visit loved ones in my home and native land!

The Scoop: I’ve lived in San Francisco for almost three months and, while I would not say I’ve become homesick per se, when the opportunity presented itself to return to Canada for the weekend (thanks to a gentleman--see the photo below--who loves me enough to split my airfare), I felt I was in no position to pass it up. Although I am from Toronto, several of my nearest and dearest live in Victoria, BC. By land, air, and sea, I schlepped my over-stuffed suitcase (you never know when you’ll need seven black t-shirts) to Victoria, and stayed with Joey, loved-one #1. He took me around to Victoria’s vegan hotspots, including casual and cozy Green Cuisine, an all-vegan, mostly organic buffet and bakery, where we picked up some surprisingly inexpensive, house-made, organic tofu and tempeh for supper. The morning of day two was spent with loved one #2, Ms. Hilary, who took me to a bustling little retro nook called Lady Marmalade, which, while not entirely vegan, did offer some fantastic vegan brunch options. The service was friendly but slow, although we were so pleased to be reunited that we didn’t even notice. Later on, after an afternoon of rigorous thrift-store shopping with #1, we ducked into Lotus Pond, a charming little Buddhist vegan restaurant where we enjoyed a crispy lemon “chicken” platter and a smoky mock-fish dish served over perfectly sautéed gai lan. I may not have been homesick, but after such an indulgent weekend, it was certainly hard to leave. Hungry for more about BC’s vegan scene? Check out the May+June issue of VegNews when it hits newsstands mid-April for our Vancouver VegEscapes feature.