Try delicious foods from around the world this February. The community is invited to take part in “Global Flavours”, a joint initiative with the local tourism boards and the St. Thomas-Elgin Immigration Partnership. Visit participating cultural and/or immigrant-owned restaurants and check in using an app or a paper “passport”. If you visit at least two restaurants (or the same one twice), you’ll be eligible for the prize draw. When you can enjoy great food, support local restaurants, and win prizes, it's a win-win-win! Global Flavours is celebrating its 5th year. It began as an initiative during the Covid-19 pandemic, when restaurants were hit particularly hard by the pandemic restrictions. February is a notably slow month for restaurants as it is, and with Covid-19, many were struggling even more. Simultaneously, we were seeing an increase in diversity in our region and wanted to celebrate the richness and vibrancy that a diversity of people (and foods) brings to our area. Thus, Global Flavours was born. The first year, 14 restaurants participated, in both St. Thomas and Elgin County. Amid Covid-19 restrictions, the community could grab takeout food and get their passport stamped—supporting local restaurants and trying new, delicious meals from countries around the world. As the years went on, Global Flavours grew. We added the option of participating using an app, called Goosechase, which is offered through Railway City Tourism. Participants can sign up either as a team or individually, and gain points for checking in at each restaurant’s location, as well as completing additional challenges, like answering trivia about the restaurants, trying certain types of food, and more. We also started launching Global Flavours with an event at the Horton Market in St. Thomas. We started by offering a food-themed craft, and then moved to organizing a food demonstration. Last year, we had a community member teach us how to make Filipino spring rolls, also called lumpiang shanghai. And of course, at the end everyone got to sample the sweet-savoury pork-filled pastries. Look out for us this year for a new food demonstration and tasting! (You may even be able to win points on the app for visiting us at the market.) In 2024, we had 23 restaurants participate, representing cuisines from Europe, Asia, South America, and Mexico. From Jamaican food in Port Burwell to sushi in Rodney, there were tasty food options available across the entire county. This year, we hope to have even more restaurants and community participants. We already have some new restaurants on board, who have opened since last years’ event. For the prizes, we get donations from local organizations as well as from the restaurants themselves. We decided that most of the prizes will be awarded based on a random prize draw, so that everyone has an equal chance to win, whether they were able to try many or just a few of the restaurants. Altogether, Global Flavours is made possible by strong community partnerships and a commitment to celebrate the cultural richness of our region. The participating restaurants have always represented diverse cuisines, and that similarly tells us about the diverse background of the people that make St. Thomas-Elgin their home. You can tell a little bit about the migration history by looking at the countries and cultures represented in Global Flavours. Past participants like The Gordita Shop and Mennomex speak to the local Low German Mennonite community, and often offer both Mennonite and Mexican dishes. Restaurants serving Dutch, German, and Polish recipes speak to some of the most common European countries of origin for this region’s immigrants, while multiple Jamaican and Indian restaurants echo some of the most common countries of origin for recent immigrants in St. Thomas-Elgin. Some of the past participating restaurants have also offered fusion dishes, combining different cultural influences and often speaking to the owner’s personal migration story. As we look toward the next five years of Global Flavours and beyond, we hope to see this initiative continue to grow as our community likewise continues to grow and change. Who knows what new flavours and new restaurants will continue to pop up, alongside well-established community favourites. We look forward to celebrating them all each February for years to come. More information, including the list of participating restaurants, passport download, and app code, will be available on Railway City Tourism’s website (www.railwaycitytourism.com/globalflavours). We hope you join us in supporting local restaurants, trying new foods, and celebrating diversity in our community. AuthorFIONA MURRAY
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