With summer fruit season in full swing, UBC is taking advantage of the bountiful blueberries at local farms.
Today, we attended the UBC Food Services Blueberry Festival—the plaza in front of the UBC bookstore was transformed into a lively hub brimming with baked goods, live music, a chef demo, and of course, blueberries.
Blueberry Pancake Breakfast
As 9am rolled around, hungry crowds flocked towards the blueberry pancake breakfast. Students, staff, faculty, and visitors alike lined up to get a taste of farm fresh blueberries in the form of syrupy pancakes and crepes! The friendly food services staff donned smiles as their hands were moving non stop to serve the endless crowds.
Along with pancakes and crepes, festival-goers were also filling up on blueberry tarts, cheesecake, scones, muffins, and cookies.
Local farms painted today’s grey weather with bright colours, as they set up booths for festival-goers to purchase farm-fresh produce, such as arugula, strawberries, beets, carrots, and of course, blueberries. As everything at the Blueberry Festival is ethically and locally sourced, you can feel good about what you’re eating.
Did you know that UBC Food Services sources 60% of ingredients through local farm partnerships?
In addition to supporting local food, a priority at UBC is sustainability, and reducing our environmental impact. Juliana Campbell of UBC Food Services encourages festival attendees to bring their own containers and cutlery to enjoy the offerings of the Blueberry Festival.
“Part of our mission at UBC food services is supporting zero-waste and sustainability. By bringing your own containers and cutlery, you are supporting guilt free food— ethically sourced, local, and sustainable deliciousness.”
Brad Vigue, Executive Chef of UBC Residence Dining
Chef Demo
As the day progressed, and just in time for lunch, we headed to the chef demo to pick up some culinary skills to use on our fresh blueberries. The Executive Chef of UBC Residence Dining, Brad Vigue, drew a large crowd as he walked us through the creation of his salmon blueberry tacos and blueberry cannoli.
Around Campus
We can’t get enough of blueberries – and neither can Perugia, Mercante, or Harvest. In celebration of BC’s blueberry season, they have created special menu items from now until Friday, July 20. The limited edition blueberry ricotta pizza at Mercante is a must try!
Events like these serve as a reminder that the food scene at UBC is ever-evolving, that the stereotype of bland campus food is far from the truth, and that summer in Vancouver really is a beautiful time. If you missed out today on the chance to explore the blueberry festival, don’t fret—the party is on for two more days. Enjoy glistening baked goods, chef demos, pancakes, and farm fresh blueberries, on July 19 – 20 from 9:00am – 1:00pm, at the plaza in front of the bookstore. Don’t forget to bring your own containers!
If you’d like to see more of our day, watch our Facebook video feature with our host, Julia Chai!