How to turn your weekly basket into a picnic basket!
It’s time to bust out the blankets and head to the nearest park because it’s officially picnicking season! Whether you’re more of the grab-and-go park-goer or prefer to go all out, check out how our team turns their weekly baskets into picnic baskets for their version of fresh, local, responsible park hangs.
Meet Damola - in less than four years, he went from packing baskets to Assistant Director of our distribution centre. He’s a huge foodie and grill master, so picnics are the perfect occasion to share his passion with his friends.
When he moved here from Nigeria four years ago, it didn’t take long for him to see how much Canadians love their burgers. He always makes sure to add some of Boucherie Nordest’s responsible patties and VG Gourmet’s vegan patties to his basket for his veggie friends, and he never forgets to add smoked bacon from Fermes des Quatre-Temps for his famous club sandwiches.
For a little taste of home, Damola preps spiced roasted corn and guacamole once these seasonal items hit the Marketplace. He never forgets his portable grill and preps everything directly at Bois-de-Liesse Nature Park in Pierrefonds or Mount Royal - his fave picnicking spots.
To top it off, Damola browses the organic wines - his latest discovery being Vignoble Côte des Limousins’ wines.
Team Tip! Grab your basket from the pick-up point closest to your fave park.
Meet Harshada, our Continuous Improvement Manager who makes sure we’re always moving onward and upward. Inspired by her years in Paris spontaneously picnicking along the Seine (wouldn’t it be nice?), she’s always down for effortless eats at Parc Jarry.
Harshada turns to the Marketplace’s wide selection of local cheese and sustainable meats to create an on-the-go charcuterie board. To channel Parisian picnics, she suggests adding Ferme des Quatre-Temps’ dry sausages and soft cheeses from Fromagerie Médard to your basket - oh, and don’t forget the classic French necessity: La Fabrique Arhoma’s blue cheese ficelle.
When it comes to snacks, Harshada stocks up on handmade sea salt sourdough chips and dips them in Montreal-made mouhamara or a vegan tofu spread. And to cool off, she grabs local beers from Le Castor Brewing Co. and Boldwin’s organic Fleuve witbier with its slight coriander flavour.
Team Tip! Bring your Lufa Farms basket to the park as it is - it’s already equipped with a cooler bag.
Meet Jean-Philippe, the newest member of our writing team. You won’t catch JP at a park without a grill - his picnics are downright luxurious.
To follow in JP’s footsteps, you’ll need to skewer some white perch and marinate it in an aged miso base. As a side dish, he preps a simple veggie papillote filled with fingerling potatoes, onions, garlic, thyme, and rosemary that he grills at the Lachine Canal or Parc Père-Marquette.
If you’d like to get fancy like JP this summer, order a box (or two) of oysters to shuck in the park, paired with a lemon and shallot mignonette sauce.
Even though JP typically prefers wine, for a day spent in the sun with great food and friends, a refreshing, local bubbly cider from Fleuri Cidres Biologiques is what he’ll be sipping on.
Team Tip! Keep a portable grill and coal in your trunk - you never know when the next spontaneous grill-and-chill will happen.
