Collection of creative wine, food and guest chef events light up Friday night dining
With the fall harvest underway in the beautiful Okanagan Valley, the Restaurant at Naramata Inn is getting ready to celebrate this important time of year with a series of creative culinary events highlighting the region’s producers: wineries and distilleries, cheesemakers and farmers, ranchers and fishers.
“We’re not just a great restaurant with rooms,” says Chef Ned Bell. “We’re also a great place to bring people together to collaborate. We’re thrilled to be able to invite some of our favourite like-minded chefs and winemakers to join us here, and host a top line-up of dinners and creative wine-focused evenings this fall.”
Each Friday night, starting on October 23, will see the Restaurant at Naramata Inn abuzz with culinary excitement, with an exclusive event. The inaugural dinner will see Chef Bell collaborate with Chef Scott Jaeger, formerly of The Pear Tree, and recent recipient of the Vancouver Magazine’s 2020 Lifetime Achievement Award. Subsequent events include a wine harvest dinner with three much-loved Okanagan and Similkameen wineries, guest chef dinners with both Chef Mike Robbins (AnnaLena, Vancouver) and Chef Derek Gray (Row Fourteen, Cawston), and a unique evening bringing together the wine and farm products from Naramata favourite, Bella Wines. The series ends on December 4, with an event to usher in the holiday season, featuring large format wines and an indulgent feast.
Tickets for the first two events are currently open for purchase, the others will open up shortly. Tickets are available for purchase by the table (2, 4 or 6 guests) to ensure a COVID-friendly experience, and can be booked via NaramataInn.com/events. A $50 per person deposit is required at time of booking via credit card on Open Table. Guests are also invited to turn their dinner experience into a sleepover by booking one of Naramata Inn’s 12 Mission-style heritage guest rooms. Rooms are going quickly. Guests who purchase tickets to any of our Friday night events are also eligible for a ten percent bonus on Naramata Inn gift cards valued at $100 or more. Share a copy of your ticket with our Front Desk team to redeem.
The full event calendar is as follows:
October 23 – Guest Chef Dinner: Scott Jaeger, The Pear Tree The recipient of Vancouver Magazine’s 2020 Lifetime Achievement Award, Chef Scott Jaeger joins forces with Chef Ned Bell to showcase their shared passion for local ingredients. Dinner features 6-courses paired with wines selected by Wine Director, Emily Walker and is priced at $125 plus tax and 18% gratuity. Book Now
October 30 – Harvest Wine Dinner Toast the wine harvest with three of our favourite BC wineries: Roche Winery (Naramata Bench), Lightning Rock Winery (Summerland) and Orofino (Cawston) as they talk you through their 2020 harvest experience (and offer a sneak peek from “backstage”) while you enjoy previous vintages carefully paired with Chef Ned Bell’s menu. Dinner features 5- courses paired with wines selected by Wine Director, Emily Walker and is priced at $150 plus tax and 18% gratuity. Book Now
November 6 – Bella and the Beast(s) Local wine pairs best with local food, and tonight’s dinner will centre around both, with bubbles from Naramata sparkling producer, Bella Winery — along with a couple of cameos from their neighbours, Nichol Vineyard — and a menu sourced from Bella’s own farm. Dinner features 5-courses paired with wines selected by Wine Director, Emily Walker and is priced at $150 plus tax and 18% gratuity. Book Soon – Check our Events page for updates
November 13 – Guest Chef Dinner: Mike Robbins, AnnaLena Chef Mike Robbins from Vancouver’s AnnaLena joins Chef Ned Bell for a creative evening of collaboration bringing together international influences and locally-sourced ingredients for a truly modern take on Canadian cuisine. Dinner features 6-courses paired with wines selected by Wine Director, Emily Walker and is priced at $125 plus tax and 18% gratuity. Book Soon – Check our Events page for updates
November 20 – Meet the Misfits Wine Dinner Join Wine Director Emily Walker as she shines the light on some lesser known grape varieties being produced beautifully in British Columbia. Enjoy the local expression of each grape alongside its more famous international counterpart, both matched with a Naramatian interpretation of the wine’s traditional menu pairing. Dinner features 5-courses paired with wines selected by Wine Director, Emily Walker and is priced at $150 plus tax and 18% gratuity. Book Soon – Check our Events page for updates
November 27 – Guest Chef Dinner: Derek Gray, Row Fourteen Like Naramata Inn, Cawston’s Row Fourteen is known for its commitment to hyper-local ingredients. Chef Derek Gray joins Chef Ned Bell for a culinary ode to the farmers and producers of both the Okanagan and Similkameen valleys. Dinner features 6-courses paired with wines selected by Wine Director, Emily Walker and is priced at $125 plus tax and 18% gratuity. Book Soon – Check our Events page for updates
December 4 – Here Comes the Big Guy Kicking off the holiday season, we’re welcoming one big guy (Santa) by opening a slew of other “big guys” — wines in large format bottles! Join us for an indulgent feast, from magnum to “roast beast.” Dinner features 5 decadent courses paired with wines selected by Wine Director, Emily Walker and is priced at $225 plus tax and 18% gratuity.
Book Soon – Check our Events page for updates