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GASTRONOMICA KNYSNA 2007

Knysna’s third annual Gastronomica festival will take place from Sunday September 23 until Monday October 1. Mindful of community development and job creation in Knysna and its locality, this year’s theme Celebrate a Conscious Lifestyle, will be exemplified not only by Master Baker, James McGuire , who flies in from Monteal, Canada to preside over his world-renowned bread-making workshop, but also by musicians, mime characters, comedians and other enjoyable performing artists. Visitors can shop at Gastronomica’s Food with Integrity Market, meet farmers and artisans from the Garden Route and Klein Karoo, and sample fresh — and in some cases — organic produce. Here, children will be able to put their budding skills to the test in the Kiddies Cooking workshop. Meanwhile, moms and dads can watch demonstrations on Modern South African Cuisine by nationally renowned chefs. The market will also host local artists and musicians, along with puppetry, mime, and dance. Fathers and sons will have the opportunity to take part in a reel-ly fun expedition on Fish for Tomorrow - Fish Day. Participants will be able to brush up on off-shore, coastal and in-land ecosystems, and correct environmental practices. Throughout the day, chefs will demonstrate how to clean, de-bone, fillet and prepare a variety of fish. Only seasonally fresh produce will enhance the day’s catch. The Food with Integrity Market will end on Monday evening with food theatre by Lochner de Kok. Gastronomica, one of South Africa’s premier culinary festivals, not only underlines good and honest food and fresh seasonal ingredients, but also celebrates correct producer-practices, and the training and education of food enthusiasts at all levels. Gastronomica is the foodies’ paradise; 10-days crammed full of hands-on workshops and discussions — and culinary comedy Western Cape celebrity chef Lochner de Kok and Coenie de Villiers. The festival is expected to attract food and wine lovers — from the community, chefs, restaurateurs, cookery enthusiasts, tourists and local hospitality practitioners, to artisan and farmer-producers. Highlights include The Secrets of a Chocolatier and All about Coffee- the best of the best — professional workshops for restaurateurs, hoteliers, guesthouse proprietors and food industry students by world-renowned Swiss chocolatier from Felchlin and David Donde from Origin, Cape Town. Another treat will be The Decadent Chocolate Afternoon, when Nicholas van der Walt of the Saxon Boutique Hotel, Johannesburg will demonstrate chocolate varieties as the main ingredients for his recipes for cakes, desserts, pastries and drinks. There will also be chocolate exhibits and samples for sweet-toothed foodies. The festival culminates in a five-course Chefs’ Gala Dinner at which leading South African and international chefs orchestrate one course each. Guests can watch and learn the gastronomic secrets of these wizards while they eat. Gastronomica’s broader agenda is to suggest a lifestyle that encompasses food with integrity. As usual, Knysna’s top restaurants will reflect this in their menus. In-season ingredients such as blue berries, strawberries, artichokes, mushrooms and asparagus could be utilised. Needless to say: preservatives, additives, artificial colourants, frozen, long-life and MSG will be utterly superfluous! “Gastronomica is about good, honest, fresh and bio-diverse food; a showcase for talent and products. It bolsters the skills and empowerment of Knysna’s hospitality employee and management trainees. They will enjoy a hands-on learning experience that is difficult to come by day to day. Our chefs are chosen for their passion, talent, dedication and pragmatism rather than for any talent they might have for showmanship,” enthused Gastronomica’s MD, Pat Mulder. Tickets are available online at www.gastronomicakny.co.za or call The Boatshed, Thesen Harbour Town on (044) 302 5749. Visit www.gastronomicakny.co.za for more information.