Follow Me Foodie to Sun Peaks & Kamloops!

Follow Me Foodie to Sun Peaks & Kamloops!

Really?! Sun Peaks I can see (if you like to ski and snowboard), but Kamloops? Are those places you really want to “Follow Me Foodie” to? I could barely convince myself. It was off season too so I couldn’t even ski or snowboard, although it’s been a while since I’ve done either. But was there really anything cooking in either of those places?

It was summertime in Sun Peaks and I was invited by Tourism Sun Peaks Resort on a long weekend getaway to explore Sun Peaks and Kamloops. The tasty side of it. I hesitated at first, but my culinary curiosity always gets the best out of me. I want to experience, learn and taste everything from all cities, regions and cultures, no matter how small or insignificant they may sound.

At the Matthew Good Solo Acoustic outdoor concert at Sun Peaks Resort village.

To be honest I’ve researched a bit about the Kamloops food scene before this trip and there were some places I wanted to check out. As a “foodie” Kamloops was more exciting for me, but for most people Sun Peaks would likely have more appeal. It’s a Winter ski resort and I would pretty much call it “baby Whistler”. It’s much smaller and only a 45 minute drive from Kamloops, but a 3.5-4.5 hour drive from Vancouver, BC.

I’m born and raised in Vancouver and I’ve never been to Sun Peaks or Kamloops. Vacations never brought me there and it’s almost embarrassing how little traveling I’ve done within BC. It’s not that it doesn’t interest me, but I’m not exactly an outdoors kind of person unless there’s a food and drink element to being outdoors. There are certainly great wineries and food in Kelowna, but these destinations were new territory for me.

The thought of driving for more than 3 hours also makes me cringe, but my road trip was made pleasant with some great company and a comfortable car. Thanks to OpenRoad Auto Group for sponsoring my “MINI getaway” with the 2012 MINI Cooper Countryman! It was the SUV version of the MINI Cooper which is a bit of an oxymoron, but it was spacious and very enjoyable for the mini road trip.

My excitement sparked when I read the itinerary which was not what I expected. Usually it would be a list of restaurants, but in this case it was a list of farms. The concept of “farm to fork” is happening everywhere, but the idea of “celebrity farmers” and meeting the farmers is in itself a current “trend” in the culinary world. We’re living in an age where people want to know where their food comes from, how it grows, and who especially is growing or raising them. Whether it be meat or vegetables people want to meet the farmers and people behind the names and labels. And do I fit in this category? Yes.

It’s really almost going back in time. It’s not enough to know what the cow eats, but people want to know who feeds it, where it lives, what time it wakes up and how to massage it. I’m joking about half of that. It might sound a bit overboard, but it’s actually a wonderful thing. Overboard or not, people want to know so they can make better decisions about what they eat and who they buy from.

Unfortunately I didn’t have the opportunity to explore much of the restaurant scene in Kamloops or Sun Peaks, but it was rewarding to meet the farmers responsible for our local ingredients. Farming is really a labour of love and although all types of work are full of challenges, farming is quite under appreciated for an industry we depend on.

So instead of what I ate on this trip, it’s more about who I met. Of course I ate as well, but that part became secondary.

So who will you meet in Follow Me Foodie to Sun Peaks & Kamloops?

Ian and Anja Mitchell and their children who own and operate Mitchell Cattle Co. located in Barriere, BC.

Deb (not shown) and Dieter Kellogg who own and work at Thistle Farms in Kamloops.

Co-owners Ed and Vicki (not shown) at BC’s newest and most northern winery – Trail Estate Winery in Kamloops.

Kristina Mast of The Flying Gecko Home Bakery in Kamloops

And I can’t leave you starving, so what will we eat? Here is a sneak peek.

Lamb confit – Dominion Creek Ranch (local) lamb, peach chutney, mint yogurt and crostinis from Mantles

Black garlic from Black Garlic Bistro

Buddha’s Feast with organic quinoa and local vegetables

Black currant and vanilla bean panna cotta with fresh basil lemon sorbetto made from Thistle Farms ingredients.

And a delicious Carrot Cake from The Flying Gecko!

More to come!