At Tapestry we enjoy treating our residents to culinary adventures – whether it’s daily specials, meals or snacks tied to special events, theme dinners, or private dinners for birthdays or other occasions. We regularly showcase the talents of our chefs, kitchen employees and servers to a small group of guests who have expressed interest in joining a Tapestry community.

Recently, an intimate group of six guests was treated to a “Lavender Dreamscape” at Tapestry at Arbutus Walk – an experience imagined as “A Spring Feast for the Senses”.

The dream started with Restaurant Manager Kevin Leeming, who wanted to showcase the colours and flavours of spring. Kevin says he wanted to evoke an English garden theme, and thus the elegant dining room décor featured lavender and white, ivy and crystals, fresh tulips and white napkins shaped into roses.

Kevin, along with Executive Chef Valentino Pereira and Sous Chef Chuck So, worked together to develop the special dinner menu, drawing on fresh and local ingredients as Tapestry always does for its daily restaurant menus. The three agreed they wanted the menu to be light and a little bit playful, but also include ingredients the guests would be familiar and comfortable with. “These dinners are our favourite to plan, and we also get to have some fun with it,” says Chuck.

The first course, homemade fresh cheese with an heirloom tomato salad, was a play on caprese salad and the fresh mozzarella was handmade by Chuck. “I had practiced making the cheese three times before the day of the dinner,” he says.

The second course was pan-seared scallops in a spring minestrone broth. That was followed by the visually stunning main dish – a sole and shrimp roulade layered with zucchini and topped with salmon roe sauce along with a tomato cracker in the shape of a prawn, handcrafted by Chef Valentino.

For dessert, guests were presented with individual Baked Alaska (ice cream topped with meringue and flaming Brandy), which included artful and whimsical plating that truly brought the spring theme to life.

With this menu, it’s not surprising the team received rave reviews from the diners. “One of the guests said that the food equaled or bettered their dining experiences on luxury cruise ships,” says Kevin. “I think it’s fair to say that each course surpassed expectations for our guests. I don’t think they were anticipating the quality and creativity that was delivered – not only the taste, but also the visuals,” he adds.

Chuck says his favourite part of this special meal was serving the food and talking to the guests about how it was prepared. “People generally don’t see the amount of work that goes into creating a meal like this,” he says. “When you get to witness the guests enjoying their meal and see them having a memorable dining experience, it’s extremely gratifying.”

Two current Tapestry at Arbutus Walk residents were also on hand at the dinner to answer questions about what it’s like to live at Tapestry. “There was such a buzz and jovial, happy feeling at the table,” says Kevin.

One diner has already put a deposit down on a suite at Tapestry, saying her experience at the dinner has her looking forward to building friendships in her new home.

And another participant emailed the team to say thank you for such a memorable, delightful evening, sharing that, “Everything was so well done; the beautiful table arrangement, the excellent, friendly service and the spectacular food. All the ingredients were so fresh, the flavours so wonderful, and the presentation artful and perfect.”

“This dinner was really a collaborative group effort in terms of developing the theme and the menu,” says Kevin. “We were grateful to have the opportunity to showcase the talents of our restaurant team to our guests, as we do for our current residents, every day.”

At Tapestry, we are committed to elevating your dining experience, building from a foundation of fresh, nutritious local ingredients designed to support long-term healthy living. If you are considering making the move to Tapestry, please contact us for a tour and complimentary lunch and be sure to ask about our enticing move-in incentives. You can also read more about the Harvest dinner we hosted last fall.