Excitement is building around the upcoming Osoyoos Oyster Festival as Walnut Beach Resort’s Executive Chef Bilel Lasmar fine tunes the final culinary selection for the Pearls in the Desert Gala.
“I think it’s going to be a spring event like no other with the reintroduction of the Oyster Festival,” says Jared Sissons, Walnut Beach Resort General Manager. The event started at the resort back in 2011 and was its signature event until it lapsed prior to the pandemic.
“We’re just trying to introduce it back to the Osoyoos community and we’re hoping for community support.” It’s an evening that’s quite different from what is typically available in the South Okanagan he adds.
And while the ticket price of $150 may cause some to shy away, the price actually offers exceptional value Sissons notes, because it includes an evening of free flow food, wine and entertainment.
The resort’s own Leslee Hatherly and headliner Diane Ball will provide the sensory pleasure for the evening.
An indisputable highlight will no doubt be Chef Lasmar’s culinary creations, alongside award-winning wines from Oliver Osoyoos Wine Country members and of course, the all-mighty oysters freshly shucked by Codfathers Seafood Market.
Ten different delectable canapés are sure to delight every possible palate particularity with a serious nod to the deep blue sea with prawns, scallops and caviar included in the offering.
For those less inclined towards the briny oyster feast there will be a pasta bar offering a whole variety of options, limited only by one’s imagination.
Weather cooperating, the event will be an indoor/outdoor affair, tapping the patio just off the restaurant and lounge. Sissons says he is expecting around 100 guests with confirmed reservations growing rapidly.
The Pearls in the Desert Gala event will be hosted at Walnut Beach Resort on Saturday, Apr. 20 from 5-9:30 p.m. For more information and reservations visit osoyoosoysterfestival.ca or call Walnut Beach Resort at 250-495-5400. The Sip & Shuck event of the Oyster Festival is being held on Friday, Apr. 19 at the Osoyoos Golf and Country Club from 5-7:30 p.m. and tickets can be purchased at the festival link above.
Tune into Bounce Radio 102.9 on Monday, Apr. 15 during the Morning with Brock Jackson show for a chance to win a pair of tickets to the Pearls in the Desert Gala worth $300.
