Charity Dinner raises $6,760 for The Nourish Project
On Thursday 10 November, 105 guests attended a six-course degustation at our student-training restaurant, VenU, for the biannual Victoria University (VU) Polytechnic Charity Dinner.
Over 40 students prepared each course alongside executive chef Markus Werner from Delaware North. The dinner also featured a silent auction, with all proceeds going towards The Nourish Project.
The dinner menu included slow poached oysters, smoked duck breast, crisp skinned barramundi, aged porterhouse and braised ribs, organic lemon tart and more. Each course was accompanied by a wine pairing.
Chef Markus commented on how impressed he was with the students' skills and commitment to practising what they have learned:
I've really been impressed with the students. The commitment from the students and the interest, it's really amazing. I would be more than happy to use a few people in our venue, in our company.
Adam Shoemaker, Vice-Chancellor of Victoria University, was equally impressed by the impact of the Charity Dinner on the local community:
There are a lot of important things that happen during the year but one of the most special is when the community is fully on campus and talking about community benefit. And of course charitable effects and voluntary things like dinners like this are so crucial to demonstrate we are of Footscray, we are of the people, we're of this region and we are of a very proud background. The Polytechnic has been here for years but this is a real culmination of the annual events that we have - it's just fantastic!
VU Polytechnic’s Charity Dinner is part of VU's School for the Visitor Economy. This cross-university school provides hospitality and tourism industries with an increased volume of qualified professionals to support the sector.
A total of $6,760.53 raised from the evening were donated to The Nourish Project.
"The importance of tonight is still being able to provide those meals to families in need, because food security is not going away and we're seeing it rise as cost of living is rising
," said Suzanne Mosca, Project Officer at The Nourish Project.
The five Neighbourhood Houses — Yarraville Community Centre, Angliss Neighbourhood House, West Footscray Neighbourhood House, Duke Street Community Centre, and Braybrook Maidstone Neighbourhood — launched the project to rescue surplus ingredients and transform these into healthy and nutritious meals. The meals are delivered and provided for free for people doing it tough.
“We rely on our local community supporting us. We rely on the funding from the local community and awareness that they raise
,” said Bettina Twyman, Projects Coordinator at the Yarraville Community Centre and The Nourish Project.
Special thanks to our sponsors Aquanas Foods, Calendar Cheese Company, Global Meats, Melba Fresh, Parkhill Cellars and Tasty One.
