Article

A Sense of Taste

Banish the bland from convention centre menus with creative twists that won’t cause sticker shock

By Sandra Eagle

Changing demographics, food costs, health concerns and a desire for a sense of place are leading to shifts in food and beverage offerings for groups and events.

At the 2016 opening gala for the Centrallia Global B2B Forum in Winnipeg last May, Jonathan Strauss, president of Strauss Event & Association Management, based in Winnipeg, made sure that the city’s hometown flavours were on the menu at the RBC Convention Centre. Global entrepreneurs feasted on a wide variety of local ingredients, including flambéed pickerel cheeks in a Pernod sauce and grilled home-style buffalo sliders. “Local berries and Manitoba pork, fish and buffalo gave attendees a true taste of the flavours of the city,” says Strauss.

Frugal Fare
Food and beverage costs are increasing for events, just as they are on our own grocery bills. Strauss says proteins—especially beef—have been hit the hardest. “We talk with our clients, recommending more vegetable items for hors d’oeuvres or creatively controlling portion sizes or downsizing from four- to three-course menus,” says Strauss. “We also recommend other cuts of beef that aren’t as expensive as prime rib, but can be succulent when braised, such as brisket or bison stew.”

Nutritious Noshing
In addition to food costs, a growing appetite for healthier options and vegetarian fare is now part of the mix. “We’ve noticed that people are much more interested in different vegetables now, such as glazed baked fennel or candy cane beets, almost unheard of five years ago,” says executive chef Tawfik Shehata at The International Centre in Toronto. He also uses a wide variety of grains in his menus, as dietary restrictions and vegan requests have increased dramatically. “We use a ton of barley with our stuffed cornish hen and we use a lot of quinoa. I don’t think vegetarian requests should be an afterthought. We go to great lengths to present vegetarian plates that look fantastic.”

Both Shehata and Strauss say that healthy break menus are more in demand than the usual danish and croissant combos. Yogurt, fruit smoothies served in shot glasses, fruit skewers and water—flavoured with fruits and vegetables—are replacing sugary drinks and coffees.

Article

Destination Matters

Destination matters when selecting an event venue – Q&A with Niagara Falls Business Events

You can book the largest venue with the most impressive specs, but if its location is lacking, your event may not draw the attendance it deserves.

“As a venue, we can offer a fantastic facility that supports large conventions and events with great service and exceptional food and beverage, but at the end of the day it’s the destination that brings everything to life,” says Jeff Dixon, Vice President of Sales at Scotiabank Convention Centre and Niagara Falls Business Events.

Without a doubt, a venue’s location matters. For more insight, we spoke with Paula Racher, Account Director with Niagara Falls Business Events…

Why is a venue’s location an important consideration when planning an event?

Conference and event planners want a strong attendance for many reasons, and having an attractive destination certainly helps with that. Of course, a strong attendance also supports exhibitors who will, in turn, be more successful and, therefore, more inclined to continue booking with the event year after year. That feeds into everyone’s bottom line. It’s all very circular.

Also, conferences tend to gravitate to the same scheduled events year after year. It’s beneficial to talk with someone like myself who can suggest local hotspots and activities that will breathe new life into a conference program. It’s those unique destination experiences that add value to an event.

Being in Niagara Falls, you can probably attest to the “value” of a destination…

Absolutely. The Falls are a huge attraction; if they weren’t there, we’d be just another city along the highway. I think our success, however, has come down to the fact that we not only use the Falls as a backdrop, but we’ve expanded on this location with restaurants, hotels, attractions, and more. We’re not just a town with a natural wonder, we’re a full-service destination that offers a lot of activities that can help create a well-rounded conference program.

How do you determine what destination venues / attractions fit best with individual groups?

Planners are ultimately the experts on their conferences, so it’s very important that we work with them to find out their group’s demographics, history, and what types of events have been successful for them in the past. We may also suggest a site inspection when they’re in the process of selecting a venue and take that opportunity to sit down with them and pick up additional information. Personally, I find meeting with them in person and brainstorming potential Niagara Falls venues and experiences really helps to enrich their programs.

Are there any attractions or venues that don’t typically work for groups?

Not really, but then the places we recommend are all members of Niagara Falls Tourism’s Business Events program, so they’re all meeting and event focused to begin with. The only time a place or activity might not work well for a group is if it’s consumer-oriented and not really set up to handle a crowd. What I mean by that is they could be very skilled in working with visitors who come in off the street in small numbers but have difficulty taking care of larger conference groups.

It must be a challenge staying up to date on everything that’s going on …

It is, but that’s why it’s important that the Niagara Falls Business Events team make the effort to go out and learn what’s available in Niagara Falls and its surrounding communities so we can bring fresh ideas to the planning table. We even try to have monthly sales meetings at each of our member locations so we have all the answers for planners when they come to visit.

That said, it can be hard to stay updated because operators might be too busy on a renovation or upgrade to inform us as to what they’re doing. That’s why we’re always communicating, reading the newspapers, and scanning the websites to make sure we’re as up to date as possible on what Niagara Falls can offer to potential visitors.

Paula Racher and Jeff Dixon are with Scotiabank Convention Centre and Niagara Falls Business Events. For more, visit www.fallsconventions.com and www.fallsmeetings.com.

Association Insights

Originally printed: April 11, 2017

By Matt Bradford

© 2017 Canadian Society of Association Executives

Article

Getting Here

How to reach Niagara Falls 

BY AIR

Did you know that 60% of North America’s population is located within a 90-minute flight of Niagara Falls? With three international airports, all less than 125 km away, getting to Niagara Falls is a breeze.

Toronto Pearson International Airport ― 125km | 74 minutes

Buffalo Niagara International Airport ― 50km | 46 minutes

John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport ― 86km | 62 minutes

BY CAR

Ontario

Conveniently accessible via the Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW), visitors take a scenic drive past picturesque vineyards, the shores of Lake Ontario, and the scenic Niagara Escarpment. Only 90-minutes from downtown Toronto, it’s easy to step into Niagara’s beautiful scenery.

U.S.

Over 100 million Americans live within an 8-hour or 500-mile drive of Niagara Falls, making it a major gateway for U.S.-Canada border travel. The destination can easily be accessed via any one of four international bridge crossings:

Peace Bridge ― 30km | 35 minutes

Rainbow Bridge ― 5km | 10 minutes

Whirlpool Bridge ― 7km | 12 minutes

Lewiston Bridge ― 14km | 25 minutes