Innisfil resident Jennifer Richardson is at it again, this time with a flavourful twist.
In the fall, she was the one who organized the community Halloween house tour and 'Light It Up Innisfil' contests which were well received by residents and local media. She is now ready to unveil her newest initiative, ‘Innis-FULL’, a two-week event featuring special deals and meals from local restaurants.
The event will run from Feb. 19 – March 5 and restaurants in the Innisfil and surrounding area encouraged to sign up for free online. The idea is to have each participating restaurant offer a special deal for the event.
“The main objective is to help support local restaurants, help get more people ordering and enjoying what each restaurant has to offer… especially during lockdown,” says Richardson.
Richardson will have each restaurant's logo and specials advertised on the event's Facebook page.
Participating restaurants so far include The Stone Grille, Harbour House Grill, The Last Shot Bar & Grill, The Fork and Plate, Sunset Grill, Johnny Burger, A Taste of Europe, The Parlour/The Fry’s the Limit, Bruno’s Bakery, The Cove Café, and Vidya’s Veggie Gourmet.
“Let’s get more people ordering from these restaurants to give them support!” expresses Richardson. “With deals and specials, people will be more inclined to order."
Richardson came up with the idea while reminiscing about the ‘Barrielicious’ event which normally runs in February and features set menus from participating local restaurants. Due to Covid, it is not running this year.
Richardson decided to launch a similar version of the event online to help local restaurants during the pandemic.
“I’m all about this community,” says Richardson. “These restaurants are struggling! I’m sure they are not getting their regular customer orders right now, and how much can take-out help? I don’t want to see them close.”
“I worry about the little ones, the ‘mom and pop’ restaurants that know you when you walk in,” says Richardson. “They aren’t going to survive this, so that’s why we need to encourage people to order right now – they need help now more than ever.”
Richardson says since the pandemic began, she has been looking for ways to support her community to help keep businesses open, which has led to her trying new dishes from local restaurants she had never tried before.
“The Fork and Plate, I love their liver and onions and don’t want to see them close,” says Richardson. “Taste of Europe has amazing steak sandwiches, [and] I’ve never ordered from The Last Shot Bar and Grill before, [so] I’m now looking at their menu too."
Graphic designer Janet Tonello of Lakeside Graphics designed the logo for the event for free and also came up with the name 'Innis-FULL'.
To view participating restaurants and their specials, visit the event’s Facebook page: Innis-FULL! | Facebook
