As the leaves start to fall and the temperature begins to drop, a popular fall food event has made its return to nine local restaurants in Sudbury.
“Localicious” is a special promotion happening at several independent restaurants from October 17 to 30.
Special menu items showcasing the fall harvest will be available at these spots for a limited time. Localicious is hosted by SHARE Sudbury; a group of nine independent restaurant owners.
The new fall menu items are aimed to entice customers to come through the doors, but there’s a strong charitable aspect to Localicious. A portion of proceeds from those fall menu items will benefit Maison McCulloch Hospice.
Leslie Moutsatsos is the co-owner of The Kouzzina and a proud member of the Sudbury Hospitality Association of Restaurant Entrepreneurs.
“The best part is being able to give back,” Moutsatsos said. “There’s nothing that satisfies us more than watching someone come in and sit down and eat and enjoy and love the experience. But what makes us even happier is when we can translate that into giving back to the community.”
The nine restaurants under the SHARE umbrella and involved in Localicious include
- Bella Vita Cucina,
- Di Gusto,
- Hardrock 42 Gastropub,
- JD’s Southern Smokehouse,
- M.I.C. Canadian Eatery & Whisky Pub,
- Mr. Prime Rib,
- The Kouzzina,
- Verdicchio Ristorante,
- and Tony V’s Pizza and Restaurant.
Each restaurant has their own unique fall harvest menu items during Localicious.
It’s an opportunity for customers to dig into some local seasonal eats, while supporting a local charity at the same time.
Since 2014, SHARE Sudbury has donated $100,000 back to local charities. Even as Sudbury restaurants struggled through lockdowns and capacity restrictions, last year’s Localicious raised $18,000.
Luckily, all nine local restaurants have survived through the pandemic, but Moutsatsos feels a sense of deep gratitude for the loyal customers who have supported the restaurants through the last two extremely challenging years.
“We feel as responsible, independent local businesses, you have to give back to your community,” Moutsatsos said. “You can’t just take. You have to give back. That’s why when we did our first Localicious, we tied it into a charity.”
Localicious wasn’t just designed to shine the spotlight on local independent restaurants, but also to help give back to the community where people eat, work and play. Chances are likely that most people know someone who utilizes one of those charities like Maison McCulloch Hospice.
For Moutsatsos and the Localicious participants to use their platform to not only feed Sudbury, but to harness their power to help the friends and neighbours that sit down at the tables in their restaurants, that’s the spirit of Localicious.
“We feed people every single day of our lives; that’s what we do,” Moutsatsos said. “But being able to do that and then have a tie-in with it that goes right back to the people who come through your front door is amazing. It really gets you in the feels.”
Localicious takes place from October 17 to 30 at all SHARE Sudbury restaurants. To find out more, visit them online here.