Categories: Food & Drink

A top-secret Labor Day picnic is happening in Calgary & this is how you can get tickets

Photo Via @dinerenblanc.calgary / Instagram

We’re not one to wear white – simply because we can’t go anywhere without spilling something on ourselves, but there’s a lot of you who can actually be trusted with lighter fabrics. If you’re among those who are responsible and also enjoy el fresco dining then write this one down! This September, in celebration of Labor Day, Calgarians with a taste for the finer things in life are encouraged to attend Diner En Blanc, a ‘secret’ all-white picnic party for Calgary’s ‘elite.’

Founded in 1988 by François Pasquier, this decked-out BYOB dinner has become a worldwide phenomenon – expanding from Paris to New York, Hong Kong, Toronto and Washington, DC to here in Calgary.

From must-be-gourmet food, and pearlescent table cloths (both of which guests are required to supply themselves) to clothing and glasses of champagne (also the guests’ responsibility), this event is deceivingly fancy’ So much so, that despite the attendee having to basically bring their whole picnic spread themselves, it’s actually intimidating to us regular folk… but we get the appeal! There will be a dance floor, they provide everyone with sparklers and it’s a great way to network.

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Sadly, like many other ‘high brow’ events, attending this particular dinner is not as easy as just ‘RSVPing,’ so prepare yourself for the waiting game if you’ve never been before.

Getting a ticket to Dine En Blanc can only be done in one of the following three ways:

Be members from the previous year or make friends with someone in the organization
Get ‘sponsored’ by a member or their guests
Sign up for their waiting list and hope for the best

These invites are given out in different phases, with those who have previously attended getting priority. Second, those who have been recommended will get an email, then, lastly, those who have signed up on their website here will be on the receiving end. (Dates for all of the above have yet to be announced.)

Think you can just skip the line and head straight to the party? Well, here’s the catch! This year’s location will not be revealed until the last minute and won’t be announced to anyone that doesn’t already have a ticket – so good luck, rule breakers.

Luckily, if you do get a tip, this event will happen rain or shine – which is incredibly reassuring after the year we’ve just had.

Interested? Well, we’ll keep our fingers crossed for you, friends and if we can leave you with any advice, it’s this. Don’t eat anything with a red sauce. The universe doesn’t take kindly to being mocked and there’s nothing more insulting than a person dressed head to toe in an absence of colour eating a notoriously stain-prone food.

You’ll be asking for it!