I am a sucker for free food. And this past weekend was very tasty.
I went to three places where the opportunity for free food presented itself. I sometimes joke that the only reason I go to the events I am invited to is because of the free food.
The first event I photographed was the Ramadan potluck held at the La Cañada Community Center on Friday night hosted by the Islamic Congregation of La Cañada Flintridge.
The place was packed, and so was the food table. Everything from traditional dishes to In-N-Out burgers was served. It was incredible. People were piling on as much food as their paper plates could hold, and eating it just as merrily.
Of course, you have to realize that half the people there had been fasting for hours. I had several people telling me to get something to eat; I had to politely decline, since I find it difficult to work and eat at the same time. By the time I had finished photographing the event, most of the food was gone, but I felt happy for the Islamic congregation that the event had been such a success.
The second place I photographed was the Wine and Gourmet Food Tasting held at Memorial Park on Sunday afternoon.
The place was packed, and so were the wine and food tents. Everything from fresh peaches wrapped in prosciutto with a balsamic glaze, to pulled-pork sandwiches, to red velvet cupcakes was served. And enough wine and beer was available for the city of La Cañada to open its own winery and distillery. Even though the event was not religious in nature, I’m sure most of the people who attended would put wine and beer among the top three religions.
I had several people telling me to get something to eat and drink; again, I had to politely decline.
The last place I went to was the Bernhard residence, where I would be photographing the family partaking in the traditional meal eaten after Yom Kippur.
Mom Amy had prepared an abbreviated version for me of the meal that would break the family’s fast at the end of Yom Kippur next week. The meal included servings of lox, or smoked salmon, bagels with cream cheese and cinnamon rolls.
