Banquet: Discover how science can spice things up in the world of culinary arts!

Come put your senses to the test in this new experience for the whole family!

MONTREAL, April 17, 2024 /CNW/ - 

• The all-new feature exhibition Banquet at the Montréal Science Centre from May 16, 2024, to March 16, 2025! More information 
• Featuring renowned chefs Paul Toussaint, Colombe St-Pierre, Normand Laprise, Cezin Nottoway, and Charles-Antoine Crête!
• A North American premiere produced by the Cité des sciences et de l'industrie in Paris and adapted by the Montréal Science Centre.
• Five exciting exhibition zones: The Kitchen, the Appetizer, the Banquet, the Show, and the Educational Workshop!
• An Interactive kitchen to explore presented in collaboration with Radio-Canada.

Starting on May 16, come explore the Science Centre's new exhibition specially prepared for food aficionados and fans of good cuisine! An immersive experience that will transform you into an apprentice cook, produced by the Cité des sciences et de l'industrie in Paris in partnership with renowned chef Thierry Marx and France's agronomic research institute (INRAE) and in collaboration with Radio-Canada. Learn how science is baked right into gastronomy and the culinary arts by exploring five exhibition zones: The Kitchen, the Appetizer, the Banquet, the Show, and the Educational Workshop! 

• The Kitchen: Part kitchen and part culinary lab, this zone invites you to step into the shoes of an apprentice cook to learn culinary techniques and acquire chef tricks through different interactive activities.
• The Appetizer: Time to dig in! Learn how to sample food, how to use your sense of smell, and how your senses decipher texture. Learn about the science of taste and how the brain differentiates "yuk" from "yum"!
• The Banquet: Discover banquet etiquette and the history of banquets across time and across different cultures.
• The Show: Watch a grandiose immersive multimedia show featuring a spectacle of sounds and projections and inhale the intoxicating aromas of a positively divine meal.
• The Educational Workshop: Complete your sensory journey by exploring the physics and chemistry secretly at work in the kitchen inside a scientific culinary lab hosted by the Science Centre's educational staff!

The Banquet exhibition is presented as a show designed to tease the indulgences of our mind and senses. It brings to light the many pleasures of the culinary arts from creating dishes to tasting and sharing them with others. It is a wonderful opportunity to make science ever more accessible by uncovering the links between culture, art, and human society. The Banquet exhibition is an invitation into an immersive multisensory experience for all ages. Through a fun and interactive approach, Banquet shows us the many different ways science and technology are involved in food making. Come explore how to make shortcrust pastry and whip eggs until they make stiff peaks in this simple and delicious pairing of fun and learning!

The Science Centre used its museum exhibition expertise to adapt the Banquet exhibition and shine a light on Québec's distinct culinary culture and talent. Collaborations were established with one of the province's culinary trailblazers, Chef Normand Laprise, as well as big names like Chef Colombe St-Pierre and Chef Charles-Antoine Crête. Come learn more about the approach of culinary artists who delight tastebuds right across the province.

Exploring Québec's culinary culture also means shining a light on its diversity of influences and inspirations, such as Haitian cuisine, Caribbean fusion, and the richness of Indigenous culinary traditions! Chef Paul Toussaint and Chef Cezin Nottaway have also helped the Science Centre prepare something special for the exhibition. Chef Toussaint brings the essence and uniqueness of Haitian cuisine to the table, including a grilled red snapper served with a Djon Djon risotto. For her part, Chef Cezin Nottaway serves up rich Indigenous culinary traditions with interactive activities involving the senses.

"Québec's culinary culture is a great source of pride and has made Montréal and Québec famous for their international cuisine. Québec's culinary tradition is multicultural and busting with colour and is rooted in a rich heritage of high-quality local products. We fell head over heels for this exhibition and are so proud to present its North American premiere. There is no doubt in my mind that Québec audiences of all ages will absolutely delight in this experience!"

           - Cybèle Robichaud, Montréal Science Centre Director

As you complete your tour of the exhibition, explore an interactive kitchen to complement your experience, custom designed by Radio-Canada, with a flavourful program where things get cooking in every sense of the word!

"As part of your journey from the kitchen to the table, we invite you to a glorious banquet where science and gastronomy become one. The Cité des sciences et de l'industrie teamed up with Chef Thierry Marx and renowned scientists to design an immersive experience to tickle your neurons and thrill your tastebuds. Across time and culture, the banquet has forever been an expression of celebration and sharing but is also a profound experience marrying our senses, from sight and smell to sound and texture. Banquet marks the 11^th anniversary of the Gastronomic meal of the French's entry into humanity's Intangible Cultural Heritage and invites audiences to savour an unforgettable experience that looks at food from a variety of perspectives, sociology to anthropology and chemistry to physics. An appetizing opportunity to celebrate the jubilance of life and the joys of coming together and eating well."

 -  Bruno Maquart, Universcience President

Universcience is a Paris-based public institution comprised of the Palais de la découverte and the Cité des sciences et de l'industrie. Its mission is to bring science to the public and promote scientific, technical, and industrial culture to everyone from the moment they are born. Founded in 1986 and located in Parc de la Villette in the north of Paris, Cité des sciences et de l'industrie is a showcase of science, industry, and society. Its all-ages programming is developed in tandem with the scientific community and made even richer by human mediation. Its programming includes temporary and permanent exhibitions disseminated through an innovative museal approach, events and talks, a super high-definition planetarium, and a scientific magazine platform (www.leblob.fr). Beyond its walls, the Cité also takes part in the transmission and dissemination of scientific and technical culture across France's non-urban regions and throughout the world. It shares its know-how and expertise through partnerships, co-productions, cultural engineering, and travelling exhibitions.

The Montréal Science Centre, a division of Canada Lands Company, is a complex dedicated to science and technology that welcomes more than 600,000 visitors annually. It is best known for its accessible, interactive approach and for showcasing local innovation and know-how. Its major partners are TELUS, Amazon Web Services, Énergir, The Beat 92.5, and La Presse. 

SOURCE Société du Vieux-Port de Montréal