Restaurant memberships guarantee diners during slow season

Community-supported agricultureorCSAis becoming a popular way to connect food producers with shoppers.Users pay a membership fee to guarantee support for a small farmer and in return, theyget regular deliveries of food.

But what about a similar approach in the restaurant industry? One Vancouver Island eatery is inviting diners to become membersby asking them to pay ahead of time for a series of fixed-price meals to be eaten over the next several months.

ChristlePope is the restaurant manager atUnsworthRestaurant,which is among the first in Canada to call itself a community-supported restaurant.

"Basically people can buy a membership," she explained. "And then they get six three-course dinners from October to April. So every week, I email them the menu and they can book a reservation."

For years now, similar models have worked for small farmers.TheCSAmodelwas devised in the1980sand nowmore than 13,000farms in North America runCSAprograms.that providefood tofamilies and restaurants.

Financial guarantees through this type of subscriptionallowfarmers to predict how much food they'll sell in a season before it's even planted.

The result: less waste, better quality food and customers who have more input.

Pope is hopeful her restaurant could see similar benefits.

"It's basically just providing acommitmentto come out over the winter," she said. "On those slower nights, with people booking ahead, it helps with staffing and food preparation.It helps with planning."

Pope echoedwhat most restaurateurs will tell you:winter is the toughest time of year.Some restaurants like hers, a ruraldestinationrestaurant based at a vineyard,even close for winter months because it's less risky.

Pope saida show of support provided byCSRmembers offers afinancial guarantee heading into a typically quiet time of year.

"Having 50 or 60 people committing to coming out over the weekend at least once a month definitely makes a difference in the long run," she said.

For now, the idea of community-supported restaurants remains new.Thereare only a handful of examples in North America,witha couple in Vermontand one in Ottawa.