Despite the difficulties of student budgeting, we can make eco-conscious decisions and manage the emotional cost of "eco-guilt" even when green living feels out of reach
Many students today feel a strong desire to live sustainably, motivated by environmental awareness and a sense of responsibility toward the planet.
However, the rising cost of living presents significant challenges. Organic food, eco-friendly products and slow fashion often come with higher price tags, which makes green living seem unattainable for students juggling rent, groceries and tuition.
This creates a growing tension between values and finances, leading students to question how much they can afford to care and whether their individual actions will truly make a difference.
The reality is that many sustainable products are priced beyond the reach of the average student. For example, organic produce can cost up to 60% more than non-organic options. Organic farming is more sustainable than non-organic because it reduces chemical inputs, promotes biodiversity and enhances soil health through natural practices like crop rotation and composting.
Similarly, bamboo toothbrushes and other eco-friendly alternatives are more expensive than conventional plastic ones. Even thrift stores, once considered an affordable staple for students, are experiencing rising prices due to increased demand for second-hand fashion. This trend places additional financial pressure on students, making it difficult to prioritize sustainability when basic needs are already a challenge.
Fortunately, living green doesn’t always have to come with a steep price tag. There are several budget-friendly strategies that students can adopt. One effective approach is meal prepping, which not only saves time but also reduces food waste.
Public transit offers both a cost-effective and eco-friendly alternative to driving. Additionally, participating in clothing swaps or thrifting through student-led events provides access to sustainable fashion without breaking the bank. These small changes can make a meaningful environmental impact while keeping expenses low.
On campus, McMaster students have access to several sustainability initiatives that align with eco-conscious living. The OPIRG community garden provides an opportunity to learn about organic gardening and supports local food security. The university’s Zero Waste Club promotes waste reduction through accessible recycling and compost stations across campus.
Despite these opportunities, many students still experience eco-guilt—a feeling of anxiety or frustration stemming from the belief that they aren’t doing enough for the planet. Social media platforms often exacerbate this guilt by portraying an idealized version of sustainable living that feels impossible to achieve.
Young people, in particular, report feeling overwhelmed by the expectation to be environmentalists while also managing academic pressures and financial stress. The weight of these expectations can make it hard to see the value in small, everyday actions.
Simple actions like switching to reusable water bottles or reducing single-use plastics matter, even if they seem small. Additionally, advocating for systemic changes, such as supporting divestment campaigns, can amplify students' impact beyond individual choices. McMaster's institutional efforts to implement greener policies are often more effective in addressing climate change than any single person’s actions, making advocacy a powerful way for students to contribute.
Sustainability is a journey, not a destination. Despite the prevalence of climate change, students shouldn’t feel burdened by the idea that every action must be flawless or that every product they buy must meet the highest eco-standards. Instead, the focus should be on making intentional, thoughtful decisions that align with both their budget and their values.
Composting, reducing food waste, or choosing public transit are all practical ways to contribute to environmental efforts without adding financial strain. It’s also important to recognize that sustainable living is not an individual burden—it’s a collective effort. In this vein, we shouldn’t feel that an occasional unsustainable action invalidates our overall efforts.
While we may sometimes make non-eco-friendly choices—such as forgetting to bring a reusable bag to the grocery story—this doesn’t erase the impact of our eco-friendly efforts, like bringing reusable water bottles to campus or reducing single-use plastics. Small choices, even when inconsistent, build on each other to create a more sustainable lifestyle over time.
For instance, choosing to take a longer shower one day for self-care doesn’t erase the positive impact of habitually reducing water consumption by turning off the tap while brushing teeth or doing laundry with cold water to save energy.
Students can take comfort in knowing that progress, not perfection, drives meaningful change. By balancing eco-conscious habits with financial realities, we can live sustainably without sacrificing our well-beings. When we embrace progress over guilt, we not only contribute to a healthier planet but also cultivate a more compassionate approach to sustainability—one that celebrates small victories and encourages collective action.
Making plant-based foods on campus affordable for everyone can empower both students and the university as a whole to reduce our environmental impact
As plant-based diets gain popularity worldwide, many people are embracing these choices for their health benefits and positive environmental impact. Yet, for many students, adopting a plant-based lifestyle feels out of reach due to the perceived high cost of vegan and plant-based foods.
With more students than ever concerned about climate change, it seems counterproductive to make these sustainable choices financially inaccessible to students. By making plant-based meals more affordable, McMaster University and other institutions could help students take small, impactful steps to reduce their environmental footprint.
Reducing animal-based foods helps cut greenhouse gas emissions significantly. According to Oxford University, shifting globally to plant-based diets could reduce food-related emissions by up to 70 per cent.
Yet, the costs of vegan meals are high on campus and elsewhere, often exceeding the prices of conventional meat-based meals. This high price tag is due in part to high marketing costs and limited availability, keeping plant-based foods in a price category that’s out of reach for many students.
One reason for high prices is the limited access to affordable plant-based ingredients. Industry analysts explain that smaller demand and fewer large-scale suppliers lead to higher costs at checkout.
Additionally, many retailers add high markups to vegan options. Market data shows that plant-based meat can be up to 38 per cent more expensive than traditional meat. This means students are often priced out of sustainable choices, even though they may wish to support more ethical and eco-friendly options.
If McMaster’s food services prioritized affordable plant-based options, the university could make a powerful impact.
Case studies from other universities and studies show that small changes, such as reducing markups or offering vegan specials, have made plant-based eating accessible to all students. Lowering these prices could enable students to make healthier and more sustainable food choices while staying within budget.
When vegan food options are cheaper, students are more likely to include them in their diets. Making these foods financially accessible encourages more people to choose them, which can contribute to reducing the university's overall environmental impact
As McMaster students push for more sustainable dining options, the university has a unique opportunity to empower students to reduce their own environmental impact through their diet. Lowering the price of plant-based foods could make a lasting impact on both the student body and the environment.
FCC and MSU Maroons revive Halloween food security campaign, going door-to-door in McMaster neighbourhoods to collect donations for first time since 2015
This Halloween, the McMaster Students Union Food Collective Centre hosted its annual Trick-or-Eat food collection campaign in the Hub, collaborating with the McMaster Students Union Maroons for the first time since 2015. On Oct. 30, from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., FCC and Maroon volunteers went door-to-door in the neighbourhoods surrounding campus to collect non-perishable items for the FCC's food pantry and fridge.
The FCC, located on the third floor of the Hub, is a student-run service that offers resources to students, faculty and Hamilton community members year-round to address food insecurity amid rising food prices.
Trick-or-Eat is a youth-led national event that adds a charitable twist to Halloween by raising funds and collecting food items for local agencies. This campaign is held across the country and aims to address food insecurity in Canadian households.
Last year, FCC's Trick-or-Eat ran over the course of a week, accepting non-perishable and hygiene items at donation boxes on and off campus. This year, the campaign went door-to-door in five main areas: Westdale, Dalewood, Ofield Road, Leland and Whitney and Emerson at Main Street West and Thorndale. Acceptable donations included non-perishable foods and hygiene products.
FCC social and political advocacy coordinator Siya Sood discussed the event’s organization, which was planned with MSU Maroon event coordinators.
“With the Maroons helping us out, we have more people to go door to door. We hope that in addition to donations, we can interact with members of the McMaster community so they can hopefully hear about our services and know what is available to them if they choose to utilize them,” said Sood.
This year, with the Maroons helping us out, we have more people to go door to door. We hope that in addition to donations, we can interact with members of the McMaster community so they can hopefully hear about our services and know what is available to them if they choose to utilize them.
Siya Sood, Social and Political Advocacy Coordinator
Food Collective Centre
Sood also noted that the FCC’s move to the Hub has increased visibility among students, as the new building is a high-traffic space and is more accessible.
“Having the campaign located in the Hub, a high-traffic, new space compared to our previous location at Bridges Cafe, means people who might not have considered using our services may be more encouraged to do so, as it is more welcoming and easier to access,” said Sood.
Sood emphasized that even students without items to donate could still participate by becoming socially aware and learning more about the FCC's services.
For those outside the collection areas, the FCC arranged donation pickups through a Google Form. For more information on the Trick-or-Eat campaign and the FCC, visit their social media and website.
After winning his second term as president of the McMaster Students Union in January 2024, President Jovan Popovic made the decision to fast track one of his campaign promises to a referendum.
The promise: to deliver a free meal program featuring soup and bread to students based on the successful Loaded Ladle program offered at Dalhousie University. The referendum failed to reach quorum, with only 9.4 per cent of the student population casting a ballot one way or the other.
As a transfer student from Dalhousie who witnessed first hand how the Loaded Ladle impacted hundreds of students each day, I see this as a tragedy.
But it may not stay that way for long.
As of September, the Student Representative Assembly approved a motion to rerun the referendum. It seems Popovic might have learned more this time than last about what made Dalhousie’s experiment so successful.
As of September, the Student Representative Assembly approved a motion to rerun the referendum.
The Loaded Ladle began life as an unsanctioned food service organization on Dalhousie’s campus serving soup from an ironing board. Despite problems with campus police, the organization gained popularity among students and garnered support that eventually saw them granted a kitchen space in the student union building, as a carve-out from the union's exclusive contract with corporate food provider Aramark.
Its origins — and continued existence — as an explicitly political, anti-capitalist student activist group meant that the Loaded Ladle needed to garner community support from its beginnings.
While I supported Popovic’s proposal, I think that this difference helps explain why his referendum failed to gain enough votes to either pass or fail. What was at Dalhousie a student-run initiative, would be under Popovic a single presidential candidate’s, albeit well planned and thought out, campaign promise.
The proposal itself reflects these differences too. At Dalhousie, the Loaded Ladle is an independent non-profit, run largely by volunteers, now with some paid positions at $23.50 per hour. The proposed program at McMaster would be run out of the TwelvEighty Kitchen and would be staffed and operated by existing MSU employees.
This difference is understandable. The President alone would have a hard time building an activist organization during a one-year-term and his current proposal would deliver results to students soon and for a modest fee.
But I think it's these differences that explain why the referendum failed to meet quorum. Without a group of student activists raising awareness, most students wouldn't have bothered checking the email from elections services.
Luckily, Popovic himself seems aware of this fact.
In his request to the SRA to suspend the rules on referendums that would have prevented the referendum from being re-run until next year, Popovic acknowledges that his referendum failed exactly where the Bike Share referendum succeeded.
“[T]hey were only aware of one . . . a student-led campaign team was openly informing students of the [Bike Share] referendum," read Popovic's official motion to the SRA.
This time around, Popovic says he has a “group of students” ready to raise awareness about the referendum to the student body. This, along with Popovic’s other reasons for rerunning the referendum — a commitment to his campaign promise and to the democratic process — demonstrate his interest in the kind of student-led politics that helped the Loaded Ladle and the Bike Share referendum to succeed.
This, along with Popovic’s other reasons for rerunning the referendum — a commitment to his campaign promise and to the democratic process — demonstrate his interest in the kind of student-led politics that helped the Loaded Ladle and the Bike Share referendum to succeed.
Whether he follows through on his commitment and sees the soup and bread program through or not, Popovic is clearly attempting to move forward with these valuable lessons in mind. His new plan is a clear path to success. With this revised plan, I think Popovic has everything he needs to succeed.
The closure comes in the midst of security and funding issues
The campus community fridge, a vital resource for students, faculty and community members needing free healthy food options, officially closed its doors on Aug. 30, 2024. The decision came after mounting financial challenges, repeated security breaches and ongoing difficulties in maintaining adequate staffing.
The fridge, operated by the Student Wellness Centre, had been a food resource located behind Mills Library for over two years. It provided free, nutritious food to anyone in need, including students, staff and members of the surrounding community.
For many students, the fridge was essential to help provide food amid the rising cost of living. In an interview with The Silhouette, PhD student Val Flores, expressed how the fridge had been a great help throughout their time at McMaster. "It came at a time in my life when I didn't really have a lot of money," said Flores.
It came at a time in my life when I didn't really have a lot of money.
Val Flores, PhD student
Flores, who was diagnosed with diabetes in 2023, shared the struggles of eating healthy with expensive grocery prices and limited food options on campus. "Having the community fridge so I could make my own meals and deal with my own condition . . . It helped me a lot," said Flores.
The McMaster Community Fridge announced on Instagram that the service would be closing as of Aug. 30, 2024. The statement cited "logistical challenges" as the reason.
The community fridge was established in 2022 by a group of third-year student volunteers who wanted to address food insecurity on campus during a sustainability course project. The Student Wellness Centre undertook the project and assumed responsibility for stocking, maintaining and monitoring fridge services.
SWC Program Coordinator Jack Chen provided a detailed account of the challenges plaguing the community fridge initiative in recent years. Funding had become a persistent challenge, with the initiative relying heavily on monetary and food donations. "The years following 2022 showed a pretty exponential decrease in funding from donation . . . we were not able to secure the kind of additional funding needed to support the fridge on a sustainable basis," said Chen.
The years following 2022 showed a pretty exponential decrease in funding from donations …we were not able to secure the kind of additional funding needed to support the fridge on a sustainable basis.
Jack Chen, Program Coordinator
Student Wellness Centre
Staffing and volunteer support have posed further challenges. "We have lots of student volunteers who work on the project and love being part of it . . . But without a dedicated [paid] staff member, it's been challenging to manage everything together," said Chen.
In addition to financial difficulties, security concerns have significantly impacted the fridge's viability. According to Chen, the fridge has faced incidents of theft.
"In the past 12 months, we've experienced quite a few security breaches," said Chen.
These incidents have also highlighted the difficulty of maintaining a free-access resource in a public space while balancing the need for security and safety. Ultimately, the combination of these issues led to the difficult decision to close the community fridge.
Although the community fridge itself will no longer be in operation, the mission to address food insecurity on campus will continue through the Food Collective Centre, a service funded by the McMaster Students Union. The fridge and freezer from the closed community fridge will be repurposed to support the FCC's operations, expanding their service operations to offer both non-perishable and perishable food items.
The FCC, newly located on the 3rd floor of the HUB, has traditionally focused on non-perishable items. This expansion will help maintain the balanced and nutritious offerings previously provided by the community fridge.
"I'm super excited by the expansion of the FCC services to include perishable items. This will continue to help us serve our members and help alleviate food insecurity on campus," said MSU Vice-President (Administration) Adam El-Kadi.
The SWC will provide an initial $1,000 in financial support to the FCC and will evaluate further donations based on the success of the first year of operations.
Organizers of the community fridge have expressed their commitment to supporting those in need, albeit in a different format.
"You can still access the same number of resources, if not more, in this new space [FCC]. It's just in a different spot and a different format," said Chen.
They hope that integrating the FCC into this new model will provide a more sustainable and secure method of distributing food, addressing the challenges that led to the fridge's closure.
As the campus community adjusts to this new food distribution blueprint, the HUB will officially launch the new service space on Oct. 1. Organizers encourage students and staff to stay informed by following @msu_fcc and @mcmastercommunityfridge on Instagram.
Disordered eating has been trending on social media since the early 2010s, but now it wears a new deceptive mask
cw: eating disorders
Approximately one million Canadians have been diagnosed with an eating disorder. Teens and young adults are the most at risk groups. Women are particularly vulnerable as they make up approximately 80 per cent of patients. The risk of developing an eating disorder is further heightened by social media trends that glorify unhealthy eating.
The ‘girl dinner’ trend went viral on TikTok this past summer and remains popular on the for you page. ‘Girl dinner’ started as a joke where young women and girls were showing weird combinations of food they put together as meals. However, the trend quickly slipped into the dangerous territory of disordered eating. People now use it to show off their tiny portions of food. Dinner implies a full meal, but many ‘girl dinners’ are barely a snack.
When ‘girl dinner’ first started promoting unsafe behaviours, I was reminded of the eating disorder culture that ran rampant on Tumblr in the early 2010s. Both ‘girl dinner’ and the pro-anorexia rhetoric from Tumblr encourage people to obsess over lowering calorie intake to obtain the ‘ideal body.’
Although awareness has increased, the culture has not changed. If anything, it is more pervasive and even deceptive. In the 2010s it was easy to discern what posts promoted eating disorders and unattainable bodies. For example, the quote “nothing tastes as good as skinny feels’ was popularized in 2009 by Kate Moss.
Today, it is much trickier to identify certain trends as problematic. ‘Girl dinner’ falls into this category of deception for two reasons.
First, it started as a joke. These meals were not intended to be taken seriously. However, calling a cheese string, five strawberries, and two hardboiled eggs a dinner sends out a harmful message. Some even started calling crying, vaping, and sleeping a ‘girl dinner.’ There are even ‘girl dinner’ filters on TikTok. Several of the options include things like medication, cocktails, and condiments. These are not meals.
Second, ‘girl dinner’ is linked to a broader trend of using the word ‘girl’ as an adjective in phrases like girl dinner, hot girl summer, and girl math. Typically, ‘girl’ has been used to devalue womens’ abilities. Now, the term is being used to reclaim feminine energy and activities. However, in doing so the dangerous implications of ‘girl dinner’ have been harder to discern.
‘Girl dinner’ wears a deceptive mask so it is critical to take a step back and analyze the issues with this trend and others like it.
Several eating disorders, including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating disorder have been listed with symptomatic criteria in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of mental illness. Collectively, eating disorders are among the deadliest mental illnesses. Disordered eating should never be promoted.
Tumblr was a breeding ground for eating disorders, hating one’s body, and abusing food intake to change one’s appearance. Social media is likely the reason why every single woman in my life has suffered from an eating disorder or has shown signs of disordered eating. Every single woman.
I was young teen when eating disorder culture spread like wildfire on Tumblr. Being bombarded with unhealthy images, quotes, and blogs contributed to my personal struggles with food. It is my hope that McMaster students and Generation Z alike can be the ones to end this cycle of toxicity, and this starts with calling out ‘girl dinner’ for what it is - a trend glorifying mental illness.
If you are struggling with an eating disorder McMaster University’s Student Wellness Centre offers resources to help you find trusted support for you or a friend in need. The National Eating Disorder Information Centre offers a helpline, information, and referrals. The NEDIC also offers resources specifically for racialized community members.
If you need urgent care, St. Joseph’s Healthcare in Hamilton has an Eating Disorder Program to help treat and guide anyone 16 or older. The program does require a referral from your doctor, but St Joseph’s has a self-assessment to guide you towards the treatment necessary for you. Please remember that you are never alone.
Food Collective Centre at McMaster University shares how they are contributing to supporting students through the ongoing food crisis
Food insecurity has become increasingly relevant in Canada, with reports from 2023 indicating that throughout Canada people are struggling with food for many different economical factors, such as cost of living.
This issue is also prevalent in Hamilton. The Hamilton Food Share coordinates emergency food shipping throughout their their 23 hunger-relief programs. They found in March 2023 there was a total of just over 33 500 visits across their 23 hunger-relief programs.
The Food Collective Centre at McMaster University is a service that offers a food bank system and resources for students. In addition to their food bank, the FCC has fronted other food security initiatives such as Lockers of Love, Good Food Box and the Community Kitchen Workshop.
FCC director Samantha Cheng shared that the food insecurity for students presents in many different ways. Cheung explained that food illiteracy, or not being able or struggling to find time to cook, is a common contributor to food insecurity.
“Fresh produce is what's most difficult to obtain, students tend to turn to the quicker options. Which often look like processed foods [or] snacks and so produce might be at the back of their agenda. Which is obviously not great, because you want to promote eating more fruits and vegetables for better health outcomes,” said Cheng.
Fresh produce is what's most difficult to obtain, students tend to turn to the quicker options. Which often look like processed foods [or] snacks and so produce might be at the back of their agenda
Samantha Cheng, Food Collective Centre director
Cheng explained that due to many of these factors, food insecurity is experienced at higher rates by marginalized communities. She expressed that this holds true not just at McMaster, but the larger community that spans Canada.
Within marginalized student communities, Cheung explained how international students are specifically at risk of being subjected to food insecurity. This demographic is recognized within the FCC and they are currently in contact with the International Student Services.
Cheung shared how at one of their recent International Food & Grocery Trips, the FCC presented their work, and exchanged information with the students.
“International students, [FCC’s] also seen, they struggle with adapting to the food systems here in Canada, and especially like not being able to access cultural, like food that they're used to in their culture,” said Cheng.
Currently the FCC is planning an initiative with the Indigenous Health Movement to raise awareness on Indigenous food sovereignty. She shared that raising awareness is important, and can further educate students on an aspect of Indigenous sovereignty.
Cheng ultimately believes that by working with groups on campus that focus specifically on marginalized populations that they can better understand how to address the needs of food insecurity from these communities.
“One way we are trying to address specific marginalized groups is to reach out to different communities on campus that are that perhaps have people who can who represent these groups and work towards these groups, and we partner with them. We hope to partner with them to raise awareness for the greater student population,” said Cheng.
Cheng shared that the biggest barrier to services they currently face is budget. She shared that while they do not focus specifically on donations from the community, they do accept them.
“A lot of times our partners are disappointed or frustrated because they go to the pantry and they see there's nothing there. We are limited by budget in terms of how much we can purchase for the fridge in the community [and] the fridge in the pantry space, despite having [a] give what you can take what you need model. It's definitely been unbalanced. So funding is the largest barrier for all services, not just the food center,” said Cheng.
We are limited by budget in terms of how much we can purchase for the fridge in the community [and] the fridge in the pantry space, despite having [a] give what you can take what you need model.
Samantha Cheng, Food Collective Centre director
Cheng expressed that students are more than encouraged to reach out to the FCC whenever needed. They can answers questions, and help guide you through their services.
“We're here to support you, and we understand. We understand that your situation so you're not alone in this struggle,” said Cheng.
To learn more about FCC please visit their website, and get updates on current events please follow their Instagram. McMaster University has a McMaster Campus Food Council, where they share a list of resources on campus for students to utilize.
Four new restaurants have opened up in Westdale, just walking distance from McMaster campus
Over the past few months, four new restaurants have opened in Westdale, walking distance from McMaster University and just in time for the upcoming school year.
Fuwa Fuwa opened its first location in Hamilton over the summer and is North America’s largest soufflé pancake and dessert cafe. Fuwa Fuwa means “fluffy fluffy” in Japanese. Their pancakes have influences from the East and West and they achieve the delicate balance between a traditional pancake and a soufflé. Other than Hamilton, Fuwa Fuwa has locations in Toronto, Mississauga and Vaughan.
Matamak is a unique restaurant that offers a wide selection of customizable food options, including burgers, pizza and toast, at low prices. They are able to sustain their low prices by using a monthly subscription-based model. Monthly memberships start at $25 per month, with a one-month free trial. Members can eat there as often as they’d like. The idea behind this model was to provide students with a quick and affordable restaurant option with an endless selection of items.
Monga opened its first location in Hamilton on King St W and serves Taiwanese style fried chicken. Monga, also known as Wanhua district, is a region in Taiwan that is known to embody solidarity, spirit and courage and the restaurant hopes their chicken embodies these as well. It currently has other locations open in Richmond Hill, North York and Mississauga in Ontario.
CHASKA opened its first location in Hamilton this month. It focuses on bringing an authentic Indian street food experience to its customers, made with good quality, healthy ingredients bursting with flavour. They serve classics such as kathi rolls, sliders, chaat, samosas and more. “Chaska” means “obsession” in Punjabi. They currently have around a dozen locations open in Ontario, in cities such as Toronto, Waterloo, Mississauga and Peterborough.
If you’re looking for some new restaurant options close to McMaster campus, check out these places!
Local donut business is fostering community while promoting inclusivity with vegan and gluten-free options
Alyssa Lancia, the founder of Darling Donuts, grew up in Stoney Creek. Her family ran a banquet hall and as such, she learned the ins and outs of running a business at an early age. Her interest in business continued as she studied business Human Resources at Western University.
After graduating and beginning to work in HR for a few years, she questioned if this field was what she was truly passionate about. Lancia remembered how she loved to bake and play around with gluten-free, dairy-free and vegan recipes during university due to her gluten intolerance.
“I've always had a love and passion for baking and cooking. When I was at Western, I remember. . .there'd be a lot of exams and midterms. I would procrastinate [because] I hated studying. So, I would just start baking random recipes from Pinterest,” said Lancia.
To help reignite her previous passion for baking, she got a mini donut maker and started bringing mini cinnamon sugar donuts to events and birthdays. During the Thanksgiving weekend of 2018, she then also began selling them on local Facebook mom groups . She received a huge, positive response and her business took off from there.
“I realized people like food [and] many things where you don't have to commit to [something] like a big slice of cake or a big donut. You can have a mini bite, not feel guilty and then try a lot of flavors,” said Lancia.
Darling Donuts is currently run in Lancia’s home and makes made-to-order mini customizable donuts. Pre-orders are collected through its website and Lancia recommends customers to pre-order their donuts at least two to four weeks in advance as she only bakes Fridays to Sundays.
Gluten-free and vegan options are also available to ensure everyone in the community can enjoy them.
By catering to customers with various dietary restrictions, Darling Donuts aims to bring together a community of people to enjoy their products. They hope their donuts can satisfy people’s sweets cravings and create special memories with every bite.
“Although we sell a product, we're about bringing people together to enjoy our sweet products [while] enjoy[ing] a lot of flavours and a little bit of sweetness in their life,” said Lancia.
“Although we sell a product, we're about bringing people together to enjoy our sweet products [while] enjoy[ing] a lot of flavours and a little bit of sweetness in their life."
Alyssa Lancia, founder of Darling Donuts
While they have a set menu on their website, they are also open to new, customized flavours for their customers. When they release new flavours, they always include a gluten-free version and a vegan version so more people can enjoy them. Most of their products are also nut-free, though, they are not a nut-free facility and there is the possibility of cross-contamination.
In the future, Lancia hopes to collaborate more with other small businesses. She recently started “Work Nights”, a night where female small business owners can network and have fun once a month.
“It really got us a lot of positive traction to show [that] we're not just about sell, sell, sell, but it's more about what we're doing in the community . . . and it gets people to connect with you,” said Lancia.
More towards the future, Lancia hopes to continue to be able to showcase fun, new, exciting flavours while also working on automating their process to make it more efficient and move their business outside of her house.
The newly opened local restaurant creates a space that highlights popular Asian street foods through their own family's recipes.
Food allows for culture and traditions from one part of the world to be shared with communities in a completely different one. Fisticuffs is a local restaurant that is bringing Chinese-Malaysian snack foods commonly found in Asian night markets to the Hamilton community.
The restaurant’s menu is inspired by recipes from co-owner Caitlin Chee’s late grandmother. Chee operates Fisticuffs with their spouse and their vision is to combine the feelings of comfort a home cooked meal brings with a modern dining experience.
“[Fisticuffs is] inspired a lot by my family, bringing together those childhood memories for me of the comfort home cooking has. But it's also about bringing in the familiar with the new and making a really fun modern dining experience,” said Chee.
“[Fisticuffs is] inspired a lot by my family, bringing together those childhood memories for me of the comfort home cooking has. But it's also about bringing in the familiar with the new and making a really fun modern dining experience."
Caitlin Chee, Co-owner of fisticuffs
A large portion of Fisticuffs’ menu contains very popular east Asian night market snacks and a unique selection of beers.
One popular snack plate is shrimp chips, while another is satay, grilled meat served on a skewer. Satay alone makes up one section in their menu. Fisticuffs also offers a vegetarian version of this, which instead has grilled eggplant on the skewer.
Overall, their dishes strive to emphasis popular Asian street food dishes with their own twist.
Before opening their restaurant last November, Fisticuffs used be a pop-up vendor. Their very first pop-up was with the Toronto Brewing Company. Through these pop-ups, they formed meaningful connections with other business owners and learned about others’ experiences opening restaurants.
Chee and their partner also found other businesses they encountered were often connected with breweries in Hamilton a food vendor. Then, following the same footsteps, Fisticuff also eventually found themselves in Hamilton.
So far the response to Fisticuffs from within the Hamilton community has been quite positive. Both Chee and their partner love that there are people who are trying a new style of food and bring a positive attitude. They hope that these folks will continue to come to the restaurant in the new year.
“I know that a lot of the people who come into our doors may have never had the type of food that we serve or even some of the more experimental beers . . . But everyone’s been excited to try new things and I really appreciate how busy we’ve been and how much people have been writing about us,” Chee said.
“I know that a lot of the people who come into our doors may have never had the type of food that we serve or even some of the more experimental beers . . . But everyone’s been excited to try new things and I really appreciate how busy we’ve been and how much people have been writing about us."
Caitlin Chee, Co-owner of fisticuffs
Chee has also loved the response from the Chinese-Malaysian community in Hamilton. Many family friends from their childhood would visit the restaurant and recall eating some of the menu items in Chee’s grandmother’s home over 30 years ago. Their grandmother was a respected figure within their own Chinese-Malaysian community as she hosted many Chinese-Malaysian immigrants when they first arrived in Canada.
“[Our customers include] really old family friends that I haven’t seen since I was a young child. I’ve had people come in and be like, “We met you when you were a kid at your grandma's house. Do you remember us?” which has been really cute,” Chee said.
Fisticuffs is hopeful that the past months will continue to reflect the response they will receive in the new year. Currently, they are developing new ideas to keep Fisticuffs unique and ever-changing, including preparing their first five course dinner menu to celebrate Lunar New Year at the end of January. They hope to continue having themed dinner nights and bring the Hamilton community together at the restaurant.
“Fisticuffs is vibrant. It’s a fun space. We’re trying to create an environment that people. . .can come and make the night whatever they want it to [be],” Chee said.
As Fisticuffs continues into its first year of business, they hope to inspire people to try new foods and find comfort in their food. Ultimately though, Chee just wants the restaurant to be a place where people can come to relax and eat good food.
