Move over, wine pairings; there’s a new culinary trend taking flight: cannabis dinners, which combine the stimulating effects of medical marijuana with the San Diego restaurant scene to create an exclusive dining experience.
“It’s slowly creeping into the ‘almost socially acceptable’ arena,” says Marie Daniels, founder of Closed Door Supper Club, a dinner series that caters to medical marijuana users. “Cannabis dinners have been happening for years. I simply wanted to peel away the ‘Cheech and Chong’ stigma and combine the element of fine dining into the cannabis experience in an approachable way.”
Closed Door Supper Club’s first event, Swoon, held earlier this year, featured a six-course infused menu created by guest chefs Colin Murray, formerly of Brooklyn Girl, and Hanis Cavin of Carnitas’ Snack Shack. Dishes included potato gnocchi, duck confit, and lamb loin, all infused with cannabis products from local purveyors.
Any junior varsity stoner can make magic brownies, but an entire marijuana-infused dinner requires finesse. “It’s not as easy as throwing in weed butter and calling it a day,” says chef Steve Brown, who hosts 12-course cannabis dinners at his Barrio Logan pop-up, Cosecha SD. Menu items like sous vide chicken may have THC or CBD* extracts, or buds or leaves added as a garnish or spice. While some dishes remain unchanged, don’t be surprised if others taste slightly herbaceous. “It’s really about controlling the amounts of THC and CBD to create a relaxed progression for your guests,” Brown says.
Coming up, he will prepare another cannabis dinner at Cosecha, and the Closed Door Supper Club will throw “An Autumn Feast” infused dinner in September. Munchies managed.
Medical marijuana cards required for all diners.
*THC = Tetrahydrocannabinol, the ingredient responsible for the “high”
CBD = Cannabidiol, the non-psychoactive compound that offers medicinal benefits like lowered anxiety and mood regulation
Cannabis Dinners are Becoming ‘Almost Socially Acceptable’
