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I'm looking forward to seeing what is going to be allowed and where the sort of culinary industry takes us

“I’m looking forward to seeing what is going to be allowed and where the sort of culinary industry takes us,” said Petersen, owner and head chef at Nomad Cook, who has run similar events in other Canadian cities.

He ran his first such dinner party on April 20 this year, an iconic date in cannabis culture. The four days of brunch and dinner events in Vancouver this month marks his 10th cannabis-infused dining series during which he’ll serve his one-thousandth customer on Saturday.

The small-scale meal series attracts a wide demographic, he said. Petersen first expected to see mostly stereotypical cannabis users, but said the majority have never tasted edibles or are infrequent cannabis consumers, and patrons range from 19 to 70 years old.

Photo by Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press

However, events such as Petersen’s run contrary to current legislation.

Fresh or dried bud, oil, plants and seeds will be legal in Canada on Oct. 17, but edible legalization will take longer. The federal government has said it intends to legalize edibles within a year of that time, but details have been sparse.

Health Canada says that while the Cannabis Act will govern all edible products made from cannabis mixed with food ingredients, it won’t apply for use in restaurant meals.

“While edible cannabis products will be permitted for legal sale within one year following the coming into force of the Cannabis Act (i.e. by October 17, 2019), the framework would not permit restaurants to prepare and serve meals containing cannabis to the public,” spokeswoman Tammy Jarbeau wrote in an email.