It's dinner for 200 – and every seat comes with a panoramic view of Semiahmoo Bay.
On Aug. 11 the White Rock pier will become a white-linen restaurant for Picnic on the Pier, a fundraiser for the Peace Arch Hospital and Community Health Foundation.
"It's going to be very unique to White Rock. No one has ever done an event like this on the White Rock pier," said event planner Elyse Gawley. "You're going to see really long tables and white linen all the way down."
The evening will include a cocktail reception and a gourmet dinner with an al fresco menu of chilled antipasti, seafood and desserts catered by Sheila Cox of Sheila's Bistro Lounge in South Surrey.
Guests can also participate in a live auction for prizes that include Vancouver Canucks and Vancouver Whitecaps tickets, accommodation at the Wedgewood Hotel and Spa in Vancouver and trips to Victoria aboard Helijet.
The event is being presented by Landmark Premiere Properties, which is proposing a three-tower community in White Rock's town centre. All proceeds will go toward the hospital foundation's campaign to redevelop and triple the size of the emergency department.
"We're currently in the midst of a $15-million emergency department campaign. Our space currently was built to accommodate 20,000 visitors through the ER, and we're seeing over 50,000 a year," said Stephanie Beck, executive director of the foundation.
Beck said the campaign has raised approximately $10 million so far. She expects Picnic on the Pier to add at least $20,000 to that total.
The Thursday night event starts at 5:30 p.m. with a cocktail reception. Dinner is at 6:30 p.m.
Two-thirds of the pier will be closed to the public from approximately 9 a.m. to midnight on Aug. 11 to accommodate the event, but dock access to boaters will be maintained.
Tickets – 200 are available – are $150 each; tax receipts are available for a portion of the price. Free parking and a shuttle to the pier will be available. Visit pahfoundation.ca/events/picnic to purchase.
White Rock council approved the historic landmark's use for the event at a May 30 meeting. In August 2014 another event – the Party on the Pier, which celebrated the pier's 100th anniversary – also closed a portion of the pier to the public.