Straight Goods' food reviewer Saul Chernos rates the food and the fun at corporate annual general meetings

  A lot of big decisions are made at corporate annual general meetings. So it's important - in their one moment of potentially democratic glory - that corporations should feed people.
  Most of the action at these meetings is controlled by the big fish and small investors are mere spectators. But the free lunch that follows some meetings can be an actual attraction for shareholders and anyone else interested in a pleasant bite.
 

Some meetings offer little more than a stale cookie and flat soft drink. Others yield succulent hors d'oeuvres, delightful spreads, and occasional full-course meals catered by five-star restaurants.

  That's right. Buffet tables and open bars are commonplace at many AGMs which, while not widely advertised, are generally accessible to the public. If you're tired of getting by on pizza slices or Big Macs, it's good to stay up on the AGMs in town - especially if your town is a major city.
  Be warned: the food and drink are hit and miss. Some meetings offer little more than a stale cookie and flat soft drink. Others yield succulent hors d'oeuvres, delightful spreads, and occasional full-course meals catered by five-star restaurants.
  These meals are ostensibly meant to keep shareholders happy. Yet, there's little to prevent the deserving public - who usually pay the price for corporate greed - from sampling delights from the business menu. For the single parent who's just been downsized, the family of five who uses a food bank because low wages in the service industry just don't cut it, and anyone else who rightfully deserves their turn at the trough, Straight Goods will review the best and worst of what corporate AGMs have to offer.

Bon appetit!

Company: Laidlaw Inc.
Location: Metro Toronto Convention Centre

  In many respects, the annual general meeting of transportation-giant Laidlaw Inc. was like a last supper - for its beleaguered executives.
  During a question-and-answer session, shareholders harangued members of the board for a lacklustre corporate performance. With Laidlaw stock tumbling to its lowest in over a decade, and failed ambulance and health care ventures, frustrated shareholders wanted to know why management had awarded themselves bonuses.
 

Little wonder then that, amid howls for resignations, directors tossed shareholders a bone. Was the impressive array of sandwiches, cheeses, and fruit and dessert platters that greeted shareholder in the lobby a last-ditch attempt to curry their favour?

  "I don't think you're inept, I think you're incompetent," one irate shareholder hollered from the stands at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre auditorium.
  Little wonder then that, amid howls for resignations, directors tossed shareholders a bone.
  Was the impressive array of sandwiches, cheeses, and fruit and dessert platters that greeted shareholder in the lobby a last-ditch attempt to curry their favour? We certainly hope not.
  An annoyingly chewy lox and cream cheese wrap yielded a single, lonely caper. Another wrap, with marinated onions, peppers and mushroom, was rescued from obscurity by mildly piquant feta cheese.
  Disappointing is the only way to describe the sandwich tray. The tuna on kaiser was mushy, while the smoked meat and roast beef were satisfactory. The ham and Swiss cheese on French stick was appropriately garnished with an olive, but a chunk of pineapple - like Laidlaw's foray into ambulances and health care - seemed to represent yet another company misadventure.
  For dessert, caramel-pecan bars proved gooey and bland. A piece of cake with fluffy, yellow cream dusted with chocolate was equally tasteless.
  "I think that's supposed to be tiramisu," one shareholder grumbled, perhaps thinking that the pastry chef should also resign.
  The buffet tables cleared rapidly as a dwindling crowd opted for a liquid lunch. A glass of red wine, 1998 Malbel Syrah Mendoza from Balbi Vineyard in Argentina, had a mild, slightly fruity taste and a pleasant bouquet.
  It's here, at the bar, that shareholders and executives sought refuge. Together, after a hard day's work, all seemed well with the world.