If you want to host a Lunch 2.0, it’s really easy to become the local eatery for a day.  Just get in touch with me (hwilliams at ideeinc.com) . I will get you started, help you spread the word and get going in a jiffy! It’s that simple!

And if you’d just like to find out more and are interested in eating lunch with other tech-minded Toronto folks, participating in Lunch 2.0 is easy. Just subscribe to the blog and you’ll know as soon as the next event is in the works. Afterwards we always love to hear what you thought about your experience, so if you blog about it or snap and share some photos we would be keen to link to them.

So check out the Lunch 2.0 story and then let us know if it sounds like a tasty opportunity to you! The lunch 2.0 happening in the US and the rest of the world can be viewed here, if you are anywhere close to a lunch 2.0 location, drop by.

Happy lunching folks.

Apple II by Marcin Wichary

Not only did the great team at Codesta and scanR host a faboo lunch with drinks and food galore, they also held a little contest (with a prize!) for the attendee with the best answer to the line “My first computer was a…”.  There were some inventive answers and lots of chatter generated about the days of the Apple II and Vic-20. Fun idea!

In addition to meeting interesting people doing cool things around the city and getting a tour of their snazzy offices in the West end, we also had a chance to see the scanR technology in action thanks to Elena and Paulo. Some of the hot topics were Twitter, TechCrunch 50 and Yammer, and what’s new on the technology scene here in Toronto.

I had a chance to snap a few photos at the lunch, they’ll be posted for your viewing enjoyment tomorrow. You can also swing by Codesta’s blog for more on last week’s get together.

So thanks again to everyone at Codesta and scanR for this month’s Lunch 2.0 and to everyone who attended the event for taking time off their busy schedule for some conversation and lunch, it was great to meet you all.

p.s. the winner of the contest was Point of Presence‘s Don Millman with his “HAL 9000 (the computer I *wished* I had)” answer…congrats Don!

September 10th is the day, 366 Adelaide Street West is the place. Toronto’s 3rd Lunch 2.0 gathering will be taking place next month, hosted by Dan Bowman and the Codesta & scanR crews who have so kindly invited you all to swing by their offices from noon until 1:30 for conversation, idea sharing and, of course, lunch with other tech-minded folks.

Lunch 2.0, as always, is a free event but space is limited so grab a spot now if you are interested in attending.

Full details including a map, more about your friendly hosts and the registration (of course) are available at Eventbrite, so zip on over and grab your invite today!

What’s this all about? Check out the About page for a Lunch 2.0 primer.

See you there!

A blend of Toronto’s tech and design folks met, munched and chatted over pizza, fresh fruit and tasty desserts at the new offices of design firm Wishingline. Many thanks to Scott Boms and the Wishingline crew for this great networking opportunity!

Looking for photos? We’ve got’em! Pop over to flickr to see the snaps from Friday’s get together.

Lunch 2.0 was smashing success yet again – but where will it be held next?

If you are a local tech or design firm with an office downtown, you have space for 20-30 people (or more!) and you’d like to host a Lunch 2.0 event just let us know! We’ll blog about it, chat it up and generally tell everyone we know how awesome you are for bringing together tech and design folks from around the city!

Join the Wishingline crew (Scott, Anna and Dale) for Toronto’s second Lunch 2.0 event which will be happening on Friday, May 30th, from noon until 1:30 at their new studio in Toronto.

Come out and meet like-minded people from Toronto’s design and tech communities and help Wishingline inaugurate our new studio space, rock out on the finger drums, and check out the comings and goings of their strange neighbours across the street all while enjoying yummy pizza and fizzy or otherwise bubby beverages.

The event is totally free, but space is extremely limited and once the tickets are gone, they’re gone. Full details including location, time, tickets and anything else you might need to know are available at Eventbrite.

For the scoop on what Lunch 2.0 is all about and who’s behind it in Canada, check the official Lunch 2.0 website. Hope to see you on the 30th!

GET A TICKET!

We are posting all the photos on our Flickr set soon, so stay tuned. A link will be forthcoming.

So now that the first event went off successfully and people see how great it is to get together and chat for lunch, the next obvious question is, who’s next?? Get in touch if you’re interested in holding your own lunch 2.0 anywhere in Canada. I hear GigPark is planning something… soon.

We the good folks at Idée liked the idea of getting together for lunch while checking out great local tech companies and meeting interesting people. So we decided to start it up for Canadian cities!

The first lunch 2.0 in Canada will be held at the Idéeplex in Toronto

When: Friday February 22, 2008, Noon to 13:30

Where: Idéeplex, 223 Queen Street East, Toronto

Come join us at our office to check out our cool image recognition software, and for some pizza (no pizza pizza here), Italian sodas, dessert, and lots of interesting conversations with passionate people doing cool things around the city.

Please RSVP on Eventbrite

Who is Idée ?

You probably already know who we are since you stumbled upon this spanking new blog! But if you don’t: we are the folks who are changing the world of image search and content tracking. What does that mean? We have developed some great image search applications (visit the lab, will you?), and have introduced a large scale web service that allows our clients to track where their images appear in print and on the web. And hey, this is not just for the big guys, we are also changing the world of editorial photography. Come and see how!

Come to lunch and you’ll also get a glimpse of what’s we’ve got in the works at the Idéeplex!

It is all going to be incredibly sexy – you won’t be bored!

Why go to Lunch 2.0? Well, this is why we go:

• Learn about cool local companies, technologies and people
• Share ideas….or learn about new ideas
• Expand our network in our city’s Tech community
• Get free stuff!

How Does It Work? When there is a Lunch 2.0 organized in your area:

• RSVP
• Leave work for your lunch hour – that’s innovative I tell you!
• Get free food and drinks
• Meet new people, learn about a new start up, new technologies
• Meet new people in the industry
• Scope out companies you may be interested in working at (hey if you are a new graduate or a co-op, what better way to figure out where you would like to end up!)
• When Lunch 2.0 is all done and wrapped up: Go back to work happy and be productive