Food Notes for February 20, 2017

It sure was nice to have an extra day off from work this weekend – I hope you made the most of it too! On to this week’s food notes:

• FEAST: Recipes & Stories from a Canadian Road Trip is a new book by Lindsay Anderson and Dana Vanveller that spawned from an epic five month journey across the country. The book features over 100 diverse Canadian recipes. The authors are launching their book at Audrey’s on February 27, 2017 from 6-8pm.
• Chef Allan Suddaby (who is the Executive Chef of Elm Catering) will be teaching a series of classes at Metro Continuing Education from March to May 2017 on topics ranging from deep-frying without a deep-fryer, Irish food for St. Patrick’s Day, and the perfect burger. He’s a great instructor, so the sessions are worth considering if you’re wanting to learn a new kitchen skill!
• Chef Travis Petersen (based in Vancouver) is hoping to host a dozen pop-ups across the country. He’ll be making a stop in Edmonton at Northern Chicken on March 8, 2017. Tickets for the local pop-up are $110.
• Barrel Chicken Co. is hosting a pop-up at Solstice Seasonal Cuisine on March 12, 2017. Tickets are $50 for the 5-course meal.
• Alta, one half of Chef Ben Staley’s duo of new restaurants (the other half being The Alder Room) will open on February 24, 2017. Alta is located at 10328 Jasper Avenue.
• A new Thai restaurant, Songkran Thai, is now open in St. Albert at 20 St. Anne Street.
• Takami Sushi opened recently at 10430 61 Avenue.
• Amore Pasta, a pasta bar concept launched by the family behind Cafe Amore and Black Pearl, offers the same quality that we have come to expect at Cafe Amore, writes Jonny.
• Cindy shares her favourite dishes and cocktails off the menu at Baijiu.
• Twyla enjoyed her dinner of comfort food classics at Dogwood Cafe (located at the Victoria Golf Course).
• Rebecca paid a visit to the expanded location of Calle Mexico on 107 Avenue.
• Crystal checked out Old Strathcona’s NongBu.
• Why have so many bakeries opened in Edmonton recently? Vue Weekly looks into the answer.
• It’s always great to hear about the successes that may have started off small, such as Alberta-based food companies that have grown in size in our expanding agri-food industry.
• There seem to be subscription services for all types of food, so I shouldn’t be surprised that a Fudge Club exists with Phil’s Fudge Factory – 3, 6, or 12 month subscriptions are available.
• I was so sorry to read about the burglary that left Sambol Sri Lankan kitchen in shambles – I hope they’re able to re-open soon.
• Wildcard applications for the Canadian Food Championships (held in Edmonton this year July 21-23, 2017) are now open.
• Lillian tried ChocoVine (which blends wine with chocolate) in a recipe for pot de creme. She’s also giving away two bottles to one lucky reader.
• Planet Organic released an ad today apologizing to their customers and promising to do better. It was probably meant to be amusing, but I just found the tone and production values slightly off.
• The Winter Shake-Up Fest coincided with one of the warmest weekends this year, but we still enjoyed ourselves. Stilt-walking is harder than it looks, but it was fun to give it a go – thanks to Lincoln for the photo!

Stilt-walking at the Winter Shake-Up Fest

• Mack and I also wandered over to Hawrelak Park for the Silver Skate Festival. Rain boots were definitely more appropriate than snow boots, but people were making the most of it!

Bannock making at the Silver Skate Festival

• The warm weather means street food may have another prolonged season (as was the case in 2016). It was definitely nice enough for a hot dog from Fat Franks on Saturday in Old Strathcona!

Fat Franks

• When Love Pizza announced their next feature would combine two of our favourite things: pizza and mac and cheese, we knew we had to try it. The mac & cheeza, topped with Irvings Farm Fresh bacon, was everything we hoped it would be.

Mac & cheeza at Love Pizza