Food Notes for May 6, 2019

Culina Muttart to Close in July

Fans of Culina Muttart will want to head to the restaurant soon. Due to renovations at the Muttart Conservatory to commence this summer, Culina has announced that their last day of service will be July 1, 2019. The Muttart will be closed for 18 months of rehabilitation.

However, Culina will soon be opening up Culina To-Go in the trendy Oliver Exchange Building. In the May issue of Avenue Magazine, chef/owner Brad Lazarenko shared that this concept is inspired by take-out establishments like Pret a Manger, but will feature many local suppliers.

Openings

• Steve Brochu, formerly of Chartier, is taking over the Wild Earth Cafe space in the Epcor Tower and opening his own coffee and sandwich shop called Milk Crate.
• Odd Company Brewing is now open in the Oliver Exchange Building at 12021 102 Avenue. Avenue Magazine has more information about what you can expect.
• Vivo’s new location in the Currents of Windermere is now open at 6143 Currents Drive.
• New Century Buffet opened at the end of April in the former Plates Buffet location at 3975 Calgary Trail (thanks to Brenden for the tip!).
• Congratulations to Calle Mexico, who opened up a kiosk at West Edmonton Mall in March. The business has grown from a food truck and storefront on 107 Avenue.
• Awash Ethiopian Restaurant also opened in March, in the former Lee Garden at 12952 118 Avenue.
• Bubble tea chain The Alley will be expanding to Edmonton.
• Prairie North Cider Co. is a cidery-in-startup hoping to launch this fall.
• Another local brewery is in the works called The Growlery Beer Co.

Upcoming Events

• The next Fruit and Veggie Sale run by Food4Good is on May 16, 2019.
• The second Winery Spotlight Dinner at the Edmonton Expo Centre will take place on May 22, 2019. Tickets are $125.
• Tickets are now available for this year’s Indulgence, taking place on June 10, 2019. Tickets are $100.

Reviews

• Graham heartily recommends checking out Meuwly’s for their quality charcuterie.
• Crystal was pleasantly surprised by the food at Haweli’s new South Common location (in the former Hudson’s).
• The Journal’s review of Von’s has a mostly positive conclusion, in spite of the fact that the writer found most of the food could have been better.

Local News

• Little Brick was named one of the Top Coffee Shop Patios by En Route Magazine.
• Congratulations to local breweries Bent Stick Brewing and Town Square Brewing for their accolades at the Canadian Brewing Awards! Town Square Brewing earned Gold for their Prairie Fire Rauchbier in the Smoked Beer category and Bronze for their Pond Surfer California Common, while Bent Stick earned Bronze for their Baltistar Galactiporter in the Baltic Porter category.
• It’s always great to see local collaborations, like this one between The Colombian and Bent Stick Brewery, to produce “First Pull” Amber Ale.
• Bloom Cookie Co. now offers vegan soft serve.
• Kari shares her five favourite plant-based restaurants in Edmonton.
• Global Edmonton interviewed Chef Shane Chartrand about his upcoming television series Red Chef Revival.
• Chef Ryan Hotchkiss of Bundok shares his recipe for parmigiano soup with shallots, bacon and breadcrumbs.

Urban Agriculture and Farming

• Congratulations to Winding Road Cheese, who will no longer be selling at farmers’ markets effective in mid-May because they will be shifting to support wholesale and retail business. Their product will be available in over 20 Sobeys and Safeways in Alberta.
• You may soon see local shrimp on the menus of your favourite restaurants – a shrimp farm based in Calgary called Waterford Farms will be harvesting their first “crop” at the end of the month.
• There is an opportunity to grow the food processing sector in Alberta – this article highlights the successes of the Little Potato Company and Sylvan Star Cheese.

What I Ate

• Any day I can get to Pho Tau Bay is a good day.

My usual at Tau Bay

• Linda introduced Mack, Emily, and I to Jack’s Drive-In in Spruce Grove. It’s a casual little diner with red vinyl booths that was right up our alley, and it’s been around for almost 60 years! The burgers were basic but tasty.

Our spread at Jack’s Drive-In