Food Notes for November 4, 2019

Kanu Closes to Make Way for Plant-based Pizzeria

Kanu, a partnership between local developer Sherry Schluessel and American chef Matthew Kenney, has transitioned to a new concept after just over a year in operation. Kanu re-opened as Doppio Zero on October 31, 2019, and joins Die Pie as the second plant-based pizzeria in Edmonton.

When Kanu opened back in September 2018, it was heralded as a major step in the city’s embrace of plant-based cuisine, as it was the first higher-end restaurant of its kind. However, as told to the Journal, it appears Kanu struggled because of ingredient costs.

“It was very difficult to manage because of some of the ingredients,” [Sherry Schluessel] says. “Especially the nuts. We don’t, for example, grow macadamia nuts here, and even some of the micro greens were very expensive. Keeping the quality of the dishes intact was just a bit more than we could afford, even if we had a faithful, repeat customer base who loved what we did. It just wasn’t sustainable for Edmonton.”

This is the sixth Doppio Zero location (known as Double Zerio in the US), joining branches in New York, LA, Boston, and Baltimore.

Openings

• Little Duchess (the smaller, sister location of Duchess Bake Shop) is now open in Ritchie Market, located at 9570 76 Avenue.
• The Woodrack Cafe is opening a new location, taking over the Cafe Besos space in Lyon.
• Thamel Bistro, offering Nepalese cuisine, is now open at 12413 118 Avenue.

Closures

• Flamingo Restaurant, which has been operating for more than 40 years in west Edmonton, is closing on November 30 due to expropriation for the Valley Line LRT.

Upcoming Events

• Nowhere Kitchen is a new cooking class/workshop series that will be hosted by chefs of colour focused on their cultural identity and food justice. The first class will take place on November 10, 2019 and feature Chef Addie Raghavan at Get Cooking. Tickets are $30.
• Linda is leading a Food Crawl and Instagrammable Walls walk in Chinatown/McCauley on November 17, 2019. Tickets go on sale November 5.
• STEM Sisters will launch their first event on November 28, 2019 with an interview and tour with Lisa Davis of Yellowhead Brewery, one of the few female brewers in Alberta. Tickets are $10.
• Save the date for the first Edmonton Christmas Market, organized by Wild Heart Collective (the folks behind the 124 Grand Market), on Thursdays to Sundays from November 28-December 21, 2019. It will be located Downtown at ATB Place.

Reviews

• Twyla raved about the food from Filistix.
• The Journal uncovers a hidden gem in the Turquaz Kebab House.

Local News

• Graham shared his favourites from the recent Pizza Pigout fundraiser, which included Sepps (the new ghost kitchen operating out of Leva), Panini’s Italian Kitchen, and Pink Gorilla.
• Good luck to the last Edmonton-based contestant on The Great Canadian Baking Show, Nataliia Shevchenko. The finale airs November 5.
• The Journal has more details behind new restaurant Brasserie Bardot (which moved into the building formerly occupied by Manor Cafe).
• Avenue highlights Say Uncle, Woodshed Burgers, and the new location of Blue Plate Diner.
• Did you know Wishbone started offering brunch back in September from 10am-3pm on Saturday and Sundays? Even better, they allow reservations.
• Red Robin’s announced the closure of their Alberta restaurants by the end of the year; what I didn’t know was how inclusive they are to those who are visually impaired.

Urban Agriculture and Farming

• It’s getting more than tiresome to report that the Downtown Farmers’ Market has again run into challenges with their new location – they shared that a permit issue was the reason behind their closure on Saturday.

What I Ate

• I was in Calgary with Mack and Emily last week, and was able try a couple of new-to-us restaurants. We always seem to stay in the East Village, but hadn’t yet sampled the fare at the historic King Eddy. Though we had to duck out before the live music started, they offer a very respectable mac and cheese – creamy, and nicely textured with breadcrumbs, bacon, and mushrooms.

Mac and cheese from King Eddy

• Before we left the city, we had the chance to grab lunch at Chix Egg Shop, the latest addition to the Charcut/Charbar empire. It’s a cute, modern diner located in the Alt Hotel in the East Village, only open for breakfast and lunch. I enjoyed my hot fried chicken sandwich, and Emily loved the  shoestring fries. Calgary continues its brunch domination of Edmonton.

Hot chix sandwich from Chix Egg Shop

• I don’t get to Brio Bakery nearly as often as I would like, but when I do, I load up on bread (their Prairie loaf is my favourite in the city), and add a cruffin for good measure.

Cruffins from Brio Bakery

I was honoured this past week to be recognized as one of this year’s Top 40 Under 40 in Avenue Edmonton, in part because of my contributions to the local food scene. It’s been such a pleasure to be a part of such a wonderful community – thanks to all of you for reading and for supporting the events I’ve participated in.