Food Businesses Continue to Pivot During Pandemic

Food and hospitality establishments have continued to pivot their service models out of necessity. It is an unbelievably stressful and challenging time, and yet, many businesses have made the shift to adapt to changing regulations and preferences (all dine-in services were restricted as of March 27, 2020).

Last week, many restaurants had already implemented a change towards offering heat-and-serve meals. This trend has continued with additional businesses, including caterers like A Capella, and restaurants such as Amore Pasta, Shojo Izakaya, and Why Not. Other food businesses have worked towards undertaking delivery services to help manage social distancing mandates, including bakeries like Duchess and cafes like The Colombian. Even bars have been getting into the spirit – sister restaurants Woodwork and Bar Clementine have retooled their food and cocktail menu for pick-up and delivery.

There seems to be a thirst for lists as many consumers look for ways to support independent businesses: Things That Are Open offers a business directory, while Shop YEG tracks places that offer online sales and delivery, and Councillor Aaron Paquette posted a list of producers offering home delivery. And don’t forget about Vinson Luong’s spreadsheet that has since doubled to over 400 listed food and drink-related businesses listing take-out and delivery options. For fun, also consider Alberta Food Tours’ bingo card in support of local shops.

Recognizing that many people are cooking more in their homes during this period, Get Cooking will be leading virtual classes, beginning this week with a free Knife Skills class on March 31. Cindy Lazarenko has offered her cooking expertise for free to those looking for help cooking from one’s pantry or freezer. Lastly, Chef Steven Brochu (formerly of Chartier, currently of Milk Crate), has introduced “cyber cooking at home” – the chance to cook virtually alongside the chef on a video call, using groceries delivered to your home.

Even in these trying times, so many local businesses have been continued to give back to the community. Just a few more examples from the past week: Oodle Noodle donated 500 meals to clients of The Mustard Seed; Tiffin provided gift certificates to hospital workers; Remedy is offering free drinks to first responders and hospital staff; Analog Brewing is hosting a “nurse a pint” program that allows people to buy a beer for Alberta Health Services (AHS) staff; and Sunterra Market is offering a 25% discount to AHS staff on ready-made products.

Openings

• It’s only a temporary shift, Workshop Eatery announced that they have converted into a second location of Woodshed Burgers to handle food delivery requests south of the river.
• The kitchen of Three Boars will soon be offering Detroit Deep Dish through a venture called High Dough.
• Some will be ecstatic to hear that Jollibee’s drive-thru is now open.

Closures

• Pagolac’s Chinatown location closed on March 21, 2020 after over 30 years in operation.

Reviews

• Graham tried Skip the Dishes for the first time, and ordered Nara Chicken for delivery.

Local News

• Chef Paul Shufelt (of Workshop Eatery and Woodshed Burgers) will be competing on the Food Network’s Firemasters, airing on April 23, 2020.
• RGE RD co-owners Blair Lebsack and Caitlin Fulton discussed the revamp of their business in light of the pandemic with Avenue Magazine.
• Love Pizza experienced a break-in and theft of some of their tablets over the weekend. This as they came off the heels of selling 2,300 “support pizzas” to donate to staff on the frontlines of the pandemic.
• Liane shared more details as to how the Italian Centre was able to shift to offer curbside pick-up and delivery.
• Earls is getting into the grocery game, and are offering pick-up of produce, dairy, and some household items from its restaurants.
• Due to the current risk, food donations are no longer accepted by Alberta health care workers.
• Alley Kat, which was sold to new owners earlier this year, has changed to selling their beer in cans.
• Sharman recapped her third visit to the Devour Food and Film Festival held at the Jasper Park Lodge every year.
• In light of current events, Kevin Kossowan is offering free access to the third season of his James Beard-nominated show, From the Wild. This deal is available until April 3.

Beyond Edmonton

• Some local companies, including A Capella and Blue Plate Diner, have signed onto a national campaign called Save Hospitality, which requests that the government implement some measures to help restaurants in this difficult period.

Urban Agriculture and Farming

• While the Edmonton Downtown Farmers’ Market remains open, they’ve pared down to just food vendors for the time being. The Old Strathcona and Bountiful Farmers’ Markets remain open as well.
• Alberta Agriculture Minister  Devin Dreeshen discouraged people from hoarding food, assuring Albertans that the “supply chain is responding well”. On a similar note, the President of the Canadian National Millers Association indicated that the grain supply chain is fine, and hoarding flour is not necessary.

What I Ate

• While on a walk over the weekend, Mack and I pre-ordered chai from Remedy for pick-up. They’d already been using pre-order and pay app Click Dishes for some time; in many ways, businesses who had been on systems like Click Dishes or Ritual pre-pandemic have been able to adapt quicker to the changes.

Chai from Remedy

• One of the magical things about the world today is that your Toronto-based sister can surprise you with the delivery of a box from Bloom Cookie Co. to get you through this pandemic. Bloom currently offers delivery of their treats twice a week.

Box of Bloom Cookies

Pandemic Spurs Innovation from Local Food and Restaurant Businesses

It’s only been one week since the restaurant and hospitality scene really started to change after social distancing measures were put into effect, but the speed at which some businesses have adapted to embrace this new reality is astonishing.

Last week, many restaurants shuttered their dining rooms to focus only on take-out and delivery. This number has continued to grow (this handy spreadsheet by Vinson Luong is being updated with over 200 local food and drink-related businesses offering pick-up or delivery). It is worth remembering that while many local restaurants are available through apps like Skip the Dishes or Uber Eats, their cut involves a significant portion of the total. When possible, consider ordering and picking up directly from the restaurant, or, choose a restaurant that is offering in-house delivery (we ordered from Filistix on Friday and co-owner Ariel paid us a visit himself!).

This week, many restaurants have adjusted their menus to accommodate the demand from diners for more heat and serve-style dishes, which may work better for those looking to stock up their fridges and freezers. Some examples include Northern Chicken and Love Pizza’s take and bake pizzas, take and bake goods from Sugared and Spiced, Highlands Golf Course and Green Onion Cake Man’s frozen meals, RGE RD, Workshop Eatery, Drift Food Truck, and Get Cooking’s comfort food, and Corso 32’s heat and assemble Italian meals.

People are also seeking out grocery delivery services in light of minimizing contact with others, and several local options are now available. Bountiful Farmers’ Market is now offering delivery, as is the Italian Centre (neither have a comprehensive catalogue to order from, however, so it’d be difficult for non-regular shoppers to navigate). In addition, Meuwly’s has put together grocery boxes featuring their charcuterie, meats, and preserves, Uproot Food Collective offers collections of various local products, including Honest Dumplings, South Island Meat Co., and Boocha, and Good Goods Co. focuses on “hyper local sustainable small businesses” such as Herbologie, Roasti Coffee, Gruger Farms, and Laneway Bakery.

In this stressful and uncertain time, it’s also great to see some good news stories being shared. Many local restaurants and hotels donated excess food to the Edmonton Food Bank, and distillers like Strathcona Spirits and Black Diamond Distillery are making hand sanitizer and distributing them for free to those in need. Love Pizza also started selling $5 support pizzas, which goes towards the cost of making and delivering pizzas for those on the front lines of the pandemic. After just two days, over 1,000 pizzas were purchased, and deliveries have since been made to hospitals, a fire/ambulance station, and the Youth Empowerment and Support Services. Keep it up, Edmonton!

Openings

• The Almanac hopes to upgrade to a bigger location by April in the former Holy Roller space. The renamed restaurant will be called Boxer – Alberta Kitchen and Bar.
• It sounds like a “European cafe and wine bar” is in the works for the vacated Starbucks space at 10504 99 Avenue.

Reviews

• Graham Hicks rates the burgers at Royale (currently temporarily closed) to be among the best in the city.

Local News

• Chef Ben Staley of Restaurant Yarrow has started a crowdfunding campaign to raise $250,000 for restaurant workers laid off because of current conditions.
• Linda has a great post featuring 100 local businesses you can support – and a fun spin the wheel mechanism to play with!
• Confetti Sweets is offering sugar cookies with pandemic-related messages.
• Sharman put together a gluten-free guide for eats on 124 Street.

Beyond Edmonton

• Is it safe to eat take-out in this pandemic? All your food safety questions answered, by Serious Eats.

Urban Agriculture and Farming

• Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Salisbury Farmers’ Market in Sherwood Park has closed until further notice.
• The Journal featured a story on Greens Eggs and Ham farm, and their desire to gain ground and build on their operations again.

What I Ate

• As mentioned above, we ordered in from Filistix (they’re offering free deliveries for orders over $50). We especially enjoyed the shrimp fried rice with bagoong and the mee goreng – we even had enough leftovers for lunch the next day!

Our order from Filistix

COVID-19 Precautions Impacting Local Restaurants

The precautions arising from the increasing number of COVID-19 cases in Alberta are significantly impacting the food and hospitality industry.

Last week, Alberta Health Services implemented restrictions on mass gatherings, which led to the postponement or cancellation of a number of food-related events, including Avenue Magazine’s annual Best Restaurants evening and remaining 6 days of Downtown Dining Week.

This week, in an effort to support social distancing measures, recreation centres, libraries, and some local attractions closed to the public, with schools and post-secondary institutions following shortly, closing to students. While there isn’t yet an outright ban on restaurants and bars in Alberta, there is data showing that behaviours have changed. OpenTable released information that shows that over the last weekend in Edmonton, the number of seated diners at their restaurants were down more than 40% compared to the same weekend one year ago.

As a result, many businesses have begun shifting their business models to accommodate people choosing to stay home. Some establishments, including Otto, Love Pizza, Prairie Noodle, and Chartier, have closed their dining rooms entirely, opting for take-out or delivery orders only. Other restaurants who traditionally haven’t promoted or offered take-out, have started doing so, such as Nineteen and Corso 32.

Lastly, there are restaurants that have elected to close temporarily, including Royale, Wildfred’s, Huma, and King Noodle House.

For those out there looking for ways to support the industry in these uncertain times, Linda Hoang wrote a great post outlining ways to do so.

Openings

• Tokeo Station (10009 101A Avenue) has been replaced by Ra Bar, which describes itself as a “Japanese inspired lounge and restaurant”.
• The Cabin is now open, in the space formerly occupied by Urban Tavern (11606 Jasper Avenue). Because of COVID-19 precautions they are currently limiting occupancy to 50 patrons.

Closures

• Arcadia has decided to close their current location ahead of its previously announced closure date of March 21, 2020.

Reviews

• Graham was disappointed with his recent visit to Biera.

Local News

• Some upcoming craft markets were cancelled because of the COVID-19 precautions; as a response, Colleen’s Chocolates put together some “survival boxes” containing items from several local vendors for delivery.
• Phil shared his top three favourites after partaking in a hot chocolate crawl: Sweet Lollapalooza, Cococo, and Cafe Sole.

What I Ate

• As mentioned above, Downtown Dining Week has since been cancelled. But last Tuesday (it feels like a different era), Mack, Emily and I attended its kick-off at the Art Gallery of Alberta, and enjoyed, among other dishes, this delicious short rib and polenta from Braven. I’ll have to return some time in the future to order the full plate.

Short rib and polenta from Braven

Planet Organic Closing Down

Two weeks after grocery store Planet Organic abruptly shut down one of its five Calgary-based locations, they announced they will be permanently closing all 11 of its stores.

In a memo to all employees, CEO Alan Thompson wrote, “We have tried to find a solution for the company but now it has come the time to recognize that despite the best efforts to restructure the business we are at an end."

The Edmonton area was home to four Planet Organic stores: in Oliver, Old Strathcona, Ellerslie, and Sherwood Park. Back in January, some vendors voiced their frustrations about the unpaid bills Planet Organic had failed to reconcile.

Openings

• Links Woodfire Sausage Co. opened in early January in St. Albert (275 Carnegie Drive), offering wood-fire grilled sausage creations.
• Wing Snob, an American-based chain, opened its first Canadian location in the Brewery District (11988 104 Avenue).
• South African restaurant The Curry Bowl is now open on the south side, 3311 34 Street.
• Nosh and Quaff, opened by the fine folks behind Mojo JoJo Pickles, kept their doors open at Kingsway Mall beyond the Christmas season. They stock many locally-made brands in addition to their own products. Find them by entrance 3.

Closures

• The End Zone Pub, across the street from Commonwealth Stadium, is now closed.

Upcoming Events

• Filistix is organizing the fourth Bayanihan Dinner Series, their multi-course meals involving a number of local Filipino chefs, on March 18, 2020. Tickets are $103.53 per person.
• The City of Edmonton will be hosting a free workshop about the process and permits relating to opening food-related businesses like a restaurant or a coffee shop on March 31, 2020.
• Hot Chefs Cool Beats, an interactive food and drink event benefiting the High School Culinary Challenge, returns to The Mosaic Centre on April 23, 2020. Tickets are $125 each.
• From May to September, Kevin Kossowan will be leading foraging walks. Learn about edible plants that can be found along the river and in the forest. Tickets are $72 per person.

Reviews

• The Journal was the first to review Links Woodfire Sausage Co. in St. Albert.
• Stephanie provides an early review of Wing Snob.
• Sharon stopped by Calle Mexico’s new location.

Local News

• Linda has a great blog post commemorating International Women’s Day by suggesting some food/business crawl ideas involving women-owned shops.
• The latest episode of Josh Eats Edmonton highlights Beverly stalwart Uncle Ed’s.
• Do you have an opinion about ghost kitchens? A couple of ghost kitchen trailers are operating in high pedestrian areas of Downtown and Old Strathcona, with some wondering if those are appropriate neighbourhoods for such businesses.

Urban Agriculture and Farming

• Riverbend Gardens is taking a break from the Old Strathcona Farmers’ Market until May 9 because they sold out of their storage crops.

What I Ate

• Some Chinatown businesses seem to be struggling right now, due to a combination of factors including the economic climate and unfounded coronavirus fears. There’s a social media campaign using the hashtag #IWillEatWithYou as a means of combating these fears. If you are dining out – consider choosing Chinatown! I enjoyed pho with some colleagues over lunch last week at Pho Tau Bay.

My usual at Pho Tau Bay

• Thanks to the High School Culinary Challenge for inviting me for their awards dinner on Monday night! This year, 57 students from 20 schools participated in the competition. Congratulations to the winners from St. Joseph, ME LaZerte and Archbishop Jordan High Schools on capturing gold, silver, and bronze, respectively. The chefs from the Edmonton Convention Centre prepared the 3-course meal, with their own interpretation of the competition parameters. The most interesting was a deconstructed minestrone soup, featuring a berlotti bean puree, satchetti, and a tomato bisque guests poured themselves.

Deconstructed minestrone soup at the High School Culinary Challenge Awards Dinner

Best Restaurants and Favourite Plates Highlighted in Local Publications

Avenue Edmonton and The Tomato released their annual lists of Best Restaurants and Top 100 Best Things to Eat or Drink in Edmonton, respectively (disclosure: I was one of the judges on Avenue’s panel).

On the Avenue side, three restaurants were included in the “best new” category: Partake, Fox Burger, and Braven. In addition, the five restaurants in the “best overall” category shouldn’t be a surprise, given their inclusion on lists prior: Biera, RGE RD, Uccellino, Bundok, Corso 32. Other categories this year include “best plant-based”, “best diners”, and “best quick meal”.

In The Tomato, it’s no small coincidence that the restaurants behind the top five dishes on their list match Avenue’s “best overall” category: Biera, Corso 32, RGE RD, Bundok, and Uccellino. This year, The Tomato has also included a list of their Top Edmonton Food Experiences.

Openings

• We can expect an Edmonton location of Jack’s Burger Shack to open in the fall. They were the winners of Rohit’s competition The Cut, which saw local businesses compete for the chance to become a tenant in their Stadium Yards development (located behind the Stadium LRT station).
• The Italian Centre Shop will be opening up its fourth location in the Edmonton area, with a Sherwood Park branch in the Emerald Hills Urban Village planned for Fall 2021. They are also planning a second store in southwest Calgary to open next fall, and expanding to Saskatoon in the future.
• Another new bubble tea chain has arrived in Edmonton – ShareTea is now open in Edmonton City Centre Mall (10200 102 Avenue), in the space formerly occupied by Second Cup.

Upcoming Events

• The Environmental and Conservation Sciences Students’ Association is hosting a free Climate Friendly Food Workshop on March 5, 2020. Camola Sustainable Foods will be on hand with samples of their edible insect products.
• The 20th annual Taste of the Chamber, put on by the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce, takes place on March 10, 2020 at the Jubilee Auditorium. General admission tickets are $25, not including food and beverage sample tickets.
• Cafe Bicyclette’s annual Sugar Shack Dinners (served in a wood-fired heated tent) return every weekend from March 13 until April 4, 2020. Tickets for the 5-course menu are $75 each.
• The next Green Drinks on March 18, 2020 is all about “how our food systems are changing the climate and how we can adapt those systems to survive the climate emergency.” Tickets are priced at pay-what-you-can up to $15.

Reviews

• Leduc Nguyen has a new go-to place for Korean Fried Chicken – Country Coco.
• Graham Hicks sampled Japanese fare from two restaurants – Gyu-Kaku and Kobachi. He was pleasantly surprised by the former, and disappointed by the latter.

Local News

• The current economy and coronavirus fears have led to a drop in business in Edmonton’s Chinatown.
• Edgar Guiterrez shared that he is leaving Tres Carnales and Rostizado to focus on Kanto 98 St. full time.
• To commemorate their 10th anniversary, Duchess Bake Shop is bringing back several of their pastry classics for one day each starting this week.
• Both Cask and Barrel and El Cortez revamped their menus over the last few weeks.
• It’s great to see a collaboration between Love Pizza and Otto – they teamed up to create the March feature pizza.
• The latest episode of Josh Eats Edmonton sees the host travel to Japan, via Dorinku Osaka.
• Avenue highlights the genesis behind and objective of Fresh Routes, a mobile grocery social enterprise.

What I Ate

• A cold snuck up on me last week so I headed to my trusty (work) neighbourhood T and D Noodle House for my go-to cure.

Bun Bo Hue from T and D Noodle House

• Mack and I finally tried On the Edge Coffee, one of the vendors at the Downtown Edmonton Farmers’ Market. They use beans sourced from The Grizzlar.

On the Edge Coffee

• We tucked into some take-out burritos from La Mision last week – it’s always great to know they’re close by if we need dinner in a pinch!

Chicken burritos from La Mision