Downtown Restaurants Had Front Row Seats for Filming
Several streets were closed Downtown over the last two weeks to accommodate filming preparations for HBO’s The Last of Us. Edmonton is standing in for Boston, twenty years after the apocalypse. While businesses remained open as the post-apocalyptic sets were being constructed outside their storefront windows, in a few cases, they had to close completely during filming and were compensated for doing so.
On 104 Street, when filming took place on October 15, businesses from DOSC to Tzin shut their doors for the day. Most restaurants temporarily relocated their patios, but Bottega’s set-up required more intentional dressing with strategically placed vines. Bottega 104 was contacted about their involvement in the production, but declined to comment.
Bottega 104 readied for filming
Over on Rice Howard Way, the set was much more elaborate, and required Dalla to close for two days from October 13-14. Server Trish Morgan confirmed that although Dalla wasn’t ultimately reconfigured into a salon as was reported by the Journal, the restaurant did act as a green room for the cast and crew. “It was an exciting week in the restaurant,” said Morgan. “Dalla had front row seats to the action on Rice Howard Way.”
Unfortunately, Morgan did not personally have the opportunity to meet the actors in the production. “Security informed me I was not to speak to the actors unless they spoke to me,” said Morgan. “It was still pretty cool to be in the same room as [The Last of Us stars] Pedro Pascal and Anna Torv.”
Dalla has already dallied in film and food tie-ins; their Big Night-inspired Timpano kit was back by popular demand this past Thanksgiving. Given Boston’s North End may be prominent in the show, and that neighbourhood’s history as an Italian-American enclave, the possibilities are especially ripe for Dalla to create themed specials. “There are no plans that I know of yet but I’m sure Ran [Huget] and Elisa [Zenari, owners of Dalla] are thinking up some great ideas,” said Morgan. “All of us at Dalla can’t wait for the series release!”
COVID-19-related News
- Beaumont-based Bake My Day had their food handling permit suspended by Alberta Health Service on October 8 because they broke COVID-19 related rules. However, they continue to operate.
- Lux Steakhouse re-opened for the first time since early 2020 on October 12, 2021.
Openings
- PACT Coffee will open in the former Starbucks location in Old Strathcona in January 2022.
- Woodrack Cafe has re-opened their Old Strathcona location at #102, 10324 82 Avenue.
- Chick N Flames serves up Nashville Hot Chicken at 8927B 82 Avenue.
- SoDo on Jasper offers “elevated cocktails, shareable small plates & wine options” at 11011 Jasper Avenue (the former location of Tapa Vino).
- BC-based pasta restaurant Basil Pasta Bar opened earlier in the summer at 9655 62 Avenue.
Upcoming Events
- LitFest’s closing event is called Brunch of Writers: Celebrity Dish. The special guest is Tom Vitale who will discuss his memoir In the Weeds, about working with Anthony Bourdain. The event is free to attend.
Local News
- Edify’s Burger Challenge yielded an unconventional winner from Odd Company Brewing.
- Best of luck to Rogue Wave’s Ply Pasarj as he travels to Italy to compete in the World Brewers Cup. Ply qualified for the event back in 2019.
- The Journal has more details about The Butcher’s Son in Old Strathcona.
- Jacek sold out their advent calendar in less than 48 hours.
- Happy second birthday to Shojo!
- Be-A-Bella in Highlands has suffered a number of break-ins over the past few months.
- By the time you read this, it will be too late to take Kind up on their reward of a free ice cream for voting, but it’s still worth sharing!
- TechLife shared some seasonal cocktail recipes.
- Senator Paula Simons continued her ongoing video series highlighting local farmers’ markets.
What I Ate
- Treats from Rosewood Foods make any day a better one! Mack especially swears by their carrot cake.
Carrot cake and chocolate olive oil cake from Rosewood Foods
- We had to get our fill of Love Pizza’s Lovesgiving pie before the month was out. It’s a family favourite.
Lovesgiving pizza from Love Pizza
- These waning days of October have been a good excuse to put our Coffee Pass to use! This weekend we indulged in a large box of churro nuggets from Caffe Sole alongside our hot drinks.
Churro nuggets from Caffe Sole
- We were blessed with beautiful weather to harvest the last of our community garden bounty this weekend. We were successful with carrots for the first time, but our potato crop was much less than in previous years. Emily is also happiest in the dirt, so she had a great time bidding adieu to our plot for the season.
Carrots from our Alex Decoteau Community Garden plot
Only Here for the Food 