Food Notes for February 13, 2023

Openings

• Mai Mai Vietnamese Street Kitchen is now open at 14221 23 Avenue.
• Bonjour Bakery has moved to their new location at 9913 82 Avenue.
• Stephanie visited new Indian cafe Chai Chill and Grill Cafe (10158 82 Avenue).
• Gnudi, a new pasta concept, opens at the 5th Street Food Hall on February 15.
• Sandwich shop The Lunchbox will open in March at 9707 110 Street.

Upcoming Events

• Winefest returns to the Edmonton Convention Centre on February 24-25, 2023. Tickets start at $122 and include an all-inclusive sampling of wine and food.
• Freson Bros. is hosting the 3rd annual Future of Alberta Food on February 25, 2023 at NAIT. Six teams will make 24 dishes attendees can sample. Tickets cost $75.
• The Edmonton Craft Beer Festival will take place March 10-11, 202 at the Edmonton Expo Centre. General admission tickets start at $21; food and beer vouches are extra.

Local News

• Vegan pizzeria Die Pie is planning to re-open as a standalone restaurant in April (they currently operate Seitans alongside other concepts in the 5th Street Food Hall). They have started a crowdfunding campaign to help them reach their goal.
• Local restaurants, including the Robert Spencer Hospitality Group, and Transit Smokehouse, shared with the Journal how they are addressing rising food and utilities costs.
• The Th3rd Wave Coffee Award results are in – congratulations to Rogue Wave for winning cafe and roaster of the year, and to Sorellina Cafe and Brew Bar for winning new cafe of the year.
• Phil highlighted Wild Rose Cakes on his latest Best Dish column.
• Twyla’s Edmonton AM column focused on Nepalese and Indian restaurant Green Bean Mountain Bistro.
• Also from Edmonton AM – they featured one of the Feed the Soul participants, Cafe Caribbean.
• Edmonton Convention Centre chef Serge Belair talked to CTV about the dishes that helped him with his podium finish at the Canadian Culinary Championships.
• Between Bountiful Farmers’ Market introducing an import produce vendor and the Downtown Farmers’ Market selling oranges, it appears the Edmonton farmers’ market scene is moving closer to the Calgary model of markets offering more of a general grocery store selection instead of focusing on locally-grown options.
• In honour of World Pulses Day on February 10, TechLife asked a chef for tips on cooking with beans, one of the most inexpensive ways to add protein to your diet.

What I Ate

• I was invited to the media preview for the launch of the renovated Confederation Lounge at the Hotel Macdonald last week. An updated food and cocktail menu accompanies the refreshed space, and most notably features an old fashioned priced at $299 (they have since sold three such drinks, but the rest of their cocktails are priced between $21-24). I sampled some of their new food items, and particularly enjoyed the fried brussels sprouts tossed in a sweet chili sauce, and the pillowy bao buns with Korean beef. Thanks to the always hospitable staff for having me!

The bar at the Confederation Lounge

• Emily and I hit up Tea Bar Cafe on the weekend to take advantage of their extended Chinatown Dining Week deal – it was such a hit that they are continuing their promotion of a bubble tea + bubble waffle for $10 until February 28!

Our order from Tea Bar