Openings

• Jacek’s second shop in the Edmonton area is now open in Crestwood at 9674 142 Street (Jacek closed its long-standing store on 104 Street back in 2020).
• Stephanie posted about a new US donut chain called Duck Donuts that has expanded to Edmonton. It is the second branch in Canada and is located at 16749 127 Street.
• Crumbl Cookies continues its aggressive expansion in the Edmonton area with its third location opening on November 24. Find the newest Crumbl in St. Albert at #228, 2 Herbert Road.
• Frank’s Community Pub is coming to Mill Creek in spring 2024, at 8815 99 Street.

Closures

• One of my favourites on Alberta Avenue, Mama Asha Cafe, announced their closure. Their last day of operations will be November 29. Mokha Cafe will be opening its its place (named after the Yemeni city of Mokha), and the new owner is “committed to serving Mama Asha’s classics and introducing exciting new menu items.”
• Downtown lost its last McDonald’s after the franchise in City Centre Mall closed last week.

Upcoming Events

• Van Loc’s William Chen is hosting a Vietnamese Coffee making workshop on November 25. Tickets are $11.98.
• Downtown’s newest event venue, called Last Modern Event Venue, is hosting holiday high teas in December in partnership with Hirondelle Bakery. Tickets are $65 plus tax for adults, and available dates include December 2, 3, 16 and 17.
• Save the date for the second annual Feed the Soul event, which will run February 2-11, 2024.

Local News

• Owners of restaurants including The Next Act and El Jardin, said it is difficult to manage increased customer expectations amidst inflation.
• The Jonas brothers stopped by Pip for brunch while in Edmonton last week.
• Edify checked out Mai Vietnamese Fusion at West Edmonton Mall.
• A local Facebook page called Edmonton, YOU’VE GOT TO EAT HERE!! has increased traffic at some featured businesses.
• Paul Shufelt vented his frustration at the demands on his small business to comp items for groups.
• Just in time for the holidays, another edition of the CoffeePass is back! The $45 passport entitles the holder to a free drink at 36 café partners in the Edmonton region. Mack and I have been supporters of the CoffeePass since the beginning; it has introduced us to so many independent gems that we probably wouldn’t have visited otherwise.
• Also on the gift front, Alberta Food Tours has put together another Alberta Chocolate Artisans Care Package. The $99 box contains ten of Alberta’s best chocolatiers and confectioners, and a portion of sales is directed to Food Water Wellness, an Alberta organization promoting regenerative agriculture.

What I Ate

• I tried a couple of new cafes this week, and the beautiful weather made it a good excuse to get a walk in at the same time. While the transit oriented development is still terrible at Century Park, it is great to see more independent retail at the end of the line, including Be Coffee.

Coffee from Be Coffee

• It has literally been years since Mack and I have dined in Route 99 Diner – they were our mainstay pre-pandemic and before we had kids, and then the pandemic happened and we tended to eat closer to home. We returned there for a date on the weekend, and in spite of the time that has passed, we found solace in the fact that not much has changed. And our go-to dishes of poutine and pizza were just as satisfying as we remembered.

Poutine and pizza from Route 99 Diner

Openings

• Gratitude Coffee is a new café that opened last week in Sherwood Park at #132, 2833 Broadmoor Blvd.
• Il Poom is the newest Korean restaurant to open on the southside earlier this month, at 3338 Parsons Road.
• It looks like the southside is getting a Turquaz Kebab House Express, at Ellerslie Road and 97 Street.
• Montreal-based chain Pizzeria Bros opened its first Edmonton location in South Edmonton Common back in September. It is located at 2205 101 Street.

Upcoming Events

• Guru in Ice District is hosting a Flavours of South Africa wine dinner on November 16 that will feature 5 wines. All-inclusive tickets are $125.

Local News

• The bakers at Duchess are hard at work creating their annual gingerbread castle. It will be available to view starting November 18. Those who donate new socks and warm weather accessories (which are being collected for the Bissell Centre) will be entered to win the chance to destroy the castle in the new year.
• Speaking of bakeries, Crave Cupcakes and Doughnut Party have collaborated to create a new treat each: Crave has made The Bernadette, with flavours of rosemary, lavender, and chocolate, while Doughnut Party has created a red velvet doughnut with cream cheese glaze and red velvet crumble. They are available until November 18.
• Edify checked out D’Arcy’s Smokehouse Restaurant (rebranded from Links WoodFire Sausage Co.), and Tansen Izakaya.
• Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ is now offering an all-you-can-eat experience, anytime of day.
• Via Linda’s blog, Tiffin India’s Fresh Kitchen is now offering Tiffin services, with customizable meal plans for weekly or monthly pickup.
• What a milestone: Zocalo celebrates twenty years in business.
• Happy first birthday to both Vintage Fork Tea Shop and Asymmetrical Brewing!
• CBC profiled Swiss Donair as a part of its Strip Mall City series.
• Feed the Soul Dining Week is currently recruiting volunteers for their next event.
• The focus of this year’s Vital Signs report is food insecurity, as Edmontonians continue to find it challenging to mitigate the rising cost of food.

What I Ate

• We’re hardly ever in that area at dinner time, but we were in South Common on Friday night – the perfect opportunity to finally pick-up take-out from Jerusalem Shawarma. They didn’t disappoint – they were fast and efficient, and the portion size was massive. We ordered the family platter for three, packed with chicken, potatoes, rice, salad, and side of hummus and pita. We had tasty leftovers for days.

Emily couldn’t wait to dig into the Jerusalem Shawarma platter (I can’t blame her)

Openings

• The Colombian’s fourth location opened on November 4 in Mill Creek, at 8905 99 Street.
• A new wine bar called Coterie has joined the mix in Old Strathcona, located next to Boxer at 10330 80 Avenue. The Journal profiled proprietors Trystan Fung and Ainsley Lamash.
• The Table in Onoway, Alberta, has opened up a sister café called Milk & Honey in Edmonton. It is located inside the Saints Church, 6315 199 Street. They serve up coffee, sandwiches, and pastries.
• Hanako Sushi opened in October in Terwillegar, at 2341 Rabbit Hill Road.
• Mr. Halal Burger opened last week at 9715 137 Avenue. Their chicken, beef, and French fries are all halal, and their milkshakes and churros are kosher.
• Red Deer-based Bubble tea shop Bestea will open an Edmonton location on November 8 at MacEwan University’s Robbins Health Learning Centre.

Closures

• Delux Burger Bar closed their St. Albert location.

Upcoming Events

• The second Behind the Apron workshop features the cake decorating with Layered by Rissa. It takes place on November 21, and tickets are $86.53.

Local News

• It’s always great to see local food personalities recognized on Edify’s Top 40 Under 40 list. This year, MIlkCrate and GhostLight’s Steven Brochu and Token Naturals’ Keenan Pascal were honorees.
• The Journal interviewed Shaun Hicks about Little Wolf.
• The November issue of Modern Luxuria includes a piece on Chappelle Kitchen Catering.
• Edify sampled eats from Chatkhara by Krishna and Meuwly’s.
• The City of Edmonton’s Rally for the Road website, featuring businesses impacted by the construction on Stony Plain Road, profiled El Corazon.
• Happy 7th birthday to Northern Chicken!
• Flava Cafe celebrated their third birthday this past weekend.
• The Hockey Night in Canada team stopped by The Lingnan for dinner last week.
• Alberta-based Karlynn Johnson’s third cookbook, A Very Prairie Christmas Cookbook, is now available.
• Company’s Coming founder Jean Pare, who passed away last year, was inducted into the Taste Canada Hall of Fame.
• The Edmonton Community Foundation’s winter Legacy In Action issue focuses on food security and adaption, and includes stories about RGE RD’s farm-to-table dinners, Yellowhead Tribal Council’s hydroponics, and the Campus Food Bank, among others. Its companion episode of the Well Endowed Podcast focuses on innovative agriculture.

Beyond Edmonton

• No Edmonton restaurants made the longlist, so it is no surprise that Edmonton was absent from the just released Canada’s Best New Restaurants top 10. But it was a little shocking that Alberta was completely cut out from the top 10.

What I Ate

• It’s become a bit of a Saturday morning tradition to grab a coffee while Emily is participating in an activity downtown. This week saw a visit to Lock Stock (their herb and cheese biscuit falls a close second to their koign amann for me).

Coffee and biscuit from Lock Stock

• Our volunteer team is deep in planning mode for the 7th annual Chinatown Dining Week, coming January 2024. We hit up China Marble for a team meeting – their crispy noodles and stir-fried pea shoots really hit the spot.

Our spread from China Marble

• We were #gifted Evoolution’s advent calendar, comprised of 24 vials of oils, vinegars, and salts. We were first introduced to the calendar during the pandemic, and Emily enjoyed exploring the different smells and flavours of the tiny bottles (small enough to fit in her kid-sized hands!). Evoolution has simple video recipe ideas for each day – now that Emily is older, I’m looking forward to actually preparing some of the dishes with her this year! The calendar is $69.95 and makes for a unique gift, especially for those looking for something more savoury than the typical chocolate advent. Thanks to Evoolution for helping us continue this tradition!

With this year’s Evoolution Advent Calendar