Food Notes for April 20, 2026

Openings

• Golden Sparrow has partnered with Royal Developments for a new concept called Par & Pour. It will include golf simulators, dining, and an indoor patio. Expect it to open in August.
• Edmonton doesn’t have a great number of restaurants serving Balkan food, so it’s great to see Chevapi King open, at 10425 51 Avenue NW.
• Blue Marlin, a Tunisian seafood restaurant, opened earlier this year at 11909 134 Avenue NW.
• Public Exchange (formerly Central Social Hall’s downtown location) opened last week.
• Orbe Restaurant is opening late spring at 13138 137 Avenue NW, and promises “modern Asian cuisine with global influences.”
• Tupi Acai Bowls has opened their third location in the Edmonton area, adding a shop at 10350 124 Street NW.
• A similar business, Bountiful Farmers’ Market vendor Live Bowl’d (serving up smoothies and smoothie bowls) is expanding with a location on Whyte Avenue.
• The Spot has rebranded back to The Provincial Bar & Lounge and is under new ownership. It is currently undergoing renovations.
• Soban has re-opened in its new location at 8943 82 Avenue NW.
• Quebec-based chain Qing Hua Dumpling opened a location in Edmonton at 708 Tamarack Way NW. They offer many different filling options, including lamb and seafood.
• African grocer Afri Food City will be opening soon at 3333 118 Avenue NW.

Closures

• After ten years, Cookie Crumbs is closing their booth at Old Strathcona Farmers’ Market after April 26. They will remain open at Bountiful Farmers’ Market.
• Phat Boy Cheesesteaks in Sherwood Park closed on April 19.

Upcoming Events

• Best of Brunch YEG runs May 1-31 in support of Meals on Wheels. Participating restaurants will donate $1 from their feature dish to the charity, and diners can vote on their favourite dishes in a number of categories, including best creative brunch and best alternative brunch.

Local News

• It seems over the past two years that there is a movement towards all-you-can-eat models. Baekjeong’s South Edmonton location is the next to adopt this, starting April 15.
• The owners of Rocky Mountain Ice House and Cask & Barrel are continuing their fight against the City’s patio fees. A petition is being circulated to urge Council to pause the fees. So far the petition has nearly 900 signatures. Pub 1905 will keep their patio this year, but may pull the plug in 2027 when fees are expected to increase.
• As you would expect, it is that time of year when Oilers-themed dishes and drinks crop up. Get in the spirit with orange and blue ice cream at Yelo’d and Annie Rue, or similarly-coloured cocktails at Alchemy. Sea Change Brewing has also brought back Joey Moss Man Crush, which raises funds for the Joey Moss Memorial Fund and the Winnifred Stewart Association.
• Edify featured Mojo Jojo Pickles, and checked out Ichiban Japanese Cuisine and Lady Bea’s English Tea House.
• Taproot reported that The Common saw a 20% increase in sales during Downtown Dining Week, and is considering resuming lunch due to the increase in traffic from provincial government workers.
• Bravo to The Colombian, who was #15 on list of The World’s 100 Best Coffee Shops.
• Congratulations to Next of Kin for their recognition as one of the Best New International Cocktail Bars in the Spirited Awards.
• Congratulations to the winners of this year’s Culinary Arts Cook-off, which include Babette’s Cookies (a new brand from the folks behind Doughnut Party). The friendly competition raises funds for arts programming at Highlands School.
• Omen Brewing experienced a break-in earlier this month.

What I Ate

• Our family had a brief but rejuvenating staycation in Canmore and Calgary, piggybacking off of a work trip to Calgary. It was great to breathe in the mountain air and explore Canmore for the first time since Emily was a baby. I really enjoyed our visit to Ramen Arashi – great broth and so satisfying.

Ramen Arashi in Canmore

• We had to check out Class Clown Burgers when in Calgary, featured on the last season of Top Chef, and awarded a best new restaurant accolade by Avenue Calgary. They had a great vibe (the 70s-styled rumpus room similar to Shiddy’s in Edmonton), but the flavour of the smashburger just wasn’t as apparent with their loaded-up burgers.

The family at Class Clown Burgers

• By the time I got to Chix Egg Shop (our East Village favourite), I was dying for a salad, something I typically would not order at a diner. But the Olympian cobb exceeded my expectations, with varied textures and  a lemon dressing that sung.

Olympian cobb at Chix Egg Shop

• Dinner with my colleagues took place at Lulu Bar this time, a Hawaiian-inspired restaurant serving Asian fusion cuisine. The udon crisps were addictive, and I appreciated their house-made spam, but it was their fried coconut squid that would bring me back again.

Fried coconut squid at Lulu Bar

• #banhmionthebus accompanied me on my trip home this time, where I was encouraged by this fun CBC video profile to visit Trung Nguyen for the first time. I ordered their most popular satay sub (the beef was delicious), though given the saucy nature of the meat it probably wasn’t the ideal order as it sat unconsumed for longer than it should have.

Combo satay sub from Trung Nguyen