Author: Sharon Yeo

Sharon is an Edmonton-based blogger who has been writing about food since 2006.

Food Notes for May 24, 2010

I’m almost ashamed to admit we slept as much as we did these past few days, but it was clear we needed it – and what better time to rest and relax indoors than a grey and rainy long weekend? On to this week’s food notes:

  • Mark your calendar! The second annual Al Fresco 104th Street Block Party is taking place on June 12 this year. Expect two sound stages, a Portuguese BBQ, a crostini bar from Red Star’s Daniel Costa, and a screening of Chocolat – all underneath a canopy of stars! Mack and I went last year, and enjoyed ourselves.
  • Looks like Wild Earth Bakery has made the move to the revamped portion of their cafe. Check out Marianne and Cathy’s posts for a peek inside.
  • Vue Weekly published a piece on the renovated Parkallen Restaurant this week. It seems as if the owners are trying to woo a younger clientele.
  • There’s a new Edmonton food blog on the scene – welcome, Steph of Crisp & Chewy!
  • From Valerie: Jeff Sutherland has started an Eating Paleo in Edmonton group, which is a “meetup of like-minded people to help you achieve optimal health by eating real food! Share recipes, tips, advice, support, and inspiration. Maybe most importantly, help each other source real food that is local, ethical, and sustainably produced.”
  • Upside-down gardening seems to be all the rage right now – this NYT article is a good primer on the trend.
  • On the subject of the upcoming World Cup – a few local bars have applied to open earlier in order to accommodate potential viewers; and deVine’s is hosting a World Cup-themed tasting on June 19.
  • Heading to Vancouver soon and needing pointers for good eats? Check out Vancouver Magazine’s 2010 restaurant awards.
  • Hellmann’s is providing $100,000 in Real Food Grants to “support initiatives that bring Canadian families and kids together with real food in their community.” Deadline to apply is June 30, 2010.
  • I have never seen pancakes as intense as Jim’s. Think I’m kidding? Check out this three-dimensional ferris wheel.
  • Some things should never be made vegan, like KFC’s Double Down sandwich, for instance.
  • Flavours (10354 82 Avenue) on Whyte is no more – Pour House will be taking its place.

Pour House

  • “The legend returns”, or so proclaims the sign outside the former Ivory Club downtown (10304 111 Street), which has been reclaimed and will once again become the sports pub Overtime on July 1, 2010.

Overtime returns

  • We stopped by the original Transcend over the weekend to pick up a bag of beans, and was confronted by a line up a dozen people deep. Nice to know the business hasn’t slowed at that location since T2 opened up! We joked around with some patrons behind us that there should have been a “beans only” express line, but no dice.

Love the new vacuum-sealed packaging!

  • Mack and I are suckers for novel-flavoured chips, so we couldn’t pass by a display of PC’s Ballpark Hot Dog chips ($2.50) without picking up a bag. From the description on the bag, we were expecting hints of hot dog, mustard and relish, but unfortunately, the chips tasted predominantly like relish, or a variation of dill pickle.

PC Ballpark Hot Dog chips

  • One of my coworkers moonlights as a cake decorator at a local bakery. For a potluck at work, she demonstrated her talents with two brilliant desserts – a tiered Coca-Cola can and a giant hamburger. She even had tiny little hamburger cupcakes, made with layers of white cake (the bun), chocolate cake (the patty), and orange, green, red and yellow icing (for cheese, relish, ketchup and mustard). Too cute!

Beautiful cakes

The Cooking Chronicles: Mother’s Day Duck Confit

Between Media Camp and volunteering for Homeless Connect over Mother’s Day weekend, Mack and I didn’t have the time or energy to prepare a special meal for my Mum. So instead, we promised her supper the following Sunday – great timing not only because my parents were fresh from a short holiday to Vancouver, but also because it allowed us to finish up our ingredient shopping at the City Market.

Though I didn’t set out to cook a meal made up almost entirely of local ingredients, it ended up that way – being more conscious about where your food comes from tends to do that. On the menu: braised lentils with confit of duck (from Grainworks and Greens, Eggs and Ham); roasted root vegetables (from Kuhlmann’s, Sundog Organics, Greens, Eggs and Ham); and mixed heritage greens (from Greens, Eggs and Ham).

Knowing that the confit of duck would take the longest (the recipe indicated 45 minutes), we started with that. Of course, with Murphy’s Law, the entire dinner took about two hours to complete – I always seem to overestimate my adeptness in the kitchen.

The recipe is printed in The Food Lover’s Grail Guide to Alberta, by Mary Bailey & Judy Schultz, and is courtesy of Chef Kelly Strutt, who worked at the Deer Lodge at the time of the book’s printing. The instructions directed us to cover the duck legs with fresh thyme, rosemary and salt and refrigerate for 48 hours. To cook the duck legs, we rinsed off the salt and herbs, then simmered them in duck fat (also from Greens, Eggs and Ham) for thirty minutes. It was my first time cooking confit-style, and for whatever reason, I thought the fat would retain its solid consistency, but instead, it melted into a thin yellow oil.

In the meantime, we had prepped the carrots, parsnips and baby potatoes, tossed with some dried herbs, salt, pepper, honey and Mighty Trio Organics canola oil, and had put them into the oven. I also started on the braised red and green lentils, cooked with sautéed shallots and chicken stock.

To toss with the mixed heritage greens (our first bag of the year!), I whisked up my favourite vinaigrette – lemon juice, olive oil, grainy mustard (from The Bison in Banff), honey, salt and pepper.

The last task was the most difficult – to “flake” the duck meat from the bone. The recipe made it sound easier than it actually was – Mack and I fought tooth and nail to separate the meat from both skin and bone. I actually resorted to tearing with my fingers instead of using a knife and fork. In the end though, we were able to wrench a fair amount of meat from the pair of duck legs, and definitely enough to feed the six of us, with accompaniments.

Braised lentils and duck confit

I am happy to report that my mom enjoyed the meal. The duck meat was tender and flavourful, and though the lentils probably could have used another ten minutes on the stove, I didn’t mind that they still had a little bite to them.

Plated with roasted vegetables and mixed heritage greens

For dessert, we purchased the show stopping Duchess from the eponymous bakery. I’d been looking for an excuse to try it, and a meal for my Mum seemed like the perfect occasion.

The Duchess

Chiffon cake layered with pastry cream and raspberry, then topped with a dome of vanilla bean whipped cream and encased in a marzipan shell, it is no doubt a dessert made with skill and care. My favourite part was the light and airy chiffon and the delicate raspberry filling.

Inside the Duchess

Family and good food – what more could you ask for?

City Centre Market Report: Week 2

What a difference one week can make at the City Centre Market – thirty degrees and several thousand people, to be exact.

Market Day

Three degrees, spitting rain and the first long weekend of spring meant many less patrons than last week’s blockbuster opening day with an estimated attendance of 20, 000.

No crowds this week

Today was probably a more typical shopping day for us – by the time we made it to the market by foot, it was already near noon. Because of the smaller crowds and the exceptional weather earlier in the week though, the selection of fresh produce was still pretty good when we arrived.

Radishes at Riverbend Gardens

Spinach at Green Valley Farms

Rhubarb at Sundog Organics (they also had pea shoots!)

On Wednesday, Edgar Farms sent out an e-mail saying that they would have a healthy quantity of asparagus available, as they were harvesting the crops every day. They weren’t kidding.

Crates of asparagus!

There was no need to fight over the stalks this week. Besides not having to wait in line, I think Edgar Farms had enough to last until 3pm – not always possible with Edmonton’s voracious appetite for spring vegetables.

Buying asparagus

In addition to asparagus, I also picked up some tomatoes and bell peppers from Doef’s Greenhouses, onions from Green Valley Farms, quick-cook barley and mushrooms from Mo-Na Foods and eggs from Sunshine Organic.

I’m really looking forward to getting back into the routine of weekly visits to the market. See you there next week!

Fun Fusion: Wild Tangerine

Last week I met up with Jennifer for a late lunch. My first pick, Il Pasticcio, unfortunately only serves lunch until 2pm, but Jennifer’s trusty foodie colleague recommended Wild Tangerine, whose operating hours span both afternoon and evening.

I’ve been to Wild Tangerine for dinner a couple of times in the past, and have been more impressed with each visit. They are a great example of a successful, independent business (and one of the first Original Fare members), and are well-known for their creative Asian fusion cuisine that highlights local producers.

Interior

As expected, we hit the tail end of the lunch rush, with only two other parties in the restaurant when we arrived. We were greeted immediately by co-proprietor Wilson Wu, ever-affable and chatty. This was the first time I’ve had the opportunity to speak extensively with him, and through the conversation, realized how health-conscious Wild Tangerine strives to be. Their current focus is on a line of pre-cooked frozen meals (available at the restaurant and through the Good Food Box) – from gourmet pizzas like Moroccan mint lamb to bison short ribs – which, like d’Lish, fills the niche of convenience with a conscience. He also told us that their Mobile Cuisine location (which had been located in Manulife Place, and served similar healthy takeout dishes), closed when their sublease of the space ended. Wilson said that it was difficult to hire staff (Mobile Cuisine opened during the boom), and that the appetite in Edmonton for such meals isn’t yet comparable to other cities.

While I can’t vouch for their bagged cuisine, I do love their menu. I think their play on Western concepts are clever: for lunch, for example, they offer Asian Po’Boys, really just a fancy term for “sandwiches”, said Wilson. Jennifer and I each ordered one – she the smoked salmon egg fooyung ($13), which tasted like a frittata encased in a bun, and I the butter masala chicken ($15). The sauce that enrobed the chicken was spiced for more timid palates (not a bad thing for a daytime meal), but the real star of the plate was the sweet corn relish, and the crisp green salad alongisde the po’boy.

Butter masala chicken po’boy

An order of four shrimp lollipops ($12) also found their way into our meal. We agreed they would be a disastrous first date appetizer, but were darn tasty. How could you go wrong with deep-fried, phyllo-wrapped shrimp?

Shrimp lollipops

Between their attentive service, interesting menu, and unrelenting support of local producers, I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed lunch at Wild Tangerine. I’ll be back soon!

Wild Tangerine
10383 112 Street
(780) 429-3131
Monday-Thursday 11:30am-10pm, Friday 11:30am-11pm, Saturday 5-11pm, closed Sundays

A Family Farm: Greens, Eggs and Ham

About a month ago, Mack and I drove out to the Greens, Eggs and Ham farm in Leduc County on a Sunday afternoon. I had arranged to interview Mary Ellen and Andreas Grueneberg that day for a Vue Weekly story about their businesses and the challenges they face, and they were nice enough to invite us to stay for dinner as well.

Green, Eggs and Ham farm

Sometimes, 900 words isn’t enough to tell the whole story. This was one of those instances. Also – though I loved the images Gabe Wong produced for the Meat Issue, I was hoping they would showcase at least one of the photos I took that day. Thankfully, I have no such space restrictions on my blog!

Mary Ellen and Andreas (my favourite photo from that night)

Though I’ve buying from Greens, Eggs and Ham for a few years now (and just started my second year as a member of their Community Supported Agriculture, called the Greens, Eggs and Ham Futures Program), this was the first time I had the opportunity to sit down with them and learn how they entered the farming business. 

We had already toured some parts of the farm back in November, but in warm weather, we were able to see some of the land that would be seeded shortly, and check out the status of the greenhouse since our last visit.

Andreas finishing up with watering duties

We also took a quick peek inside the duck barn, containing a flock that would be processed at the end of the month (I think the duck legs we had last week were actually from animals we saw that day…).

Ducks!

More pets than food, the last stop was to check out some beautiful birds and not-so-quiet guinea fowl.

Whatcha lookin’ at?

The small family farm is referenced so often in current literature that it almost seems cliché, but Mary Ellen, Andreas, and their two daughters Ariana and Megan are a great example of how each member of the family contributes in some way.

“Ariana has an absolute way with fowl,” shares Mary Ellen. “She keeps them calm and friendly. One of the reasons our birds are so great and tender is because when we load them, there’s minimal stress. Usually when people are loading birds for processing, they wait ‘til dark and then they turn off the lights, put the black light in and hold them upside down by their feet so they can hold more in their hands, then throw them in the cages.”

“Because of Megan, my bird person, we go with their natural rhythm,” continues Mary Ellen. “At dusk, the birds lay down and go to sleep. So we load them before dusk. And the birds are all calm. We walk towards them with boards to corral them other than the turkeys who follow Ariana everywhere. Megan and I just stand in the back to make sure they don’t go away and they all follow her. Any changes are going to be stressful, but we try to minimize that because with adrenalin, it takes eighteen hours to get it out of the system so you will end up with tougher meat.”

Megan being a “bird person” isn’t an understatement either (she learned about birds primarily from working at The Bird Shop in Edmonton). They have ten parrots, in addition to the fowl kept outside as pets (turkeys, guineas, ducks, geese, chickens and peafowl), two dogs and three cats. Having grown up in a virtually pet-free house, it was a nice change to be surrounded by animal companions.

Too cute parrot

Yukon looking fully satisfied after his dip in the pond

We also talked about the increased distribution role Greens, Eggs and Ham has recently adopted. Because of her marketing skills, Mary Ellen has often promoted other small producers to potential buyers. This year, however, they have a formal contract to source and deliver local products – everything from cucumbers and tomatoes to Wagyu beef, alpaca and ostrich – for ZINC.

“It’s very important that the producers have their names on their products,” says Mary Ellen. “Other than the alpaca will go through us because I work with the Alpaca Association, the elk will come from Amber Lane Game Farm, Wagyu from Jordan Valley Farm, rabbit from Sean Anam Farm. I never want to be the kind of distributor who avoids using producers’ names because I want a local, vibrant, sustainable system and I want them to get a pat on the back for their product.”

This van gets things done

Dinner that night was a delicious turkey stew, made entirely with products from the farm – turkey drummettes, carrots and potatoes – coated in a flavourful jus. It’s a recipe I will definitely have to try myself.

Turkey stew

There was also dessert – a sinfully rich chocolate cake from Eco Cafe in Pigeon Lake (an upside to Mary Ellen’s distribution role is picking things up to bring back home).

Chocolate cake

Thanks again to Mary Ellen and Andreas for having us over!

Greens, Eggs and Ham are at the City Market every Saturday until Thanksgiving from 9am – 3pm, but their products can also be found at Careit Urban Deli and Ocean Odyssey Inland (10027 167 Street).

CommuniTEA Infusion Launch

One of the ideas that really resonated with me from Jim Diers’ talk back in November was the concept of “bumping places” – locations in the neighbourhood where residents could casually meet others – cafes, grocery stores, parks and the like. Some areas are undoubtedly more populated with such communal spaces than others, and Central McDougall, my adopted neighbourhood during the day, is not one of them.

So when Diers gave the example that night of a mobile meeting place, an ingenious van-turned-portable teahouse (complete with lawn chairs and fold-out overhead shade), I thought that was the perfect bridge to a more permanent solution. Even better, Diers shared that such a van was coming to the streets of Edmonton, courtesy of the Edmonton Learning Community.

A non-profit that works with people with developmental disabilities, the ELC had spearheaded the initiative with the support of the City, who helped purchase the vehicle. With some repairs and a colourful wrapped exterior, the CommuniTEA Infusion van was born (this slideshow provides more background on the project, from shots of the van pre-transformation to other shortlisted designs).

CommuniTea Infusion

The CommuniTEA Infusion van will be working closely with the Office of Great Neighbourhoods this summer in order to set up in communities targeted for revitalization – including Central McDougall.

Mack and I met up at Churchill Square this afternoon to attend the launch.

Councillor Sohi addresses the crowd

Serving up tea

Yes, that’s an iPod dock in the tea bar!

Mack enjoying his tea

Steeps Urban Teahouse sponsored the tea for this event, but the ELC is looking for more donations to support continued operations of the van.

Bravo to the Edmonton Learning Community and the City for this wonderful initiative. I’m already looking forward to the day the van stops by my neighbourhood!

Food Notes for May 17, 2010

It’s that time of year again – nope, I’m not talking about seeding your garden or scheduling long weekend plans – but I am talking about season finales! (Or in some cases, series finales.) The writers of House really know how to pull on my heartstrings (and churn out one of the best episodes I’ve seen in a while), and I almost can’t bear to watch 24 next week, with the anticipated showdown between my two favourite characters. Onto this week’s photo-filled food notes:

  • Madison’s Grill has scheduled another Farmers’ Market Dinner for June 25, 2010. I attended one back in January, and though I love hearty, cold weather food, I can imagine the kitchen will be having a field day with warm weather produce. Call 780-423-3600 for tickets.
  • I finally purchased my Indulgence tickets last week over the phone (through the Junior League of Edmonton, 780-433-9739). They are also available online, but for an additional $2 surcharge.
  • Looks like there is a new craft brewer in town: Yellowhead Brewery will be situated in the space formerly occupied by Maverick on 105 Street and 102 Avenue.
  • Something to look forward to: a downtown location of Transcend. In related news, Transcend coffee is now being served in place of Intellegensia at Three Bananas.
  • Liane shared some news this week: changes afoot at Koutouki (looks like the only restaurant that remains unaltered is the 124 Street location), and a new organic and gluten-free shop to open on May 21 in the north side called Dutch Treats and Farm Fresh Meats (12769 50 Street).
  • Lots of great stuff in this week’s Vue Weekly – including the 2010 Golden Forks Awards (I thought it interesting that readers voted for local restaurants with multiple locations like Doan’s and Sicilian Pasta Kitchen in the “chain” category) and Jason Foster and Mel Priestly’s pairings of beer and wine with exotic meats.
  • See also published the results of their 15th annual Best of Edmonton poll (I know I’m out of touch when I don’t recognize 2/3 names in the “Sexiest Edmonton female” category).
  • The Journal reviewed Salvatores, an overhauled Sorrentino’s outpost in Sherwood Park this weekend. It’s quite the cheeky write-up.
  • You may remember that the series Endless Feast filmed an episode in Edmonton last year, featuring an idyllic dinner served at the Peas on Earth farm. Gail Hall isn’t yet sure if the episode will air in Canada yet, but in the meantime, check out this clip.
  • Great news – it looks like Toby Young may be gone from the next Top Chef judging panel (with Eric Riepert and Gail Simmons alternating in his place).
  • Speaking of coffee, Catfish Coffee opened up their retail location next to Culina Highlands (6507 112 Avenue) on April 4. They have limited operating hours (Tuesday to Thursday), but I’d be interested in checking it out sometime!

 

Catfish Coffee

 

Terrace Cafe

  • Mack told me about a new cafe that opened on 97 Street, so we wandered over to check it out. Only open for breakfast and lunch, from the outside anyway, Early Bird Cafe (10221 97 Street, 780-420-6826) looks like a cute little diner. See their menu here, here and here.

Early Bird Cafe

  • We ended that evening with a lovely latte from Credo. I wonder how long it would take me to learn how to pour such beautiful designs?

 

Vanilla latte from Credo

  • Next door to Credo, LIT Wine Bar has had an “opening soon” sign tacked up since August 2009 – I didn’t think they’d ever open. On Saturday, they took advantage of the large City Centre Market crowds with an open house, complete with cannoli and orange juice. We didn’t get any really great shots of the interior, but it’s swank, with lots of leather, a floor-to-ceiling wine display, and a second level of seating. They open this Thursday, May 20.

Cannoli from LIT (they were a bit too hard)

  • Lastly, coming soon – Far East Sandwiches, on the corner of 109 Street and 103 Avenue. It’s a bright and open loft space, so I’m interesting to see what they do with the place.

Far East Sandwiches

  • While at Southgate last week, I checked out the Canstruction sculptures at Centre Court – all made entirely out of canned goods.

    •  

    A CAN-oe man, by Williams Engineering

    • To accompany my shopping, I indulged in my first iced brewed Starbucks coffee of the year. Here’s to many more!

     

    Iced brewed coffee

    Music and More: Blue Chair Cafe

    I’m always happy when I can finally scratch a restaurant off my “to try” list, particularly when the restaurant has been on the register for a number of years.

    I had initially added Blue Chair Cafe onto said list when I started to hear great things about their vibrant, packed-to-the-rafters, story slam events. The Journal recently reported that the relationship has since ended, but the restaurant has now started hosting their own version of the off-the-cuff narrative competition (on the second Wednesday of every month).

    So while it would be logical to think my visit there two weeks ago would have been to attend a story slam, instead, a group of us from my workplace went to support a musically-inclined colleague of ours. He plays in a band called Le Fuzz, who bill themselves as “Alberta world beat fusion”. The quintet are super-talented, vivacious and upbeat, and every time I see them perform, I am amazed at how seamlessly the band is able to transition from one style of music to another. Moreover, they are known for songs sung in languages other than English – including Spanish, Swahili and Mandarin.

    A long history as a performance venue (I couldn’t get a clear shot of Le Fuzz…they don’t stand still!)

    A coworker commented that the layout of the Blue Chair reminded her of the now-departed Sidetrack Café, with the stage set back into a corner, and a mezzanine level ensuring that even those seated far back had a clear view of the band. With a packed schedule that includes a different performer almost every night, the Blue Chair has to be one of the busiest live music venues in the city.

    Interior

    I loved the bold wall colours, eclectic art, and the globe light fixtures that had been hung at different heights. Combined, the décor made for a very cool but comfortable feel.

    A cozy two-top

    I had also heard positive reviews about the food, though, as stated on the menu (on the flip side of a record sleeve!), the restaurant is hampered by a small kitchen. I ended up ordering my second choice (they had already run out of turkey chilli), the pad thai ($16).

    Cool menu

    As it was an absolutely full house, I was expecting a long wait, but was pleasantly surprised. While it was not the most authentic pad thai I’ve had (saucy, mild, and made with vermicelli instead of a flat rice noodle – similar to The King & I’s version), I enjoyed it, and liked the rich peanut and coconut flavours in the sauce. There were also a fair bit of vegetables (julienned carrots, blanched green beans, bean sprouts) included, which added great crunch and colour to the dish.

    Pad Thai

    To enjoy their last song and encore, a few of us found our way to some empty space and made a dance floor (okay, I joined them only for moral support). The wait staff who had to make their way around our cluster were definitely a patient bunch!

    In all, Blue Chair Cafe provided a great space to unwind after a long work week. I hope to be back in the future to finally witness a story slam!

    Blue Chair Cafe
    9624 – 76 Avenue
    (780) 989 – 2861
    Monday – Sunday 10am-10pm

    City Market Opening Day 2010

    I’ve been waiting for this day since the City Market wrapped up for the season last Thanksgiving. Though we did make more of an effort this year to visit the Old Strathcona Farmers’ Market on a regular basis in the winter months, there really is nothing like this open air market in Edmonton’s warehouse district. The fact that we can walk to the City Market doesn’t hurt either.

    Market Day!

    We arrived just before nine, to cool air and still-quiet streets. We never typically arrive at the market this early, but since we missed the opening ceremonies last year, we thought it better to be early than late.

    The calm before the storm

    We started our day off with a quick stroll around the grounds, then headed off to Blue Plate Diner for some much-needed coffee and breakfast. We decided to take advantage of the beautiful weather (and opportunity to people watch) by sitting out on the patio – it was one of the best choices we made all day.

    Mack twitters on the patio

    Pancake breakfast

    Mack’s breakfast special – an Italian scramble

    We eventually left our comfortable spot and joined the crowds for the opening ceremony. Mayor Mandel, alongside Councillors Ben Henderson, Jane Batty, MLA Laurie Blakeman, MP Laurie Hawn, and oddly, Bob Black of the Katz Group, rang the opening bells (apparently, Black was there to explore the possibility of the EAD housing the market in the winter months…but I’m not convinced). Jon Hall, who is on the City Market Board of Directors, touchingly donated his mother’s antique brass bell to the market, which will now serve as the “official” bell.

    Ring, ring!

    It was great to see so many people out – an estimated 13,000 by 12:30pm. With the addition of the Southgate and Century Park stations, I am hoping that the foot traffic will grow considerably this year. In terms of the market itself, they have had a 30% increase in vendors in 2010, with over 145 vendors expected in 2010. Although Sparrow’s Nest will not have a booth this year, most vendors from last year are returning, and span the gauntlet of goods from produce, prepared goods, and crafts. Undoubtedly, fresh vegetables are a big draw, and we had to laugh at the twenty-deep line in front of the Edgar Farms booth – early bird patrons were absolutely chomping at the bit for the few bunches of asparagus available this week.

    In the storm

    In addition to my old favourites (Greens, Eggs and Ham, Irvings Farm Fresh, Doef’s Greenhouses, Kuhlmann’s, Sundog Organics among them), it was great to see already-established businesses utilizing the market as a means of heightening exposure to their products, such as d’Lish and Sweet Lollapalooza.

    Though it’s not an exhaustive feature of all products available at the market, these photos highlight just some of the fresh, tasty and creative things to be found at the City Market.

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    The Market is also hoping to draw crowds to the streets with monthly cultural festivals, particularly fun for families. A Chinese celebration kicked off this feature, with lion and dragon dances bringing appropriate energy to an exciting morning. You can see the schedule of upcoming festivals dates here, with the next one being a Portuguese Festival on June 12.

    Lion dance

    Great crowd on hand for the festivities

    We ended our market trip with a brief visit to deVine’s. In honour of the Chinese Festival, they were sampling wines and beers from China. Though I’ve heard some negative things about Chinese wines in particular (especially because it is such a new industry in that country), I was pleasantly surprised with the Noble Dragon wine. And priced at just $13.95, we had to pick up a bottle to share with my parents.

    Chinese beer and wine

    It really was a great morning – I hope to do it all again next weekend!

    Check out Mack’s Flickr set here, a post from Chris at Eating is the Hard Part here, a post and video clip of the market from Raffaella here, and Valerie (A Canadian Foodie)’s post here.

    Capital City Clean Up: Fifteen to Clean Challenge

    I first heard about the Fifteen to Clean Challenge (part of the City’s annual Capital City Clean Up campaign) at a board meeting a few months ago, and immediately thought it was a great idea. I’ve found fifteen minutes to be the perfect “amount” of time – the length of a coffee break, it’s a non-committal duration that can draw my busy colleagues out to wellness, appreciation, or in this case, community spirit activities at work.

    I’ve posted about our little corner of the world before – the Avenue of Nations, Central McDougall, the North Edge – whatever you want to call it, it’s not the best neighbourhood, particularly after dark. Litter might be the least of the area’s problems, but I thought a group clean-up activity would be a great way to not only get my coworkers outside as a group for fresh air, but also show the community that we are stewards of the neighbourhood.

    We bought gloves and bags, and announced the date a week in advance. Enter Murphy’s Law: the rain came. And then the snow. Pushed back three weeks, I didn’t think Mother Nature would cooperate. Finally, on Thursday, blessed with sunshine and a cooling breeze, we had our date with garbage.

    Due to appointments, paperwork, and the sporadic nature of our work in general, I wasn’t sure how many of my colleagues would end up participating in the challenge, but I am happy to say that over twenty people showed up to pitch in. It’s cliché, but many hands do make light work, and you could see the difference instantly.

    Doing their part

    Teamwork!

    Who said cleaning can’t be fun?

    Govind and I take out the trash

    In all, between twenty of us, we “raised” 300 minutes of cleaning time. Thanks to my coworkers for helping out and my office for being supportive of the idea. I hope we can make this a regular affair!