I didn’t think I’d get swept up in Royal Wedding fever, but I should have known otherwise. Will you be up early to watch the ceremony on Friday too? On to this week’s food notes:

• Tickets for Indulgence 2011, to be held on June 13 will be on sale May 2. The organizers are extending the event a half hour, which will be sure to help attendees hit every station if they so choose. Be sure to pick up tickets soon; they are sure to go fast! 
• Kerstin’s Chocolates is partnering with Alley Kat Brewery for a special tasting on May 26, 2011, which will see chocolates paired with beer.
• Mack and I were thrilled to be asked to act as judges for Century Hospitality Group’s second annual Top Chef tournament. Our bio pages are here and here.
• Liane posted a write-up about Prairie Bistro, the restaurant at the new Enjoy Centre, run by Julianne Mimande.
• I heard some great things about Slow Food’s annual Northern Food Night, so I was happy to be able to read about it on Twyla’s blog.
• For those dim sum newbies: a dim sum dictionary.
• There really is a second life for almost everything: lobster shells are being turned into biodegradable golf balls.
• A piece in the NYT about the insatiable appetite for spring ramps (a traditionally foraged food), got me thinking about other “wild” products – will we ever reach a point here where the demand ravages the supply?
• I saw these too-cute cake pops at Starbucks last week. But they are easy to recreate at home too, or at least, the cheater versions are, heh.

Starbucks cake pops

• Mack and I met up with Thom on the weekend for some gelato at Famoso. Maria had told me that they had a peanut butter and jam flavour – talk about unique! I couldn’t really taste the Saskatoon berries, but the creaminess of the peanut butter was tasty enough!

Thom and Mack

• I can’t tell you how excited I was to see Blue Plate Diner’s patio go in this week – bring on the al fresco weather!

Blue Plate Diner

My sister Amanda moved to Toronto last week! I know we’ll still talk lots (and she may be the reason why I finally get a smart phone), but I’m going to miss her! On to this week’s food notes:

• You can vote for See Magazine’s annual Best of Edmonton poll now until April 28, 2011 (Mack’s blog is one of the options under “Best Local Blog!”).
• Kerstin’s Chocolates sent me the following tidbit: this Easter, Kerstin’s Chocolates is going to give one lucky person a free 1-year membership to our new Chocophilia Choc-o-the-Month Club (worth $600!). Customers who make a purchase at the register or online will be entered for a change to win! Enter before April 23rd, and then find out who wins on April 25th.
• Check out Live Local for information on some great upcoming events, including the second in their series of Live Local dinners (this one at Sabor Divino on April 28), high tea at Hotel Macdonald to celebrate the marriage of William and Kate, and a local chefs series at Everything Cheese in May.
• Liane mentioned this week that Prairie Bistro, the eatery at the Enjoy Centre, was set to open today.
• Also opening today is Chai Pani (8205-105th Street), a chai tea bar that will be serving pastries from around the world. It’s always great to have another coffee shop option on Whyte!
• Congratulations to Jean Pare for thirty years of Company’s Coming success!
• Mack and I attended a special meeting of the City Market tonight, called for members to vote on whether or not the Board should proceed with considering the Mercer Warehouse as a viable year-round option. The vote was a resounding no: 69 against and only 3 for. The Board has now been directed to consider other possibilities, such as continuing at City Hall for the time being.
• Urban Diner has a great round up post of all of the Vancouver food carts.
• I think this seems even cooler than the recent trend of pop-up restaurants – underground street food markets.
• Based on the name of the show, I really thought this was an April Fool’s Day prank, except that I think Top Chef’s Carla Hall would be great as a host: ABC is set to launch a daytime talk show about food called The Chew.
• I had a lunch meeting today at Ninh Kieu, and had their pho again for the first time in a while. The serving of meat was very generous, and as meatballs go, really quite tasty!

Ninh Kieu

• There’s nothing like winding down the afternoon with a beautiful vanilla latte from Credo.

Credo

As much as I’m not a fan of rainy days, we really need it to wash away all of the accumulated dirt and sand. So bring on the rain! On to this week’s food notes:

• Voting for Vue Weekly’s annual Golden Fork Awards is now on! You can vote until May 1, 2011 for a chance to win $500 in restaurant gift certificates.
• Cathy posted about the impending closure of the current location of Cally’s Teas on April 30. On the bright side – it isn’t the end of Cally’s, but their new location is yet to be determined.
• See reviewed Pampa this week – though service wasn’t quite up to par, it seems the management did their best to make up for it.
• Vue reviewed Cafe de Ville’s second location: different feel, but equally good.
• If you haven’t yet seen Eat Local First’s new website, check it out! I love that you can easily buy gift certificates online now.
• Sherene continued her series of Q & As with the judges of Top Chef Canada (which started airing today) including head judge Chef Mark McEwan and judge Shereen Arazam.
• Hurrah for street food: Vancouver just approved 19 more food carts.
• Mack snapped a photo of a forthcoming salad bar chain location called The Chopped Leaf in Commerce Place.

The Chopped Leaf

• Kathryn and I were able to pop by Battista’s Calzones for lunch last week before a meeting nearby. I am happy to say the meatball calzone was still every bit as delicious as I remembered.

Mama Mia calzone

• Before our second supper of alley burgers, Amanda, Felicia and I had dinner at Niche (which was reviewed in the Journal this week). It was packed, with many parties turned away, so reservations are a must. The full house didn’t cause service to slip up though (our server was fantastic), and our food arrived promptly. Amanda enjoyed her duck confit, and Felicia the dish of beef cheeks and pasta. I decided to try the braised pork and lentil soup and the bison short ribs. The earthy soup hit the spot, with a hearty texture befitting of a cool, spring evening. The short ribs were good, but in terms of meat satisfaction, I would likely end up ordering the beef cheeks again next time. The three of us shared the salted caramel brownie, and I am happy to say it was much better than the first one I had a few months back. It was warm, with flakes of salt evident underneath the whipped cream. Comfortable but refined, Niche will make a regular out of you!

Confit of Brome Lake duck with mashed potatoes and lemon thyme gravy

Braised Spring Creek Ranch beef cheeks in a wild mushroom cream and egg noodles

Braised pork and lentil soup

Bison short ribs on white cheddar crostini

Salted caramel brownie

With the sisters!

I love that it is again warm enough to open up our windows. There is something so comforting about being able to hear the downtown soundscape from our condo. On to this week’s food notes:

• The Alley Burger comes to Edmonton: Liane posted that Century Hospitality Group will indeed start the back alley tradition here – starting this Friday.
• Chris reviewed the new restaurant Nomiya last week. Looks like a great place to share food!
• See Magazine reviewed Bistro India, the newest restaurant serving south Indian cuisine in the city.
• Cathy paid a visit to the relocated Japanese Village that, in her words, is now “nearer Red Deer.” Heh.
• Avenue Edmonton interviewed the city’s brisket superstar, Rand Petersen (aka “Bubba” of Bubba’s BBQ and Smoke House) for their April 2011 issue (I will link to it when it goes online). I have to say I’m a bit disappointed that he won’t be moving around much, or at least to a location where it is a tad more transit accessible.
• Castledowns Farmers’ Market celebrates their grand opening on April 6, from 4-8pm (via Liane).
• On the heels of Top Chef All Stars (loved who won, by the way), comes the first season of Top Chef Canada, which starts on April 11. To get you through the week – check out Sherene’s  interview with host Thea Andrews.
• Canned tomatoes and beans are a great weekday shortcut for me, but the more I read about the prevalence of BPA in the plastic liners, the more I think we should be eliminating canned foods from our pantry.
• The WSJ had an interesting piece about how small businesses are having to be shrewd in order to keep from losing money when offering online coupon deals.
• I couldn’t help but think of Ellen and Jill when I read about NY’s newest “build your own sushi” joint (can you say Doritos sushi?). Finally, sushi I’d be interested in! Heh.
• How cute are these retro lunch boxes from Old Navy?

I’m a pepper!

• While on the LRT on the weekend, we spotted an ad for Urban Diner. Loved the idea of stains communicating their range of dishes!

Urban Diner ad

• We were happy to see Pat at the City Market on Saturday. She will be at every other City Hall market. She was also happy to announce that Ocean Odyssey also launched their website!

Pat of Ocean Odyssey Inland

• After the Taste of Bourbon on Wednesday, Mack and I grabbed a bite at Cactus Club. My original intention was to dine on the butternut squash ravioli, but I was swayed by the idea of Korean lettuce wraps ($14.75), while Mack ordered flatbread with tomatoes, feta and a balsamic glaze ($10.50). The pork and pickled vegetables were lovely, but forming the wraps using the iceberg lettuce leaves weren’t quite as elegant or as easy as I had hoped. Still tasty though!

Korean lettuce wraps

Flatbread

• Mack and I headed to L’Azia for the Edmonton Champions after party on Thursday. My wine on an empty stomach ordered the gyoza (a pricey $6.95) instead of the siu mai. They were all right, but we expected them to be filled to the brim with goods, and not the half-empty pockets that they were. Especially for $1.40 a pop.

Gyoza

• The GalaGuru that Mack and I attended on Friday at the AGA featured a burger bar (with choice of bison, beef or turkey patties, with an assortment of condiments and cheeses)! We loved the round, stylish chafing dishes.

Burger Bar!

• Did you know New York Fries is now offering two new poutine varieties? Instead of the traditional gravy, how about a mild butter chicken sauce with your cheese curds? Or, a red wine sauce and angus beef? We tried the former (though the latter reminded us of the upscale poutine we had last year at Madison’s Grill). Though the chicken was a little dry, it actually wasn’t half bad.

Butter chicken poutine

With a little over a month to go, Eat Alberta has sold 50 tickets! There are still 10 available though, so don’t be discouraged. On to this week’s food notes:

• Great to see West Edmonton Mall is continuing with their Taste of Bourbon Street. The second annual sampling is taking place this Wednesday, March 30 from 4-9pm. In addition to eats, you can also look forward to cooking demonstrations.
• Want to learn more about the birds and the bees? Well, urban chicken coops and hives, that is. A presentation on April 21, 2011 at the Stanley Milner Library will be discussing the basics of keeping urban bees and backyard chickens, and how to ensure these options are available in the city. Patty Milligan (Lola Canola) and Laura Klassen Russell and Dr. Lori Hanson (from the River City Chickens Collective) will be presenting.
• Brooke checked out the Beard Papa outlet that opened in recent months at WEM.
• There was a great feature on Kevin Kossowan in the Journal this week, capturing a wild game cooking demonstration he hosted with Taste Tripping.
• In an effort to expand relationships with local producers, Lux will be introducing a series of 3-course “From Market to Table” dinners in May, inspired by ingredients found at the City Market. The Century Hospitality Group as a whole is also going to start sourcing sustainably-fished Ocean Wise seafood.
• Speaking of the Century Hospitality Group, they hosting their own in-house Top Chef-style tournament! Pretty cool.
• This is an interesting thread about the heightened need to accommodate food allergies – how far is too far? On a related note, here’s a great TED Talk from a woman who wanted to pinpoint the cause of an increasing number of food allergies after her youngest child began reacting to food.
• The NYT had a great piece about veggie burgers finally coming into their own.
• So many food shows, so little time: watch for the first of two food-truck related series to debut on Food Network Canada on April 6, called Eat St. The show will highlight some of the best trucks in North America.
• I passed a new Japanese restaurant on 105 Avenue and 101 Street over the weekend. It didn’t appear to be open yet though (but I could be wrong).

Yakitori Grill

• I noticed that Shine Bistro (in the Citadel Theatre complex) is now Vicki’s Gourmet Bistro & Catering. Anyone been yet?

Vicki’s

• La Poutine has their signage up! Their website has been changed to say their opening can be expected for April. I hope so – can’t wait for poutine!

La Poutine

• But until then…Route 99 is still our go-to place for poutine, even if it isn’t authentic. And nothing says welcome back to Edmonton like comfort food (Mack was in London last week).

Mmm…

• It was a rather blustery, grey week in Edmonton. Perfect for a warming bowl of pho!

Pho Tau Bay

I hope everyone isn’t having too much trouble avoiding those puddles! Most of the lake-sized ones seem to have disappeared over the weekend, which I for one am thankful for – I’m pretty sure those two trucks aimed to splash me on my way home last week…on to this week’s food notes:

• Looking for something to do this Saturday? How about helping out a good cause at Twestival? Join other Tweeps at Red Star Pub on March 24 as they raise funds for the Edmonton Public School Foundation.
• Somerville Wine & Cheese is celebrating their grand opening March 24-26, 2011. They will be offering free prosecco until 8pm and live music on each night, and a percentage of the sales will be donated to support arts programs at Westmount and Oliver Schools.
• Sorrentino’s is celebrating two decades of their annual Garlic Festival this year, just around the corner in April. As a thank-you, they are offering $20 gift cards to be used during the Festival.
• The big news this week was about the expansion of Duchess, who will be tripling in size. Not only are they expanding the size of their kitchen space, but they will also be adding a dessert bar!
• A new, authentic Mexcian restaurant on Rice Howard Way called Tres Carnale is taking shape! Great to see they are documenting the work for the public to see in a blog format.
• Brooke wrote about a new Japanese restaurant called Nomiya (3803 Calgary Trail) on the south side.
• Both Karlynn and Leslie had the chance to sample some of the savoury fare at Queen of Tarts last week.
• Kathryn offers us a peek inside the Jacek Chocolate Couture studio.
• Is it still hyper-local if the street chosen is an artery that cuts across the city? Liane posted about a new food blog that chronicles vegetarian eats along 99 Street.
• It was great to read about Barr Estate Winery in Taste Alberta last week.
• I noticed recently that the Good Food Box added a “how local is it” rating (out of 5) under each product. Points are awarded for local ownership, production, and source of ingredients. For example, Clover Valley Honey rate 5/5, beech mushrooms from MoNa rate 3/5, while Two Leaves and a Bud Peppermint Tea rates 0/5 (at that point, one has to wonder why it is in the Good Food Box at all…).
• Canadian Beef is awarding several Canadian food bloggers the opportunity to attend a food blogging conference in DC for free.
• The City Market held its second farmers’ market at City Hall this past Saturday, albeit in the parkade. I’m glad the rest of the markets will be returning to the bright City Room – hope to see you there!

In the grey zone

Anyone else watch The Bachelor finale today? I know I’m probably not supposed to admit it, but the show always sucks me in! On to this week’s food notes:

• Thanks to everyone who blogged about Eat Alberta so far: Andree, Kelley, Andrea, Marianne, LeQuan, Cathy, Leslie, John and and Julie.
• Patience, please: week one impressions from the folks at Transcend Downtown.
• Pampa was reviewed by the Journal and Twyla last week: looks like it’s the place to be for meat lovers!
• Vue published a profile on Callingwood cupcake bakery Sweet Krumblz.
• A few reports back from Downtown Dining Week: FoodieMcPoon on Wildflower Grill, Karlynn on Hardware Grill, and Dave on Moriarty’s, Madison’s Grill and ZINC.
• Restauranteur Vic Mah passed away last week – he will be remembered for his philanthropy, and of course, his food.
• I haven’t been down to the Castledowns Farmers’ Market (Wednesdays, 4-6pm) yet, but it was good to read about it at John Schneider (of Gold Forest Grains)’s blog.
• Company’s Coming e-mailed out an electronic copy of one of their shorter cookbooks – Cookie Jar Classics. Though I know having a laptop on the kitchen counter is en vogue, I always end up printing out recipes so I can make my own notations (e.g. add extra cup of stock, double seasoning, etc.). How about you?
• Jaime sent me a link to a fun game – ever wonder what it would be like to egg your house? Now you can find out, courtesy of the folks at Cadbury.

Thanks to everyone who had kind words about my inclusion on Western Living’s 2011 list of Top 40 Foodies Under 40. I think it’s a great honour, especially to be recognized alongside some of Edmonton’s other representatives on the list: Garner and Giselle Beggs, Nate Box and Daniel Costa. On to this week’s food notes:

• The City Market is back: the winter edition of the market starts this Saturday, March 12, and runs until May 14, 2011 at City Hall. After that, it’s back on 104 Street they go!
• Live Local Alberta will kick off a series of “farm to fork” dinners on March 27, 2011 at Blue Plate Diner. Tickets are $75. See the menu here, which features elk carpaccio and a chevre cheesecake.
• Mark your calendars! Indulgence 2011 will take place on June 13. Tickets will be available after May 2, 2011.
• This would make an interesting night out – Fort Edmonton Park/Hotel Selkirk has organized a Girlfriends’ Getaway, featuring a wine tasting, movie night and horse-drawn carriage ride.
• Another contest of sorts – Original Joe’s has committed to giving away $100,000 in free wings, and all you have to do is “like” them on Facebook.
• Marianne reviewed Niche last week.
• Chris reviewed Mini Mango, opened by the folks behind Sweet Mango.
• Book A Table announced a new restaurant, Soda Jerks (17520 – 100 Avenue). They also said that Twisted Fork has now closed.
• Gail Hall has a blog! Check out her site for tasty recipes.
• See Magazine had a feature on veganism – I have to say I didn’t know that vegans had to be careful about how they combined certain foods in order to get maximum nutrients from their meals.
• I admit I still don’t know enough about the raw milk issue, but raw milk cheese is in the news in the States as the feds look at repealing the 60 day aging period permitted for raw milk cheeses.
• Avenue Calgary also released their annual food issue. For a peek at Calgary’s best restaurants, check out Andree’s blog.
• Toronto will be getting a taste of David Chang! He will be opening two restaurants in 2012.
• This is a pretty neat idea, from the folks behind TED: Coffee Common, where numerous roasters/baristas will be able to share their passion and knowledge of coffee while having the opportunity to network with one another.
• Did you catch the premiere episode of America’s Next Great Restaurant? Mack’s favourite thus far is the grilled cheese sandwich guy.
• Mack did a great job at Pecha Kucha 9, speaking on the topic of digital preservation, but there were also a few food-related talks that night. Dr. Kim Rayne discussed food access relating to the health of populations in our city and Kevin Kossowan talked about his family’s food system – if you missed it, you can watch all PK9 presentations online here.



Kevin at Pecha Kucha

• Mack attended the City Market AGM tonight, where several new members were elected to the board, including Jennifer Berkenbosch of Sundog Organics, Owen Petersen of Prairie Mill and Pat Batten of Ocean Odyssey Inland. In addition to City Hall, the Market Board has been exploring Enterprise Square and the Mercer Warehouse as year-round possibilities.

City Market AGM

• I spotted a new restaurant at 8205105 Street, just north of When Pigs Fly.

Chai Pani

• Annie and I met up at Taipan Café for lunch on Friday (a rare treat for a weekday, but made possible by Teacher’s Convention). I’d never been to Taipan before, so their inexpensively priced meals were a welcome surprise. Annie managed to somehow finish both her duck congee and plate of noodles ($7.35), while I was utterly defeated by my bowl of noodles with shrimp wontons and beef brisket ($7.95).

Duck congee and milk tea

Noodles with shrimp wontons and beef brisket

• Saturday afternoon called for another visit to Queen of Tarts. Their bread case was bursting (this time, everything had labels), as was their lunch case. Look for a new menu item this week – a duck confit and lentil salad. But if that doesn’t strike your fancy, I know what I’ll be looking forward to trying is their chicken banh mi!

Bread case

Mack and I went to Calgary for the weekend for a short getaway. As much as I know that Edmonton is always competing with #yyc, Calgary is a very nice place to visit (even more so when you throw caution to the wind and stay in a fancy hotel). On to this week’s food notes:

• A reminder that Downtown Dining Week starts this week and runs March 4-13, 2011. The menus are now up.
• In addition to Seedy Sunday on March 20, 2011, Just Food Edmonton and Slow Food Edmonton will be hosting an event called Beyond the Supermarket, which will provide consumers with alternative ways to support local producers.
• Avenue Edmonton released their third annual list of the 25 Best Things to Eat. I’m happy to see that Battista’s Calzones made the list. Also in the issue, an interview with the spunky Daniel Costa.
• Pampa, with its all-you-can-eat meat menu, is now open. Has anyone been yet?
• Marianne reviewed the plush Somerville Wine & Cheese. Looks like a welcome addition to the neighbourhood.
• Twyla visited the Five Guys Burgers & Fries location (a U.S.-based chain) – sure to be a bang up success. Mack and I first tried the restaurant in DC.
• City and Dale wrote about a recent brunch experience at Culina Muttart.
• Niche got a great write-up in the Journal last week.
• Liane posted more details about the new Southwest Edmonton Farmers’ Market that is set to open May 19, 2011, to run on Wednesdays from 5-8pm.
• Valerie wrote a wonderful tribute to Michael Schmidt, an advocate for raw milk, recapping his visit to Edmonton last week. Schmidt will be back in Edmonton on March 23.
• For all you Roll up the Rim to Win junkies, Jon Lin has again started posting about his winning (and losing) streak in his annual results tally.
• Food Network announced the competitors for Top Chef Canada (to start airing April 11). It’s unfortunate that no Edmonton chefs made the list (Century Hospitality’s Paul Shufelt was in the running), but there are two Calgary representatives, Rebekah Pearse of Nectar Desserts (now closed) and Connie DeSousa of CharCut.
• Speaking of Calgary, Foodie McPoon wrote about her Calgary quest for macarons.
• Over in Vancouver, it’s the end of an era: db Bistro Moderne and Lumiere are closing its doors.
• Looks like doughnuts are the new cupcake in NY.
• Mack’s Dad enjoys scotch, so we thought there would be no better place to take him for dinner than The Bothy. Martin appreciated the extensive selection of scotch, and was able to introduce Mack to his first taste of scotch (I stuck with wine). The chicken and leek pie was also just as delicious as I remembered.

Mack’s first scotch glass!

Charcuterie and cheese selection, featuring O Sol’ Meatos cardamom salami and Jam Lady condiments

Chicken and leek pie with tomato and bacon soup

• I met up with my family at Urban China for lunch last week. I haven’t been back there for dim sum since my visit early last year, but from what I hear, they’ve really improved (it is now at the top of my parents’ list of dim sum favourites). The har gao and siu mai seemed particularly tasty.

Pork and shrimp dumplings

• Last time, the epic battle featured Mr. Bacon vs. Mr. Tofu, but in another death match with only one winner, who would survive: the corndog or broccoli?

Captain Corndog vs. Baron Von Broccoli (as seen in Livingstone & Cavell Toys in Calgary)

Have a good week!

Nothing like a long weekend to refresh the spirit! Hope you had a good Family Day as well. On to this week’s food notes:

• Twyla blogged about her epic Valentine’s Day dinner at Bistro La Persaud – it looked amazing.
• I love sneaking a peek into people’s kitchens, especially for the day-to-day stuff, so I love Marianne’s recent posts about her “meal planning sagas”. She and Charles are exemplars that you can eat well at home, even without a lot of time to cook!
• Are you intimidated by the prospect of making your own sausages? (I know I am.) Valerie’s photo essay helped somewhat – at the very least, it looks like a lot of fun!
• Culina’s TV Dinners are now available gluten-free.
• Chris Kourouniotis, a designer that brought us the interiors of Hundred and Press’d, among others, was interviewed for the Journal. It was interesting to read about his thoughts behind decor, such as “If you want to sell more liquor than food, say, 60 per cent versus 40 per cent, we tend to darken the colours, provide richer reds and earth tones, with red being the driving flavour, and we have way more millwork and wood in a bar or a heavy liquor space. We really try to warm up the space, because psychology shows that’s what sells the beverages.”
• The Journal also had an article about Cheemo Perogies – they’re an amazing success story (they produce half a billion perogies every year!), but I had no idea they used locally grown flour, canola oil and potatoes in their products.
• Vue Weekly’s issue this week focused on brunch in Edmonton. One standout article – a piece that finds out the brunch favourites of Jacqueline Jacek (of Jacek Chocolates), Michael Harvey (of Cafe Haven) and Nate Box (of Elm Cafe).
• Perhaps it will be Transcend Coffee that will raise tea to a new level in Edmonton?
• Speaking of coffee, Calgary’s John Manzo wrote about a recent experience in Good Earth Cafe that gets one thinking about the quality control in place at successful third wave coffee shops.
• Mack and I stopped by Crave Cupcakes (7929 104 Street) on Saturday. It’s a bright little store, with pretty display pedestals. We tried the Va Va Vanilla (vanilla cake with vanilla buttercream) and the Lemon Lime Twist (lemon cake with lime buttercream). The lemon cake was the standout – moist, light, and subtle.

Interior

Cupcakes

• My office celebrated Black History Month with a potluck last week. It’s hard not to love a place where we not only regularly gather around homemade meals, but the lunch also dissolves into a dance party!

The potluck spread