Century Hospitality Group’s Top Chef: Final Four

Century Hospitality Group has been doing some really exciting things as of late. You’ve probably read about their smashing success of bringing the alley burger to Edmonton, and heard about their weekly farmers’ market dinners. But perhaps most innovative is their internal Top Chef tournament.

In order to help their young chefs grow, they’ve provided them with a creative outlet to flex their kitchen muscles and tackle cooking challenges. And really, what better outlet is there than an in-house competition modeled after the wildly successful reality programs Top Chef and Iron Chef?

It all started on May 7, 2011 with sixteen eager cheftestants. March-madness style, the competitors were reduced to eight after head-to-head battles. On May 14, those eight were cut down to four. This past Saturday saw those four remaining chefs fight for the two spots in the final. At stake: $1000 in prizes, and the title of “Century Hospitality Group Top Chef.”

Mack and I had been fortunate enough to be asked to be a part of the judging roster, who would be called upon to help narrow the field. Though Mack was remiss about the lost opportunity to judge the scallop challenge due to a schedule conflict, it did mean that we were able to sit on the panel together.

Mack is ready to judge!

On Saturday morning, we headed to Lux to join our fellow panellists, Che Bechard of Baseline Wines and Spirits, Chef Andrew Fung of Blackhawk Golf Club, and resident judge, CHG Corporate Chef Paul Shufelt. Liv Vors of Vue Weekly was on hand as well to chronicle the competition.

The judges (I suppose we really shouldn’t be smiling…)

The set-up reminded me of the Top Chef judges table – long and narrow, with several lengths between the table and where the cheftestants would stand and receive their feedback. If there was a camera to do one of those trademarked shots that sweep behind the judges table, I’m sure Lux could have easily been mistaken for a studio.

“Please pack your knives and go”

The chefs would have 90 minutes to complete 4 plates each of an entree and a dessert. They would have access to the kitchen’s pantry, but would have to use two secret ingredients in their dishes – bison striploin and chocolate. In addition, a bonus ingredient of rhubarb, picked up at the farmers’ market that morning, would also have to be incorporated somehow.

Shirley Fortez plates her entrees

Andrew, Paul, Mack and myself could award each chef with up to 20 points each, judging the taste (10 points), presentation (5 points) and creativity/use of the secret ingredient (5 points). Che would also be awarding 20 points, but specifically on the wine pairing with the entree.

Judging form

While the chefs were preparing their dishes, we occasionally popped into the kitchen to check out the action, but it was clear they were feeling the pressure, so we thought it best to let them work.

Ben Weir hard at work

John Dykeman has his eyes on the prize

Unlike the previous two rounds of competition, where chefs would receive their scores and feedback immediately after their presentation, because we would be choosing the finalists, Paul had decided that no comments would be shared until all of the dishes had been judged.

Shirley Fortez

Baseball-cut striploin accompanied with garlic roasted potato mash and a roasted tomato with truffle oil

Shirley’s sweet and sour sauce was one of my favourite tastes that day – there was something so aggressive and bold about it, and in a competition where a memorable dish can win it all, it was a great start. The steak was on the rare side, however, and the potatoes were too rustic and unevenly mashed for my preference.

Rhubarb lemon flan with blackberry rhubarb compote and chocolate sauce

Shirley’s dessert was also the most beautiful plate of the day – great composition and colour. We were told later that Shirley had spent a lot of time practicing the flan recipe, something that definitely paid off. There was consensus, however, that the secret ingredient of chocolate had thrown her off – the chocolate sauce ended up overwhelming the subtleness of the flan, instead of complementing it.

Cedric Boeglin

Mini bison striploin with a rhubarb beurre blanc

Mack and I disagreed about the cut of Cedric’s steak – I thought it was on the thin size, which resulted in overcooking in parts – but Mack thought it had been perfectly done. The rhubarb in the sauce also gave it almost a sour quality that I didn’t enjoy. However, the vegetables had been cooked well.

Chocolate crepe suzette with orange sauce

Cedric very smartly incorporated the chocolate into the batter of his crepe, which turned out nicely both in texture and flavour. He was perhaps too heavy-handed with the sauce though, and the citrus took over. Paul and Andrew also pointed out that a true crepe suzette is stewed in the sauce, and cautioned the cheftestants on their use of terminology.

John Dykeman

Bison rubbed with juniper berries, served with bernaise sauce and mashed potatoes with chives

Neither Mack or I could taste the rub on the steak, which was a bit of a disappointment. The steak also hadn’t been rested properly, which left an unappealing pool on our plates. Both of us agreed though – if the competition could have been won by the potatoes alone, John would have taken it with his creamy, smooth, and well seasoned mashed potatoes.

Rhubarb cheese cake with pastry cream and milk chocolate

John admitted that his original plan was to make a trio of balls, but because of time constraints, this was the dessert he ended up with it. It was pretty clear to everyone that John was capable of much more – none of us could understand why he separated the cheese cake from the accompaniments. As well, the dessert was much too heavy. It would have benefitted from a fruit compote or some other lightening agent.

Ben Weir

Bison shepherd’s pie with a rhubarb compote and salad with rhubarb vinaigrette

It was as if Ben knew grinding the meat would win him some extra points: his shepherd’s pie was the first non-steak entree we had seen. There could have been some improvements – a more consistent mince of meat, a sauce of some kind to bind the filling, but as a whole, I enjoyed it. I also really liked the rhubarb twist on the savoury dish – it was unexpected, and tied the pie to the vinaigrette drizzled on the side salad (which I nearly finished…I was a bit starved for vegetables by that point). Che also liked Ben’s wine pairing of the Liberty School Cabernet Sauvignon best of the group.

Strawberry, rhubarb and cream cheese crepe with chocolate ganache and rhubarb compote

Mack absolutely tore through this dessert, and complimented Ben on his restraint when it came to the sweetness of the dish. I didn’t mind the crepes, though a serving about half the size would have been better for me – the cream cheese filling was undoubtedly rich. Similar to the use of crepe suzette, Paul also called Ben out for calling the rhubarb puree a “compote.”

Scores tallied, Paul let the chefs know that only 8 points separated the top from the bottom. It was a tough call, given the finalists would be tackling the task of not only cooking for a panel of judges, but also a room of sixty guests.

Drumroll please…

Shirley Fortez and Ben Weir will be continuing on to the finals, but congrats to all four chefs for a hard-fought battle! To help them in the finals, each of them were able to choose one of the non-chef judges, as well as one of the competitors that they had beat along the way. Shirley picked Che and Cedric to be her sous chefs, while Ben drafted Valerie and John.

Mack and I had a blast participating on the judging panel; thanks again to Tony for the invitation! We are very much looking forward to the finals on Saturday, because we have no doubt Shirley and Ben will be putting their best dishes forward. Good luck to both of you!

Follow along on the CHG Top Chef blog here.

Food Notes for May 23, 2011

While I enjoy volunteering for a variety of causes, what excites me most are opportunities to get involved in the community where I live. So I’m really excited for the coming year, as I’ve joined the board for the Downtown Edmonton Community League! Looking forward to getting to know my fellow board members and the work involved. On to this week’s food notes:

May 28, 2011 sees the launch of the City’s Food and Agricultural Policy Project. Learn more by attending the event at William McIntyre Park from 11am-2pm.
While you’re in the neighbourhood, make sure to check out the East Whyte Block Party, also on May 28 from 11am – 4pm. 100st from 81 Ave to 82 Ave will be closed to traffic and filled with events and vendors. Expect Fat Franks and Eva Sweet to feed the crowd, and yoga, art demos, and a scavenger hunt.
Mark you calendars for a special grand opening street party on June 4, 2011: Chai Pani, along with Lola Apparel, are celebrating their grand openings by hosting a street party on 105 Street, just south of Whyte. Festivities will include music, a fashion show, and plenty of traditional Masala Chai and authentic East Indian snack foods for sale from Chai Pani.
To meet the Father’s Day demand, Sweet Lollapalooza will be offering three chocolate making classes in the next few weeks. On the menu: Robbie Burns Scotch pave, an Anejo Tequila bonbon and a Lambic Belgian Beer truffle.
Foodie McPoon reviewed the relatively new restaurant Soda Jerks: “the restaurant conveyed a confusing concept of retro-modern, without any retro feeling at all, except for the sodas…with nothing special to the menu and without a clear concept to focus on, I’m not sure how long this restaurant will last.”
The Southwest Edmonton Farmers’ Market kicked off its season on May 18. Check out a gallery of photos here. For those interested, it will run every Wednesday, rain or shine, from 5:30-8pm at the Lillian Osbourne High School parking lot (2019 Leger Road).
I don’t normally post job openings here, but the Arbour Restaurant at the Rutherford House is one of the city’s treasures, and they’re looking for a new head chef.
If you need to see a second burst of spring (the first being the green outside your window), check out Valerie’s post on her greening garden. Just beautiful!
Two editions in, and new Bon Appétit Editor-in-Chief Adam Rapoport is already stirring the pot – June’s issue will, for the first time, feature a celebrity on its cover, instead of a chef or a dish. But will it matter, asks Grub Street? “If Gourmet was ‘the magazine of good living,’ then Bon Appétit has become the magazine of fashionable eating.”
It’s always great when supermarkets start stocking local products – and I know it isn’t easy, and those that are making an effort should be recognized. But sometimes, I wish the signage marking it as “local” was more prominent and cohesive. I know Eat Local First had a good thing going (and are probably too busy focusing on their home delivery service at the moment), but I think much more can (and should) be done to help consumers easily identify local product alternatives.

The Irvings display at the Italian Centre

It was just gorgeous last week, and one of my teams at work took advantage of it by hosting a barbecue at lunch!

Dogs and patties on the barbie

“Top Chef Canada”: Not Quite There Yet

It’s always an exciting moment for Canada when we get our own version of an American reality television show. Isn’t it supposed to connote that we’ve made it into the big leagues, and that we too, in the Great White North, have our share of marketable talent too?

Some shows, like Canada’s Next Top Model, haven’t done so well, for a variety of reasons – lack of equivalent star power, poor production quality, less of a potential audience base to start with. But others, like So You Think You Can Dance Canada, have exceeded expectations. When it was announced last May that a Top Chef Canada was in the works though, I really had high hopes. Top Chef is one of my favourite programs – between the challenges, judges and cheftestant drama, I find I am drawn in, every time.

The casting seemed to deliberately draw the 16 contestants from nearly every province in Canada, likely an effort to snag viewers from across the country. Although I was disappointed no Edmonton-based chefs were chosen to compete, the two Calgary-based chefs would at least be representing Alberta (and having eaten at Connie DeSousa’s restaurant, Charcut, it would have been difficult not to root for her). Besides my home-province favourites, Dale MacKay appeared to be another strong contender, just based on his past experience and mentors.

To me then, the biggest question mark for the show’s success would boil down to the host and the judges. Without a doubt, Top Chef’s duo of Padma Lakshmi and Tom Collichio are a force to be reckoned with, and are a big part of why the show works. They are charismatic, come off (to me) as genuine, and the majority of their criticism is constructive. I recognize that editing has definitely helped them hone their television personas, but I was hoping the same magic would touch upon the Canadian equivalents.

Not so. Head judge Mark McEwan appears languid, unenthusiastic, and has barely cracked a smile since the opening episode. But at least I can understand why he was chosen – he already had a relationship with Food Network. The other resident judge, Shereen Arazm, might have seen success in the restaurant industry, but hasn’t brought anything to the table; her comments on the show are usually along the lines of “yummy” and “bad”. Perhaps she has been getting the short end of the stick from the show’s editors, but based on her blog entries, I don’t think so. Host Thea Andrews seemed at first out of place, as if she should be hosting an entertainment news show instead, but in the last few weeks, has been growing on me.

I suppose my frustration with the judges also stems from the fact that some of the guest judges they’ve had seem to be a better fit for this type of program – for example, Susur Lee, one of Canada’s other premiere chefs, has a personality that translates on screen, unlike McEwan. Or Laura Calder, James Beard Award Winning host of French Food at Home, was great to watch in the last episode – articulate and candid, I almost wish she had been the premier guest judge, as she was overshadowed by the superstar power of Daniel Boulud.

In terms of production quality, I have to say it was quite unfortunate for Top Chef Canada to air immediately after Top Chef: All Stars. Although the kitchen fixtures and space look nearly identical to the American filming space, the challenges have been mostly lacklustre so far (open ended cheese and pork challenges? cooking with vodka?) Last week’s French challenge was the most entertaining to watch, because of its difficulty and the element of team work that it promoted. Moreover, in several of the quickfire challenges, not all of the dishes are shown – how else is the audience supposed to get to know the style and skill of the chefs? I realize there is still more than half the season to go, so I really hope that these aspects improve as the show progresses.

So, while Top Chef Canada isn’t quite the appointment television that its American counterpart is for me (yet), I’m optimistic that with the room to develop, the show can inch closer to the standard set by Top Chef.

Sherene has been conducting exit interviews with all of the Top Chef Canada contestants; read them here.

City Market Opening Day 2011

I suppose the title of this post is not quite accurate, given the City Market has been running indoors at City Hall since mid-March, but I know many people (myself included) feel the market just isn’t quite the same unless it’s out on the street.

Back with a vengeance

Mack and I made were on hand for the opening celebrations at 9am (and really had no excuses given the market is right out our front door!). Edmonton Eskimo Aaron Fiacconi was on hand as the bell ringer to kick things off.

Aaron Fiacconi signals the opening of the market

Things were a bit overcast, but save for a sprinkle or two, the skies held up. I’m sure that was part of the reason why the crowds were massive today – both Mack and I remarked that neither of us had seen the aisles quite so full before. It’ll be interesting to see what the final attendance estimate will be, given last year’s equally jubilant start.

Packed street

So many people!

We did find there was a lack music early on at the market, though. One of our favourites, Capital Sax, came out to play around 11 – hopefully, they’re out a little earlier next week.

Capital Sax

There was also an impromptu dance performance!

There did seem to be an inordinate number of dogs today, with one tweeter remarking, “Unsure if downtown #yeg market is actually farmers mrkt or dog show.” Though it did mean watching where you walked to some extent, I’m a sucker for puppies, especially when they’re as cute as Dave and Kyla’s dog!

Hi Max!

The organizers changed up layout, meaning we had to do some hunting for our usual vendors. We had to think some of the adjustments had to do with the fact that the construction on the north end of 104 Street, just before 103 Avenue, still hasn’t been resolved. Given the fenced-off area has been pretty dormant in recent weeks, it’s puzzling why the City wouldn’t have ensured the project’s completion before this date. It impacted at least one vendor, who was positioned away from the foot traffic, adjacent to the fence – hopefully the vendor will be relocated next week.

Construction at the City Market

Other than that, we had a great time perusing the stalls, visiting with vendors, running into friends, and of course, picking up groceries for the week!

The always smiling Patty Milligan (aka Lola Canola) – she’ll only be at the Market for the next few weeks, so load up on honey now!

Alan of Irvings Farm Fresh is always a good sport about pictures

We also had to start our day off with waffles from Eva Sweet

Marianne shows off her fabulous shopping basket that attaches to the back of her bike!

Cameron Hancock and Christy Menzies of Dreamin’ Green Farm are new City Market vendors. Located near Pigeon Lake, they describe themselves as the “home of the happy chicken”, and provide chemical-free pasture for their birds to roam around in. Their pens are moved on a regular basis, and at night, they are shut into a mobile pen for protection from predators. Look for them the next time you’re at the market!

Christy and Cameron of Dreamin’ Green Farm

Transcend Coffee was also out on the street selling their beans, and handing out free samples of coffee. Although their downtown cafe is literally just around the corner, it’s handy to be able to pick up beans along the way!

Transcend Coffee

Although cellared root vegetables made up much of the produce offerings today, I was still surprised at the amount of other vegetables available today, so early in the season.

Tomatoes from Gull Valley Greenhouses

Edgar Farms asparagus (they had about 30 cases today, about half of what they would normally have)

Rhubarb and pea tendrils from Sundog Organics

Gerda of Green Valley Farm helps me pick out some onions

Bedding plants were also out in full force; though we didn’t pick up any decorative flowers for our balcony, we did buy one of those salad bowl starters from Kuhlmann’s that we had been eying up last week (I guess we should have jumped on it last week though; 7 days later resulted in a $5 increase in the price).

Beautiful display at Riverbend Gardens

A sea of hydrangeas from South Cooking Lake Greenhouses

Tomato plants galore from Sundog Organics

It was a great first day at the market – I’m looking forward to next week already. See you there!

Day 6 in San Francisco: Food Truck Harbour

Given the wealth of City Guide tour options available, we had wanted to fit at least one more in – I was hoping the second go-around might erase the disappointment of our Chinatown experience. We ended up choosing the City Scapes and Public Places tour, mostly because the meeting location was only a few blocks away from our hotel.

Thankfully, our guide Paul seemed better informed than our previous escort, but as a whole, the tour still seemed less packed with information than the walks we partook in both New York and DC.

It was really interesting to learn about POPOS, however: privately-owned, public open spaces. It is specified in San Francisco’s building code that the trade-off for the construction of a high-rise building is the creation of some sort of usable public space on the land – whether that is a square, a balcony, or park.

Atop the Crocker Galleria

In the two hours, we toured nearly a dozen of the spaces (there are sixty all together in San Francisco). Some of them, such as the one located on the fifteenth floor of a building, were like little hidden gems, that only those “in the know” would be cognizant of (you can check out a map here).

The gem at 343 Sansome Street

The view

There were others – such as the redwood park (which was my personal favourite of the bunch), that could easily be mistaken to simply be a green space amidst towers.

Redwood Park

Water feature

Life imitates art

Some of the POPOS, such as the greenhouse in Citigroup Centre, featured seating, as well as food service – fantastic for the business crowd at lunch.

The only downside to the open spaces, however, is that the regulations specify that POPOS only need to be accessible during weekday business hours – so anyone wishing to take advantage of them in the evenings or weekends are out of luck (we tried to access Citigroup Centre on a Saturday, but the gates were locked up tight).

During the tour, we had passed by the San Buena Taco Truck parked on the street. Given that it was the first food truck we had stumbled upon in San Francisco, we made sure to remember where it was so we could hit it up for lunch.

San Buena Taco Truck

The line was steady, and given it was made up mostly of the area’s office workers, we knew we had probably made a good choice. The menu included burritos, tacos and tortas, but from the orders made around us, we knew a burrito was the way to go.

Mack hearts burritos

For just $7, each of us received a wrap absolutely packed with chicken (though carnitas and beef were meat options as well). It had been expertly bound – the perfect kind of street food – and with moist, flavourful chicken interspersed with beans, rice and heat to taste – it was without a doubt the best thing we ate in San Francisco.

The only thing I really remember from my previous visit to San Francisco was walking across the Golden Gate Bridge with my family, but it isn’t exactly a pleasant memory. It had been one of those drizzly, blustery days, cold and miserable for any tourist, but particularly for us, given the night before, we had been in the +40 climes of Asia. Fortunately, the weather on the day that Mack and I chose to visit the bridge was perfect, and did much to ensure my future associations with the Golden Gate were positive ones.

Misty, but bright

A quick bus ride got us to the San Francisco side of the bridge. The forty-minute windswept walk across yielded unparalleled views of the city and the activities in the bay.

Mack and the city

Queen of the bridge

The barges just kept on cominng

The traffic on the bridge was also a little unbelievable – the cars did not stop flowing. It was on that day that we christened our version of Punch Buggy – Punch Prius! At some point we had to stop counting because it was getting ridiculous.

The bridge

A reminder

We walked the length back to the San Francisco side, and hopped on a bus that took us closer to the city centre. The line terminated at Fort Mason, where we were directed by the driver to transfer to a different bus. Given it was already the dinner hour, the fact that there was a Safeway at the terminal seemed to be a blessing. We picked up some food and headed to the park for a picnic supper, a relaxing way to refuel and rest our weary feet.

Dinner of champions

Residents were out in full force, enjoying the setting sun as we were. And like so many other parts of the city, it was picturesque without even trying.

The marina

Satisfied, before heading back to the hotel, we thought we should explore the area. Peeking over the hill side drop, we encountered a gaggle of people down below in the Fort Mason parking lot – what was going on?

So many people!

It turned out we had stumbled upon the first Off the Grid, a “roaming mobile food extravaganza.” This was the largest of their weekly events, and sees thirty food trucks gather alongside a full-service bar and music.

Music amongst the madness

That night, the twenty food trucks offered food ranging from cupcakes to empanadas to ramen. But it was challenging to even browse the offerings – the line-ups were massive (and really, too large for the space), with the longest gathering centered around Chairman Bao, a truck offering, among other things, pork belly buns.

Just some of the food trucks

Empanada stand

The line at Chairman Bao

It was really unfortunate that we had already eaten our meal – what better way to sample food trucks than at such an event? We made room for a few things though – a trio of dumplings we purchased for $2 were hand-rolled in the tent, and were very tasty.

Dumplings!

I was also swayed into buying a dulce de leche creme brulee. It was okay, but not worth the $5.

Creme brulee

Though we didn’t eat much, Off the Grid was amazing to see. Everyone there was just so darn excited about food, and that energy was contagious. It’s crazy to imagine that something like that happens on a weekly basis, but in a city like San Francisco, food trucks aren’t a fad, but a core of their food culture. Look for it if you’re travelling to SF!

Off the Grid

We ended our evening back on a bus, ready for a good night’s sleep at the hotel. Gearing up for a Saturday trip to the Ferry Market, we would need it.

The Cooking Chronicles: Meat-ful Recipes

I really like the current trend of “meatless Mondays” – though Mack and I don’t subscribe to a specific day of the week substitution of meat, I think the campaign does help raise awareness of the health and planetary benefits of reducing our collective meat intake.

Of course, our current cooking rotation does include a fair amount of meat. I know a part of it has to do with recipes that appeal to us because they’re what we’re used to, but I’m hoping we’ll continue to expand our vegetarian repertoire. If Ellen can do it, we can too! Anyway, here are a few meat-ful recipes in the meantime!

Potato-topped Lamb Pies

Donna Hay’s potato-topped lamb pies from No Time to Cook is a variation on shepherd’s pie, featuring a scalloped crust instead of a mashed one. I had picked up a package of ground lamb from the Italian Bakery one day, knowing I wouldn’t be able to get to the farmers’ market that weekend (they now sell lamb and veal, among other proteins in their freezer section).

It wasn’t a difficult recipe to pull together, and from it, we were able to make a nine inch pie, and two individual ramekin pies.

Potato-topped lamb pies

Although the potato topping didn’t get as crispy as we would have liked, we were more off-put by how fatty the meat ended up being. I probably should have drained the fat, but I really wasn’t expecting it.

Pie filling

More than anything, Mack was reminded that he again doesn’t really care for lamb. I’m not giving up on lamb though – we’ll just have to find a different recipe to try!

Turkey Meatball Subs

I don’t know why I was so excited to make meatball subs, using Mario Batali’s recipe for turkey meatballs, but I was. We used ground turkey from Greens, Eggs and Ham, and pork sausages and prosciutto from the Italian Centre as proteins.

After assembling the meatballs, we had to let them rest in the fridge for an hour.

During that time, I made a basic tomato sauce.

Then, came browning of the meatballs.

Next, I baked them with some of the sauce and wine.

Lastly came assembly of the sandwiches, topped with provolone, then broiled. This is where we made the mistake – the bread ended up scorched from being placed too close to the element in the oven.

Don’t cry over burnt bread

I will admit to being upset, partly because of my anticipation for the finished product, but also because of the lengthy process involved. We cut off the burnt ends, and while both Mack and I did enjoy the sandwiches, it ultimately didn’t seem worth the effort.

The saving grace was the amount of leftovers we had, which made subsequent meals quick and easy – meatballs served with a side salad, or tossed with pasta and the remaining cups of tomato sauce (which, I should mention, is something I will make again – I loved the texture of the sauce, emboldened with sautéed onions and grated carrots).

Hopefully the vegetarian recipes I’ve bookmarked will go better than these two did!

Food Notes for May 16, 2011

Doesn’t it feel like summer just arrived without a real transition from spring? The trees are struggling to green up to match the sunny skies! Hope you’re out making the most of it too! On to this week’s food notes:

Less than 100 tickets are left for this year’s Indulgence. Get yours soon if you plan on attending!
Make sure you go and pick up an issue of Vue Weekly: it features the recipients of the 2011 Golden Fork Awards (how great is it that Transcend and Credo took best chain coffee shop and best indie?!). There is also a great spread on “Food: A Day in the Life” with snapshots of Bon Ton Bakery, The Wired Cup, MRKT and Hardware Grill.
See Magazine released their Best of Edmonton winners this past week as well. The same issue features a profile on Josh Hockin and Ben Put of Transcend Coffee.
Press’d Sandwiches is expanding: look for their second location at 11214 Jasper Avenue in mid-June.
I’m a little late to the party, but congrats to Edo Japan, which just opened their 10oth store last week. I had no idea they were an Alberta-based company.
Valerie and Liv both wrote about week 1 in the Century Hospitality Group’s Top Chef competition. Mack and I are on deck for judging on Saturday, and looking forward to it!
The next Live Local dinner will take place at Accent European Lounge on May 25, 2011. To keep up to date on all Live Local initiatives, sign up for their newsletter.
You may have read that Culina will be taking over the concession at the Alberta Avenue Farmers’ Market in June, but in case that isn’t soon enough for you, they will also be catering the Royal Bison on May 28-29, 2011.
Sure, you may be familiar with vegetable-based CSAs, but how about fruit-based? Companies like Tree-Mendus Fruit in Michigan are renting out apple trees.
Are cell phones killing bees? The answer is: maybe.
Top Chef Canada was in the news last week for their episode tonight, which saw horse on the menu.
Mack and I attended the Edmonton Public Schools Foundation fundraising breakfast on Tuesday morning, partly as an excuse to visit McNally (our old high school) again. At the breakfast, we learned more about the Foundation’s fundraising efforts towards implementing full-day kindergarten programs in 14 distressed communities. The event was so well done, and got all the little details right, down to the noisemakers and bubble blowers at the table, to remind us all of our inner child.

Our table

Look for another Greek take out spot just down from Opa on Whyte and 103 Street, called Greek to Go.

Greek to Go

I met up with May at the Whyte Ave location of Daawat for dinner last week. It was pretty good, and for both of us, it was our first encounter with their sweet coconut naan. It was interesting, but we prefer our savoury breads as a dinner accompaniment!

Daawat

The weather was so gorgeous, the City Market at City Hall moved outdoors on Saturday! Let’s hope the weather holds up when the market returns to 104 Street on May 21 – see you there!

It was windy, but sunny!

Kuhlmann’s had fiddlehead ferns

Kuhlmann’s also had convenient salad bowls, already sprouting and good to go!

Eva Sweet has a brand new trailer! It was parked at Churchill Square this afternoon, but they’ve been trying out some other locations downtown, including Rice Howard Way and 104 Street during the week. Follow them on Twitter to keep up to date on where you can get your waffle fix!

Eva Sweet

Volunteering for Homeless Connect 6

I’ve very much started looking forward to Homeless Connect, which happens twice a year, in May and October. Similar to any annual event or festival where seasoned volunteers have the opportunity to reunite again after a period of time, Homeless Connect has become a place for Mack and I to catch up with familiar faces, in addition, of course, to giving back (you can read Mack’s recap here).

Today saw the sixth incarnation of the one-stop shop event geared towards Edmonton’s homeless population. I commented to Mack that although nothing is perfect, Homeless Connect is a great example of an event that really does continuously improve. Organizers weren’t sure if the number of guests would be affected by the gorgeous weather, but at the day’s end, it turned out they needn’t have worried.

Got boots?

For the first time, Mack and I were assigned to a team other than registration – we were to be guides. Once guests were finished filling out the intake form, we would be waved down to escort guests to their service priorities.

The guides get oriented

The system, comparable to an airport taxi queue, was very well organized – guides waited patiently in line for their chance to guide a guest, instead of the free-for-all that it supposedly has been in the past. There were a large number of guides – possibly too many – as it meant all guides had to wait a while before being paired up with a guest, but it did allow volunteers to take breaks without worrying that it would impact the team.

Taxi guides

It was a nice change for me, and definitely meant that I was able to explore the available services firsthand with the guests. As well, it became obvious that some services were better prepared than others (for example, the hairdressers only started implementing a number system until part way through, which led to some frustration). Most guests just wanted to get to point B, but a few didn’t mind the company while they familiarized themselves with the lay of the land.

Hairdressing area

In the past few Homeless Connect events, the line would typically start to dwindle around noon. Today, there was no such decline. And because old habits die hard, I seized an empty table and finished up my day with the registration team.

The registration crush

They had added a new question regarding specific identification needs to the form, and also (finally!) separated the categories of “refugee” and “refugee claimant”. Other than that, the form was very similar to the previous version. My only suggestion is to somehow streamline the set-up so that all registration tables are within the sightline of guests. I was seated at a trio of tables angled in such a way that we were all but forgotten, or worse, couldn’t be seen by the volunteer directing guests to empty registration seats. All this while the line did not wane.

Lunch time!

At the end of the day, 1409 was the preliminary guest count, only slightly less than the number that had accessed Homeless Connect six months prior. Bravo to Homeward Trust, the Shaw Conference Centre for hosting, and to all of the other service agencies for another successful event. See you in October!

Pedestrian-friendly Snack: Crepeworks

When group discount site Good News burst onto the scene back in January, their initial deal couldn’t be beat. Crepeworks had sponsored an introductory offer that would allow shoppers to snag one of the crepes (retail value $5-8) for just $1. And best of all, in keeping with the Good News policy of donating at least some of the funds to a local charity, all of the money collected would actually go towards the Edmonton Food Bank. Talk about win-win.

Unfortunately, Good News announced their withdrawal from Edmonton a short time after (one would imagine operating with the current landscape of multiple deal sites would be a very competitive one), but coupons purchased would still be honoured.

After the Jane’s Walk on Saturday, I ducked into Crepeworks for a break, hungry after the tour and a trip through the Old Strathcona Farmers’ Market.

Though Crepeworks has been in Edmonton since 2002 with an outlet inside West Edmonton Mall, this was my first experience with them. The same carnival-esque, plastic crepe display graces this location as well, and for whatever reason, it’s hard not to like the whimsy of it. It reminded me very much of the “food” I cooked up as a child in those pint-sized play kitchens.

Display

The benefit, of course, is that customers know exactly what they are getting, down to the plastic drizzle of sauce. Based on the display, I opted for a chicken Caesar crepe.

Made to order

My crepe was made and assembled to order, the employee skilfully using a flat spatula to artfully fold the crepe so it fit perfectly inside a paper cone. In this way, Crepeworks is an especially great addition for Whyte, which can now add crepes to its portfolio of portable foods including pizza, hot dogs and ice cream, all meant to be consumed on the street.

Portable crepe

The crepe, containing chicken, romaine, Caesar salad dressing, parmesan and a dusting of “bacon” bits, was actually not bad. The crepe itself had a slightly chewy texture, and was fairly neutral in taste – I could see how it would work equally well with sweet and savoury flavours.

Chicken Caesar crepe

If not for the coupon though, I’m not sure I would have found value in the crepe. At nearly $7, I would expect it to fill the void of a meal, instead of just a snack, as I was hungry a few hours later. On future trips, I’d much rather indulge in a dessert crepe, preferably outside, while walking down Whyte.

Crepeworks
10352 82 Avenue
(780) 484-7975
Monday-Thursday 10am-9pm, Friday-Saturday 10am-11pm, Sunday 11am-7pm

2011 Jane’s Walk in Old Strathcona

The name Jane Jacobs is virtually synonymous with pedestrianism and vibrant communities. Even after her death, she continues to inspire new generations with her philosophy about what cities could be. One such way is through Jane’s Walks, tours done annually the first weekend of every May that gather like-minded and curious individuals together in order to explore neighbourhoods on foot:

Jane’s Walk honours the legacy and ideas of urban activist and writer Jane Jacobs who championed the interests of local residents and pedestrians over a car-centered approach to planning. Jane’s Walk often takes Jacobs’ ideas to communities unfamiliar with her ideas, in order to advance local engagement with contemporary urban planning practices. The walks helps knit people together into a strong and resourceful community, instilling belonging and encouraging civic leadership.

I’m a bit of a walking tour junkie when travelling, but love to discover new facets of Edmonton this way as well. I remember being regretful about missing the 2010 Jane’s Walk, so was sure to make a note of it when the 2011 date was announced. So on Saturday morning, I joined a group of about two dozen folks at the Queen Alexandra Community Hall for a walk through Old Strathcona.

Photo op!

Interestingly enough, although the tour was officially led by Karen Tabor of the Old Strathcona Foundation and Shirley Lowe of the Old Strathcona Business Association, there were a handful of City of Edmonton employees, including a retired city planner and a staff of Responsible Hospitality Edmonton that took part in the tour and would occasionally pipe up to share their expertise.

Though I recognize that it is naive to think that one could conduct a tour of such a historic community without referencing its past, I didn’t expect it to end up as one of the major focuses. I have to say I was hoping for much more of what was brought up at the start of the walk – the small but important details that contribute to walkability, such as well-maintained sidewalks, traffic calming, and the aesthetically pleasing and safety enhancing benefits of tree-lined streets.

Traffic calming – narrowing the street to reduce car travel speeds

Trees help separate the road from the sidewalk

A few historic features of the neighbourhood were highlighted that I found interesting. The Bard Residence (10544 – 84 Avenue) still has its rear carriage house intact, though when it was originally built, it also had a 180 degree turntable installed to make backing out with a horse and buggy easier. Also, I had to chuckle when the guide told us that following the amalgamation of Strathcona with Edmonton, the former Strathcona City Hall was turned into a juvenile detention centre.

Bard Residence

Shirley talked about some of the developments that help contribute to the area’s vibrant nature. For example, the Strathcona Public Library will be again putting on an “outdoor reading room” with movable tables and chairs and wifi in McIntyre Park. But instead of offering it during the day, they will be concentrating their efforts on early evenings and weekends. Look for it in July.

Strathcona Public Library and McIntyre Park

Shirley also mentioned that the small green space just north of what used to be the Iron Horse is slated for a $350,000 redevelopment. It will not only see the introduction of more plants and shrubs, but in recognition of the park’s location as the former railway hub, it will be designed to look like two train wheels from above.

The park won’t look like this for long

While I enjoyed finally being able to participate in a Jane’s Walk, I have to admit that I didn’t feel I learned enough to warrant the two and a half hours I spent with the group. It was mentioned that the annual tour will trace a different path every year – if that is the case, I wouldn’t mind joining the group again, but would hope for more attention to be paid to aspects of walkability.

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