We just announced the second What the Truck?! event – it will be taking place at one of our favourite places in Edmonton, Victoria Promenade, on August 3 from 5-9pm. Check out the line-up of trucks, and stay tuned for menus this week. Hope to see you there! On to this week’s food notes:

• Speaking of food trucks, Edmonton’s newest truck is set to hit the streets this week: welcome to Little Village Food Truck, run by the family behind Koutouki.
• Mercer Tavern finally opened on the weekend. It’s apparently been packed since – anyone been yet?
• Love bacon? Mark your calendars for Lux’s annual Bacon Day Dinner on September 1, 2012.
• Sorry to have missed this pop-up dinner on the High Level Streetcar, offered by Staff Meal Edmonton.
• Liane reports that the space vacated by Bueno Gelato on 123 Street and 102 Avenue will be filled by Cookie Love.
• Caffe Sorrentino joins the burgeoning list of locally-owned options at the Edmonton International Airport, which includes Wok Box and Coney Island Candy.
• The latest Strip Search feature in the Edmonton Journal highlights “Little Lebanon”.
• Looking for an easier way to browse your favourite local food blogs? Mack’s got a solution for you over at ShareEdmonton!
• Vote for your favourite community garden at Sustainable Food Edmonton!
• The Globe shone a spotlight on the city’s growing farmers’ market scene last week.
• Falafel 101 (10159 101 Street) looks about ready to open.

Falafel 101

• Frozen yogurt really is taking Edmonton by storm: Tutti Frutti is set to launch another location in Southgate Mall. Watch for the grand opening on July 29, 2012, when free frozen yogurt will be handed out from noon-3pm.

Tutti Frutti

• Mack and I had a great time at the “bring your own patio” event at Tres Carnales on Friday. Perhaps we took the name a little too literally, as we were the only ones who walked our entire patio set over, but we were thankful for the table – it’d be a challenge to eat tacos on one’s lap! The event organizers are planning for another event in the fall, when the report is brought back to Council.

Makeshift patio (the fish tacos were delish!)

• It was too hot to cook last week, but I had to use the stove to make one of my favourite warm weather meals: Yankee fish cakes. I served it atop Lactuca greens and Gull Valley tomatoes.

Yankee fish cake salad

Have a good week!

This heat wave is a bit unreal! It makes me appreciate the air conditioning at my office much more, heh. Hope you’re finding ways to stay cool! On to this week’s food notes:

• One way to stay cool for free: 7-11 is handing out free slurpees on July 11, 2012 to the first 1,000 guests.
• Get ready frozen yogurt fans: Pinkberry opens in Edmonton at West Edmonton Mall on July 12, 2012. Free samples will be handed out from 6-9pm.
• Gleaned from the July/August 2012 issue of The Tomato: Chef Andrew Fung (most recently of the Blackhawk Golf Course, and 2010 Gold Medal Plate winner) is opening up a restaurant in MacTaggert. Also, Fat Franks will be opening up a diner-style restaurant.
• The Italian Centre is also planning a restaurant to open in the fall called Massimo’s Kitchen, named after Teresa Spinelli’s son.
• Capital Ex has introduced a number of new dishes at this year’s festival, including cricket pizza, flavoured mini doughnuts and a grilled cheese burger – where the bun of a typical burger is replaced by two grilled cheese sandwiches.
• Liane wrote a great story about a trend of local restaurants serving up staff dinners.
• Vue asks, “How does Edmonton stack up as a beer town?” It sounds like we have a long way to go, but it’s interesting to find out that two of Calgary’s successful beer destinations are heading to our fair city.
• Addie’s article on the Next Gen blog about a few restaurants trying to keep it local is worth a read.
• I love lists – Jay Palter, “newish in Edmonton”, made a list of his favourite dishes in the city.
• I was sad to have missed the supertaster sessions offered by Sobeys, but at least I was able to read about the opportunity on Kelly’s blog.
• The community some want to create in Mundare sounds a bit like a local food utopia. One mile diet, anyone?
• Jonathan Waxman, who competed alongside Hubert Keller in our favourite season of Top Chef Masters, was another contestant we were cheering for. Great interview with him in Eater this week discussing seasonality and trendiness.
• Sad news in the food world today: Chef Anthony Sedlak of Food Network Canada’s The Main, was found dead on Friday in his Vancouver home.
• Food competition shows are going mainstream: Anthony Bourdain and Nigella Lawson are hosting The Taste to air on ABC this fall.
• Mack and I were happy to have been asked to participate in Next Gen’s food-focused DIYalogue last week at The Black Dog. It’s always fun to talk food, and there was no shortage of enthusiasm and love for the subject in the room! I mentioned that day that one thing missing in Edmonton’s scene is southern comfort food, but neglected to also say that we could also do with what Grub Street calls “Asian hipster cuisine”.

DIYalogue

Representing What the Truck?!

F

ilistix served up some fine Moroccan tagine

• It’s been a while since we’ve been in the food court at West Edmonton Mall, since I had no idea we had a Freshii in the city. Mack and I tried them for the first time on the weekend. The Asian noodle bowl ($7.29) had a good variety of texture, and more chicken that I was expecting, while Mack thought his chicken club wrap ($8.29) tasted light and fresh.

Asian noodle bowl

Chicken club wrap

• I can’t tell you how much we were craving Route 99’s poutine last week.

Poutine!

• What’s better in +30 degree heat than a hot bowl of pho? I met Mack at Pho Tau Bay today for just that at lunch, and good thing too – they will be closed from July 16 – August 15, 2012. Get there while you can!

Pho

• The Green and Gold Community Garden opens for the season on July 3, 2012. Hours are 7-8:30pm on Tuesdays and 11am-1pm on Saturdays.
• I love the idea of a “pork crawl” – the Passion for Pork folks have organized their first ever Swine and Dine dinner taking place on July 3, 2012 that will introduce eaters to three different interpretations of pork.
• On the heels of Latitude 53’s summer patio parties, the Art Gallery of Alberta has started their own series of al fresco parties – Tuesdays on the Terrace begins on July 3, and runs through to the end of August. From 4-8pm, a complimentary art-inspired cocktail from Zinc will be included with the price of admission.
• Blue Plate Diner is hosting another Farm to Fork dinner on July 8, 2012.
• Jerry Aulenbach, Edmonton’s bacon man about town, is hosting his annual #yeghelp function on July 11, 2012 at Lux. Expect a great meal finished off by a sunset ride on the High Level Bridge streetcar.
• Mark your calendars – Live Local’s Fork Fest runs July 15-19 and 22-26, 2012.
• Did you know there is a Co-op wine store in Edmonton?
• Two food truck reads: one an overview of the current scene in Vue, and a guide in the July issue of Avenue Edmonton.
• Loved the reasoning in this Serious Eats write-up in favour of street eats.
• Mack and I took in an Eskimos game on Saturday with his Dad. It was such a beautiful evening for a football game, and all the better that the Esks won!

Touchdown!

• To celebrate Canada Day, Mack and I trekked down to Mill Woods on the bus for their fireworks show. It’s been a few years since I’ve been down there, and I have missed it – I think it’s a bit more laid-back and community-oriented than the fireworks show downtown. Hope you had a good one too!

Mack was impressed by the crowds and music

Fireworks!

I can’t believe how fast the summer is just flying by – it’s July next week! Hope you’re out enjoying the outdoors when you can! On to this week’s food notes:

• I’m looking forward to participating in next week’s DIYalogue Talks Food, a “cultural mix-and-mingle” with people involved in the local food scene. Join us at the Blackdog Freehouse (10425 Whyte Avenue) on July 4, 2012 from 6:30-8:30pm! Filistix will be providing the catering. Get your tickets here.
• Savour Strathcona County is a good reason as any to head over to Sherwood Park to sample food prepared by local restaurants. Advance tickets to the July 15, 2012 event are available now.
• Drift has won their appeal, and can remain in their spot on 108 Street. In other food truck-related news, Councillor Don Iveson filed an inquiry with administration to look further into what the City can do to further refine the street vending policy. Expect a report in the fall.
• The You Gotta Eat Here segment on Tres Carnales was amazing! I think it showcased so well what Chef Edgar and the restaurant is doing for Mexican cuisine in Edmonton. It sounds like the show will be back for more filming in Edmonton this summer, with The Dish on tap.
• You can now satisfy your sweet tooth before leaving for your destination: Mack sent me a link about Coney Island Candy’s new shop in the Departures wing of the Edmonton International Airport. It’s great to see local businesses infiltrating EIA!
• Although I’m in favour of reducing the amount of bottled water served at restaurants, for a city like Edmonton with such a top notch water filtration system, I think the investment into Q Water by Hardware Grill isn’t necessary. Maybe it isn’t fair to expect Hardware Grill to be the cheerleaders behind our local water system, but wouldn’t it be ideal if one of Edmonton’s most respected restaurants took a stand and told the world that yes, our tap water is as good if not better than the bottled stuff?
• Metro axed its weekly review column, with the last write-up by Christopher Thrall appearing this week.
• Both Valerie and Liane filed great reports about this year’s Okanagan Food and Wine Writers Workshop, put on by Jennifer Cockrall-King. Looks like some great eats!
• Valerie announced that she and several others are putting together a Cheesepalooza Project, a 9 to 10 month Artisan Cheesemaking adventure where they will use Mary Karlin’s Artisan Cheese Making at Home as a guide and all make the same cheeses to a specific schedule. If this is something you’re interested in, leave a comment on Valerie’s post.
• On Friday, Mack and I joined a good crowd on Manasc Issac’s new rooftop patio for an after work drink. We need more of these in Edmonton!

On the roof at Manasc Issac

• Mack and I headed to Calgary this weekend for a bit of a birthday getaway. We were able to hit up quite a few restaurants I had on my list, but they deserve a separate post. A few bits and bobs:

Loved this map of the Calgary Farmers’ Market – I recognize that this is a permanent, year-round market, but it definitely helps customers navigate through the aisles. Could the City Market consider printing copies of their maps housed online?

At the Kingsland Farmers’ Market, we spotted the parked (and sadly, closed) Naaco Truck. We loved its bright colouring, and even more, the edible garden on its roof!

We also had to make an obligatory Phil & Sebastian’s stop – this time at the Chinook Centre location (love that they’re doing an outdoor pop-up cafe this summer).

• Join us for our last Truck Stop in Old Strathcona this Wednesday, June 27, from 5-8pm in McIntyre Park. Check out the menu here.

Nomad’s pulled pork sandwich from the June 20 Truck Stop

• The River Cree Casino is hosting an Heirloom Tomato Festival dinner on June 20.
• MKT is now open, and judging by the patio we passed last Friday, it looks like it will be a popular destination for the Whyte Avenue crowds.
• Liv reviewed one of the newest cafes in Edmonton – Fresh Cafe.
• Twyla captured her less-than-shining experience at the south Edmonton branch of Nello’s.
• This was the first time in four years that Mack and I missed Indulgence. After attending several pricey food events in a row, we thought it was time to take a breather. That said, I’m glad Marlow Moo recapped it so I could see what I missed!
• Marianne wrote about high tea at the Devonian Gardens. Looks like a lovely way to spend a summer afternoon.
• Liane profiled Evoolution, the newest specialty food shop on 104 Street selling olive oils and vinegars, in the Journal last week.
• Also in the Journal, TZiN got a great review. I can imagine it will be even more packed now!
• Maybe I called the trend way too early, but it seems like now that Pinkberry is forthcoming, frozen yogurt has finally hit the big time in Edmonton.
• Congratulations to Serge Belair of the Shaw Conference Centre who won the Culinary Federation’s chef-of-the-year challenge in Halifax!
• Have you heard about the Yeg Food Mob? They are similar to the Cash Mob that has sprung up in Edmonton in recent months – citizens who gather to support local small businesses and “mob” them on an organized date – but with a food focus. Their last mob visited Prairie Mill Bakery.
• In case you missed it, here’s a handy list of farmers’ markets from the Journal (though a few, like Highlands, are missing).
• It’s always neat to read about the history of designs that have become so iconic, such as the Kikkoman soy sauce bottle.
• Caffe Sorrentino seems to be making its presence known all over the city. We noticed one way in Eaux Claire recently, and it is also coming soon to the ground floor of the Mayfair.

Caffe Sorrentino

• I noticed Noodle Noodle closed some time ago, and the sign in that window indicated that the owners would be opening up another establishment on the south side. It didn’t occur to me that that location was the former Kelsey’s on Calgary Trail. Expect Tasty Noodle (3203 Calgary Trail) to serve up all day dim sum, among other things.

Tasty Noodle

• Mack and I stopped inside Cally’s Tea on Sunday. The shop looks lovely, and the bite of scone we had was scrumptious. I’ll be back on another occasion for high tea! For more about Cally’s new location, check out this great write up at City and Dale.

Cally’s Tea

• Though we didn’t stay, after picking up some things at Blush Lane, we checked out the new Da Capo in the Roots building. Loved all of the windows, and how they made the most of the narrow space.

Da Capo

• At Save-On the other day, I just noticed that The Little Potato Company was also making ready-to-heat potato packages. Given convenience foods are so popular, I’d be interested in seeing if people gravitate towards local brands.

Zingers

• Mack and I participated in one of the last City Wide Food and Agriculture Strategy stakeholder consultations tonight. There was some great discussion, but it will be interesting to see what will ultimately make it into the draft document due out in September. On the same note, if you haven’t yet filled out the public opinion survey, you have until June 23 to do so.

CWFAS Workbook

• My agency held its Annual General Meeting at the Expo Centre for a second year in a row. I remember the food being all right last year, but this time, it was less than ideal. The chicken was beyond dry, and there was not enough sauce to make it enjoyable.

The usual chicken and vegetables

• To celebrate my Dad’s birthday on the weekend, my family had dinner at Golden Rice Bowl. It’s been a while since any of us had been there, but it didn’t disappoint. I will always have a soft spot for peaches and shrimp!

Peaches and shrimp

Thanks to everyone who braved the overcast conditions on Saturday and came out to What the Truck?! We were thankful that the rain held out for a solid three hours. If you didn’t make it out, consider coming to Truck Stop this Wednesday at McIntyre Park. On to this week’s food notes:

• Help Cally’s Teas (10151 Whyte Avenue) celebrate their grand reopening on June 16 from 10am-6pm. There will be tea samples, specials and treats.
• Press’d is holding a Customer Appreciation Day on June 16 from 11am-3pm at its Courtyard location (11214 Jasper Ave). All sandwiches are just $1! Also announced last week – Press’d is expanding with a location at 34 Avenue and Gateway Boulevard and another in Sherwood Park.
• Amber’s Brewery is looking for a new home – they will need to relocate as of July 1, 2012, because their rent in their current location will be increasing threefold.
• Good luck to Chris Delaney (of the forthcoming food truck Big City Sandwich), in being shortlisted to compete in Ace Bakery’s Canada-wide sandwich competition with his tequila lime chicken sandwich.
• Transcend’s Josh Hockin is in Vienna this week to compete in the World Barista Championships. Bring home the gold, Josh!
• There was a great piece in the Journal about Chef Nate Box – can you imagine if every neighbourhood in the city had their version of Elm Cafe?
• Make sure you check out Liane’s story about some of the up-and-coming eateries on Alberta Avenue.
• You still have some time to contribute your ideas to the City of Edmonton’s Food and Agriculture policy by filling out their online survey. The deadline is June 23, 2012.
• If St. Albert-based designer’s cutting boards getting picked up by Williams Sonoma isn’t a great local success, I don’t know what is.
• It looks like Toronto favourite Smoke’s Poutinerie will be setting up shop in downtown Edmonton some time soon!
• I still haven’t made it out to a Calgary food trucks event yet, but until then, I love being able to read about them! Eat Your City wrote about the city’s recent Eat Real YYC event.
• In case you missed it: Tourism Richmond announced the winner of their food blogger competition last week. Congratulations to Lindsay Anderson!
• In Montreal? Why not try Daniel Boulud’s new Maison Boulud? It’ll be interesting to see if DB will succeed in this market, given the failures in Vancouver.
• I know I’m a little behind, because I haven’t walked that way down Jasper in a while, but I noticed that De Dutch put up their signage.

De Dutch

• On Wednesday, the first ever outdoor Pecha Kucha in Edmonton was held at the Hawrelak Amphitheatre. It was the perfect opportunity to marry food trucks with the event, and I think it was a great success! It looked like others enjoyed the chance to have dinner outdoors as well.

The Act serves up a hungry crowd (Molly’s Eats was there too)

My pulled pork sandwich from The Act

• A great bonus from Pecha Kucha was a coupon good for a free pizza at any Famoso location in the city. On the tail end of some errands on Friday, we decided to have dinner at the South Edmonton Common branch. It was our first time there (we usually stick to the Oliver location), and I have to say, it wasn’t that impressive. The room seemed poorly laid out, and though we only had to wait about twenty minutes, had we known there were bar seats available, we would have snagged them. Their wine glass lampshades were in need of an obvious dusting as well. In the end, the pizza was okay, although it did have a little too much burnt residue on the crust for my liking. I guess we’ll be sticking with our neighbourhood location in the future.

Margherita

Sweet BBQ chicken

I haven’t been following the second season of Top Chef Canada as closely as I did the first, but I did have a favourite going into the finale, and yes, I am happy with the outcome! I loved the wildcard twist, which added some great suspense into the finale. Onto this week’s food notes!

• It’s always great news when we hear about a new food truck in the works. It looks like the family behind Koutouki is starting on their very own truck!
• Vue Weekly interviewed Chef Corey McGuire, the new Executive Chef at TZiN.
• Thanks to Mona who recapped the first Around the World in 80 Bites tour in the Central McDougall neighbourhood. I hope to attend the next one!
• It’s a great time for the start of the Journal’s Market Find series – it will be profiling a different arts and craft vendor every week. The first one casts a spotlight on Garden Squirrel.
• I’m glad Jacquie wrote about her experience at the Food in the City Conference. Sounds like there was some good discussion in the smaller groups.
• Kevin’s latest webisode is all about bees!
• The big news in food media this week was Anthony Bourdain’s announcement that he will be leaving the Travel Channel for CNN.
• As if America isn’t fat enough – how about pop along with your breakfast? Taco Bell is serving up a morning drink that mixes Mountain Dew with orange juice.
• Last Thursday saw more great weather for Truck Stop, and though the lines were long, it looked like people were enjoying themselves. Because of how successful they were, we couldn’t contain them to one month alone – so we’re happy to announce another Truck Stop date! Join us again at McIntyre Park on June 6, from 5-8pm. We moved the day of the week to Wednesday, and shortened the duration by the hour, but other than that, you can expect the same great variety of curbside eats.

Cajun fish sandwich from The Act

Jalapeno mac ‘n’ cheese from The Act

• This morning, Mack and I were happy that both Filistix and The Act could join us at Churchill Square for some Al Fresco coverage on Breakfast Television. Filistix cooked up a few batches of sisig (roasted pork belly marinated in soy, garlic, ginger, chili and lemon), which I think people could smell for miles. I have no doubt this will be one of the most popular dishes on Saturday. Hope to see you at What the Truck?! on June 9!

Ariel talks to Bridget about Filistix

Sisig

It finally feels like summer’s here! Crazy how in just a week, the trees just burst into full bloom. I hope you’re able to get outside and enjoy it! On to this week’s food notes:

• The next Live Local dinner is taking place at The Dish on June 3. If it’s anything like the meal Blue Plate Diner hosted in March, I think it will be a great success!
• Greens, Eggs and Ham is hosting a farm tour and a reading by Foodshed author Dee Hobsbawn-Smith on June 11 at 6pm. RSVP to Mary Ellen if you’re interested – and yes, there will be food samples!
• I had no idea until Jeff’s comment that Highlands would be hosting a farmers’ market on Thursdays from 5-9pm starting on June 7. That makes four markets on Thursday nights – Salisbury, Alberta Avenue, and the 124 Street Grand Market, which just debuted last week. How many is too many? Do we have enough demand, customers, and producers to shop and staff four markets?
• Century Hospitality has kicked up a bit of controversy with the naming of their latest restaurant. MKT (short for “beer market”), may be carving out its own identity, featuring a gastropub menu and a wide selection of beer, but its name being just one letter shy of MRKT is much too similar for some. MKT is set to open in mid-June.
• The chefs who will be competing in this year’s Gold Medal Plates has been announced!
• Liane will be leading a tour of food truck central – Portland – in August. It sounds like it will be a delicious outing!
• Mack wrote a great post about the bylaws pertaining to food trucks in Edmonton – worth a read if you want to know more about what’s behind the Drift and Grandma Lee’s dispute.
• In case you missed the recipes that have been published in Taste Alberta in the last year, not to worry, Company’s Coming has collated them into a cookbook.
• We had the best weather yet at Truck Stop last week. Calm, sunny skies were a welcome change from the overcast, windy conditions we’ve received over the past month. I also finally got to try The Act’s PB & J burger for the first time. The beef was particularly tasty, and the peanut butter actually didn’t overwhelm the burger itself. Check the website for the menus for the final Truck Stop in May.

PB & J Burger

Mack’s halibut burger

• Although I love asparagus (and picked up a bunch from Edgar Farms this weekend), my favourite of the spring vegetables has to be pea shoots. I love how fresh and light they taste, and how versatile they are. Yesterday, we had Greens, Eggs and Ham shoots on homemade pizza, topped with prosciutto, mushrooms, and Gull Valley Tomatoes.

I heart pea shoots

Apologies for being MIA, but there was good reason for it: I was in Toronto visiting my sister for most of last week, then came back to our third Truck Stop on Thursday and Mack’s sister’s wedding on the weekend. Needless to say, I’m still in catch-up mode! So though some of the “news” below is a bit dated, I hope to get back on track this week:

• The annual Al Fresco Block Party is just a few weeks away, but to gear up for it, some of the organizers are offering other opportunities to help raise money for the Zebra Child Protection Centre, the charity of choice this year. On May 23, join several local performers for a musical showcase and party at Yellowhead Brewery, or if wine is more up your alley, a Tour of Italy tasting at DeVine’s on May 31.
• The 124 Street Farmers’ Market will debut on Thursday, May 24.
• Riverbend Gardens is hosting a “plant and play” day on May 27 from 1-4pm. There will be great specials on plants, wagon rides, bouncy castle, make and take planters and free ice cream! Consider checking out one of the most beautiful farms within city limits, and learning more about the Community Supported Agriculture project they would like to start.
• It looks like Cococo Chocolatiers will be open at the end of May or beginning of June.
• Fantasia Noodle House, who had to leave their long-time location, has been reborn further up the avenue – you can now find them at 11765 Jasper Avenue.
• 124 Street is really developing fast – with a second location of The Bothy, and now Red Ox, joining Duchess, Cafe Tiramisu and The Clever Rabbit, it is becoming a bit of a restaurant district.
• In case you missed it (because I did the first time), Twyla reviewed Crepe Symphony, a new-ish restaurant next to Tres Carnales on Rice Howard Way.
• It’s easy to forget that Earls started in Edmonton (especially when in places like Toronto, the line-ups at their relatively new Earls and Joey’s locations are insane), but they’ll be spending $5 million to renovate the very first Earls Tin Palace to help restore it to its former glory. It will close in June and reopen in October.
• Vue Weekly published the results of their annual Golden Fork Awards last week. Mack and I were surprised (and honoured!) to see that What the Truck?! was the second runner up in the category of Best Food Festival or Event – thanks to everyone who voted for WTT!
• Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock, you may have read about some of the controversy between Drift and Grandma Lees. At the very least, we’re happy that mobile food vendors are now even further in public consciousness, and that this is highlighting the need for firm policy.
• Chef Andrew Parker is combining cooking classes with a good cause – all meals prepared by students at the Ronald McDonald House will stay on to feed the families at the residence.
• The past two Truck Stops have been really successful, with lines sometimes starting even before the trucks have arrived. One of these days, the weather will be perfect! This Thursday, we’re looking forward to two of Edmonton’s newest food trucks to join us – Battista’s Calzones and The Next Act! Hope to see you there!

Pancake soup from Nomad

My regular from Fat Franks

• Mack and I were glad that we were able to be a part of Kim and Shane’s wedding this weekend. It was a beautiful ceremony – congratulations, and we wish you both a lifetime of happiness!

Kim and Shane’s first dance