The New Cheese on the Block: The Cavern

Since we moved into our condo on 104 Street nearly three years ago, we’ve seen some wonderful food-related additions to the block. Dauphine (formerly Queen of Tarts) in 2011 and Pangea (now much better stocked), Evoolution and Kelly’s Pub in 2012. Cask and Barrel, Roast and Mercer Tavern round out the Promenade.

On Tuesday, a cheese shop will join this growing list of establishments. The Cavern, located in the Phillips Lofts, will open its doors to the public on April 9. Mack and I were lucky enough to attend a private opening last Friday for a sneak peek.

The space formerly housed a swim shop, but walking in, not a single trace of its former occupant remained. Instead, we found an elegant space that elevates what can be expected of a subterranean storefront – a neutral but modern colour palette, gorgeous masonry that mimics the original brickwork and sparkling granite countertops.

The Cavern

The Cavern is first and foremost a cheese shop. Proprietor Tricia Bell has over 20 years of hospitality experience, but more recently, studied under the 2011 Cheesemonger of the Year, Steve Jones of The Cheese Bar in Portland, Oregon. It’s obvious that Tricia adores cheese; her enthusiasm was infectious as she described her cheeses having different “personalities” and “behaving differently”.

Cheese case

Tricia stocks a range of cheeses, but focuses on the middle range of cheeses that most people are familiar with. Regarding locally-made products, she currently stocks several varieties from Sylvan Star and The Cheesiry, and is working on bringing in Smokey Valley Goat Cheese as well. It is notable that The Cavern carefully packs cheese in a layer of Formaticum, a patented paper technology made of organic materials that helps to better preserve cheese.

Beyond the cheese counter, however, The Cavern will also offer food service. Without a full kitchen, the menu is limited, but their Cavern-inspired cheese, vegetarian and meat grilled sandwiches (which will feature Sylvan Star cheese) sound delicious. For dinner (after 5pm), they will serve cheese and charcuterie boards alongside wine and beer.

Cheese board

Tricia chose beans from Portland-based Coava Coffee Roasters for her coffee and espresso-based drinks, and will use Jacek chocolate in her mochas. She is also currently experimenting with desserts made with chocolate and cheese – a two ingredients not normally combined.

Coffee and chocolate

We’re already looking forward to visiting The Cavern this week for some nibbles and of course, to stock up on some cheese! Thanks again to Shauna for the invitation, and to Tricia for having us!

The Cavern
2, 10169 104 Street
(780) 455-1336
Monday-Thursday 7am-8pm, Friday and Saturday 7am-11pm, Sunday 10am-5pm

Down Home Comfort: Sloppy Hoggs Roed Hus

Don’t you love killing two birds with one stone? Tonight’s version involved dropping off a cake tier for friends who got married on the weekend at a location that turned out to be just steps away from Sloppy Hogs Roed Hus. So we thought it was our duty to capitalize on its proximity, and finally try out one of the most talked about restaurants as of late.

Sloppy Hoggs Roed Hus

It’s easy to miss Sloppy Hogs, given its relatively non-descript storefront in a strip mall not far from NAIT. But given we piled into two of the last remaining seats at the bar during the dinner rush, its popularity has nothing to do with its location. The interior reminded me of its sibling restaurant, Absolutely Edibles, with its stone work and dark colour palate. The décor as a whole was much more refined than I was expecting for a smokehouse, and featured just a few telltale artifacts, including two small cowbells and a saddle at the bar. We were also seated close enough to the kitchen to see that instead of a typical dinner bell to alert servers that a dish was ready to go, the kitchen rang an old-fashioned wrought iron triangle hung from the ceiling.

The service was the highlight of Sloppy Hoggs. From the moment we stepped through the door, we were immediately greeted and taken care of. Our server was warm and friendly, and our bar seat gave us a great vantage point to watch the staff interact – they all seemed like they were having a great time, which further perpetuated the carefree, joyous atmosphere that surrounded us. We were also in and out of the restaurant in less than an hour – talk about efficiency!

Whoever designed the menu had a great time doing so – the dish names, including “Piglet Pillows” (brisket-filled pasta), “Hogg Nadds” (pulled pork wrappers) and “My Ridiculous Fat Ass” (a sandwich), were humorous and over-the-top. The menu complemented the cheeky t-shirts worn by the servers, including one that read, “Vegetarian = Bad Hunter”. We weren’t hungry enough to attempt an appetizer on top of an entrée, but many were tempting! I ended up with a half-pound beef brisket sandwich ($9.50) and a side of tempura onion rings ($4). Mack ordered The Cure ($17), Sloppy Hoggs’ take on breakfast for dinner.

My only quibble with the brisket sandwich is that it wasn’t quite hot enough for me – it was lukewarm, but had likely been sitting out while the onion rings were being prepared, as the rings were screaming hot. The brisket itself had been smoked for 14 hours, and had a good ratio of tender meat to fat. The kitchen was also thankfully light-handed with the house BBQ sauce – the beef was allowed to speak for itself. I probably shouldn’t have enjoyed the onion rings as much as I did, but they were fabulously light and crispy, and the onions didn’t slip out of their shells!

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Beef brisket sandwich

Tempura onion rings

Mack’s plate was one beautiful dish: pulled pork, barbecue sauce, bacon and a sunny side up egg over top house-made waffles. He really liked the flavours, and the richness of the pork and runny yolk. The waffle also stayed crispy throughout!

The Cure

We were able to experience first hand why Sloppy Hoggs isn’t a secret gem anymore – between their service and food, it’s easy to see why people would come back and bring their friends. Mack certainly got his meat fix tonight, but the next time that craving hits, we may be forced to stick with felling just one bird.

Sloppy Hoggs Roed Hus
10406-118 Avenue
(780) 477-2408
Tuesday – Saturday, 11am – 8pm, Sunday, 11am – 5pm

Portland: On the Road

Though we spent the majority of our vacation in Portland in the city proper, we did rent a vehicle one day to explore the area immediately outside PDX.

St. John’s

This first stop is a bit misleading, as St. John’s is a neighbourhood in Portland, and we took the bus to get there. However, it was the furthest outside of the city centre that we reached during that vacation, and truth be told, St. John’s seemed more like a separate town as opposed to a suburb.

The lure to St. John’s was the second annual River Fest, which I spotted on a tourism website that same week. It seemed like a good excuse to check out an area of Portland we hadn’t heard much about before. It took us an hour to reach St. John’s via public transportation, and when we did, it wasn’t entirely evident where the festivities were located.

We eventually made our way to the banks of the river (after passing by numerous film trailers parked in preparation for the shooting of a Grimm episode), and found not a rousing festival scene, but a small collection of tents. River Fest turned out to be geared mostly towards families with small children (based upon the entertainers that were seeking an audience).

River Fest

Regardless, it was still a good opportunity to walk along the shores of the Willamette. It was more industrial than picturesque, with numerous factories dotting both sides of the water, but the best discovery was St. John’s Bridge.

St. John’s Bridge

The only suspension bridge in the Willamette Valley, the Cathedral-like appearance of the towers made it easily my favourite of Portland’s bridges.

From Cathedral Park

A note of caution for pedestrians, however – the bridge is much better viewed from below than it is from above – we crossed it and found it a rather dangerous walk, given the narrow sidewalk, 35 mile an hour traffic and four lanes of traffic. Guardrails would be highly recommended for city officials to look into!

On the bridge

Before returning to downtown Portland, we did some shopping in St. John’s main street. The stores were charming, and included antique and vintage shops, gift stores, and a specialty food shop.

If you have some extra time in Portland, I would highly recommend spending a half day in this neighbourhood!

Vista House

With the vehicle, our first stop was Vista House. Located on the Colombia River gorge, it feels like it is on the edge of the world.

Vista House

The placement of Vista House (intended to be a rest stop for those making their way down the Colombia River Highway), takes full advantage of the valley and waterway views.

View of the Gorge

Wahkeena and Multnomah Falls

Down the tree-lined Oregon byway, scenic with views of the Colombia River, we first stopped at Wahkeena Falls. It was a good build up for the waterfall to come, smaller but refreshingly misty.

Wahkeena Falls

Further down the road, the picturesque Multnomah Falls awaited us. The highest year-round waterfall in North America, it was especially striking because of a bridge spanning the lower section of the falls.

Multnomah Falls

Multnomah in miniature

Multnomah must be one of the most photographed sites in all of Oregon. We even saw one tourist recording a video on his iPad of all things as he hiked the trail up to the bridge.

At the Falls

Hood River

Our next stop was the town of Hood River, just in time for a late lunch.

Hood River

We chose the pub run by Full Sail Brewery, an independent business that celebrated 25 years of operation in 2012. It was a gorgeous patio day, so we sat outside, basking in a view of the River.

Patio day!

Instead of the usual cod, haddock or even halibut, the pub used salmon for their fish and chips and fish sandwiches. We opted for an order of each. Their portions were beyond generous (neither of us were able to finish our plates), though the fish and chips were the better choice – it was difficult to eat the sandwich topped with such a watery slaw.

Fish and chips

Fish sandwich

Cascade Cliffs and Cathedral Ridge Wineries

One of the reasons we wanted to get outside of Portland was to visit some wineries. Cascade Cliffs was identified as a winery located in downtown Hood River, so we were initially confused as to where this urban winery could be found. It turned out not to be field of vines, but a tasting room operated by the winery.

The Cascade Cliffs line-up

The map as such was a bit misleading (as was my understanding between that a “winery” is not synonymous with “vineyard”), but Mack commented that this establishment was a good option for those who couldn’t make it out to the winery itself.

We took home a bottle of blended reds, and left Hood River in search of an actual winery. As it was early in the evening, many of the wineries we passed on our way back to Portland were already closed for the day. We managed to find one that was still open – Cathedral Ridge.

Cathedral Ridge proudly identified an award they were recognized with in 2007, which may not have been a good sign for more recent achievements. It was quiet inside the tasting room/ shop, but the clerk was nice enough, if seemingly rote in her interactions.

She told us that the majority of the vines actually weren’t planted at that location, but were situated near The Dalles, further east. It was a bit of a letdown, though we still took the opportunity to pick up a souvenir bottle and wander what vines were located on-site. The moral of the story: make sure you plan out a sure-fire route, with enough time to explore!

Some of the vines at Cathedral Ridge

Although time is a luxury on any vacation, I was glad we took the better part of a day to see what was outside Portland.

Date Night: Tzin and Theatresports

Mack and I are fortunate to live on a street where there are so many great restaurants, but the truth is, when we’re at home, we typically end up dining in. As a result, we generally don’t eat out at the establishments closest to us, though we walk past them almost every day. So during Downtown Dining Week, we made a conscious decision to make a reservation at Tzin, the charming little wine bar just down the street from our condo, our first stop after work last Friday.

Tzin was packed, as per usual – reservations are a must at this 18-seat restaurant. It is such a warmly designed room, from the autumnal colours to the rich tapestries and throw pillows. Though seating is quite intimate (we were inches away from the next tables), space is cleverly utilized – from the closet slotted in the alcove between the kitchen and the front door, to the purse hooks located on the table posts.

We loved that the $50 3-course prix fixe menu featured several dishes off of Tzin’s regular menu, which provides a better snapshot of what the restaurant can do on a regular basis (as opposed to a special menu designed just for the occasion). It also offered us some choice, as we were able to select from two different appetizers, entrees and desserts. No question both Mack and I were felled by the promise of braised Irvings Farm bacon to start, but deviated for the rest of the meal.

The braised bacon raised the bar high right from the start. The thick-cut pork belly was braised to perfection; the fat just melted away, complemented by a balsamic apple compote and calvados gastrique. We both remarked that we would come back for this dish alone.

Braised bacon

Mack enjoyed his chicken breast supreme well enough. My Four Whistle Farm rack of lamb was cooked to medium rare, but I would have preferred more aggressive spices. Likely, this was done on purpose, to balance with the underlay of harissa couscous, but it ended up meaning the starch provided the dominant flavour.

Chicken supreme

Rack of lamb

Dessert left us wanting more. The flourless chocolate torte, encased in a velvety chocolate ganache was bliss on a plate. Mack, who usually skips dessert, devoured his warm gingerbread cake, drizzled with Kracken rum caramel. The accompanying brown butter ice cream was so good we thought about asking Chef Corey McGuire to start hawking this flavour on the street in warmer climes.

Warm gingerbread cake and flourless chocolate torte

Proprietor Kelsey Danyluk is the consummate host, and always takes care of her diners. Her wine recommendations are always spot on, too! The kitchen was also extremely efficient – we were never left waiting long for the next dish.

I look forward to our next visit to Tzin – we’ll have to make sure to take advantage of its patio when the time comes!

After dinner, Mack and I walked over to the Citadel Theatre to take in Theatresports. Since Rapid Fire Theatre relocated downtown last fall, we’ve been meaning to check out their new home at Zeidler Hall.

The 7:30pm show that night was probably a smaller crowd than usual, but it did give the audience members a better chance that one of their suggestions would be taken up by the improvisers.

Matt Alden welcomes the audience

We watched several teams duke out one another in a series of improv challenges. As each team had to incorporate suggestions from the audience, it guaranteed that no show is the same. We were amazed by how quick-witted the actors were, and how the vignettes ended up in unpredictable, but hilarious places (such as a spontaneous song about Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan).

For $12, we thought that the ticket price was well worth the entertainment. You can look for Theatresports every Friday at 7:30pm and 10pm, while Chimprov, Rapid Fire’s long-form improv show, runs every Saturday at 10pm.

Tzin
10115 104 Street
(780) 428-8946

Rapid Fire Theatre
Zeidler Hall @ the Citadel Theatre, 9828 101A Ave

Portland: Morning Meals

Most mornings in Portland, Mack and I did not indulge in full meals. This isn’t unlike our usual breakfasts while at home – we opt to have more substantial plates at lunch and dinner. This allowed us to explore some of Portland’s best coffee houses, many which were located within walking distance of our hotel. Of course, on the weekend, we did also manage to fit in a few brunches!

Public Domain

Just down the street from our hotel, Public Domain was our first coffee stop. Sleek and modern, I really liked their open concept that emphasized the coffee bar. Seating wasn’t abundant, but it seemed like most took their drinks elsewhere.

Interior

Public Domain roasts their own coffee, which we enjoyed alongside a delicious cheddar bacon scone. We also took home a bag of their coffee for at-home consumption – always a great takeaway souvenir!

Counter seating

Barista

Barista’s downtown location was even smaller than Public Domain. And instead of offering their own line of coffee, they served several varieties roasted by different companies, the majority also based in Portland, including Stumptown, Counter Culture and Heart.

Interior

Barista only offered espresso and brewed coffee, and of the latter, one could choose the preparation method: French press, pour over or iced, with a different bean used in each (talk about attention to detail!). We ended up with a pour-over sourced from Kenya, roasted by San Francisco-based Sight Glass.

Beans!

Stumptown Coffee Roasters

Of all the coffee houses, we expected the most from Stumptown. It is easily the most well-known, and many of Portland’s restaurants serve their line of roasted coffees. We ended up in their Old Town location towards the end of our trip.

I haven’t seen Portlandia, but I would be shocked if the show didn’t poke fun at the masses of Mac users who set up for the day in Stumptown. It was a bit comical that the first image we were confronted with was a single row of thirty-somethings all typing away.

Interior

The cafe is equipped with a great up-to-date collection of specialty magazines, with multiple copies of each. We spent a bit of time unwinding there with our iced coffees (brewed to perfection), but we have to mention that the shop could have used a bit more care. Dust bunnies were rampant, and their bathrooms were in desperate need of attention. Given their reputation, our experience as a whole didn’t live up to expectations – it never is just about the food alone!

Window seat

Mother’s Bistro

Mother’s Bistro seemed to be a Portland institution. With a cookbook of recipes, and nary a time of day where they aren’t packed, it seemed like a good brunch choice.

Though the dining room seemed to be full to the brim, we were surprisingly seated within five minutes. I loved the chandelier light fixtures and the elegantly framed mirrors that added a touch of class to the room. But it wasn’t all glamour – the message on the back of the mugs reminded us to “call your mother”.

Interior

That said, my lasting memory of Mother’s isn’t of the decor or the service (which was friendly, but brisk) – instead, I have stomach pains when I think back to the portion sizes. Each plate, priced at under $10, could have easily fed two people! My apple-sausage scramble and Mack’s stuffed fritatta utterly defeated each of us.

Apple-sausage scramble

Stuffed frittata (the size of a dinner plate!)

Bijou Cafe

On our last day in Portland, we elected to stick close to our hotel, to make sure we wouldn’t be late for our departure. Bijou Cafe fit the bill, located only a few blocks away from our hotel, and had a reputation for a solid brunch featuring locally-sourced ingredients.

The interior was pretty basic, but was without pretention. And after the charming but cramped quarters of Mother’s, we appreciated the room to breathe.

Interior

My French toast was a bit too eggy for my taste, and after a bite of Mack’s chanterelle and gruyere-laced omlette, we knew his plate won the dish wars at our table.

French toast

Seasonal omelette (we loved that baguette was a bread option)

Service was personable and friendly, and the coffee refills kept coming. For a chill brunch, I would have no qualms recommending Bijou Cafe to visitors.

Weekend in Calgary: Airbnb, Burgers and Brunch

To celebrate our anniversary, we headed to Calgary in early March. Calgary is our favourite weekend getaway, and allows us to dabble with a few more players in their ever-changing food scene. We had to cut our trip short this time around because of the snowpocalypse that Sunday, but still managed to fit in quite a few eats!

Airbnb

Our go-to accommodation in Calgary has been the luxurious Hotel Le Germain in downtown Calgary. It’s an easy way to pamper ourselves, and we’ve always had such a relaxing time in their serene and contemporary rooms.

This time, we couldn’t justify the cost for a two-night stay, and used this opportunity to explore booking through Airbnb. A site that connects travellers with property owners who have an extra room or unit to rent, Airbnb offers a plethora of short-term stay options. The apartments are often at a fraction of the cost of hotel prices, with the added benefits of a fully-furnished home, such as a kitchen or in-suite laundry. Friends of ours have raved about their experience using the site in New York and Paris; why couldn’t it work a little closer to home?

Although the Airbnb selection on Calgary wasn’t as extensive as those of larger municipalities, they still have more property listings than Edmonton. We narrowed down our search to private lodgings in central neighbourhoods, and eventually settled on the Clean Central Modern Apartment located in Mission, just south of the 17 Avenue entertainment district. The photos had been verified by Airbnb (they have since been updated by the property owner, so haven’t yet been re-verified), and the comments for the listing were very positive.

Communication with the property owner Christoph was seamless, and in most cases, I received an instantaneous response. We arranged to meet up on Friday afternoon to access the keys and a tour. In this way, it is a little less convenient than a hotel in terms of a fluid check-in time, but it was a relatively minor hassle when compared with the cost savings.

The one-bedroom unit appeared exactly as advertised, though some furniture of equal quality had been swapped in. Everything was extremely clean, and the building was quiet. Best of all for that particular weekend, since most of our dining experiences clustered around 17 Avenue, the location was spot-on.

Living room/kitchen

Bedroom

A bonus of this unit was its direct proximity to the Elbow River walking trails. We stretched our legs after arrival, and could see how this unit would be well-suited to a longer-term stay.

Beautiful walking trails

We wouldn’t hesitate to stay at this unit again, and I am happy to say that our first experience with Airbnb was a positive one! I’ve booked another Airbnb unit for an upcoming trip to Toronto, so we’ll see how that one works out!

Clive Burger

Burger bars seemed to trend up in Calgary last year, with several establishments opening up within months of one another. Clive Burger was one we had read about during our last jaunt south, so we headed there for lunch on Friday.

It’s an easy-to-miss storefront tucked onto 17 Avenue. The order counter and open kitchen was pretty standard, but the rest of the decor was modern, fresh and fun. I loved the pop of the orange chairs, the pendant lamps, and especially the wall of cartoon Clive and friends “documenting” their world travels.

Interior

Fun cartoon wall

The menu was fairly standard, similar to other burger bars in Edmonton (Burger Joint, Rodeo Burger, Five Guys among them). A hamburger was $6, with less than a dozen free fixins to choose from. Fries (fried in peanut oil) were $2.50 for a small.

After we ordered, we were given a buzzer that would notify us when our order was up. Mack noted that this was less personable than name calling, but it was definitely more efficient.

Clive buzzer

The burgers themselves were nothing special. Mack found the patties to be disappointingly thin, but I found that to be on par with most other burger bars. Glaringly, Mack’s paid egg fixin was left off his order – he would have gone back to have it remade, but given we were both hungry, we just chalked it up as a loss.

Burger

The star of the meal turned out not to be the namesake burger, but the chipotle-mayo Clive sauce that accompanied the crispy fries.

Our spread

I’d drop by Clive again if I needed a greasy pick-me-up in the area, but it didn’t impress us enough to want to return again in a targeted way.

Analog Coffee

Two doors down from Clive Burger was Analog Coffee, Fratello Coffee’s new cafe on 17 Avenue. Similar to how Phil & Sebastian’s expanded after gaining popularity at the barracks location of the Calgary Farmers’ Market, Analog Coffee serves up coffee at the new CFM, and opened this standalone cafe at the end of 2012.

Analog Coffee

It’s a beautiful space, warm and rustic, with a beckoning bakery case filled with goods from La Boulangerie and Sidewalk Citizen.

Interior

We ordered a pour-over cold brew made with Fratello-roasted coffee (if course), but the best thing was the milk station also featured several different syrup flavours – I loved the opportunity to sweeten our drink to taste. Make sure you stop by if you are in the neighbourhood!

The Fine Diner

We hadn’t yet hit up The Fine Diner in Inglewood, so we planned to have brunch there on Saturday morning. When we arrived, we were a bit surprised that there wasn’t already a crowd in the lobby. It turned out The Fine Diner was blessed with a back room (which looked like it used to function as a private dining space) where brunch-goers were invited to sit and enjoy some coffee while they waited (until we have similar provisions for overflow, I’m not sure we can talk about Edmonton’s brunch culture in the same breath).

We had to wait about 40 minutes for a table, not bad considering the dining room was relatively small. The high-backed banquet seats reminded me of Dairy Lane, but the decor was cleaner and more sophisticated.

Hurrah for brunch!

The Fine Diner is notable for the fact that they cure their own bacon. So we both had to try the bacon for ourselves – I ordered the egg breakfast ($11), while Mack chose the bacon benny ($13).

The bacon didn’t disappoint – thick-cut, salty, with a hint of maple syrup sweetness. I did expect crispier potatoes though with the use of the term “hash browns” on the menu.

Egg breakfast

Mack liked his eggs benedict, with soft poached eggs, and a bread base that did not get soggy. The fresh fruit was also a nice touch.

Bacon benny

While we enjoyed The Fine Diner, I have to say we liked our most recent experience at Blue Star Diner just a bit better. But in the grand scheme of the brunch scene in Calgary, The Fine Diner is another good addition.

Crossroads Market

Our typical farmers’ market haunts in Calgary include the Kingsland Farmers’ Market and Calgary Farmers’ Market, but from Mary Ellen and Andres of Greens, Eggs and Ham, we heard about the Crossroads Market. Since we were dining in nearby Inglewood anyway, we took the opportunity to stop by after brunch on Saturday.

Given our major farmers’ markets are situated in public transit-accessible locations, it’s always a shift for me when approaching the Calgary markets, which are usually challenging to reach with any means of transportation other than a vehicle. The Crossroads Market seemed to be the same.

Because we new Greens, Eggs and Ham was a relatively new vendor at Crossroads, we expected to be greeted by farm fresh products. Instead, our first visual was a wall of VHS tapes.

VHS, anyone?

We quickly learned that Crossroads was in transition, renovating so it would resemble the other large markets in Calgary. Wooden beams framed some of the food stalls already, but the flea market aspects will remain. Maybe it’s just us, but it is one thing to have hand-made arts and crafts for sale, but antiques and collectibles didn’t seem like the best fit alongside farmers’ market vendors.

Flea market

Inside Crossroads

After wandering through the merchandise stalls, we encountered a shoddy food court packed with weekend traffic. We’re certain a few of the vendors may have been hidden gems (most of them seemed to be mom and pop-run ethnic eateries), but we weren’t looking for a meal.

Food court

To be honest, we didn’t take time to explore the protein or prepared food vendors, as we were more interested in produce that day; I was hoping to pick up some fruit to snack on the rest of the trip. We finally found a major produce vendor called Chongo’s at the back of the market, but to our disappointment, none of it appeared to be local.

Carrots the size of my arm

We know Calgary markets permit imported produce like bananas to be sold alongside BC apples, but this was ridiculous. None of the items that could have been grown in Alberta that can be cellared for winter sale did not appear locally sourced, and worse, most of it wasn’t labelled with a country of origin. I had to wonder whether the customers in the long lines thought the produce was local, simply because they were shopping at a “farmers’ market”.

Produce at Crossroads

On the Crossroads Market website, it looks like their summer and fall seasons see more local vendors present. But I can imagine it can be pretty confusing to the average consumer, and unless questions are asked, assumptions could be made about the true origin of the produce.

We’d have to return in the heart of the local growing season to really assess this market, but based on this experience, it will take more than a superficial makeover to convince us that this Crossroads truly a farmers’ market. I’d stick with Kingsland and the Calgary Farmers’ Market on any day or season.

I’ll be writing more about our dinner outings in a separate post!

Culinary Q & A with Robyn

Occupation: Certified Management Accountant

What did you eat today?

Home-made banana bread for breakfast and home-made chicken soup for lunch. For dinner, my mom was trying out a new recipe from Serious Eats, The Ultimate King Ranch Casserole.

What do you never eat?

Eggs— well, I eat them in things, like cookie and cakes, but I just can’t stomach eggs by themselves. I really wish I liked them, but I just don’t!

What is your personal specialty?

I love to make a big home-made Italian dinner “feast” from scratch; garlic bread and Caesar salad, with Chicken Picatta and angel hair, Spaghetti Bolognese or some sort of other delicious pasta creation.

Complete this sentence: In my refrigerator, you will always find:

Siracha, yogurt, milk and some bananas in the freezer for my morning breakfast smoothie.

What is your weekday meal standby?

A smoothie for breakfast almost every week day. Does that count?

What is your favourite kitchen item?

My Henckels Chef’s knife, but I also really love any sort of tiny kitchen utensil, like my tiny whisk or spatula. Cute and functional!

World ends tomorrow. Describe your last meal.

My mom’s prime rib dinner complete with mashed potatoes, gravy and yorkshire pudding. For dessert, probably my mom’s homemade hot fudge sauce over vanilla ice cream.

Where do you eat out most frequently?

Probably La Pagode for Vietnamese food.

Where’s the best place to eat in Edmonton?

Right now, I would say Corso 32 and Sofra are my favourites.

If you weren’t limited by geography, where and what would you eat?

I really want to go everywhere and eat everything, but if I had to pick just one thing right now I would go to the little Trattoria we called “Mario’s” in Cortona, Italy. I did a semester abroad in Italy and I think Mario’s might have had the best food in all of Italy. So simple and delicious! I would order the Spaghetti Aglione, Tiramisu and nice big glass of red wine.

Check out Robyn’s blog at Life is Better Red.

Fringe Dishes: Kobe Japanese Bistro

When Mack and I eat at a Japanese restaurant, we feel a little like a vegetarian would dining at a steakhouse. Although there are typically items that suit our taste (i.e., cooked items), they’re always the periphery of the menu, and really, a last resort meant for Western palates. In many ways, that was one of the reasons I was so excited for the appearance of Edmonton’s first izakaya – all of the flavours of Japanese cuisine that I enjoy featured at the forefront of the menu instead of being an afterthought.

Anyway, to celebrate Kim’s birthday on the weekend, we headed to Kobe Japanese Bistro in the Callingwood. It was the ideal restaurant for the rest of Mack’s family, who all love sushi. Kim had ordered takeout from Kobe many times, but this was her first time dining in, as it was for the rest of us.

It was moderately busy on the Sunday evening, though to be honest, from the privacy of the high-backed booth, we couldn’t monitor the activity of the restaurant save the parties walking directly past our table. The booth felt almost as exclusive as those private rooms found at other Japanese eateries, without the fuss.

The rest of the party ordered an array of sushi, while Mack and I stuck to the rice bowls and udon. All of our food arrived lightning fast – the kitchen certainly wasted no time! No doubt, the sushi platter dazzled when delivered to the table.

Deluxe combination

Unfortunately, the same could not be said for the cooked dishes – presentation was far from their strength. Some visually appealing garnish would have been welcome, but the separate components turned out to be positive at least for the agedashi tofu ($5.50) – with a tempura sauce served on the side (instead of with the tofu), it remained impossibly hot and crispy, batter adherence and all.

Agedashi tofu and chicken teriyaki udon

I enjoyed the broth and udon well enough ($9), though the chicken was on the dry side. Mack’s chicken teriyaki donburi ($9) was similarly dry. Warned by Kim that the bowl came without any accompanying vegetables, he also ordered a side of pan-fried vegetables ($5). It turned out to be a generous serving enough for two or three people; it’s curious why a smaller portion of these vegetables wouldn’t be a standard part of the rice bowls to start with.

Chicken teriyaki donburi

Pan-fried vegetables

Service was excellent; when our server found out it was Kim’s birthday, to end our meal, he brought two scoops of green tea ice cream topped off with a candle.

Happy birthday, Kim!

While we can’t speak to the quality of the sushi, for our Western palates, Kobe Japanese Bistro did all right. I’d still sooner head to Izakaya Tomo for my Japanese food fix, but in a pinch, Kobe would do.

Kobe Japanese Bistro
#516, 6655 178 Street
(780) 444-7878

Date Night: Pasta Pantry and Jacek Chocolate Couture Tasting

The weekend prior to Valentine’s Day, Mack and I headed to Sherwood Park for dinner and a paired wine and chocolate tasting. The latter was the primary reason that drew us to the suburb, but we decided to take advantage of that excuse and have dinner nearby as well.

I had heard of Pasta Pantry through work colleagues, and a quick gander on their website gave me the impression that dinner would be an inexpensive affair (a small pasta was advertised at $7.95). Given the $65 tickets to the tasting were on the high end of the spectrum, we thought this dinner would help balance things out.

We arrived at a non-descript strip mall just after 5pm, and were surprised to find an absolutely frenzied restaurant. I would not have guessed that a cafeteria-style cantina would be the most hopping place in Sherwood Park on a Saturday night, but I was wrong. We queued up, doing our best to scan the whiteboard menu quickly, and eyed our options on the other side of the glass. I probably should have taken more time to consider the possibilities, but I didn’t want to hold up the growing line behind me, and hastily chose a small pasta topped with alfredo sauce and one meatball. Mack ordered a large pasta with the four cheese sauce and two meatballs. Our total bill was just under $25.

Pasta Pantry

As we had dinner, we couldn’t believe the number of people streaming in – the line was consistently out the door for the duration of our meal. Most were take-out customers, but given the very basic sauce over pasta in front of us, we had to wonder if there was something we were missing. Mack’s four cheese sauce was the better of the two, and sure, the meatballs were tasty, but we were hard pressed to say the fare at Pasta Pantry was much better than dishes found at an Italian food court kiosk (we heard later that their pasticcio is their specialty, but they were out when it was our turn to order).

Pasta with alfredo sauce

Pasta with four cheese sauce

Service was speedy, and the owner made the rounds to check in with diners. We appreciated that personal touch, but what stood out most from our dinner was actually the live music. A young duo, led by Jordan Kaminski, played an assortment of pop covers and originals during our visit, and really helped elevate an otherwise bland experience. Given most of the customers didn’t stay, I would imagine the entertainment wasn’t the primary draw for the restaurant, but it should have been. Though we likely won’t be returning to Pasta Pantry anytime soon, we will be keeping an eye out for the talented young singers!

Following dinner, we headed over to Baseline Wines. About a year ago, the store moved from Baseline to a brand new space on Athabascan Avenue, and before the tasting, we wandered the store to peruse their displays and inventory.

Baseline Wines

We also couldn’t help but admire the glassed-in tasting room, minimally decorated but stunning. Mack and I had to restrain ourselves from indulging right then and there!

Beautifully set table

After all the guests had arrived. we took our seats. Ryan, Manager of Baseline Wines and Jacqueline, the Jacek Chocolate Couture Cocoanista herself, would be leading the tasting. As the evening went on, we found out how fortunate we were to have a wine and a chocolate expert at our disposal, as each of them shed insight on how each pairing worked. Ryan explained that chocolate was inherently difficult to pair with wine (contrary to popular belief) because the amount of tannins in the cocoa most often react negatively with wine. As a result, Ryan shared that he tried to either complement or contrast with the flavours in each piece of chocolate.

Jaqueline Jacek

We were served a total of seven wines (one reception wine, and six to be paired with the six chocolate pieces in front of us). Ryan and Jacqueline guided us through each pairing, providing background on the chocolate and wine, and then encouraged us to sample each individually, then together.

The spread

Though this wasn’t my first time sampling Jacek chocolates, it was the first time I’ve been able to listen to Jacqueline speak about her creative and production process in a detailed way. Her attention to detail absolutely blew me away, and was something I wouldn’t have appreciated without such a measured opportunity to learn about her chocolates. Her current Spring 2013 collection is all about nostalgia, so it is no surprise to find childhood throwbacks like old fashioned root beer celebrated. But what I didn’t expect was for Jaqueline to tell us that instead of reducing down store-bought root beer, she sourced the needed roots like sassafras from Chinatown herbal stores for the syrup. And to simulate the froth of a root beer float, she sprinkled each truffle with citric acid for a pop on the tongue – genius.

Mack takes a whiff of the root beer syrup ingredients

My favourite truffle that we sampled that night was the Shirley Temple. I loved the bright and creamy citrus flavour, but even better was the way the grenadine drop bled into the ganache. For Jacqueline, this was a representation of the coloured layers blending together when one stirs up a Shirley Temple.

Our favourite pairing was a Quinta de La Rosa Port with a single-origin Mokaya Mexican chocolate (unfortunately, not available for sale). I’m not a fan of port, but I found the dark chocolate complemented the smooth port perfectly.

Baseline Wines and Jacek Chocolate Couture partner for these tastings on the release of every new collection (this was their third pairing event). Based on our experience, we thought the tickets were well worth the price (we even got to take home a box of chocolate each!), and was a wonderful way to learn about chocolate and wine. Sign up for Jacek’s mailing list to keep informed, and make sure to reserve your tickets early!

Pasta Pantry
305, 101 Granada Boulevard, Sherwood Park
(780) 467-3777

Baseline Wines
11 Athabascan Avenue, Unit 172, Sherwood Park
(780) 449-4448

Jacek Chocolate Couture
406 Kaska Road, Sherwood Park
(780) 464-5200

Alley Burger 2013

I was craving a burger all week, so the 2013 resurrection of the #yegalleyburger last Friday was the perfect timing! Set for 10pm, I chose to have a light dinner after work, while Mack opted to forego supper altogether.

We headed down to Hundred at around 9:10, but there was not a soul in the alley yet, so we stretched our legs a bit more by walking around the block. Ten minutes later, we joined a line-up of just four people. Mack and I wondered why Edmonton is such a last minute town; we were certain that if CHARCUT had put out an #alleyburger announcement the crowds would have been out in full force an hour before curtain.

The line (can you spot Mack?)

Anyway, just before 10pm, Chef Andrew Cowan came out to trade $5 cash for a Century Hospitality Group poker chip, good for one burger each. We heard that in total, over 50 burgers were sold.

Chef Andrew Cowan serves ‘em up!

Things were running a little late, and we weren’t handed the burger until twenty after ten. But what a burger it was, a medium-rare patty with cheese curds embedded in the centre, topped with fries, gravy and a slip of lettuce.

The poutine alley burger

In the time that we were waiting, the temperature seemed to drop five degrees, so we couldn’t stick around to enjoy the burger outdoors – maybe next time! Make sure to follow Chef Cowan for details on future alley burgers!

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