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Recently I have been having a lot of conversations with lots of different folk about the lack of a food and beverage culture in Edmonton. Compared to many large cities, of which I think Edmonton is a small one, there just aren't many options in this city for independent dining or drinking out. Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that Edmonton is devoid of these establishments, because it isn't. Thankfully there are a growing number of independent businesses focused on providing customers with a quality experience in terms of what they offer. Having said that, I think a city of almost one million people should offer more.
About a month ago, we celebrated my mother-in-law's 60th birthday. She doesn't live in Edmonton, but over the years has developed a number of friends up here as a result of visiting us. This year she decided to have the birthday party at the new Garneau location, and frankly the space worked really well. While Garneau isn't equipped with a full kitchen as our goal is not be a restaurant, it does have a tiny food prep area in the back. Mom wanted to feed the 50 or so folk that were invited to the party, and given the configuration of the space, I knew we couldn't have a sit down meal. After giving it some thought, I decided to approach Ben Chalmers - former Jack's Grill Chef, and soon to be sous Chef at a new venue downtown - and asked him if he would like to cater the event. To my delight Ben agreed, and despite the less than adequate "kitchen" took on the project designing a menu that was all local, and most important, amazingly tasty. Just to whet your appetite, I thought it appropriate to describe a few of the dishes. We started off with freshly harvested beet soup shots, with a dollop of creme fresh and some pepper; these were oh so good. From there we were served wilted dandelion on crostini with some boccaccini and some sort of garlic reduction. The meal continued with a couple of salads and two different sandwiches, finished off with a olive oil cake and fresh fruit.
You may be asking yourself right now why I am bothering to write a blog post about my mother-in-law's birthday party, and especially the food bit on a coffee blog. Well, my simple response to this question has to do with my opening lament about the lack of an established food and beverage culture in our Capital city. I think that too many folk in this city are wedded to the chain establishments. I think far too many folk sacrifice quality for convenience, and worse than that, spend their money in ways that don't support a local economy. I too am far from perfect. I have yet to make a full conversion from the big box store mentality to a "local only" approach, and to be perfectly honest, I don't know if I will ever completely abandon every large format outlet. But, I have begun to think long and hard about where I spend my money, and where I dine, and drink out. And more importantly, I have begun to talk with more volume and passion about those in this city who are thinking along the same lines. Much praise has to be directed to Jesse Radies in this regard as she has relentlessly pursued a local-first economy approach to both food and shopping. And now we have another up and coming young gun chef in the city who has just returned from a trip to Montreal and New York where he said he was inspired and re-energized in terms of food and drink culture. Ben told me recently that it was hard to come home to Edmonton, but that he did, because he, like me and many others in this city, is committed to pushing this city towards a greater awareness of what we eat and drink.
Another exciting bit of news that I just learned last week at an industry wine tasting (I am slow on the uptake) was that Urban Diner is moving in across the street from the Garneau. In talking with Tarquin Melnyk, I was excited to hear about their focus on local products, and bringing in an interesting and diverse beer menu. It will be fun to have another establishment around our neighbourhood who is committed to interesting beer other than the Sugarbowl. You see, as a purveyor of quality coffee, and one committed to traveling the world to find the best coffee we can, we understand that not every product we consume or love can be local. Obviously coffee isn't locally grown, but it can be locally roasted and more importantly, roasted with care and passion.
So whether you love Transcend coffee or not, or whether you dine at the Blue Pear or other local-focused establishments (a list of my favourites will follow), or never shop local, I want to encourage you to start to think of the costs involved in how you spend your money. We all love deals. We all like to save money. But the real question is at what cost to our local economy, and the global economy do we achieve our small savings. You might have saved a buck or two, but to save that few dollars, you have essentially guaranteed that the product can't be a local one. So, to finish this little soap box post, I encourage you to join me as I walk the path towards a more conscientious and purposeful approach to spending my money. As I mentioned earlier, I am far from a fanatic about this issue, but I am keenly aware that a local economy is not only better for Edmonton, but essential for this city. And further, that local and independent businesses are typically more concerned with quality and local sourcing than are their chain-driven cousins. OK, before someone pushes me off my soap box, I will voluntarily step down and go not so quietly into the rest of my day. Oh one last note, I would encourage you, if you ever need someone to cater a small private affair, give my friend This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it a call, you won't be disappointed.
Here is a list of some of my favourite places to eat in the city, and please don't interpret this list as somehow a definitive who's who in terms of Edmonton dining (I really don't get out to eat all that often). Obviously another good place to start in terms of checking out independent dining establishments is the members of Original Fare.
Some of Poul's Favourite haunts, both new and old, food and drink:
On a final note (yes I know, but this time it is my last thought), please know that we will be inviting other bloggers to contribute to our efforts, specifically those who write about food and wine, as well as coffee, in an effort to establishing a more vibrant food and beverage culture in the city we call home. So please, if you have ideas or comments on whom you would like to see featured, drop us a line.
