Trendy tropical Hawaiian dish makes big splash on local scene
Two restaurants highlighting a tropical favourite food have arrived in downtown Edmonton. Splash Poke (10079 109 St.) opened in May, and Ono Poke (10142 104 St.) debuted last week.
Poke (pronounced poh-kay) means “to cut.” The dish is a raw fish salad seasoned with Japanese and Asian flavours. Traditionally made with cubed Ahi tuna, shoyu (soy sauce), sesame oil and green onions, modern-day versions feature proteins such as octopus, beef and scallops. Seasonings include chilies, spicy mayonnaise, fish eggs, dried seaweed and nuts.
Ono Poke is owned by chef Lawrence Hui, a NAIT grad who recently spent time on Maui learning about Hawaiian food culture from local acclaimed chefs, including those from The Westin Nanea (chef Ikaika Manaku), Ka’anapali Beach Hotel (chef Tom Muromoto), Hula Grill (chef Charlie Owen) and Roy’s Ka’anapali (chef Jesse Anacleto).
Edmontonians love Hawaii, and so may have experienced poke on past trips to the islands. Poke offers a nod to Filipino, Portuguese, Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Puerto Rican cuisines. The donation was made by Geoff Gyles, who lives in Canmore. It’s part of an overall $150,000 national donation that Gyles is making as part of his own 150th anniversary campaign and tour, Journey to End Hunger. Gyles is donating $10,000 to 14 hunger programs in all of Canada’s provinces and territories, plus another $10,000 to a national organization, Breakfast for Learning.
Gyles, 60, will travel across the country over the next few weeks to raise awareness of the problem of hunger in Canada and to visit the programs he is supporting. Earlier this week, he landed in Edmonton and made a stop at Highlands School, where Food for Thought runs a nutrition program.
Food for Thought is a non-profit organization that has been feeding schoolchildren since 2002, when founders Carol and Bernie Kowalchuk began funding hot lunches for hungry students at Sifton Elementary School. Today, the program covers 14 schools and provides breakfast, lunch and/or snacks to some 500 children daily.
The next Swine and Dine event, sponsored by Alberta Pork, is to be held at chef Paul Shufelt’s Workshop Eatery (2003 91 St. SW) on Thursday, June 22 at 6 p.m. Titled Schwein and Stein, the evening is a celebration of the pairing of pork and Alberta craft beer. Four courses of Irvings Farm Fresh pork, served with just the right brew, costs $65. Tickets are available through Eventbrite.
Born in St. Albert and trained in New York, chef Scott Downey is bringing his culinary skills back home to launch his new restaurant, The Butternut Tree.
Located in Edmonton’s Ledgeview Business Centre at 9707 110 St., the restaurant — scheduled to open in August — will offer more than 60 seats to diners keen to experience its stellar view.
With large banks of window overlooking the river valley and the Alberta legislature, The Butternut Tree (named after a variety of walnut tree that grows in Canada) will offer fare that’s coast-tocoast Canadian, including lots of local produce from Prairie Gardens near Bon Accord.
Although the restaurant is in the downtown neighbourhood of Oliver, being tucked in near the river valley gives it a more peaceful, natural feeling, said Downey.
“It’s the perfect fit,” said the 27-year-old chef.
After graduating from the Culinary Institute of America (CIA), Downey did an internship at the three-Michelin-starred New York eatery, Daniel (owned by celebrity chef Daniel Boulud). He’s also done a stage (or internship) at Noma under Rene Redzepi, and has been sous chef at the popular Vancouver restaurant, Wildebeest, as well as having a foraged-plant business.
Downey plans to “explore and emphasize” Canadian ingredients in the restaurant. He’s bringing in duck from Quebec, wild rice from Saskatchewan and seafood from the Arctic.
“We have an incredible diversity of product,” he says.
Downey says there are 75 parking spaces at the Ledgeview reserved for customers of The Butternut Tree. Watch this space for more details as the restaurant’s opening date approaches.
There are still tickets available for an outdoor, long-table supper being hosted by Darren and Sylvia Cheverie of Chartier in Beaumont (5012 50 St.).
An outdoor, farm-to-fork supper is a signature Prairie experience and everybody should do it at least once. Chartier’s event is on Wednesday, June 14 at Great West Farms, a short drive from the restaurant. The cocktail reception and family-style dinner service is $150 per person, and includes cocktail pairings made with artisanal spirits from Righand Distillery of Nisku.
Call the restaurant for more details at 780-737-3633, or get tickets on Eventbrite.