The Blue Pear to close its doors

One of Edmonton’s finest restaurants, The Blue Pear, is closing at the end of December.

After 12 years serving diners from an elegant, 75-seat space at the corner of 123rd Street and 107th Avenue, co-owners Jessie Radies and her husband, chef Darcy Radies, have decided it’s time for a change. The two are selling the remaining three years of the restaurant’s lease, along with the equipment and other assets, to local chef Blair Lebsack, who plans to open his new restaurant, RGE RD, in the same space by mid-2013.

“I think restaurants have a lifespan, and we’ve hit the end of Blue Pear,” said Jessie in a phone interview. “It’s time for someone else to do it, (someone) who is coming in with excitement and energy.”

A staple recommendation in the esteemed dining guide, Where to Eat in Canada, The Blue Pear was also named one of Canada’s best restaurants by the National Post. This spring, Avenue Magazine placed it in the top three of all restaurant experiences in Edmonton.

Still, despite the accolades, Jessie says running the business has been hard on chef Darcy, who spends most of his waking hours at the restaurant, sacrificing time with the couple’s two girls, aged eight and 10.

Lebsack, formerly head chef at Madison’s Grill in the Union Bank Inn, is excited to take over The Blue Pear space with a farm-to-fork philosophy.

He has been looking for a suitable place to focus on highquality fresh local food. Expect to see pheasants by Dirt Willy on the menu as well as nouveau beef and pork from Nature’s Green Acres.

“I love Edmonton and I want to bring it outstanding food,” he says.

“Great restaurants build great cities.”