Picnic tops Farm to Fork tour
Lunch at Gull Lake prepared by top local chefs for July 21 event
Food-focused tours are becoming ever more popular, and for good reason. Done properly, they showcase great producers, and show off great meals prepared with local produce and expertise.
I am hosting one such tour on Sunday, July 21. Taste Alberta Farm to Fork combines a tour of local farms and ranches with a lunch prepared by a group of Alberta chefs and served picnic style at Gull Lake.
A map of the farm tour will be provided for you to enjoy at your own pace. The farm tour starts at 10 a.m. and you can stop for lunch between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. at the Meridian Beach Hall, near Gull Lake.
The self-guided tour includes Brown Eggs and Lamb, a locally owned farm near Gull Lake, where families can see sheep as well as llamas. Rock Ridge Dairy, an organic farm and milk producer, is another highlight. The owners, Patrick and Cherylynn Bos, will be there to talk about raising cows and goats and how milk and cheese are processed. A bison farm, Upick, and canola field are other stops on the tour.
The Edmonton chefs on hand to prepare lunch are Doreen Prei of the Petroleum Club, Andrew Cowan of Hundred Bar and Kitchen, and Eric Hansen of Niche. Calgary chefs include Michael Allemeier of SAIT and J.P. Pedhirney of Muse. Families are encouraged to attend, as the kids will enjoy a romp through the stunning agricultural landscapes of central Alberta. And they’ll sleep well later.
You can get tickets through Event Brite at $40 each for adults, and $10 each for children. tastealbertafarmtofork.eventbrite.ca
Savour Strathcona has returned to the Sherwood Park area for the second year in a row. Held at the Agora Community Centre, this celebration of local cuisine brings together local art, heritage and culture — as well as 15 local restaurants. It runs from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Sunday, July 7. Last year, more than 500 guests attended and this year, organizers hope to hit 700. The Agora is at 2001 Sherwood Drive. strathcona.ca/savour
Finally, it’s patio season, time to don sunglasses and sit au plein, the tension melting from your body like an ice cube in a summer cocktail. I spent a happy couple of hours at the just-opened patio at XIX Nineteen over the weekend, which features not only comfortable chairs, but couches for warm weather lounging.
There, chef Andrew Fung has created some new summer weather favourites, including a number of seafood choices. I particularly liked his fresh cooked lobster and jumbo prawns, served with a Bloody Caesar dipping sauce. There’s soy-marinated veal tongue for the proud carnivores among us. XIX Nineteen is in McGrath at 5940 Mullen Way. dinenineteen.com
Back in the winter, I wrote a story about Swiss 2 Go, a top-notch sandwich spot in Beverly where I ate one of the best sandwiches I had ever experienced. It was called the Matterhorn and was crafted by restaurant owner Drita Keller.
Just thinking about the Matterhorn makes my mouth long for the taste of bresaola layered with jalapeno peppers and avocado, and served on a kosher-salted pretzel bun.
Now, Swiss 2 Go has moved to the west end to 17104 90th Ave., just north of the West Edmonton Mall. While this move is a loss for the Beverly neighbourhood, it’s a huge bonus for west-enders. They have a Facebook page, and you can follow them on Twitter @ Swiss2GO. Call 587-520-9400, or check their website. swiss2go.ca
It’s wild sockeye salmon season, and local chef Roberto Sgambaro is smoking some up for customers. Sgambaro, who has a booth at the St. Albert farmers market on Saturdays, processes the salmon right here in Edmonton from fresh product.
Over the next few days, the smoked salmon will start showing up at several places that carry Sgambaro’s products, including all three Italian Centre shops, the Bon Ton Bakery, Sunterra in Lendrum and two Sobeys locations (Namao Centre and College Plaza). You can call Sgambaro for details at 780-457-8227, or visit the website. sgambaros.com
I love Edmonton’s plethora of summer farmers markets — some 16 of them at last count — and I’m always impressed by the inventive nature of local food entrepreneurs. Last week, while at the Southwest Edmonton Farmers Market, I met O.J. Tsang at her booth, Raspberry and Cocoa.
Tsang is a baker of French treats. She says she used to be a “bored office worker.”
“I thought, let’s try something different. Maybe I’ll be a pastry chef,” recalls Tsang.
After spending 10 months living in Paris and studying French pastry making, she came back to Edmonton, determined to ply her new trade somewhere. This is the first year she’s had a market stall, and it’s going really well.
Melisa Zapisocky, the SWEFM manager, had raved to me earlier about Tsang’s chocolate croissants, which sell out rapidly on Wednesday nights.
But she hadn’t mentioned the beauty of the arlettes, thin, sweet, cookies made from puff pastry. They taste like butter pie crust on steroids, dipped in honey.
Yes, that good.