Win a pair of Golden Tickets to fly in the Hendrick’s Gin A.W.E.V.A.N.A.I.R in Vancouver!

That's a lot of gin for Moo!

I don’t normally promote contests unless I’m the one giving something away, but I thought I would let you know about this one, as I was lucky enough to experience the Hendrick’s Gin Air Departure Lounge in Montreal during the Montreal Jazz Festival. It was a most peculiar and delightful of experiences, and although the weather did not permit us to experience the Hendrick’s Gin E.L.E.V.A.T.U.M. (Elevating, Levitating, Exceptionally, Voluminous, Amazingly, Towering, Uplifting, Mobile) hot air balloon in all her majestic glory, a mootastic time was still had by all! More details on my adventures in Montreal in next post.

Mellow Yelo'd

It's been a woefully chilly autumn here in Edmonton, with snow flying on more than a few days from mid-September up until last week. Things have done a complete 180, prairie-style, and now it feels like late summer. Go figure. I'm not about to let the weather dictate what I'm going to eat, though, so back when it was scarf and toque weather, I hoofed it down to Yelo'd.

The word "yelo" means "ice" in Tagalog, the language of the Filipines. I'd been by Yelo'd, which joins a growing roster of delicious Whyte Avenue eats (finally veering away from the franchisey feel that dominated the mid-2010s), a few times over the summer but always found the queue stretching down the block. It was barely about freezing on this mid-September day and for once there was no line. Hooray!

Inside, I found a rainbow of cookies. Enticing flavours like chocolate sesame or ube and macadamia

nut. What is ube, you ask? It's purple yam. One might not think of yam as an ingredient for baked goods, but let me promise you it is delicious. It is subtle. Sort of like vanilla, and yet not. Nutty. Gentle. Just yum.

Ube also stars in soft-serve ice cream at Yelo'd. There are generally four flavours on tap. You have the option of swirling two together or enjoying one on its own. Word to the wise - if the server asks if you'd like coconut on yours, say yes. I tried ube and passion fruit swirled together. In a word, delicious. The acidity of the passion fruit offset the serene ube in a most pleasing sort of way. It didn't feel at all strange to be wolfing down an ice cream cone when most people were clutching pumpkin spice lattes to their cheeks with gloved hands.

I didn't try most of the baked goods, but rest assured I will be back for more - weather or not.

Yelo'd
10150A 82 Ave (Whyte Ave)
Edmonton, AB

Hours:
Closed Mondays
Tues-Thur 1 - 8:30 pm
Fri 1 - 9:30 pm
Sat Noon - 9:30 pm
Sun Noon - 8:30 pm

A herbivore's dream come true at The Moth

The Moth bills itself as "a little bit of magic in the midst of a revitalizing urban core." I couldn't agree more. Housed in a dusty rose building on the southeast corner of Jasper Avenue and 95 Street, The Moth is hardly in a neighbourhood known to be sought out intentionally. Rather, this 'hood has a long rap sheet of dilapidated buildings and transient residents. Little more than a crossroads between worlds perpetually coming and going, but never stopping long enough to put down roots.

Float Your Troubles Away

I’m (@oneweedram) hijacking @MarlowMoo’s food blog to write a lifestyle piece. When I was first told about Modern Gravity Float Studios from my massage therapist, Life Force Massage, I have to admit I was incredibly skeptical. I mean, the thought of paying someone $40 or more to float naked in a giant tub of salt water sounded like some new age woo woo (sorry Jordan!) and reminded me of this scene from Futurama…

Taste of Edmonton Gets a New Home

Farrow (Potato) Crisps with Southern
Dressing and Cajun Seasoning
(Farrow Sandwiches)

Taste of Edmonton has been an event that has been a part of my summer tradition for as long as this bovine can remember. In my almost 2 years in Vancouver, I am not sure that I have seen any festival that is quite the same as Taste of Edmonton. So I was very happy to be in Edmonton to catch at least the last part of the festival. Due to the LRT construction, this years festival has moved to Capital Plaza and Capital Boulevard. Capital Boulevard has in my opinion, been woefully underused since it was completed in 2014. It was meant to increase the public space downtown and be a pedestrian friendly area where people could stroll about or sit and visit. Although Capital Plaza tends to be used on Canada Day, it sits fairly empty and quiet the remainder of the year.

A Memorable Meal at Kanto 98 St Eatery

The first thing that hits you at Kanto 98 St Eatery is the rich scent of barbecued meat. It's right there the minute you walk through the door. It's no wonder Chef Edgar Gutierrez (whose culinary skills put Tres Carnales and Rostizado on the map) bills his new restaurant as Filipino comfort food. That's exactly what it is.

After so much time in Vancouver, I knew I had to check out Kanto. I even made some new friends! The inside of Kanto is as bright as a comic book and I couldn't wait to dig into the enticing menu.

Chef Edgar recommended BBQ Liempo (pork belly), which was succulent and rich, BBQ chicken (spicy and bold) and - EEK - feeb! The humans swore it was delicious but I chose not to partake.

Fried chicken was piping hot and crispy, right out of the fryer. This is among the best fried chicken in the city, no question. I could have crushed an entire bucket, but that would have meant no room for other delights.

Talangka fried rice is dripping with butter and garlic. The rice stole the show. Something so simple kept us going back for more. The rice even had a little tube of vinegar to spice things up. Vinegar is an important ingredient in Filipino cooking, giving it a characteristic sour flavour.

We finished with Attila D'hen Bao. Here, more of Kanto's addictive fried chicken is tucked in a soft bao and dressed with hot sauce, onions, and sesame. It had kick! We were so full at that point, that most of the bao ended up as a midnight snack later...not that I'm complaining. I think a second trip is in order...there are still things yet untasted on the menu.

Kanto 98 St 
10636 98 St
Edmonton, AB  T5H 2N7
780-244-7388
Instagram: @kanto98st._eatery

Spicy and Fun at Nando's Richmond Garden City

Sangria and Peri Peri Sauce

Nando’s recently opened a new location at Richmond Garden City and I was invited to come check it out. I’ll have to admit, being from Edmonton, I’d only been to Nando’s once before, and that was last winter when they opened their first location in Edmonton and invited Moo to come celebrate their opening. Although I’d seen Nando’s while visiting the UK previously, I’d never actually gone in, though I had heard friends talk about it.

Lounge Life at Plaza Premium Lounge Edmonton

Plaza Premium Lounge

I’ve always found the least enjoyable part of travelling is the actual travel part of travelling. Packing, ensuring your suitcases aren’t too heavy, getting your luggage and yourself to the airport, followed by the hassle of getting through security these days makes travelling less pleasant than it should be. All of this has to happen so that you can sit in uncomfortable seats in a noisy  airport for 90 minutes or more before you can begin the process of boarding your flight.

Affordable and Delightful Indian Buffet at Narayanni's

Very nice looking buffet line

We were invited to try out Narayanni's new lunch buffet, and although we were able to attend, they extended us an invitation to their dinner buffet instead.

Mooey Boozemas - Homemade Irish Cream

Homemade Irish Cream

Whenever Christmas rolls around, I always enjoy pouring a little Irish Cream into a coffee to start the morning....  I won't get into the details of whether these mornings are weekdays or weekends, I'll leave that to your imagination. For later in the day, I switch to drinking Irish Cream mixed with a little milk or just straight over ice.

XIX Nineteen – St Albert Beckons

Tasting at XIX Nineteen

Building upon the success of his first asian fusion restaurant, XIX Nineteen, located in Terwilliger, the new XIX Nineteen is located in St. Albert. The décor and design are similar, but still has individual touches, ensuring that this is not simply a clone of the original location.

Apothic Dark for Neophytes Only

If you’ve followed Moo on Twitter over the past few years, you’ll know that I’m a lover of champagne, Riesling and most recently, scotch. You’ll also know that I’ve been taking as many wine courses as possible to increase my knowledge of wine and spirits. You may or may not have noticed that I very rarely drink red wine, other than Lambrusco. This is mostly a result of preference and exposure. I prefer drinking white wines and therefore have not been exposed to as much red wine. Also, prior to learning about the flavour profiles of grapes from my wine courses, I would randomly choose red wines to choose and somehow managed to always choose very oaky tasting wines, which I didn’t find particularly enjoyable, which I suspect turned me off of red wines.

14th Annual Rocky Mountain Wine & Food Festival Giveaway

The 14th Annual Edmonton Rocky Mountain Wine & Food Festival is back! You've heard me say again and again, but attending a wine festival is one of the best ways to try a variety of wines, scotches, and other spirits without investing your hard earned cow coins (or human coins) in an entire bottle, only to find out that you don't like what you bought. It also has the added benefit of exposing you to wines from areas that you may never have heard of -such as Moldova - and you'll fall in love with your discovery. Not to mention, knowledgeable representatives will be there pouring the wines, spirits and other libations, which is the perfect chance to ask them any question you've ever had about the winery, distillery, etc.

The French Laundry - An Anniversary to Remember

Made it to The French Laundry!

Anyone who has spent any significant time watching The Food Network over the last decade or so will likely have at least heard of Chef Thomas Keller and his world famous restaurant in Yountville, California, The French Laundry. He’s been on Top Chef Masters, mentioned by a variety of other celebrity chefs, as well as have had at least one of his restaurants listed on The Top 100 Restaurants in the World year after year. Not to mention if you look at the Michelin Guide at all, The French Laundry is always on the list. Although we dined there last year, they closed shortly after our visit for renovations. Now that they are open again, I thought I would finally post this, now that people can actually dine there now!

Tekarra Restaurant - A hidden gem

A destination restaurant, Tekarra Restaurant is nestled up in the mountains in the tranquil and and peaceful Tekarra Lodge. Unless you knew the restaurant was there, the generic sign at the side of the highway indicating that there’s food of some sort in that direction doesn’t exactly clue diners in on the fact that a wonderful dining experience lies at the end of that roadway. In case you’re trying to find it, it’s not very far from Jasper. We got lost trying to find it ourselves, expecting more signage than there actually was. It’s simply a short drive along Highway 93 towards the Columbia Icefields, and a quick left onto Highway 93A. Tekarra Restaurant is helmed by owner, chef and stand up comedian David George Husereau, who has been at Tekarra Restaurant for over 20 years and does stand up comedy when Tekarra Restaurant is closed in the off season.

A Little Taste of Edmonton International Airport

Texas Bulldog Margarita

I'll admit that whenever I go to Edmonton International Airport (EIA), other than a stop at Starbucks, I never ever buy anything to eat at the airport. Mostly because I'm leary about eating at airports, convinced that a restaurant at an airport won't provide the same quality of food and service that restaurants elsewhere would provide because they have a captive group of customers. However, an invitation from EIA to attend a food tour of their airport and I couldn't resist seeing what they had in store for us.

Freshii's Fresh Food Hits Downtown Edmonton

Metaboost

When I saw that there was a Freshii ready to open up downtown, I was pretty excited. Not that there aren't other salad places around that area already, but most of them are focused on serving the lunch crowd and are usually not open later in the day when people are looking for health dinner options. Freshii is one of those places, refreshingly looking to serve the residents of the area, not just the people who flock to downtown Edmonton just for work, then never return the area for fun.

Snack Healthy with CheeCha Puffs and Giveaway!

I have to admit that I’m a snacker, and not the good kind of snacker. I will munch on things all day, not because I’m hungry but simply because they’re there. I also don’t tend to snack on healthy things, I always lean towards chocolate, chips, popcorn, anything salty or sweet, as long as it’s crunchy. I have to admit that I’ve managed to do a pretty good job of deluding myself into thinking prepared and bagged popcorn is a “healthy” snack, but I know I’m kidding myself most of the time, especially since I like flavoured popcorn.

Bar Tartine lowers the bar

Bubbly to start

On my last visit, I had dined at Tartine Bakery for lunch and had eaten a moolicious grilled cheese sandwich with grilled sourdough bread and a beautiful melange of melted cheese. Their lemon cream pie was tart, without being too tart, topped with an ample amour of whip cream and surrounded by a crispy pastry shell. On this visit, I opted to try their sit down restaurant, Bar Tartine, located just around the corner from Tartine Bakery. 

Elephant and Castle Gift Card Giveaway!

Elephant and Castle Pub and Restaurant has been a fixture on Whyte Ave in Edmonton for as long as my humans can remember. Their menu combines classic British pub fare with North American dishes. In order to keep up with the changing and burgeoning restaurant landscape, they’ve launched a summer menu filled with lighter options, perfect for patio dining on a hot night! The dishes include mussels steamed in a beer cream sauce, a spicy tempura shrimp, a shawarma style grilled chicken breast wrapped in garlic naan bread, as well as a honey dijon salad.