Congratulations to the Italian Centre Shop who celebrated the 10th anniversary of their Calgary store this summer with a Spaghetti Western-themed pancake breakfast for more than 2,000 people! Of course we love their products, and we applaud their support for local producers and their unwavering commitment to community.
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And to Brett McDermott, owner of Our Daily Brett, on its 10th anniversary. Ever the entrepreneur, the Calgary market and café has evolved and grown, as well as sister businesses: Neighbour Coffee, Actually Pretty Good, Business & Pleasure, and Super Variety. We celebrate his community spirit and generous support for local not-for-profits.
And congrats too to Buco Pizzeria and Vino Bar, who have been serving up their Neapolitan pizzas, modern Italian assaggini (little tastes), entrees, and grilled dishes, to the appreciative St. Albert community, and celebrated their 10-year anniversary this summer!
Big Rock is celebrating its 40th anniversary with a rebrand and an eye-catching and bold new look for the next chapter of their journey. Also big-time community players, they’re celebrating in style with the return of ‘Barn Burner’, a day-long music festival at the Brewery with an all-Canadian line up, on September 13!
SAIT School of Hospitality and Tourism is celebrating 75 years! And can claim credit for the careers of a vast proportion of our restaurant chefs and food service professionals. The anniversary is marked with some major new projects, such as the new Highwood Kitchen & Bar, and plans for a Banff Hospitality & Tourism campus.
Burger spot, Lil Empire now has a fourth Calgary location. As well as their stores in Bridgeland, Capitol Hill, and Annex Ales brewery, you can now get your smash burger fix in the Beltline at 1103 4 Street SW, street level under Two Park Central. As well as the signature Empire burger, all your favourites are here in this bright and very modern, quick service, dine-in or take-out, burger joint: with cheese, spicy Korean, plant-based, a variety of hot dogs, chicken sandwiches, nuggies, dirty fries, poutine, and our particular passion – the rich and tasty, beef and pork chili cheese fries! Milkshakes are on offer too, and all good value. Don’t forget the Puppy Patties! Seven days, 11:30-9 pm. lilempireburger.com
Monogram Coffee’s Ben Put is Canada’s 2025 National Barista Champion – again! He’s now been awarded the national title seven times, and this year in a milestone year too for the World Barista Championship as they’re celebrating their 25th anniversary. Put will now represent Canada in Milan next month, and we’ll be cheering for him at a distance!
Feed The Soul has launched an Indigenous dining guide to help you discover and support Indigenous-owned restaurants in Amiskwaciwâskahikan – or Edmonton. It highlights local favourites like Culina, Bernadette's, Native Delights, Paper Birch, Homefire Grill, and Bibo – places where you’ll find not just great food, but community and culture too. If you haven’t visited them yet, now’s the time @feedthesoulyeg
Panoramic downtown views are not the only attraction of Calgary’s Crescent Heights - there’s no stopping the culinary scene here! The latest addition is the third location in five years for pizza restaurant, Actually Pretty Good. (We have to say we disagree with the name. It’s a little deceptive – they’re actually bloody good!). A complete build-out from the cosmetic shop before, now it’s a tiny, very colourful spot with just four booths, and such fun and interesting choices of 12-inch, New York-style thin crust pies, and three rotating 18-inch by-the-slice. If you’re dining in between 2-5 pm there’s a whopping 25% off all food. Don’t miss the Kale Caesar! 1028 Centre Street N, seven days lunch and dinner, actuallyprettygood.ca
Zest Kitchen and Bar is Edmonton’s new late-night burger haven, blending upscale comfort with a relaxed vibe. Located at 10127 100A Street NW, it’s ideal for family dinners or even spontaneous burger runs. Run by the team behind Zest Elevated Hospitality, you can expect top-tier service. Chef Tony is serving up favourites like the Zest Cajun Fried Burger and spicing up the menu with dishes like coconut shrimp and refreshing mango lassis. Seven days, 11 am-late.
The Hub is now open in Whyte Avenue’s historic Hub Cigar Building, and ready to support Edmonton’s next wave of culinary entrepreneurs. Created by former Meuwly’s owners Peter Keith and Glendon Tan, it’s already home to exciting new spots like Beb’s Bagels and Balay Coffee – quickly becoming a go-to destination for Edmontonians to discover fresh, local flavours and support small businesses. 10345 82 Avenue NW, @balaycoffee.yeg and bebsbagels.ca for hours.
It’s a room with a view at Bow & Bend Rooftop – and a patio too! A vacant office building in Calgary’s west end has been totally renovated, and is now home to Element Hotel by Westin with 226 extended-stay hotel suites – and a bar and lounge on the 12th floor! It’s modern and upscale, yet relaxed, with floor-to-ceiling windows and a west-facing patio (mountains views!). Two Riverwalk rooms are also available for private dining and events. Head Chef Ashutosh Salunke’s locally sourced menu reflects the diverse local dining scene with something to please all tastes, and Bow & Bend is rightly proud of their creative cocktails, featuring spirits from local distilleries. You’ll know where to find us! 833 4 Avenue SW, seven days from 5 pm, bowandbendrooftop.com
Everyone's favourite, Made By Marcus, has just opened their newest location in Edmonton's Mill Creek. A great addition to the neighbourhood, this big new space has plenty of seating inside and out, so be sure to bring your friends! Seven days from 11-11, madebymarcus.ca
NOtaBLE – The Restaurant has undergone a major rebrand, and a reimagined concept with the launch of NOtaBLE - The Steakhouse! We’ve always loved the wood-fired flavours, and can happily tell you that nothing has changed there; our favourite NOtaBLE dishes are still on the menu (those crispy potato rolls and rotisserie chicken!) and now Chef Noble has added a premium steak experience. notablesteak.ca
Kondattam not only means ‘celebration’ in Tamil, Calgary’s newest Indian restaurant IS a celebration! A celebration of authentic regional Indian cuisine - from the clay oven tandoori dishes of the North to the dosas and coconut curries of the South. Owner Sudha Thangavel has long dreamed of this restaurant, and together with her husband Chef Saravanan Senniappan (owner of the Big Fish Open Range restaurants) they’ve created a jaw-droppingly gorgeous space, travelling to India and filling a shipping container with incredible artifacts, furniture, and spices for a truly genuine Indian experience. Kondattam has a big menu, and you’re going to be completely spoiled for choice of crispy fried appies and snacks, breads, biryanis, and curries (with your choice of spice level!) and so much more, including must-try cocktails, but the knowledgeable staff are happy to help you choose. 1006 1st Street SE, 11-late, closed Mondays. kondattam.ca
Nero is now open in Edmonton’s historic Molson Brewery building, serving up delicious cocktails and traditional Italian flavours with modern culinary techniques. A cousin restaurant to the well-loved Rosso and Bianco, its sleek interior – complete with Roman pillars and a refined chandelier – makes it the perfect spot to impress a guest with a cocktail or enjoy some of their antipasti, house-made pastas, wood-fired pizzas and more. Tuesday to Sunday lunch and dinner. Neroeats.com
In addition to their South and West locations, Ryuko has also opened in Calgary’s Beltline, at 10 Avenue and 14 Street SW. If you’re a fan of their other two locations for your Japanese food, you’ll love this one! The lunch and dinner service menus are exactly the same, and you’re in good hands with Head Chef Kevin in the kitchen, but there’s a different vibe in this busy 90-seat space. Studio North have done a great job with the decor – it’s city-style, and light and airy with big windows, and a wall of words (love, family, dragon, tiger) in the shape of Tokyo’s iconic Nakagin Capsule Tower. Watch out for brunch coming soon! 1004 14 Street SW, Wednesday to Saturday noon-close. ryuko.ca
Even more reasons to visit Calgary’s Beltline district! Unfiltered Wine Bar has opened at 1020 14 Street SW. First-timers in hospitality, community-minded husband and wife owners, Nina and Haafiz Hasham, have realised their dream of the last two years, and opened an unpretentious space for conversation over great sips and snacks. They built and created everything themselves, including the walls, the tiling, Nina’s handmade, oak-finished dining tables…! There are flights and blind tastings, and a super delicious tiny food menu - try the potted crab and the truffle and red wine burratini, you’ll thank us! From 3 pm (1 pm Sundays), closed Mondays. winebarunfiltered.com
A second PYRO location has just opened in Edmonton's Crestwood neighbourhood, and they’re bringing the heat! Located in the former Rebel space at 9106 142 Street, PYRO 142 is offering many favourites from the flagship Sherwood Park menu, along with some exciting new dishes – including Alberta beef from the province’s top farms! The stylish new space and smart-casual menu make it a perfect spot for an intimate date night or an outing with the whole family. Seven days, pyrogrill.ca
Edmonton’s West Side now has its own Hanjan Korean restaurant! After huge popularity at its Whyte Avenue, Downtown, and South 99th Street locations, the Seoul food favourite has expanded west, opening at 10401 Mayfield Road NW. Seven days from noon-late. hanjan.ca
Millo Millo is a new bakery in Calgary’s Glenbrook/Killarney area, so called as everything is made from flour, and ‘mil’ is Korean for ‘wheat’! Owner Yujeong Kim was a baking instructor in Korea before emigrating to Canada, and she fed her own sourdough starter every day for a year to bake everything here from scratch herself. You’re drooling the minute you walk in this little 10-seat café with its case full of freshly baked viennoiserie, sourdough breads, signature pretzel bagels, canelé and madeleines, Basque cheesecake, and Kim says the black forest and lemon curd cakes (by the slice or the whole cake) are also very popular - all washed down with a strawberry matcha latte! 3003 37 Street SW, seven days 8-4 pm.
Right next door is the new Freo, slang for Freemantle, in Western Australia, where owner Chef Chris Jo started on his career path at Perth Culinary School. On arriving in Canada, Jo has cooked in a Japanese restaurant in Red Deer and at Visionary Catering, but his passion is Western breakfast/brunch fare, and he does it extremely well. His signature burger and Chicken Parm Waffle top the favourites list, but the bennies, toasts, and omelettes, are all so tempting! We wolfed down our wonderful Chorizo and Butter Bean Stew. For those with a sweeter tooth there’s plenty to keep you happy here, it’s all so flavourful and fabulous, and with very friendly staff! 3003 37 Street SW, seven days 7-3 pm, freoyyc.com
Be transported to Venice at the new L’Olivo Cicchetti & Lounge. Tucked away at the back of Lina’s Italian Piazza in Calgary’s Inglewood village, this gorgeous space with a huge tree right in the middle, serves up “cicchetti” – small, and thoughtfully created Italian sharing dishes (the best things come in small packages, right?), which means you can try more of them! You’ll be glad to know that Giuseppe di Gennaro is back leading the kitchen (remember Capo down the road in Inglewood?), so while it’s a relaxed atmosphere, we’re assured an elevated dining experience. Chill in the lounge next door for a cocktail before (or after) your dinner. From 5 pm, closed Sunday/Monday. 1023 9 Avenue SE, lolivo.ca
The Sweatered Hen is now open for dinner. Since its launch last year, Chef Andrea Harling’s cosy little restaurant on Calgary’s 17 Avenue SW, has rightfully earned a reputation for memorable breakfasts, brunches, and lunches, but now from Wednesday to Saturday, dinner is served from 4–8 pm too. Sip, snack, stay, is the order of the day! Harling’s menu has always showcased Alberta produce, and the evening menu too, with plates of seasonal ingredients built to share. “Ganny's” warm cheese biscuits with herb garlic butter are still here, and we really enjoyed our hummus, broccoli kale salad, and ragu pasta. Check out Sous Chef Cosmo’s desserts and be happy when you have Cleo as your server! 819 17 Avenue SW, thesweateredhen.com
Plaza 1000, in Calgary’s Downtown West End, is home to a new Italian restaurant, Mille Restaurant and Café! And what a home, this reimagined space by the Astra Group is beautiful – glitzy, with 1,000 sparkly crystals hanging from the ceiling, and glam – which is how you’ll feel eating Head Chef Rodney Luzentales’ menu of refined takes on modern Italian home cooking, many recipes from owner, Jenna Bazzana’s family (just order the Calamari & Patate, it’s a contender for the best in the city!). We couldn’t be happier for Bazzana, who last year closed Sauce Italian Kitchen & Market, her restaurant of ten years. Weekdays lunch and dinner, weekends from 3 pm. 1000 7 Avenue SW, milleyyc.ca
