Congratulations to The Living Room in Calgary on 25 years of fabulous fondues; standout shareable plates; indulgent, contemporary comfort food; and curated cocktails! livingroomrestaurant.ca
And to Rouge who are celebrating their 25th anniversary! Calgary’s original garden-to-table restaurant is still creating exceptional dining experiences and is still one of the most romantic restaurants around. rougecalgary.com
And congrats too to Edmonton’s XIX Nineteen on ten years of upscale and creative casual dining, excellent service, and superb ambience. dinenineteen.com
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More congratulations go to David Dienger and his team at Calgary’s ZYN The Wine Market, the first Canadian wine store to win the prestigious Leccio d’Oro International Retailer of the Year award from Italy’s Brunello di Montalcino Consortium. zyn.ca
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5,423 bowls of noodles were slurped at the 2025 YYC Noodle Festival, raising $13,564 for the Leftovers Foundation, with Pure Street Food taking the title of Power Fundraiser for the most bowls sold!
The new, 28-seat, Brioche from our friends at Calgary’s Avitus is authentic French, with Tristan Chaboche’s family recipes and Mediterranean inspiration from Chef Jonathan Shellard. Choose from the small blackboard menu, and the simple, perfectly executed, and wonderfully delicious spread of the day, rillettes, egg mayonnaise (with herring!), shrimp and lobster rolls, smoked duck, and Boeuf Bourguignon, will be on your table within 10 minutes. There’s an excellent wine list as you’d expect from Yann de la Chanonie, mostly French with a touch of Italian, and more upstairs at The Tasting Room – a wine tasting and event space, with bottles and gourmet goodies to take home too. Chat and learn about wine, and enjoy the Brioche menu here as well. Ticketed events also offered. 1512 29 Avenue SW, lunch and dinner, closed Mondays.
Sought x Found has opened a location in Calgary’s Beltline at 1107 4 Street SW, exactly eight years after opening in Crescent Heights. Owners Kitty and Caleb Leung are award-winning baristas with a reputation for meticulous attention to detail, and it’s evident in this carefully considered environment with natural elements of wood, metal, and stone. It's an absolute treat to experience the monthly tasting flight of three coffees prepared the same way, or one coffee prepared three different ways – decaf too! Bagel sandwiches, toasts, pastries, and desserts are on offer, along with bags of coffee to purchase and subscriptions. Daily 7-7, soughtxfound.coffee
Heavily Redacted (‘HR’) has opened up a very small number of places to the public! Downstairs, underneath FinePrint on Calgary’s Stephen Avenue, until now it’s been invitation-only to guests of the owners, maintaining its reputation for exclusivity and discretion. However, even with this new sliver of availability, there is still no photography and no social media tagging - privacy is fiercely protected!
Edmonton’s newest modern Japanese coffee shop has opened at 1643 Towne Centre Boulevard NW. Traditionally, a kissaten (喫茶店) is a relaxed, understated Japanese café offering simple food. Inspired by that tradition, owners Lana and Jeff decided to bring the experience to Edmonton. With limited seating and warm, cozy vibes, Kissa10 lives up to its name. Try their Kinako latte (made with roasted soybean flour) or enjoy a classic matcha latte in this inviting space. Be sure to check their hours online, as they’re quite limited. 9–3pm, closed Monday/Tuesday, @Kissa10.yeg
La Torino is a new, fine Italian restaurant in Avenida, completely refurbished from former La Piccola Napoli by Dubai Chef Binu Simon and wife Betsy. Chef Bini has worked in the world’s top restaurants for 30 years: Dubai’s Burj Al Arab, Fairmont and JW Marriott, and the last 14 years in Calgary at Rouge, River Café, and Bonterra. There’s a wide choice of elevated, elegant dishes, perfectly executed and prepared with a very light hand: excellent pastas, steaks, 12-inch thin crust, sourdough pizzas from the custom Italian Phyrallis pizza oven, and the most exquisite desserts! Ask about special weekly features too. Dinner seven days, lunch Wednesday-Sunday, latorino.ca
Even wildfires couldn’t stop the crew at Patricia Street Deli! Sadly destroyed by the 2024 wildfire in Jasper, the beloved deli has thankfully reopened, and this time, Edmontonians can get their fill of the iconic sandwiches offered by owners Glen and Wendy. Located at 10567 111 Street NW, the newly rebuilt favourite is officially open for business and ready to serve newcomers (and even Jasper regulars up for the drive) those unbeatable sandwiches. 7am-11pm Thursday-Saturday, 7-7 the rest of the week, patriciastreet.com
Edmonton’s first “egg-centric” restaurant has opened its doors across from the U of A Hospital, and just a couple of blocks from campus at 8315 112 Street NW. Hatch’d is a quick-serve breakfast spot sure to meet all your eggy cravings – whether you’re into sandwiches, burritos, or bowls. With savoury cage-free eggs, sausage, and creamy hollandaise, it’s going to be hard for Edmontonians to pass up this new go-to breakfast destination. Monday–Friday 7am-9pm, weekends 8-8, hatchd.ca
It’s Vietnam Calgary-style at the new Lai Rai from the family behind much-loved Pho Dau Bo and Mot To, who were planning a Vietnamese coffee shop and changed tack to open this bright and colourful restaurant with iconic red stools and decor from Vietnam, and a young vibe. A similar menu to Mot To with new dishes from Chef Long too - super delicious Banh Khot (crispy prawn cakes), it’s a place to hang out, have a drink and snack, or dive into the 16-hour beef broth pho (Pho Grilled Cheese too!). Tuesday-Saturday, lunch and dinner. No resos, 201 10 Avenue SE, lairai.ca
After 16 years in Canyon Meadows, Soffritto Oil & Vinegar Bar has moved to Willow Park Village! Your ultra-premium, fresh-harvested, single varietal olive oils; white and dark balsamic vinegars; Chef Heather Gould-Hawke’s ready-made, heat and eat gourmet meals and pasta sauces; fresh pasta, focaccia, gnocchi, tiramisu, Angela’s Olives; made-to-order Italian sandwiches; and so much more are here… Try before you buy oils for salads and high smoke-point for cooking. Meal-in-a-box charcuterie is great value too! Still at Mahogany and Calgary Farmers’ Market South as well as Forno di Fontaine in Calgary Farmers Market West, soffritto.ca
After a two-year gap, Aurora Italiana has given a new lease of life to the former La Dolce Vita location! Rhythm Chopra and John Dick have renovated upstairs, keeping many of the original features (under-table handbag hooks!), to create a gorgeous, romantic, and welcoming space. There’s a talented team in the kitchen, and they’ve developed an elevated, fine dining, seasonal menu of beautifully executed and plated dishes – with surprises! There’s an 18-seat private dining room, and two quiet, candlelit dining rooms (you can have a conversation!), and you’ll be impressed with the attentive service from GM Cherif and his front-of-house team. 916 1 Avenue NE, 4pm-close. Closed Monday, reservations highly recommended, auroraitaliana.ca
Fennec Kitchen & Bar is a destination for Edmonton cocktail enthusiasts and food lovers. This intimate and stylish venue at 10250 101 Street NW, is perfect for people looking for something truly unique with outstanding service. Serving lunch, dinner, and late-night bites, you can get your fix of expertly crafted cocktails or something from their mouthwatering food menu, like the tuna tartare or risotto. Monday–Wednesday 11-2pm, weekends until 10pm.
Pho King is excited to announce their expansion! This family-owned and operated restaurant has been serving the Edmonton community for over a decade, and with the grand opening of the 6526 170 Avenue NW restaurant, Pho King now has four Edmonton locations for Vietnamese-food lovers to enjoy. Now north-side diners can get their fix of Pho King’s classic menu items like their crispy Pork, Chicken, or Vegetable Spring Rolls, or the King Special Vermicelli Bowl with Pork, Pork Patty, Shrimp, and Spring Roll. Seven days, 11– 8. @phokingedmonton
Miss Do is a new Vietnamese restaurant upstairs above Sho Sushi! Emily Do is from Saigon and her relatives opened a highly acclaimed restaurant in Paris in the 1970s. After visiting, she knew their pho was special and had to bring the recipe to Calgary. For Do, it’s all about the highest quality Alberta beef – there’s nothing to hide, just 16+ hour broth, with no flavourings or msg; signature Pho Oxtail really is exceptional, and very generous! Must-try dishes include her original spring rolls from Vietnam, garlic wings with Vietnamese butter and 40ºN fish sauce, and steamed tapioca dumplings in banana leaves. And don’t miss Julia ‘the coffee queen’s special, double-filtered coffee with 30 percent Gia Lai from Vietnam and 70 percent local beans (it’s afternoon coffee not ‘wake-up’ coffee!) 7212 Macleod Trail SE, seven days 11-4pm, missdo.ca
Penny Crown is another runaway success from the DOPO team; a warm, dark, and very busy, upscale New York-style tavern in Calgary’s Marda Loop. Executive chef David Leeder’s small menu is full of dialled up, flavourful dishes, from the pepperoni butter-topped baked scallop to the spectacular mussels cocotte with outstanding caper, lemon, brown butter and sherry broth (order the bread to mop it up!), and the already legendary burger, matched by beverage director Derek Grandpre’s mostly old-world wine list, and exemplary service from the uniformed bar and wait staff. Unit 102, 1926 34 Avenue SW, seven days 4-11 pm, pennycrownyyc.com