REVIEW | KIND ICE CREAM | EDMONTON

There's a downtown mural that reads, "Take a risk. It's the most Edmonton thing you can do."

The message might raise a few eyebrows, but I can tell you that the women-led team behind Kind Ice Cream are some of the biggest risk-takers I know. I mean, who opens an ice cream shop in a city that only has two seasons -- winter and construction?   

Not discounting Yelo'd (which serves Filipino-inspired soft serve), La Carraia (and other gelaterias), and the countless DQ's and Marble Slabs, Kind Ice Cream, to my knowledge, is the first artisanal hard ice cream shop to open its doors in Edmonton. They were quickly followed by Made by Marcus, a Calgary favourite, who opened shop on Whyte Ave, but Kind Ice Cream is Edmonton born and bred.
 

I learnt about Kind Ice Cream through their Kickstarter campaign, which was their final push for capital before opening their doors. I became a supporter and quickly became a fan. Their mission statement -- to be kind -- was something that really resonated with me. To be mindful of the environment, to be inclusive and welcoming of everyone, and to be supportive of other local suppliers and businesses. (Also, I was pretty stoked to eat some ice cream.) Safe to say, the campaign was successful, and they were able to raise over $20,000.

The shop, located in the heart of Ritchie, opened just this past June. It's a small space but absolutely adorable. As soon as you walk through the doors, the smell of freshly-baked waffle cones hits you square in the face. There isn't a ton of seating, but ice cream is totally transportable, and it's probably wise to burn off those calories with a walk around the neighbourhood anyway.

I'm wary of long lines, so it took me a good couple of months before I finally paid a visit. It was a crisp Sunday afternoon, which wasn't ideal ice cream weather, but perfect for us as there was only a few other people milling around.
 

All of their ice cream is chef-inspired and made in small batches right on the premises. They offer 11 "always" flavours which feature classics like vanilla bean, mint chip, and deep dark chocolate. They also have a rotating flavour menu, which is where they flex their culinary creativity and highlight seasonal ingredients. There are multiple vegan options (made with cashew milk, coconut milk, and cocoa butter), as well as gluten-free cones available, so that everyone can indulge.

Kid's scoops are $3.50, single scoops are $5.50, and double scoops are $7.50. They also sell take-home pints for $10. It might seem pricey but it's pretty consistent with other gourmet ice cream shops. Portions are also quite generous, so pro tip, ask for a single "split" scoop which lets you try two flavours!

For her scoops, LT chose real deal strawberry and cookies & sour cream. Inspired by my childhood order of maple pecan ice cream with rainbow sprinkles at Purdy's, I got the maple bourbon pecan and birthday cake. We both opted for waffle cones which are a $1 extra (but worth it!). They also supply cups or sugar cones free of charge.

The real deal strawberry was probably our favourite -- it was rich and sweet with real strawberry flavour, none of that artificial stuff. We were both on the fence with the cookies & sour cream. We both wanted to love it -- it sounded totally unique and interesting in theory -- but the sour undertone didn't help the lack of sweetness in the ice cream. With my maple bourbon pecan, they definitely weren't shy with the bourbon! It was also chock full of roasted pecans. The birthday cake was a bit tamer in flavour; it's a sweet vanilla ice cream with rainbow sprinkles and classic cake batter folded in. As far as texture goes, the scoops have a nice creaminess, but for the flavours with mix-ins, I did notice the ice cream was a little more icy and stiff than preferred. I think it's something that will improve as they refine their production and grow through experience.

Although we haven't had the best weather this summer, 2019 has definitely been the renaissance of ice cream. Judging by the lines outside Kind Ice Cream, Edmontonians agree. It's kind of a big deal.

Kind Ice Cream

www.kindicecream.ca

9551 76 Ave NW

Edmonton, AB

(587) 759-0080

- CT 

REVIEW | ATLAS STEAK + FISH (WEM) | EDMONTON

It was my dad's birthday last week and his celebratory restaurant of choice was ATLAS Steak + Fish. (Funny how his taste in food becomes more expensive when someone else is paying.) ATLAS is a modern steakhouse brand owned by Gateway Casinos. They operate two locations in Edmonton: the Grand Villa Casino in the Ice District and the Starlight Casino in West Edmonton Mall.

My family and I have all been to ATLAS on separate occasions, but this was my first time dining at their WEM location. 

The restaurant is located on the second floor right above the casino. They have a 'no minors' policy so just keep that in mind if you were thinking of bringing the family.

The dining room goes in pretty deep. It's a classy space with an open kitchen, live piano accompaniment and half circle booths that offer a bit of privacy. The dress code was described as smart casual, but I saw varying degrees of dress in there. 

On Thursdays, all seafood dishes and champagne are 50% off! It's a fantastic deal, and probably the only reason why you'll see so many Asians (including us) in the dining room. If you do go on a Thursday, make sure you have a reservation! The bar does accept walk-ins, but our waitress said the room was fully booked for the night.

YES TO FREE BREAD! Before your food arrives, they'll bring out a small skillet with four bread rolls. The fluffy bread is served warm with a touch of flaky sea salt and a side of blue cheese butter. I'm not a fan of blue cheese but thankfully the flavour isn't very strong. In fact, the first time I tried it, I didn't even notice the blue cheese until someone else mentioned it. Once you realize it's there and become a bit more hyper-aware, the funkiness becomes a little more pronounced.

If you have extra bread at the end, save it! It's great for sopping up soups and sauces in the dishes to come.  

One of the showstopper items at ATLAS is their seafood tower for two ($88.00; $44.00 on Thursdays). The two-tier tower features Atlantic lobster tail, king crab legs, seasonal oysters with a champagne vinegar mignonette, mussels, clams, and poached jumbo prawns with gin cocktail sauce. The seafood is fresh and it's a great sharing piece with lots of variety.

Prawns are one of my favourites, and these were HUGE.

I don't know if I would pay regular price for the tower (since money doesn't grow on trees), but at half off, it's a ridiculous value.

The seafood tower came out at the same time as our lobster bisque ($15.00; $7.50 on Thursdays). My parents really enjoyed the soup before so we ordered two to share.

The bisque is a tomato base infused with briny lobster flavour. It's rich, creamy, and well-seasoned. At the centre of the bowl is a perfectly seared scallop and a dollop of caviar. I seldom order soups at restaurants but this was a pleasant surprise!

Another starter we ordered was the ahi tuna poke ($16.00; $8.00 on Thursdays). The ahi tuna is diced into small cubes and then marinated with shoyu. It's served with edamame beans, thinly sliced carrots and daikon, pickled cucumber, and wonton crisps. This dish was sort of forgettable for me. The tuna was on the mushy side and the only flavour I got from it was soy sauce. I also wished they included more wonton crisps to scoop the poke with.

Our last item from the appetizer section was the oysters rockefeller ($18.00; $9.00 on Thursdays). Four oysters baked in-shell with fresh spinach, reggiano-parmesan, buttered crumb, and Bearnaise sauce. Since we were a group of five, I didn't get to try one but the rest of the family said the sauce was almost too creamy, overwhelming the oyster taste.

If you weren't feeling the entrees at ATLAS, you can also order seafood a la carte! Items are listed underneath the accompaniments section. We got two orders of the pan seared sea scallops ($20.00; $10.00 on Thursdays) which comes in multiples of four. The scallops are large, meaty, and nicely seared. Because the scallops are inherently sweet, it doesn't need much else for flavour. Just a spritz of lemon and you're good to go! 

The tempura soft shell crab ($19.00; $9.50 on Thursdays) is another a la carte item my family really likes. During my last visit to ATLAS, I distinctly remember the crab only being $10.00 ($5.00 on Thursdays). It must be a popular item that they've almost doubled the price!

If you have a group, the seafood mixed grill for two ($88.00; $44.00 on Thursdays) is another great item to share around the table. It comes with grilled lobster tail, Alaskan king crab legs, grilled and fried calamari, jumbo tiger prawns, and tempura soft shell crab. They pre-cut the crab legs so it's easier to get to the meat!

My brother also wanted the truffle parmesan fries ($10.00) so we ordered a side of those as well. Good amount of truffle flavour in the aioli. The fries were crispy, but they seemed a bit dry inside. We joked and gave my brother a bad time since the fries cost as much as the other seafood dishes.

Having been to both locations of ATLAS in the city, I would say they're pretty consistent, offering similar experiences in terms of food, decor, and service. Their half-priced seafood and champagne deal has been going on for a while, but I'm not too sure if it's a permanent promotion or a limited offer type of situation. Regardless, get your butts there on a Thursday and FEAST!

ATLAS Steak + Fish

atlassteakandfish.com

8882 170 St NW #2710

Edmonton, AB

(587) 460-2423

- CT 

EVENT | BOUNTIFUL FARMERS' MARKET | EDMONTON

"What did you do this weekend?"

As an avid follower of the hermit lifestyle, my answer is usually nothing. I've slowly morphed into a 40 y.o. stay-at-home mom (just minus the kids), doing 8 a.m. grocery runs and browsing Home Sense for fun. But guess what kids! I did go out last weekend.

"Ooh, tell me where?"

The new farmers' market, that's where!

Nothing says wholesome family fun like going to the farmers' market. Everyone has their favourite. There's the 124 Grand Market, the City Market, Old Strathcona, Callingwood, etc etc. Edmonton's newest market to enter the scene is a game-changer. It's the city's first year-round multi-day indoor farmer's market. And it's called Bountiful, located in the city's southeast. 

The market is open Friday to Sunday, from 9am to 5pm. They have over 100 vendors spread out in a nearly 50,000 square foot warehouse.

Parking is plentiful and free. If the lot is full, there is street parking as well as an overflow lot at the building across the street on Saturdays and Sundays.  

I love the colourful design of the market, with each vendor having their own permanent stall and awning. There's a good variety of items to browse through, including fresh local produce, baked goods, prepared foods, and art/decor. There should also be familiar faces in the crowd, with many vendors already selling their wares at Old Strathcona or other markets around the city.

Our first stop when we arrived was Fantasy Pretzels & Donuts. Aside from Bountiful, they also operate two locations in Calgary (Crossroads Market and Avenida Food Hall & Fresh Market).

If it's not obvious by their name already, they serve up doughnuts and pretzels. They have a pretty eye-catching display, with stacks on stacks of soft pretzels in a variety of different flavours. We skipped breakfast that morning so what better way to start the day than a giant soft pretzel?

They had six different flavours on hand, including original salted, pizza, Asiago spinach, truffle cheese, jalapeno Parmesan, and cinnamon sugar. I think it's pretty obvious which pretzel I went for. 

The truffle cheese pretzel ($4.25) is baked with a mixture of four different cheeses: cheddar, Gruyere, Monterey Jack, and mozzarella. Since we were eating it right away, they also offered to warm it up for us. The pretzel was soft and fluffy, but I sort of wished it was chewier. They were also generous with the cheese, but the truffle flavour could have been stronger as I didn't taste much of it.

Right around the corner, we stopped at Hello Mochi's booth. Their main seller is their mochi doughnuts, but they also have macarons and mochi squares. They have my vote for the most innovative (and certainly most Instagrammable!) item at the market.

The mochi doughnuts are $3.00 each or four for $11.00. We planned to only buy one ... but somehow left with a box of four. (Self-control, what's that?).

There were five flavours that day, so we got all of them except for the cinnamon sugar. Starting from the left, going clockwise, we got the vanilla buttercream with Nutella drizzle, toasted creamy coconut, salted caramel, and Callebaut ganache with candied fruity pebbles. The fruity pebbles are caramelized to keep them crispy. Because they were a little more labour intensive to make than the other doughnuts, it was an extra $0.25.

We didn't have the doughnuts until later that day so we noticed that they became a touch oily on the surface. Fortunately, they didn't taste that way. The dough was nice and chewy with most of the sweetness coming from the frostings and glazes. If I had to pick only one doughnut to go back for, it's definitely the salted caramel!  

One of my favourite aspects of the market was the food hall section! By the main entertainment stage, there's a ton of picnic table seating for you to sit down and enjoy food from the different kitchens surrounding it. 

While we were saving a spot at the picnic tables, LT went and ordered a plate of potato cheddar perogies and kielbasa from Ukrainian Fine Foods. I believe the plate was around $13 and she added bacon for an extra $1. You can never go wrong with perogies. 

Also in the kitchen area is a stall called Cookie Crumbs. They serve coffee and drinks alongside their unique take on cookies. They make waffle bites, a hybrid between a waffle and a shortbread, and waffle pucks, which are a shortbread crust surrounding a variety of different fillings. 

Their waffle shortbreads are made with organic unbleached flour, organic cane sugar, real unsalted butter, and/or organic virgin coconut oil. I was drawn to their more unique Asian flavours, some of which include hojicha, ube, matcha, black sesame, taro, and red bean. I ended up getting their Japanese cheesecake waffle puck ($4.00). The filling was creamy and tangy and when combined with the crisp, buttery shortbread, it reminded me of a Japanese cheese tart. One of my favourite items that we picked up!

How cute are these macarons? Sucre M is no stranger to the market scene, selling their macarons at St. Albert Farmers' Market and the 124 Grand Market. Their macarons can also be found at Bogani Cafe and Hi Tea.

I picked up a half dozen macarons ($13.00) for a friend so sadly I can't vouch for how they tasted. However, I can say that they have the prettiest colours and presentation.

Green onion cakes are such an Edmonton market staple. Interestingly, these were being sold at the same stall as Pasta Delight. Each bag comes with four pieces for $7.00, or two bags for $13.00. Green onion cakes are relatively simple to make at home, but who has time for that when all you have to do is heat these up in the toaster? The toaster crisps up the outside while the inside remains tender and flaky. It's not Edmonton's unofficial "official" food for nothing.  

Our last item in our market haul were some meat pies from South Island Pie (two for $14.00), sold in collaboration with Honest Dumplings. Whenever we come across South Island Pie, we always have to pick up a couple to put in the freezer. My personal favourite is their Chook (chicken, cranberry, Camembert), but we ended up getting their Wilkie (steak and cheese) and their Old Faithful (mince and cheese) this time around. Always a solid choice.



Need plans this long weekend? May I suggest a visit to Bountiful Farmers' Market? Get out and support local!

 Bountiful Farmers' Market

bountifulmarkets.com

3696 97 St NW

Edmonton, AB
(780) 818-3878

- CT