Recipe of the week -  Daniel Costa’s (Corso 32) Fresh fava bean and spring pea crostini with pecorino, mint and pine nuts

Last chance to taste The World in 80 Bites, May 16, featuring the cuisine of Asia and Africa. The tour includes Vietnamese at Pho Huong and Mama’s Pizza, Somali food at African Safari, then toothsome Filipino delicacies at Fat Jakks. The World in 80 Bites Walking Tour, $30 (doesn’t include drinks and gratuity), rain or shine. Tickets: northedgebiz.com.

Pulses, including dried peas, beans, lentils and chickpeas are featured until May 20 during the Savouring Pulses event at Café de Ville in the Park, Wildflower Grill, High Level Diner, Sabor Divino, and Jack’s Grill. Look for full menus and recipes on the Pulse Alberta website or check out our recipe of the week: Daniel Costa’s fresh fava bean and spring pea crostini.

The Staff Meal collaboration will be making dinner with a French theme at Duchess Bake Shop, Sunday May 20, $50/person. Visit the website for ticket info.

Saturday, May 19 is opening day at The Kalyna Café at the Ukrainian Village east of Edmonton. Friends of the Ukrainian Village Society collaborated with chef Brad Lazarenko and Brad’s sister Cindy to create a fresh new menu inspired by pioneer recipes and foodstuffs from the neighbourhood. Enjoy honey cookies like the ones made in the Grekul’s kitchen, kubassa from Olde Country Sausage, bread from Smoky Lake Bakery and Marina’s pyrohy. Visit the Ukranian Village website for directions.

Frank and Andrea Olson of the Red Ox Inn will open a casual 50 seat eatery on 124 street this fall. “Frank will be in the kitchen,” says Andrea. “We wanted a comfortable place, with the kind of food we want to eat; somewhere you can go for a bite and a beer in the afternoon,” says Andrea. “We live in the area, and we’ve been flirting with the idea of a second restaurant for so long.” Chief design wrangler is Chris Kourouniotis of CK Design Associates.

Destination: Edmonton’s Eat Street

Downtown’s 104 Street is becoming one of the city’s more interesting gastronomic destinations. The City Market moves back into the fresh air this weekend with a new configuration on the south end of the market. City Hall was good, but outdoors is better. The new Pangea Market (main floor Icon Tower) is now open, and will be fully stocked by June with organic vegetables supplied by Halwa Farms, supplements, packaged goods, organic dairy and a deli. We’re all intrigued by Evoolution (beside Lit wine bar), an olive oil and specialty vinegar tasting bar, soft opening this weekend.

We had a sneak peek of what will be downtown’s coolest bar, Mercer Tavern. Barring more problems with makeup air units and other boring but essential construction items, MT plans to be open in early June. Expect a soulful industrial chic look including a private rooms for smaller parties; four audio zones; craft beer on tap, and a delicious looking gastro pub-style menu.

May is Altantic lobster season. Celebrate with two canners and a Keith’s, $24.95, at Billingsgate, 7331 104 Street.

Kathy Marlin, Negociants International; Jane Ferrari, Yalumba; Curtis Bawden and Paulette Scott, Pacific Wine and Spirits Inc.

Tasting wine with Yalumba’s Jane Ferrari is an education and a wild ride all at the same time. Whip smart, she is as generous with stories and opinions as the wines are generous in flavour and expression. The outrageously good value Y Viognier continues to impress with its superb balance and over all drinkability. The single vineyard Virgilius is cellar worthy, a glorious exploration for those who love Condrieu, white Burgundy or Hermitage Blanc.For the full meal deal on vines, winemaking, the Barossa and Jane’s contagiously quirky worldview, check out her blog.

Citrus, foods for entertaining will be at the City Market Downtown on May 19, 26 and June 2,16, 23 and 30, with tortas, dips, spreads and savoury kale chips.

Get your delicious Newget at the City Market Downtown, May 19, 26 and June 2,9 and16.

Fine Wines by Liquor Select’s (8924 149 Street) annual Spring Fling, Saturday, May 26, 2-5pm. Enjoy sampling over 60 wines, beers and spirits at the wine shop’s smashing annual spring fest.

Vagner Montemaggiore, Vinícola Salton’s export director, pulled out the maps to show exactly where their Brazilian wines come from: the hilly Serra Gaucho in the Rio Grande del Sul region in the south of Brazil near Uruguay, similar in latitude to Chile, Argentina and Australia’s best wine growing regions. Salton was started by a family from the Veneto (Italy) in 1910 and now produces 18 million bottles mainly from grapes purchased from dozens of family farms.

Nelson Gomes, FineVine Imports, and Vagner Montemaggiore, Vinícola Salton.

Just released: 100Anos Cab Sauv/Merlot/Cab Franc celebrating 100 vintages. Find Salton wine at Pampa Brazilian Steakhouse, Sherbrooke Liquor and other fine wine shops.

The Bothy, the idiosyncratic wine and whiskey bar tucked into a strip mall across from Weber Motors, opens a downtown location this summer at 10124 124 Street. This was recently home to the Common, which has moved to 9910 109 Street. They now have seating 150 and lots of room for live music and fashion events.

It’s all truffles all the time at the Italian Centre Shops, jarred, in oil and in cheese. We love the Boschetto, a cow/sheep pecorino cheese from Tuscany studded with black truffle.

Café de Ville’s (10137 124 Street, 780-488-9188) new menu features a delicious duck breast served with a springy lemon rhubarb compote and cardamom-scented basmati rice. Or try the cauliflower gallette with quinoa and madras curry cream. Who knew cauliflower pie could taste so good? Café de Ville’s patio, tucked off the street like a secret garden, is opening soon, just the place for a leisurely Sunday brunch.

The Magnifique Wine and Cheese Fantasmagoria, Thursday, May 24, 6pm, benefits the Canadian Studies Institute. Special guests are Jean-Michel Gires, president and CEO Total E&P Canada, and master cheesemaker Patrick Chaput. The elegant raw milk cheeses of Fromagerie Chaput are featured along with wines to suit. Contact MC Levert for tickets 780-465-8771, levert@ualberta.ca.