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chefs metal
A sold out crowd of 770 welcomed the Gold Medal Plates competition back to Edmonton last Thursday. Ryan Hotchkiss of Bündok took the bronze medal with a raw fish dish, sea bream crudo, elegant, flavourful with a delicate texture. Steve Buzak, Royal Glenora club garnered silver with a sophisticated rendition of meat and potatoes with a clever (and crunchy) translucent potato chip, along with toothsome lamb from Tangle Ridge Ranch. Shane Chartrand, Sage, is the gold medallist. His dish, a mediation on the colour red, alive with texture, taste and masterful use of ingredients, including a lacy biscuit that looked like red coral, wowed judges and guests alike. Congratulations to the winners! Gold Medal Plates had raised over 12 million for Canadian Olympic athletes. The competition continues across the country, culminating in the Canadian Culinary Championships in Kelowna in February 2018, https://goldmedalplates.com.
orange poppy seed dressing
This dressing is ideal with butter lettuce, on fruit or with fresh green beans.
holy rollin’
Holy Roller, the new concept from Michael Maxxis, Melanie Swerden and Bill Graham is opening shortly. The large space is divided into three — an old world café fronting 103 street, a long bar opening into a generous restaurant space on the alley (yes, the same alley shared by Sugared and Spiced). The kitchen has a glorious floor-to-ceiling herb garden. It’s a fun interior — lots of colour, distressed surfaces, quirky accessories and eclectic furniture.
“The food is multicultural,” says exec chef Rafael D’Alcazar; “food that brings people together.” Expect pinxtos (Basque-style tapas), skewers, pizza. We are very excited about the chocolate program D’Alcazar is planning, both desserts and bon bons such as hand-painted truffles. The café may be opening a few weeks after the bar and restaurant. Coffee by Ace Coffee Roasters.
wine on fire
Everyone has listened to the news out of northern California with shock. The fires were not a single blaze but several, burning in eight counties, killing 41, destroying 3,500 buildings and laying waste to 69,000 hectares. Meanwhile, some wine harvesting still had to be done. In Sonoma, one in foure people work in the wine trade and in Napa, it’s closer to one in two. The BC Wine Institute is highlighting relief efforts where contributions can be made to help the farmers and residents of the affected areas:
The Red Cross: 1-800 RED CROSS or text REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation.
Animal shelters: sonomahumane.org, napahumane.org, and yubasutterspca.org.
GoFundMe pages dedicated to California fire relief: www.gofundme.com/raise-funds/CAfirerelief
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