rita trattoria now open
Pasta at Rita Trattoria
Daniel Costa, Micah Joffe, Allen Anderl and team’s newest venture captures the vibe of a casual Italian eatery and brings it to Jasper Avenue. A little bit raucous (like all the best trattoria), bright and warm, on two levels with some bar seating too. The concise menu and wine list is all you want. The focus is pasta but we did start with exceptional lamb chops scottaditto—which means, basically, eat with your hands, so we did. Can’t wait to gather a few folks to order Domenica, Rita’s homage to the fabled southern Italian Sunday meal: ragu napoletano along with various braised meats and salad. Do save room for the torta di pinoli, the delicious pine nut tart with the texture of a blondie and flavours of the Italian forest. Make a reso, or take your chances with a walk in, Wednesday-Sunday, from 5pm.
Rita Trattoria, rita-trattoria.com.
deletable at the aga community gallery
Left to right: Fool’s Harvest by Emily Shirt; Last Place by Abigail St Jean; Nourish by Jada Issac
deleTABLE: the Future and Fragility of Food features art by students from three different schools: University of Alberta Art and Design Departments, HDK-Valand Academy of Art and Design in Gothenburg, Sweden and Portage College in Lac La Biche. The artists explore our bonds with food, both tenuous and enduring. Many are from the north (in both Canada and Sweden) and several are indigenous.
“The table is where we gather,” says Pierre Öberg, Fine Arts instructor, Portage College. “It’s where we bond, but now even the table is precarious, due to the complexity of the world. What is also wonderful about this exhibition is it gives the student artists a chance to be in the art world. It helps provide connections, momentum, what they need to have a career as an artist. It helps set them up for success.”
Expect a thought-provoking experience and a beautiful one with over 100 artworks, including an interdisciplinary cookbook. The exhibition runs September 6 to November 9, and the reception and artists’ talk is on November 1.
The Community Gallery works a bit differently; it’s part of the art rental and sales so all the works will be for sale. The show is curated by Royden Mills (UofA) and Pierre Öberg with key contributor Carl-Johan Skogh, University of Gothenburg.
AGA Community Gallery, 2 Sir Winston Churchill square, youraga.ca/whats-on/community-gallery.
culina famiglia opening soon in little italy
The cosy new CulinaFamiglia
Brother and sister duo Brad and Cindy Lazarenko have been creating food memories in Edmonton for a very long time. First there was Culina and Bibo Wine Bar (the first Bibo) in Mill Creek and Cindy’s restaurant in the Highlands (now Bodega). Their latest collaboration is Culina Famiglia, in the Piazza, smack in the middle of Little Italy. We can expect delicious, approachable, family-style food, pizza and an easy atmosphere. Good food and good drink, just the kind of place you want to drop into on a weekday night.
Culina Famiglia, 10821 95 Street, culinafamily.com.
el jardin now open
A dish at El Jardin
The inspiration is Oaxaca. Consider this: dishes like sikil p’aak de la casa, a smoked pumpkin seed dip, to start. Then: tasajo asado, thinly sliced, wood-grilled beef, a specialty of the markets in Oaxaca City, empanadas, a trio of moles and a full tacos menu. The Passport to Mezcal is a guide to mezcal at all levels and yes, of course, there are beautiful mezcal cocktails too. Hospitality maven Flavius Iulian heads up the management/ownership team and Luis Borracha is the head chef. We can’t wait. Open Tuesday-Saturday from 5pm.
El Jardin, 10359 104 Street in the Mercer Building, eljardinyeg.com.