Back to Ice Creak Trail Part One
Off to Lethbridge, and our first stop was the Nikka Yuko Japanese Garden, where we visited the Cookie Crimes’ Ice cream cart. A mom-and-pop shop, and, in true mom-and-pop fashion, it was pop, Riley Walburger, who was scooping our cones. The cart had only four flavours—with more at their ice cream shop—including Gorilla Mash, created by a local Grade 3 student. Black Vanilla with mixed berries and caramel; a limited-time flavour that’s been so popular, they keep making it.
Riley Walburger at Cookie Crimes Ice Cream Stand at the Nikka Yuko Japanese Garden, Lethbridge
After our tour of the garden, we headed to [Theoretically] Brewing Co, a small-batch, woman-owned brewery run by Kelti Baird. She’s been running the brewery for 10 years and is the youngest female brewer in Canadian history. “It has been really interesting to watch the industry grow from a really male-dominated industry to now, the vast majority of graduates coming out of Olds college are women, because women have better palates,” says Kelti.
[Theoretically] Brewing Company, Lethbridge
In keeping with the brand, the flights are served in oversized test tubes, and the beer labels look like elements on the periodic table. They are a true small-batch brewery, producing fewer than 250 hectoliters per year, and they are so popular it’s hard to keep up. But if they run out, they still serve beer from other local breweries, like High River Brewing Co. and Stronghold Brewing.
The tap room is a community hub that hosts weekly events, and its small kitchen serves as an incubator for aspiring chefs and entrepreneurs. For now, Dub Dub Dogs is serving gourmet hot dogs with flavours like the Italian Dog, with garlic relish, giardiniera, and crispy pepperoni, and the Banh Mi, with all the usual Vietnamese sub fixings.
For dinner, we hit Telegraph Taphouse. A local favourite serving Lethbridge since 1959. The current owner, Ram Khanal, a Nepali immigrant, has been behind Butte Hospitality Ltd since 2015, which includes Telegraph Taphouse, Cattleman’s Chophouse, and the historic Water Tower Grill and Bar—one of the city’s best restaurants and a favourite date-night spot for locals. And yes, it is a restaurant in a water tower.
Bison burger at Telegraph Taphouse, Lethbridge
Why use local? Ram’s response is simple, “Why wouldn’t I? They come to my restaurant too, so I buy from them, they buy from me. It’s a win-win.”
Before hitting the highway, we stopped at Sonder Coffee. Another local roastery and family-run business born from the pure passion and curiosity of making delicious coffee. The owner, Paul DeMaere, started roasting coffee as a hobby. After some encouragement from friends and family, he started selling at local markets, then took the leap to open the café. Nine years later, he’s left his full-time job with Agriculture Canada and is all-in at the café. A family affair, his kids have been helping out from the beginning. “There’s a picture in the Lethbridge Herald of one of my sons, at 12, doing latte art. My other son, he was 8 or 9 and was on till—and maybe that’s why we made no money,” Paul Jokes. “I think at that point [people] came to see the kids”. And they keep coming back for the great coffee.
Belgian waffles at Sonder Coffee, Lethbridge
They also make a variety of savoury and sweet traditional Belgian waffles with pearl sugar imported directly from Belgium. I can’t explain it, but the pearl sugar makes a difference. You have to try it for yourself. And while you’re at it, try the amazing affogato with their house made vanilla ice cream.
Our host with Tourism Lethbridge, Dominika Wojcik, told us about the Lethbridge-famous, cherished potato donut: Spudnuts. We had to try them, but Dominika prepped us for disappointment. Only certain places were gifted the secret recipe when the original creators closed, and they sell out incredibly fast.
Before leaving Lethbridge, she surprised us with a box of Spudnuts. They looked like your average glazed donut, but they tasted a little different. Not too sweet, and somehow simultaneously fluffy and dense.
From Lethbridge, we took a slight detour and made a pit stop at Little Gem Winery, which specializes in Haskap wines and sells other Haskap products from local producers. This underrated berry is versatile and delicious. I took home some Prairie Hill Farms Smokey Haskap BBQ sauce, it’s my new favourite sauce.
Little Gem Winery, Nobleford
After our detour, we headed to Stronghold Brewing Co. on Fort Macleod’s historic main street (a popular Hollywood film location). Stronghold, owned by Colton and Amanda Wark, is in the former general store and the 1907 building is pretty much unchanged.
Stronghold Brewing Co., Fort Macleod
A picturesque building with a fantastic second-floor patio—open year-round in the Hypedome—and they serve good beer. They also do something that no other nearby brewery offers: build-your-own sour, by adding various syrup flavours to their Base Camp Berliner Weisse Sour. With nine to choose from, you’d have to make two visits just to try them all, and that’s not counting the other eight beers on the menu.
After our blast into the past, we were en route to Waterton National Park. The drive to Wateron alone is worth the trip, scenic, with green rolling foothills peppered with giant white wind turbines. The hills grow larger and before you know it, you’re in the mountains.
The Thirsty Bear is a Waterton staple. They serve local beers from all over Alberta. The menu has a diverse set of options, with dishes inspired by cuisines from around the world.
The Thirsty Bear, Waterton
And of course, we couldn’t leave Waterton without checking out Cameron Falls, a majestic waterfall right in the town.
We made our way to Blairmore in Crowsnest Pass to the aptly named brewery, the Pass. I loved the beer names; Can I get a WITness? RADberry Sour, Lemon Larry, and Morning Shift. They were all delicious, and in Morning Shift’s case, somewhat puzzling. This coffee light lager is a collab brew made with Ophelia Outpost and Fernie Roasting Company. It looked like a light lager, but the coffee smell and flavour were so strong it tasted more like a stout, without the weight of one.
Giant cookie ice cream sandwich at The Pass Beer Co., Blairmore
The Pass is known for its beer and pizza, but we came for the other locally famous item. Their jumbo cookie ice cream sandwiches. Rotating flavours of house-made cookies with vanilla ice cream. You can order a half or a full cookie, but be warned, the full cookie is a meal on its own. The perfect treat for a hot southern Albertan day.
With dessert covered, we headed to Coleman for dinner at Onemore Restaurant. We immediately put the name to the test by adding one more person to our table, and the staff quickly accommodated us. The sharable menu is inspired by the Edmonton-born chef Adam Tundak’s Polish heritage. For a town with fewer than 2,000 residents, I was absolutely stunned by the quality and creativity of the dishes.
Adam Tundak at Onemore Restaurant, Coleman
Every bite was incredibly full of flavour. We unanimously agreed that Adam’s charred cabbage single-handedly changed our views on cabbage, lifting it up from a side dish to the main attraction. “With [my family] being Polish immigrants and growing up with that food, cabbage was a huge thing for us. That and pork. Those are my two favourite things that I deal with, but we’re in southern Alberta. Beef, potatoes, that’s what people want, so it has to be on the menu,” says Adam.
My personal favourite was the crispy potato zapiekanka, a popular Polish street food. The cubed potatoes were super crispy and delightfully garlicky. The flavour lingers in your mouth, enticing you to have just one more bite. I can’t wait to go back.
The last stop of the tour is Ophelia Outpost in Bellevue. Originally the town dairy, this beautiful little café has kept its historic charm. The owners, Ryan and Allison Mueller, moved to Bellevue without any family or friends in the area. “We were very interested in the idea of a third place. It’s not your home and not your work. It’s a place where you can gather and find community and belonging,” explains Allison. Exactly what they have done with their café—it doubles as a live music venue.
Ryan, Allison and Juniper Mueller at Ophelia Outpost
I’ve been sleeping on southern Alberta, and I had no idea. I’m already planning my next trip down, and if you like fresh food, good beer and supporting local, you should too.
