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Elk Island has 800 bison, 300 elk, 200 deer and about 1000 beavers in Canada’s only full fenced national park. The park is only a 30 minute drive from downtown Edmonton and is 194 square kilometres in size. One of our country’s oldest parks, early naturalists recognized the unique character of this land in what is known as the beaver hills. Formed by a collision of three glaciers, rolling hills and thousands of sloughs and ponds were left behind in this small district which is completely surrounded by Prairie otherwise. Our Edmonton Food Tours team – Karen Anderson, Liane Faulder, Cindy Lazarenko, Suzanne Dennis, Howard Kowalchuk and Debra Anzinger –  pulled in on a windless, 25 degree Celsius Saturday evening. It had been a dry summer so there were no mosquitos to pester and only the promise of a dinner laden…

During the brief, glorious summer season, it is recommended that every lover of local food, whether you live in Alberta or are just visiting, sign up for an outdoor, farm-to-fork dinner. This not-to-be-missed Prairie experience generally features a long, communal table set out under a big blue sky in a farmer’s field, and laid with the best of local protein and produce. If you’re lucky, there will be a few cows standing around. The trend began in Edmonton a few years back, when RGE RD chef Blair Lebsack teamed with farmers Danny and Shannon Ruzicka of Nature’s Green Acres to hold an outdoor meal on the Ruzicka farm, located near Viking, about 120 kilometres east of Edmonton. Lebsack served vegetables that he had grown himself on the Ruzicka property, and all the meat was also supplied by Nature’s Green Acres…

The long-awaited languid days of summer are here. Finally. And that means one thing for those of us who love to savour the flavour of anything freshly picked or locally made.  Biting into fresh–picked corn dripping in butter. Popping juicy, purple huckleberries straight from the bush into your mouth, like candy. That first sip of your favourite cold and hoppy craft brew on a hot summer day.   We are spoiled for choice when it comes to exploring the province’s exploding culinary scene this summer. Thrown into the blender of this summer’s festivals and events is Alberta’s booming food truck scene, creative chefs and a chance to meet local farmers and ranchers.   We’re hard pressed to pick favourites, but here are a few. Check the Alberta Culinary Tourism Alliance or Travel Alberta for a fuller list.   To market, to market – June through fall – You don’t have to drive far to come across a local farmers’ market. Outside of Calgary and Edmonton city markets, you’ll find stalls of fresh produce and more in towns and cities from Medicine Hat to Cochrane and Camrose, all the way north of…

There are some cities you just don’t want to miss. Chicago is one of them. From Thursday, October 12 to Monday October 16, 2017, Alberta Food Tours invites you to join our guide Liane Faulder as she travels with a small group of devoted food adventurers to experience one of the great eating – and entertainment – centers in the United States. Liane has been a writer with The Edmonton Journal for over 30 years and has led 10 previous culinary excursions across Canada, the United States and Europe. Chicago has been on her bucket list for a long time and Alberta Food Tours, Inc. president Karen Anderson has designed this itinerary after three research trips in 2015 and 2016. With some 2.7 million residents, Chicago is big enough to be home to a large number of innovative chefs experimenting with new…

Edmonton’s 104th Street is a magical place in the summer. With numerous cafes spilling out onto the sidewalk, it is a hot spot for people watching, while also offering the perfect opportunity to indulge in a range of high-quality food and drink. You can sip cocktails while sampling tapas at Tzin Wine and Tapas, relish a craft brew with poutine at Blue Plate Diner, or choose from a selection of Canadian and international cheeses at Cavern, paired with a glass of thoughtfully curated wine. Perhaps the best way to get a good sense of 104th Street is to visit the bustling City Market held every Saturday between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. between the May long weekend and Thanksgiving. Some 20,000 visitors will join you of a pleasant day. All of you will be able to pick up a great…

It is time to stop and taste Alberta’s food again like you are tasting it for the first time. That’s not as easy as it sounds because when something has been right in front of you your whole life you don’t see it – let alone taste it – for the truly unique thing that it is. On our food tours we ask our guests what is Alberta’s food?  Beef is the first thing they think of. They are surprised to learn that cattle have only been in Alberta for about 160 years. We explain that they are an exotic Scottish import. Before there were fences, Montana cowboys “drove” them here in search of grazing lands. Bison is the animal that was formed with this land. There is archeological evidence that the first bison crossed from Asia over a land bridge 120,000 years…

Canmore Uncorked is a bit like Christmas. There’s 12 days of fabulous festivities. Only instead of all those maids a milking and lords a leaping, there’s set price menus, free tasting experiences, a whiskey, wine and beer festival, progressive dinners, cooking classes, and of course, our own Canmore Food Tours’ behind the scenes food tours (more about those soon).   My name is Callandra Caufield and I’m the operations manager at Alberta Food Tours, Inc. I was raised in Canmore and I love this town. Canmore Uncorked started in 2014 and I’ve had the pleasure of participating since inception. Though it’s tempting, I can tell you first hand, it’s impossible to experience everything this festival has to offer. Because most of us have limited time (and waist bands) for the festival, I’m going to share my “must eat” list of Canmore Uncorked…

There are some cities you just don’t want to miss. Chicago is one of them. From Thursday, October 12 to Monday October 16, 2017, Alberta Food Tours and our guide Liane Faulder travelled to Chicago with a small group of devoted food adventurers to experience one of the great eating – and entertainment – centers in the United States. Liane has had a distinguished career with The Edmonton Journal and had led 10 previous culinary excursions across Canada, the United States and Europe. Chicago had been on her bucket list for a long time and Alberta Food Tours, Inc. president Karen Anderson designed this itinerary after three research trips in 2015 and 2016. With some 2.7 million residents, Chicago is big enough to be home to a large number of innovative chefs experimenting with new food trends while continuing to nurture…

Calgary is a sprawling city of just over 825 square kilometres . The downtown is filled with skyscrapers but just a short walk or bike ride across The Peace Bridge lies a compact liveable, walkable area known as Kensington. The fact that Calgary has a string of neighbourhoods like this circling it like pearls on a necklace surprises many. This is where locals hang out and this is why we like to share areas like this with visitors to the city. As our friend Kenny Dunn at Eating Europe says, It’s nice to take a break from being a tourist. Calgary Food Tours has offered food tours in Kensington for a few years now. We love our long-standing partners and in an effort to help more people attend the previously only daytime offering, we recently moved the hours of operation to Thursday evenings,…

The Old Strathcona Farmers Market sells food and crafts, absolutely. But visitors to this hopping space in the heart of Edmonton’s south side are guaranteed to leave the site inspired by not only the quality of the offerings but the stories of the folks who toil at the booths. Vendors like Graham Sparrow, who has put years of sweat equity into his organic farm – Sparrow’s Nest – and brings both passion and fresh flavour to the fruits and vegetables he hauls into town weekly. And Laurel Ferster and Zinovia Hardy of Calico Baking Co. – who have perfected a range of artisanal breads, scones, croissants and tarts that sell out most Saturdays at the market.  “People don’t have to go to France for world-class bread,” says Ferster with confidence. “They can go and see the two gals at the market.” So…

Canada was rated the number one place in the world to visit in 2017 but what does that really mean in terms of how many visitors will actually show up each year? Destination Canada, our country’s tourism marketing board, has shown that on the path to purchase: 80 per cent of the world has Canada on their dream list 39 per cent are seriously considering coming 11 per cent are starting to gather information 7 per cent have a detailed itinerary 2 percent are finalizing the arrangements and 1 per cent have booked a trip to Alberta. As a small business owner in the tourism sector, I ask myself what can our company do to increase the likelihood that more visitors will not only choose Canada but make Alberta their first choice. After more than a decade in business, I’ve…

By Liane Faulder, Edmonton Food Tours guide and writer for The Edmonton Journal The definition of a romantic meal varies widely. Some couples can feel dreamily alone in a noisy and crowded space like El Cortez Mexican Kitchen and Tequila Bar (8230 Gateway Blvd.) and others like a padded banquette in a dark corner at the Red Ox Inn (9420 91 St). One duo might find a grilled cheese eaten while perched on a stool in a trendy sandwich joint like Farrow (8422 109 St.) to be gooey and gorgeous. Another needs champagne in the Confederation Lounge at the Fairmont Hotel Macdonald (10065 100 St). If you’re of the cheap and cheerful persuasion, look no further than the aptly named Café Amore (10807 106 Ave.) The tables for two are tiny, and it’s easy to have an intimate conversation, especially…