Did you know that Albertans eat more donairs than anywhere else in Canada? I know, right?! Edmonton, the donair capital of Western Canada, even considered making donair its official food, but it looks like they’ve conceded that it belongs to Halifax. The migration of the donair to Alberta is a mysterious phenomenon but there is a generally assumed connection to Maritime migrants […]
I lived in Calgary from 2009-2012, during which time there were only 4 microbreweries and brew pubs: Big Rock, Wild Rose, Brew Brothers (now defunct) and Brewsters (a Western Canadian chain of brew pubs). Alberta has been a little slow finding its way into the craft beer industry due to some laws that were unfavourable to small batch brewers. Minimum […]
Update 2020: this post was written in 2015, and many of these restaurants have since closed (I have indicated which ones). There is now a Jessy’s Pizza in Toronto, and it doesn’t get more authentic than that. Check them out at 2200 Dundas St W. I recently took a trip to Toronto with my main pursuit being a donair investigation. […]
Carousel Bakery, in the St. Lawrence Market 92-95 Front Street East, Toronto, ON For much of my life, I thought “Canadian bacon” was just a quirky and misinformed American term for ham. Kind of like French fries. Turns out, I had never eaten back bacon nor could I figure out what was particularly Canadian about bacon, back or otherwise. TIL […]
I have made the decision to embark on a Halifax fish ‘n’ chips quest this summer! This is a dish I often avoid because I find the combination of deep fried & deep fried to be so heavy and regretful. For this reason, I will only be eating 1pc fish ‘n’ chips all summer, and supplementing these posts with a […]
The American burrito was essentially invented in San Francisco’s Mission district, which is a colourful Mexican/Latino neighbourhood that has a ridiculous amount of taquerias per capita. A burrito is really a whole meal wrapped in a tortilla, and was originally an effective way to sustain farm workers for a long hard day. When the burrito met the American belly, it […]
I don’t know who invented the “Asian fusion dog”, but Vancouver certainly made it famous! According to the history of Japadog, it all started in 2005 when a Japanese couple immigrated to Vancouver with the dream of opening a world famous food stand. For several years, Japadog enjoyed local fame. Then the 2010 Winter Olympics provided international exposure, followed by […]
I lumbered into Calgary on a Greyhound bus one summer morning in 2009. I would end up living there for 3 years, but my first moments were filled with disorientation and culture shock, as I stumbled through the wasteland of strip malls, box stores, and chain restaurants grasping for something familiar, before discovering and understanding the real Calgary culinary scene. This […]
The concept of the “Italian sandwich” is one that is fiercely guarded at various state borders. Some people claim the Italian sandwich is a type of cold cut consisting of Italian deli meats like capicola ham and genoa salami. To others, it is breaded veal and marinara sauce in a bun. In New Orleans, the Muffaletta is the Italian sandwich […]
Thanks to this song, reminiscent of my high school taste in music, my bucket list demanded that I take surfing lessons in Tofino, Canada’s surf capital, located on Vancouver Island. So there I was, last Spring, on the rainy Pacific coast, riding a rental bike in the rain to the beach where I would proceed to get knocked over by […]
