Caffe Sorrentino @ Edmonton Airport - Edmonton

My flight back to Toronto was delayed and grounded for 2 hours becasue of flooding at Pearson Airport, so I took the time to grab a meal. I did a quick walk around the terminal to assess my choices and I decided that Caffe Sorrentino had some of the better fast-food options. 

 but things were definitely on the pricier side (perhaps due to the airport location)

Genovese Grilled Panini

Chicken breast, tomato and pesto mayo

The panini was relatively simple with thick cut slices of chicken breast and pesto mayo. There wasn't as much tomato as I would have liked, but the sandwich was filling from all the focaccia and chicken.

Overall: Decent panini and probably a step up from regular airport food (or Westjet/Air Canada domestic flight food). 

Website: http://www.caffesorrentino.com/

Block 1912 - Edmonton

In the afternoon, we did a little wandering around Old Strathcona:

I started craving cake after passing by the Remedy Cafe on Whyte Ave, but I didn't feel adventurous enough to try the Vegan cakes. 

 

Instead, we went to Block 1912 and I got a slice of this:

 Raspberry Pistachio cake

Mmmm flavourful pistachio paired with tart raspberry - I love that combination. 

The cake was super moist (maybe because it wasn't fully baked?) with a bit of a gooey sticky taste. 

The layers of cake were separated by pistachio mousse and raspberry mousse. I definitely got the taste of both flavours in the cake. 

Website: http://block1912.com/

Sugarbowl - Edmonton

The pretty Edmonton Skyline:

I had no idea there were so many hills in Edmonton (especially downtown)

 

Apparently Sugarbowl is the Go-To Brunch place in Edmonton. 

 

They had a pretty good beer selection; I thought it was pretty cool that they served craft beer brewed right in Edmonton (this is Aprikat beer by Alley Kat Brewing Company and it was perfect for a sunny day out on a patio - I loved the apricot accents)

 

Lunch Menu (Brunch is only served on Saturdays and Sundays)

Chicken & Waffles with maple butter

Yum! I loved the simple and sweet maple butter on top of the fried chicken breast and waffles. It was a good balance between not being too syrupy sweet or overpoweringly rich and heavy. I do wish there was more of it for my waffles because it was so good! (I think my chicken got most of the drizzle). The fried chicken was a huge meaty portion with nicely seasoned white meat and there was a simple mixed green salad on the side. 

 

Huevos Rancheros 

With corn tortilla, spicy beans, two poached eggs, mixed cheese, sour cream, salsa and cilantro

The plate was super hot and according to my friend, the huevos rancheros looked different from the last time she saw them (perhaps a different brunch portion?). It was pretty tasty with the salsa verde, black beans, sour cream, soggy tortillas and poached eggs. 

Overall: Since we didn't eat breakfast, this served as my Friday brunch. It's a popular place with locals as you can tell from the line-up outside the restaurant for lunch and it was probably also because the service was a little slow. The food was good and reasonably priced (mostly because you barely pay tax in Alberta 5% GST - it's such a nice change from Ontario's 13% HST). 

Website: http://www.thesugarbowl.org/

Remedy Cafe Downtown - Edmonton

I arrived in Edmonton around 10 pm and by the time we got out of the airport, it was around 10:45 pm (my Westjet flight was stuck waiting for the Air Canada flight from Toronto to finish disembarking). Luckily, the Remedy Cafe in the downtown core was still open for late night eats and take-away Indian food with vegan and vegetarian options.

Pretty cool place - a good hangout place with the cafe and Indian restaurant all-in-one.

Kashmiri Chai Tea
Wow...this was amazing! The chai was so aromatic from the mix of Indian spices and herbs and to top that off, there were rose petals and ground pistachios liberally sprinkled on top. Definitely a must try here!

Take-out Butter Chicken


Butter Chicken on Basmati rice

The butter chicken had elements of sweetness and spiciness to it, but the predominant taste in the sauce was the sweetness. The all-white meat chicken was almost swimming in the sauce. It was nice to pair the chicken with the rice. 

Overall: Really cool cafe concept - it's definitely not your average Indian restaurant. If you're a fan of delicious teas, you have to try the Kashmiri Chai they serve here. They have some really cool vegan and vegetarian options (especially the cakes). 

Website: http://remedycafe.ca/