Lindork’s Lists #159 – Green Beer, Downtown Dining Week, Night of Artists and more!
Newsletter for March 15-21, 2023
Note: this is the public version of my weekly email newsletter that gets sent to subscriber inboxes first each Wednesday. Get the full newsletter first by becoming a free subscriber.
Things to Do This Week
We’re still in a pandemic! In general, please stay home if sick, mask up, get boosted, etc.
Check out the GOBFest board game festival (9210 118 Ave.)
GOBFest (Games on Boards Festival) runs this weekend March 17-19 at the Alberta Avenue Community Hall. There will be tournaments, games that require registration, a flea market, live auction (200+ games for sale), open gaming (hosts on hand to teach games to attendees), and a prototype alley featuring local game designers.
Check out the Night of Artists (Bonnie Doon Centre 8320 82 Ave.)
Bonnie Doon Centre is being transformed into a massive art gallery, auction and gala space for Night of Artists this Saturday March 18 in support of Amy’s House (a home away from home for cancer patients). There will be live music, food, and thousands of art pieces on display / sale.
Shop the Malla MRKT (Kingsway Mall)
Malla MRKT, a “pop-up collective boutique,” runs at Kingsway Mall this weekend March 18 & 19. There will be 30+ vendors, treats, drinks, and the first 20 shoppers get a free swag bag (both dates). If you bring a food bank donation and enter their draw you can also win a $250 swag bag.
Colour the Snow at Holi Festival (11904 Emily Murphy Park Rd.)
Holi Festival, also known as the Festival of Colours, is a popular Hindu festival that celebrates the arrival of spring, blossoming love, good over evil and joy (according to Google! lol) and Edmonton’s biggest Holi Festival celebration will take place at Emily Murphy Park this Saturday, March 18. “Colour the Snow” with a DJ, dance, and food. You need to get admission tickets to participate. All welcome. Happy Holi to those who celebrate.
Take in the U of A Choral Extravaganza (Winspear Centre)
All the choirs at the University of Alberta come together this Sunday March 19 for the U of A Choral Extravaganza at the Winspear Centre. This extravaganza wil lfeature over 200 singers (Madrigal Singers, Concert Choir, Mixed-Chorus, Chorale Saint-Jean, The Augustana Choir, Sangkor, Mannskor and SingAble).
Tune into #NEABOnline Festival on Tuesdays & Thursdays in March!
I partnered with Festival Seekers to promote their #NEABOnline Festival this month, an online Facebook festival featuring makers, entrepreneurs, business owners and tourism operators in the Northeast Alberta communities of Lac La Biche, MD Bonnyville, Vermilion, Metis Crossing, and some in Edmonton too.
Business owners will be doing short Facebook Live videos every Tuesday & Thursday throughout the month to give you a taste of the products + services they offer. This is a great way to learn about and support small Alberta business owners and tourism operators, and plan your own visits to check out the region! And many are doing giveaways for tuning in too! Your chances are pretty good to win lol. :)
#FestivalSeekers_Partner
Got an Edmonton area event, virtual event, or something coming up you think my readers would be interested in knowing about? Let me know!
Food to Try This Week
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Try a new or old downtown favourite for Downtown Dining Week!
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Edmonton Downtown Dining Week returns this week Mar 15 – 26, with 60+ participating restaurants offering $20, $35, $50 or $65 multi-course lunch, all day, and dinner specials. I partnered with the Downtown Business Association to preview one of the new participating restaurants:
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Yam Yam Korean Cuisine & Bubble Tea, whose Dining Week special is $20 for a pork or chicken katsu rice plate with bubble tea. The katsu is amazing! And the portion size is unreal (massive). The bubble tea is fine (not my favourite lol), but theirs is definitely one of the best deals of the week when you factor in portion size and individual prices on both plate + bubble tea.
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Grab Ted Lasso shortbread from Bon Ton Bakery (8720 149 St.)
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The new season of Ted Lasso is out this week and I thought Bon Ton Bakery’s recreation of Ted Lasso’s famous shortbread from the show was super creative! Get some to enjoy while you watch the show!
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Order some Tee Pee Treats Indigenous Cuisine (9641 102A Ave. / online)
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Tee Pee Treats Indigenous Cuisine is now offering delivery via Door Dash! If you’re not able to drop by their downtown space, consider ordering a bannock burger to your door.
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Eat and drink green things for St. Patrick’s Day (various locations)
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We used to go to Brewsters for green beer to mark St. Patrick’s Day, but there’s a few different Irish pubs in town you can head to to celebrate the occasion including Duggan’s Boundary who will be open at 9 a.m., serving breakfast till 11 a.m., featuring many drink specials and live music + Irish dancers + entertainment throughout the day, or O’Bryne’s Irish Pub, who have Irish dancers, live music and green beer drink specials both Friday and Saturday.
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Try a Taste of Lebanon in Old Strathcona (10105 82 Ave.)
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Thanks to newsletter subscriber Selena for this recommendation:
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“I just wanted to give a shout out to a restaurant that might fly under the radar but is great and run by a very kind family. It is Taste of Lebanon on Whyte Ave. The Mezze sampler is a great value and delicious. Plus, their tabouli salad is the best I’ve ever tasted. Well worth a visit!”
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An OG all you can eat sushi spot reopens – Zen Sushi & Grill (7618 104 St.)
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One of the original all you can eat sushi spots in town, Zen Sushi & Grill, has reopened after months of renovations. If you’re hankering for some all you can eat and want to show them some love for their reopening, check out Zen!
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And here’s a few upcoming food events you may want to get tickets for:
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“Carrot by Moonlight” – An annual fundraiser for Arts on the Ave and The Carrot Community Arts Coffeehouse. For two nights March 18 & 19, The Carrot will transform into a French bistro with live world music. Sip on wine and cheese pairings and indulge in charcuterie platters and gourmet desserts. Non-alcoholic drinks also available.
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Northern Chicken’s Gluten-Free Dinner – Northern Chicken is doing a 5-course gluten-free dinner on March 21 with Chef Robert Wick, and Glutenberg, Canada’s premier Gluten Free Brewery.
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Eaten something amazing recently? Want to show some love to a struggling restaurant? Have a take-out suggestion? Let me know to include in this newsletter.
Small Business Spotlight
Congratulations to Vicki & Daisy, the new owners of Princess & The Pea, an Edmonton-based baby and kids store selling everything from clothes to accessories, toys, arts and crafts, mealtime and skin time essentials and more.
The store itself has been around since 2006 (and ships across the U.S. / Canada plus free local shipping for orders over $49). They gifted me a baby care package ahead of our due date and there were some really cute items including the softest bunny plush, a magnetic sleeper, and a cute dinosaur light.
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From the Blog Vault
Around this time March last year, I was staying at the picturesque Baker Creek Mountain Resort—like staying in a Real Life Hallmark Christmas Movie! Located along the forested Bow Valley Parkway in beautiful Banff National Park between Banff and Lake Louise, Alberta, this secluded, quaint cabin getaway is so cute. Actually since last year the resort has been taken over by Basecamp so there may be some changes different from what I mention in my blog post but, still super cute! lol
Some News to Know
I’m piloting a new newsletter section sharing a few local / national news you may be interested in each week—from light and heartwarming to hopeful, political & more!
It’s tax time, so here’s the story of the ‘Cheese Tax’ (the cute animal trend taking over TikTok).
Now that The Last of Us season 1 has wrapped, perhaps you want to plan a filming locations road trip! Check out Travel Alberta’s handy location list.
Weeps due to climate change: A new report says most regions across Canada will experience an “unrelenting” heat this summer.
I thought this story about a professor living underwater for 100 days and the idea of populating the sea was interesting (though not sure I necessarily agree. Humans have done enough damage on land, and even to the sea from land, do we really need to make it worse down there? lol)
National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (Sept. 30) has officially been declared a civic holiday in Edmonton.
March 15 is Long COVID Awareness Day. You can find a lot of related articles and long COVID thoughts in this Twitter search. This week the Government of Canada also announced funding for long COVID research.
Popular on my Blog Right Now
Here are the top four most popular posts on my blog this week:
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