Three Food & Drink Pioneers Who Are Killing It
If you like to seek out adventures based on how good they taste, then you've come to the right place, because Edmonton's culinary scene is booming. With spots like Bündok making Canada's Top 8 Best New Restaurants and Condé Nast toting Edmonton as one of the best places to visit, do we even need to say more?
Still, there are a few notable names who are standing out from the pack by putting a focus on the ingredients found in their own backyard.
Blair Lebsack
He's been creating beautiful dishes with local ingredients at RGE RD since 2013. A lot has changed since then, but not Blair’s focus on buying local – in fact his passion has grown. In 2016 RGE RD bought the space next door and expanded with more seating, a full butchery and meat locker. Now they butcher all the meat in-house by hand utilizing all parts of the animal – no easy feat. The passion for the product shines through in Blair’s dishes and leaves a lasting impression on diners.
Adam Smith
Owner of Strathcona Spirits, North America’s smallest distillery at just 69-square meters. He uses juniper berries from Alberta’s Badlands and sea buckthorn berry found right in Edmonton. Fun facts: the distillery space used to be a live music venue called The Baby Seal Club, and Adam drove all the way to Missouri to pick up his still to make the product.
Shane Chartrand
He's the head Chef of SC Restaurant and his focus is on Indigenous Progressive Cuisine. His career has been heavily influenced by his father who taught him about food and where it came from. In 2017, Shane was the first Indigenous Chef in Canada to win the Gold Medal Plates Culinary Championship.
