Paper Lantern co-owner Tanner Ennis works behind the bar of the Vietnamese cocktail bar in Calgary's Chinatown. The speakeasy garnered a healthy amount of buzz, first introducing itself by way of cocktail kits before officially opening in late June.Leah Hennel/The Globe and Mail
Looking in my fridge at the remnants of restaurant-constructed meal kits and then my liquor cabinet with similar odds and ends from cocktail kits, it reminds me just how different things have been this year.
I remember making my way home from Vietnam in late January and having a layover in Shanghai. COVID-19 loomed ahead during my last week abroad, but this airport felt like a ghost town. I had never seen anything like it, especially in an international airport. It felt surreal and once back in Canada, things felt normal.
The atmosphere in that Chinese airport offered plenty of foreshadowing. Empty airports, empty restaurants, empty concert halls.
This year featured disruption, frustration and difficulty, but also resilience, determination and ingenuity. And while we all want this strange chapter to end, 2020 had some memorable moments on the Prairie food and drink scene.
Saying goodbye to old favourites
Many food and drink businesses struggled to survive – and are still struggling to survive – after the onset of the pandemic. From casual to fine dining, plenty of restaurants and bars made the difficult decision to cease their operations permanently.
Two of the most celebrated eateries in the Prairie region, The Hollows in Saskatoon and Winnipeg’s Segovia, chose to close in mid-spring in response to the lockdown orders in their respective cities. Edmonton’s Prairie Noodle House called it quits in October as did Wishbone.
Out of all of the Prairie cities, Calgary has seen the most change. Many popular places shuttered from spring to fall including Market, Tavernetta, Oak Tree Tavern and HiFi Club. Other restaurants such as Brasserie Kensington, Blink and Waalflower technically closed as well, but remained under the same (or similar) ownership and transformed themselves into new concepts.
Celebrating the new
While the pandemic ground most cities’ food scenes to a halt, notable closings seemed to be balanced by buzzworthy openings. As they say, when one door closes, another one opens.
The Lil' Bacon Cheeseburger and Buffalo Fried Cauliflower Bites at V Burger, a new vegan burger restaurant in Calgary.Todd Korol/The Globe and Mail
Winnipeg’s highly anticipated daytime-focused restaurant Juneberry opened in July to plenty of fanfare for its creative take on brunch. Likewise, Preservation Hall Eatery + Wine Bar had many excited, especially for chef/co-owner Tristan Foucault’s wide array of house-made cured meats. The city was also lucky enough to see a new Syrian eatery open in its downtown Exchange District. Daanook Restaurant is one of only a handful of Syrian restaurants in Canada.
V Burger was the first concept of note to open once sit-down service resumed in Alberta in May. It took Calgary by storm with its (shockingly delicious) plant-based fast-food creations. Lineups down the block proved that the carnivorous city was ready for something fun and meatless.
Vietnamese speakeasy Paper Lantern also garnered a healthy amount of buzz, first introducing itself by way of cocktail kits before officially opening in late June. Orchard followed in the fall, dazzling via social media with its lush green entrance and ornate chandeliers throughout. Last, but not least, Top Chef Canada alumnus Jinhee Lee opened her first restaurant, JIN BAR, where she serves up playful and rich Korean cuisine.
I’d also be remiss to not mention Rain Dog Bar, which opened in the winter, just weeks before the first provincewide lockdown. A charming beer-centric eatery boasts plenty of unique food courtesy of chef Chris Lorenz and a myriad of microbrews that could make a beer nerd’s dreams come true. Couple that with a warm, welcoming atmosphere and you’ve got my favourite new spot of 2020.
Brussel sprouts and the braised onion with one of the many house beers at Calgary's Rain Dog Bar, which opened in the winter.Todd Korol/The Globe and Mail
Creativity abounds
Many people and businesses in the hospitality industry chose to reimagine their operations in order to adapt.
Forget HelloFresh, restaurant-made cocktail and meal kits reigned supreme in 2020. It doesn’t matter what city you’re based in, chances are you’ve cooked up something at home thanks to a local restaurant. Generally speaking, these kits have offered food lovers a way to connect with their favourite independent restaurants or bars.
Many restaurants, such as Saskatoon’s Hearth, launched food programs adjacent to their regular takeout menus. The weekly “provisions” of chefs Thayne Robstad and Beth Rogers, consisting of large-batch meals, soups, baking and more, have become a go-to for locals wanting to keep their fridges and freezers stocked with ready-to-go meals that can last for more than one sitting. Edmonton’s Biera has also hit its stride with a similar weekly meal program its chef, Christine Sandford, playfully dubbed Basically Biera. And yes, both offer cocktail kits, too.
Speaking of drinks, we’ve also seen bars such as Calgary’s Proof launch their own line of canned cocktails – in my opinion, some of the best RTD beverages you can find in Canada. As well, the Teatro Group launched its own bottled Negroni and, of course, Ship and Anchor bottled its famous boozy eggnog for the holiday season. I am sure we will see more namesake liquor products being offered by restaurants and bars throughout 2021.
Cory Gaudette pours a canned cocktail at Burwood Distillery in Calgary. Restaurant-made cocktail and meal kits reigned supreme in 2020.Leah Hennel/The Globe and Mail
Pizza during the pandemic
Most food trends and fads got tossed out the window when independent restaurants moved into survival mode. The majority streamlined their menus to offer higher-quality takeout, kits and other appealing food and drink in a to-go fashion and while offerings have remained undeniably diverse, pizza seemed to trump all.
It’s not that pizza wasn’t already popular before the spring of 2020. Everyone enjoys pizza, but the appeal of a low cost and relatively easy production proved appealing for many restaurateurs as they hopped on the bandwagon. Three Boars (Edmonton), CHARCUT (Calgary), Craft Beer Market (nationwide), most recently Starbelly’s Pink Door Pizza … it’s a long list of chefs seeing varying levels of success with their pizza programs.
In all of my tastings, few of the pandemic-born pizza concepts do an exceptional job, but hey, a profit is a profit during trying times.
Virtual shopping
The Regina Farmers’ Market was the first market of its kind to move to an online ordering system (in the spring) as a response to pandemic-related restrictions, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg in the Prairies when it comes to virtual marketplaces.
Local Calgary vendors offering a new citywide food delivery service called Best of Calgary Foods get orders ready at a distribution centre in Calgary, on Nov. 26, 2020.Todd Korol/The Globe and Mail
Saskatoon’s Little Market Box saw an explosion in popularity since March with its virtual market model, which highlights a huge range of Saskatchewan producers and makers. In a similar vein, Best of Calgary Foods – an online hub for food and drink producers in the Calgary area – and Winnipeg’s Good Local have seen tremendous success with their digital endeavours since both launched in the fall.
While ordering takeout online from a restaurant or bar is nothing new, the pandemic did see many places expand their offerings to include pantry staples as well as wine, spirits and beer.
Music!
When businesses reopened in Alberta – but singing wasn’t permitted – bars that play a vital part in the independent music community, such as Ironwood Stage & Grill, The Blues Can and Mikey’s on 12th in Calgary and Edmonton’s Cook County Saloon, took matters into their hands.
Musician Wyatt Louis prepares for a physically distanced performance at the King Eddy venue at Calgary's National Music Centre on Oct. 2, 2020.Jeff McIntosh/STRJMC
The “ask for forgiveness, not permission” mentality saw them all creating custom clear-plastic barriers on or adjacent to their stages to allow people to enjoy live music. It wasn’t until late summer that Alberta Health Services publicly approved the use of these setups. However, the ingenuity of these businesses provided work for countless musicians for the months between lockdowns and allowed the bars to stay afloat.
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