How Edmonton chefs are spicing things up, and where to go for a 'trendy' meal

Giant croissants can be found at Ayco Bakery, an Edmonton pastry shop that combines the classic French pastry with fun techniques and flavours. (Linda Hoang)

If you've only ever heard of tanghulu or cronigiri, have no fear – you can find them here.

From globally-inspired pastries to vegan fast food and Connor McDavid-themed culinary delights, Edmonton has a lot to offer anyone looking to try something trendy.

Here is a look at some of the a-la-mode offerings in our city this year – and how you can expand your culinary horizons in the new one.

Don't be afraid to let your tastebuds travel

According to Whole Foods Markets and Resto Biz, North American consumers have shown a strong desire for global fusion foodstuffs.

The trend was seen playing out this year on social media via the viral chamoy pickle trend, tanghulu ASMR and the Taiwanese-inspired cucumber salad that got more than 34 million views on TikTok and was blamed for shortages of the fruit (yes, a fruit) in Iceland and Australia.

Here in Edmonton, fusion also reigned supreme, with kabayaki eel omurice, Korean BBQ fries and Takis-flavoured mini donuts all debuting at K-Days.

Fu's Repair Shop's haute takes on dim sum topped Edify's list of best new restaurants, and Little Wolf's cod belly with fermented tomato, coconut oil and lime leaf helped it make Air Canada's 30 best new restaurants in the country.

And, Open Table's Top 100 in Canada included Bernadette's, Sabor and Tzin Wine & Tapas, offering Indigenous, Portuguese and Spanish flavors, respectively.

At the Ayco Cafe, a French favourite served as a canvas for popular pastry trends and fun plays on a classic patisserie.

Alongside traditional croissants, the artisan bakery's offerings have included iced coconut yuzu lattes, ube "cruffins" and the viral cronigiri: a triangular croissant wrapped around fish filling and adorned with seaweed, an ode to sour and salty Japanese rice balls.

"They basically jump on any type of global bakery trend," Linda Hoang, local food blogger and social media strategist, said.

"They know that people are excited about these different unique things," she continued. "And then they're bringing them here, they're making them local. I think that that's really cool."

Little Wolf chef Shaun Hicks – who combines French technique with non-French flavours like sea buckthorn, sumac, miso and black lime – said he can't speak to trends, but he does believe social media and food bloggers are helping expand people's palettes.

After all, the first bite is with the eye and one need wander no further than Instagram for a metaphoric mouthful.

"That kind of publication on a daily basis for people definitely has removed a lot of boundaries of them being less open minded toward what they eat in terms of what ethnicity it is, what style or flavor profile," Hicks said.

"It has made a lot more things possible that I don't think 20 or 30 years ago would have been popular or even approached by a lot of people until they see it … especially when you're hungry."

Don't forget to eat your greens

Once limited to side dishes, the time is ripe for vegetables and plant-based plates to have their main character moment.

Global insight provider Innova expects meat-free foods to be in the top six food trends next year, with vegan and plant-based products seeing 23 per cent average growth annually.

Edmonton has already seen that market grow in terms of stand-alone vegan and vegetarian restaurants.

Once limited to a handful, including the long-standing Padmanadi and Cafe Mosaics, you can now find plant-based Vietnamese and Indian food, dimsum, pizza, pub fare, pastries and more.

"Even in the last year, for instance, Edmonton got a pretty popular all-vegan fast food chain called Odd Burger," Hoang said.

The move toward vegetable-forward menus extends beyond restaurants for the meat-free, Hoang added, pointing to Little Wolf as an example with its seven of 11 dishes vegan or vegetarian.

"As an avid meat eater, I love their vegetable-focused menu. It's done so well. The vegetable is not just an afterthought," Hoang said. "It's truly the star of the dish, which is great."

Other omnivorous restaurants offering plenty of plants include Bianco and the Butternut Tree, both of which have menus that are close to 40 per cent meat free.

If you'd like to get in your five-a-day and support a good cause, Little Wolf holds a special vegan dinner each month with proceeds going to Edmonton's Food Bank.

Don't forget to cheer on the team

According to a study done by University of Alberta students, the Edmonton Oilers fan base is the ninth most positive in the NHL.

This year, fans might not be feeling as hot, but the city's enduring team spirit can be found rain-or-shine year-round on local menus, from blue and orange perogies to superfan-favourites and beers worth "holding."

Campio Brewing's owners are self-proclaimed "die-hard" Oilers fans, and the Big MacDavid pizza has been a menu staple since opening in 2019.

Meat the Bun, Jack's Bar and Kitchen and the Burger Baron on 124 Street all have an Oilers burger on the menu.

And at Woodshed Burgers, the Ben Burger – an homage to Oilers superfan Ben Stelter – was made a permanent menu item in 2022, with $1 from each burger donated to the Ben Stelter Foundation.

Chef Paul Shufelt said the burger has since become a fan-favourite and has raised just over $10,000 for charity, including $3,000 just during this year's playoff run.

Heather Thompson, of the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce, said Edmonton has always been a hockey city and it makes sense for businesses to cash in.

"The Oilers brand is so significant, it's so trusted, that if any company can kind of make a link back … I think there it goes a long way with the consumer in the world of trust," Thompson said.

Restaurants have even capitalized on knocking down the competition.

"For instance, last year, (the Oilers) were going up against the LA Kings, so I'd written about California-inspired food and drink that people can get," Hoang said.

"A few years ago when they were in the playoffs, they were going up against the Ducks and there were actually a fair bit of Edmonton restaurants that were showcasing their duck."

The boys-in-blue-and-orange will be batting the New York Rangers Saturday night – making it prime time to crush a New York slice or two.

According to Explore Edmonton, the best places to score one include Sepp's Pizza and Tony's Pizza Palace.

Don't forget to try new-to-you things

If global flavours are on trend, Hoang and Hicks said the Capital City's food scene has always been hip.

"Something that's always stuck out for me was our international cuisine … all of the different mom-and-pop restaurants from people that have immigrated here, and the small grocery stores," he said. "You're transported into this Bodega with all this different food, and that's always exciting to me."

"There's a lot of really long-standing classics," Hoang said. "I'm thinking about Shanghai 456… They do soup dumplings, which was trendy for a while.

"A decade has come and gone, and people still go there for their soup dumplings."

Hoang said social media trends can be an entry point for people to try something new (at least to them), but there can be unintended consequences when food goes viral.

"They have historically driven up prices of certain ingredients," she said. "There was something this past year where a TikToker was sharing about their favorite cucumber salad … an Asian marinated cucumber dish which is literally on like every single Chinese, Korean restaurant menu in the city.

"I had read for that one (that) there were some countries that actually couldn't keep up with the demand for cucumber after."

With so many Edmonton restaurants – new and old – offering amazing food, she hopes trend hopping can inspire Edmontonians to seek out local tried-and-true spots they may have overlooked before.

"We have a ton of restaurants here that have these great dishes, or these 'trendy' dishes," Hoang added. "I would hope that they would get a boost when they see something trending that way."

"I'm a big proponent of Chinatown restaurants, and they, for sure, are never keeping up with the trend. You get what you get at a Chinatown restaurant," she added. "I think that's really cool."