Showing posts with label Restaurants. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Restaurants. Show all posts

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Donna's Kitchen in Viking

Jim and I were in Viking for a meeting. I googled Viking to see where we could have a cup of tea or coffee after the meeting. The Koffee Kafe came up, hours of operation from 9 am to 5 PM. We could not find the cafe and ended up at Donna's Kitchen on Main Street. Thinking this might be the Koffee Kafe in another reincarnation, I asked Donna if she closed at 5PM. She gave me this long look and stated, "every day I am here at 5 Am. If I am lucky I am out of here by 7 PM but if I get a call from a crew, I don't leave until they are fed, 9, 10, 11 PM. Nevertheless I am back up at 5 Am". When I told her about my google results she replied, "they have been closed for 11 or 12 years". So much for google.

Donna was sensibly dressed in black pants with a bit of flour smugged on the side of one pant leg and black rubber boots. She was a middle aged no nonsense kind of woman. We ordered cinnamon buns and coffee. She brought us four made-that-day cinnamon buns, sticky enough to eat with a fork and knife. Free refills on the coffee. The bill was $4.00 for Jim and I. I thought something was wrong when she said $4.00. She caters and that day had done a lunch in Bruce, I did not ask how much she had charged but I was curious.

Her business card reads, Food With Flair, Catering Service and Concession, Donna Brooke, Main Street, Viking, AB T0B 4N0 (780) 336-2476 "No occasion too big or too small" A nice find.

Saturday, February 6, 2010

Tony's Pizza Palace

The restaurant with two names: Tony's Pizza Palace on the business card and website: www.tonyspizzapalace.com and Tony's Pizzeria e Ristorante Itlaliano EST. 1986 on the take out menu. My friend chose the restaurant at 9605 -111 Ave. It was his birthday. Three of us had never been there before. We asked our server, what are the three top dishes that most people order. He rattled the names off so quickly we had to ask another server if we had heard correctly. We did have the recommended and popular bruschetta. Delicious! Every thing was fresh - basil, tomatoes, garlic and all infused with olive oil on a crust that was light, crispy and of course freshly made. For the pasta dish I had the highly recommended fettucini carbonara tossed with eggs, back bacon and Parmesan cheese. Pure comfort on a minus 15 celsius night.

Our server with the perfect spiked and cut black hair told us that Tony senior had started the business in New York. His son brought the business to Edmonton and he and the other servers were friends with Tony's grandson. They all played soccer together. His short history lesson was like salt to the forth coming food, it put the restaurant offerings in context and changed our relationship to one of "just any pizza joint to there are friends making this food and they care".

I will be going back. There are 9 more pasta plates to try. Given the bruschetta crust, I think the pizzas must be sublime.