The Pulse: Feb. 23, 2022

Hoot Company, an umbrella for businesses such as DOSC, Dorinku Osaka, Dorinku Tokyo, and Japonais Bistro, launched two ghost kitchens in February, offering a couple of chefs a way to test concepts that may become full restaurants someday.

After taking over a building less than a block from Rogers Place, Hoot Company relaunched the dormant Burger Brawl brand and launched a new concept called Taco Nova, both run by chefs who were originally from DOSC.

Ghost kitchens are hospitality businesses with no dine-in options, relying on third-party delivery apps and take-out to deliver food. They started popping up in core neighbourhoods in Edmonton several years back.

Many ghost kitchens offer generic menus or serve branded items. But Hoot Company's ghost kitchens are different — the chefs behind both Burger Brawl and Taco Nova have particular visions, and Hoot Company has supported them to bring their concepts to life.

"The benefit of having a ghost kitchen is that we don't have as many overheads as a storefront restaurant, so we are able to be more competitive with our pricing," said Bianca Condren, the sales and marketing manager for Hoot Company. "We are always listening and assessing data to be more flexible, and guest feedback is the most important."

Taco Nova chef Luis Rivadeneyra is excited for the chance to make traditional Mexican food at an affordable price.

"I am very proud of the whole menu, but if I had to choose (one dish to recommend), I would say our cecina, a semi-cured beef," said Rivadeneyra. "It is a very popular preparation in Mexico, especially in the town of Yecapixtla. It is served with a cactus salad, grilled panela cheese, guacamole, and cilantro."

He shared that 90% of the menu is homemade, and they are in the process of sourcing the equipment needed to make their own tortillas in the near future.

Chef Karl MacKinnon has been able to lead the rebirth of his Burger Brawl brainchild from DOSC to ghost kitchen. "When I first conceptualized Burger Brawl, the lockdown was in full effect (in December 2020), so Burger Brawl was made as a way to create revenue for DOSC during the lockdown. In a way, DOSC was functioning as a ghost kitchen as we were solely running Burger Brawl out of it," said MacKinnon. "Once the mandates were lifted, it was rather complicated running a full DOSC menu and Burger Brawl out of the same kitchen."

• City council voted 8-5 to explore shifting the Downtown Community Revitalization Levy in the next ten years to provide funding for affordable housing, public washrooms, and other priorities. Coun. Anne Stevenson, who last month proposed cancelling $26 million in CRL funding for the 103 Avenue Pedway, brought forward the motion. A report with options is due back in November.
• The city's ethics advisor, Brent Rathgeber, encouraged city council to consider implementing a lobbyist registry and said the social media conduct policy should be updated. "I think those are both very important tools to promote good conduct and ethics among elected officials," he said. Coun. Michael Janz recently launched a petition for a lobbyist registry. "We must increase transparency and public oversight regarding power and influence over City Hall," he wrote.
• The Edmonton International Airport is joining other airports across the country and #NotInMyCity to crack down on human exploitation and trafficking. EIA will work to raise awareness about human trafficking to help people recognize and report it.
• Rob Browatzke, the co-owner of Evolution Wonderlounge, said he is growing frustrated with the city's downtown core after his business was vandalized. He told CTV News that the business doesn't have the means to pay for repairs. "We've been hemorrhaging money."
• Rosewood Foods, La Petite Iza, and St. Albert's Tryst have been named the best new restaurants by Edify magazine. The magazine's full Best Restaurants 2022 list will be released on March 1.
•  CBC News has launched Edmonton's Best 'Burb, a contest to find the best suburb in the city. Residents are invited to share why theirs is the best for a chance at a prize pack that includes a spring yard cleanup and plenty of CBC swag. The grand prize winner will receive a food truck experience.
• Air Canada will resume daily service from Edmonton to San Francisco and Yellowknife starting May 1 and June 1, respectively.
• Edmonton police "issued and identified" 109 violations during a convoy demonstration ahead of the throne speech at the Alberta legislature. EPS estimates approximately 225 vehicles and 1,500 pedestrians participated in the demonstration.
• In Tuesday's speech from the throne, the provincial government promised a consumer rebate program for natural gas, an increase in the number of surgeries done in charter facilities, and right to know legislation to offer more supports for victims of crime.

On this day in 1962, the Empire Block was falling to the wrecking ball.

The Empire Block was the creation of two well-known figures in Edmonton history — John A. McDougall and Richard Secord. In the late 1800s, McDougall ran Edmonton's general store, where he made a fortune competing with the Hudson's Bay Company in the fur trade. Secord arrived in Edmonton as a teacher before working as a clerk for McDougall and eventually starting his own fur trading business.

By the turn of the century, both men were very wealthy and decided to partner together to build an office block on the northeast corner of Jasper Avenue and 101 Street, one of the prime pieces of real estate in the growing city. Construction finished in 1905, and the red brick building soon became a landmark in the city's core.

The timing could not have been better. Edmonton was entering a period of rapid growth and prosperity that would continue until the First World War. And 1905 was the year Alberta became a province. A new government needed office space, and the Empire Block was a prime location. Other tenants included the Bank of Nova Scotia, as well as opticians, barbers, and other services demanded by the growing city. In 1920, the Owl Drug Store opened on the main floor and would remain a tenant for more than 40 years.

The building suffered a major fire in 1942, which gutted the top two floors. The blaze brought downtown to a halt. The Edmonton Journal reported at the time that the fire caused an explosion on the fourth floor, which "showered (people) with broken glass" as they rushed to remove equipment from the offices. The damage was extensive, and material shortages caused by the war slowed down repairs. As a result, the Empire wouldn't reopen until the following year.

More than half a century after it was built, the Empire met its end due to the same factors that led to its construction. Edmonton was going through another boom, and in 1962, the office block was torn down to make way for a 12-storey high-rise — the Empire Building — to help meet the high demand for office space.

Office space isn't as hard to come by in downtown Edmonton at the moment. The city's core currently has one of Canada's highest office vacancy rates, behind London, Waterloo, and Calgary. Much of that can be attributed to the uncertainty around COVID and the shift towards working from home. And while there might be some bright spots when it comes to filling office towers, many are worried it will be a slow and stuttering recovery.

This is based on a clipping found on Vintage Edmonton, a daily look at Edmonton's history from armchair archivist @revRecluse — follow @VintageEdmonton for daily ephemera via Twitter.