The Ronald McDonald House is one of my favourite charities here in Canada. Their goal is to support sick children and their families by providing a home away from home when a child is ill and hospitalized. Illness in a family can be very stressful and it is amazing to have an organization built to provide families with support during difficult times.

Each year the Ronald McDonald House organizes a fundraising event called the Red Shoe Crawl. It's similar to a pub crawl but instead of hopping from one bar to another, you hop from one business to another, and often times those businesses are restaurants! Every year there is a crawl hosted on Whyte Avenue and one on 124 Street. I attended the crawl on Whyte Avenue last year with my mom and we both loved it.

On September 14th the Red Shoe Crawl will be happening on 124 Street from 12-5 PM. Over 20 different vendors are participating and all the ticket sales go towards supporting Ronald McDonald House Northern Alberta. At $45 per ticket (or $100/family) you get to eat and shop all in support of a great cause.You can purchase your tickets here and I will see you there! If you want to take your chances, the Red Shoe Crawl has kindly offered me a pair of tickets to give away to a lucky reader! Follow the rules below to enter.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

THE GIVEAWAY

ONE pair of tickets to the 124 Street Red Shoe Crawl ($90 value)
(September 14, 2014)

DETAILS

To enter you must leave a comment on this blog post answering this question: What is your favourite shop/restaurant on 124 Street? Please make sure you leave a valid email address in the giveaway widget as this is how I will be contacting you.

ADDITIONAL ENTRIES

1. Follow Little Miss Andrea via Facebook
2. Follow me via Twitter (@littlmissandrea)
3. Tweet about the giveaway: "The @Shop124Street #RedShoeCrawl supporting @RMHNorthernAB is coming! Enter to win tickets from @littlmissandrea!"
4. Follow me via Instagram (@littlmissandrea)

This giveaway is open to everyone able to attend the Red Shoe Crawl on September 14, 2014. All entrants must be 18+ years of age or have guardian permission to enter. You have until September 9th to enter, and the winner will be selected by random and contacted via email. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

American Eagle Jean Jacket (similar)| Forever 21 Maxi Dress (similar)
Coach Mini Riley (old) | Coach Boyfriend Watch & Rings | Helloberry Bracelet
OAK + FORT necklace | Sam Edelman Gigi Sandals | H&M Belt
Over the past few years food trucks in Edmonton have really come out in full force. I remember back in the day when we had about 2 trucks and I was so jealous that other cities had enough to host food truck festivals! Nowadays there are so many trucks out on the street that it is almost impossible to choose which one you want to eat from. I'm always torn between the innovative offerings, but there are always classics that I order again and again.

Here in Edmonton our food truck festival is called What the Truck - how fun is that name? The biggest event of the year is coming up on September 12th in Churchill Square. Mark it down on your calendar, folks! With 25 trucks available on site, this is a huge event you don't want to miss. See you there!

Special thanks to Molly's Eats food truck for the delicious purple cow! Check her out on Twitter & Facebook.

Last week I had the pleasure of attending a media dinner at Sage, the fine dining restaurant inside of the River Cree Resort & Casino. Guests were being treated to a preview of the Taste of Europe tasting menu created by Executive Chef Shane Chartrand which is being featured at Sage from August 26-30.

Sage - 300 East Lapotac Boulevard - Edmonton AB

At the start of the meal Chef Chartrand explained that this European menu was created in homage to some of his favourite European chefs. Each course was a traditional dish inspired by a different chef, and Chef Chartrand put his own personal spin on it.

The first course was inspired by Jose Andres of Spain: clams and chorizo sausage al ajillo with crispy ensalada. The clams were delicate and fresh, and the greens provided a crunchy texture to contrast the other elements on the plate. Al ajillo translates to "with garlic,"and in combination with the herbs and spicy chorizo the flavours in this dish made it a great starter. But my favourite thing on the plate? That egg yolk! Cooked to just the perfect consistency the yolk bound everything together.

Next up was a beef goulash with braised cabbage, potato gherkin cream and spelt bread, inspired by Sven Elverfeld of Germany. Can I just say how beautiful the plate looks? The striking magenta colour immediately caught my eye! This beef goulash probably looks nothing like what you have had in the past, but I will say that Chef Chartrand's take on this classic dish was fantastic. The beef was tender while the bed of braised cabbage provided a different textural element. The potato gherkin cream on top gave it a light dill flavour and the potato crisps, balls, and bread on the side added more contrasting textures.

With the following course we took a trip to Italy for tagliatelle with veal osso bucco, roasted romaine and balsamic foie inspired by Massimo Buttra. This delicate serving of handmade pasta was nothing short of amazing. The contrasting flavours of balsamic, smoke and parmesan all paired so well together that I wish there had been more on the plate. Texture and flavour was spot on with this dish, and the light sprinkling of panko crumbs gave the dish a wonderful crunch. My boyfriend has officially named this the best pasta he's ever had.

The fourth course was inspired by Pierre Marco White of England, and Chef Chartrand gave us his take on cottage pie. We were presented with a truly deconstructed pie made with tender, flavourful lamb with carrots, crispy kale, and pecorino on a bed of mashed potatoes. There was a good portion of meat on the dish, and I loved the crunchy bits of toast that were sprinkled over top. This plate was scraped clean and spotless when I was done with it!

Alain Ducasse of France was the inspiration for our fifth course, which was coq au vin with a burgundy red wine emulsion and gruyere gougeres. The sampling of moist chicken was another winner, but my favourite thing on the plate was the gougere. Light, puffy, cheesy and so easy to eat. I could eat a bucket of them!

Swiss chocolate souffle inspired by Peter Goossens of Switzerland rounded off the meal, and it was amazing to see 50 perfect souffles emerge from the kitchen to the dining table. It's no easy feat, but the culinary team pulled it off! The souffle was decadent, but to make things even better, pots of light creme anglaise were available at the table to pour over dessert. Between you and I, I probably had about half a pot of it. So delicious! Don't tell.

Chef Chartrand is an absolutely talented chef and continues to experiment and express his love for cooking. I would highly recommend visiting Sage to see what Chef Chartrand has up his sleeve, and if you have the chance, definitely check out the Taste of Europe tasting menu available this week from August 26-30! At $49 per person, the six course menu (without beverage pairings) is a steal. Portions are perfect and each course is timed perfectly. Now go make dinner plans, eat & enjoy!


Disclaimer: as this was a media event, views expressed in this post are solely mine. I was not expected to feature this restaurant on my blog, nor obligated to do so. This post is 100% my opinion, and as always, my priority is to you, the reader, to present an unbiased, thorough review.