Things That Are Open
If you are looking for a list of local businesses that are still open and operating during this time, please click the button below to learn more.
View Things That Are Open
Join us in Old Strathcona for a perfect blend of incredible shopping, world-class dining, and lively entertainment! Whether you’re searching for that perfect statement piece, catching some live theatre, or indulging in our incredible food and drink scene, you can find it all on Whyte.
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Our fourth of five templates is live today - the category is DRINKS! Pubs, cafes, and specialty beverage shoppes have all been struggling over the past few months. Let’s show our favourites some serious love! What’s the first patio you will be sipping drinks on, whenever it is that you feel safe and ready to do so? Please remember to practice kindness and reserve judgement this week when some businesses are choosing to reopen! It’s a difficult decision and many owners have fears that their livelihood will collapse if they don’t do so. Check out our stories and get tagging! 💚
After much brainstorming over the last while about how we can better serve local businesses, we are proud to present a new series of mini-interviews. In this time of hardship, we feel that it is super important to actually get to see the faces behind the businesses that we are urging you to support, hear what challenges they are facing, as well as how they are adapting. In the following weeks, we are going to be featuring businesses in Old Strathcona that are doing an awesome job of pivoting and coming up with innovative ways to keep their doors open while safely serving their community.
First up: @narayannisrestaurant
1) Overview of the business:
Edmonton’s South African-Indian fusion restaurant Narayanni’s has been well-loved for a decade, offering a full-service dining experience with a freshly prepared daily buffet. Narayanni’s prides itself on wholesome, clean eating, with locally sourced and/or organic ingredients whenever possible. Owners Selva (‘Mamma’) and Daya (‘Papa’) Naidoo learned to cook from their parents in South Africa. Their award-winning restaurant, run with the help of their Daughter Youmashni, is located in a historically listed heritage building, Arndt’s Machine Shop. Papa continues his passion for making desserts and frothy cappuccinos while Mamma continues her passion for cooking and service with her finely prepared home-cooked meals.
2) Changes they have made to pivot during COVID-19:
Recent COVID-19 mandates have inspired "Mamma’s Food-to-Go," featuring freshly home-cooked delicacies on a grab-n-go basis. The menu features a wide variety of options, including soup; salad; appetizers; meat entrees; an abundance of vegan & gluten-free entrees; and Papa’s famous desserts. The Menu is available online here: https://narayannis.com/food-to-go
3) How we can rally and support them:
Their Food-To-Go is available two days each week, Wednesday and Friday, freshly cooked in their sanitized health-inspected professional kitchen. Cut off time is 11am on the day of pick-up. Pick-up is available from 4pm – 6pm. Food is packaged and waiting, and customers pay by card. Order through email (info@narayannis.com), Facebook, or phone (780-756-7112).
Our hearts go out to the service industry professionals who have not been deemed as “essential” at this time. Some businesses have been able to pivot and offer online options, but ones that are dependent on customer interactions (like hair dressers, estheticians, massage therapists, etc.) have definitely have been hit hard. Let’s rally together and show them some love. Comment below and use our story templates to tag your favourites!
What a beautiful day! The warmer weather this past weekend had us missing patio season, but @nextactpub burgers in the safety of our balcony was a pretty great compromise. Which local patio do you miss most and can’t wait to hit up when this is all over? Tag them below! For now, we are grateful that take-out food, beer delivery services, and sunshine are all still readily available. •
(@nextactpub is open again for pick up Wednesday - Sunday, 2-9pm).
The second category that we want to put the spotlight on is... SHOPPING! Check out our stories for a fun template to share the love with your local favourites, or tag them below! What is your go-to Edmonton store for new clothes? Buying birthday presents? Home decor? Plants? We want to hear from you!