EDMONTON HOTSPOT: TEA FUSION (DOWNTOWN)

Ooh la, la! I discovered this whilst going to the Booster Juice around the corner.

Tea Fusion is an Edmonton-based company dedicated to providing fresh and healthy products. 

What I really like about this place is that there is a rewards program (unlike Booster Juice): after ten teas and/or sandwiches, you get one free! Also, for lunch, you can get .50 to a 1.50$ of your lunch! Just choose from the lunch menu!

You can also, like Subway, pick and choose what goes in your wrap/sandwich (there are many bread options to choose from in the wrap department).

Tea Fusion has a large array of tea and 'bubble' products:

• You can blend your own loose-leaf roasted tea;
• In the Bubble Iced Tea, if you don't see a flavour you like, ask them is they have it! Not every flavour is up on the menu, and you can pair the flavour with either a green or black tea;
• Bubble Milk Tea;
• Realfruit Bubble Milk Shake (regular or soy milk);
• Bubble Slush.

You can also get products made on-location, like their muffins. So far, I have tried cranberry-orange and apple-cinnamon, and O-M-G! The best muffins I have ever had.

Forget Starbucks and Tim Hortons! If your in Edmonton City Centre shopping centre, or near the other location, this is a *must visit*. Let's help this local business bloom! FIVE STARS!

Grape-flavoured Bubble (Green) Iced Tea

EDMONTON HOTSPOT: LAZIA (DOWNTOWN)

This is the downtown location, in Edmonton City Centre shopping mall.

Source: Lazia's website.

Source: Lazia's website.

O... M... G! Wow! For a reasonable price, you can get amazing food at this downtown Edmonton restaurant.

Choose from a unique and varied menu when you come to Lazia, winner of the 2011 Dinner's Choice Awards; it gives you the option to eat either a regular restaurant portion or a normal portion, depending on how hungry you are, some drinks are unique to the restaurant itself, and the desserts are just as varied.

This chic and expensive-looking restaurant is in fact not that expensive. For one person, with two non-alcoholic drinks, a small portion plate and a dessert, you can eat for about 28$. Not bad.

You also get the option to order from their take-out menu!

I give this restaurant 5 stars, and I will definitely be back.

The small plates ginger chicken (made with fresh chicken and a ginger sauce made from scratch on the premise),
and a cup of hot apple cider.

Hot Butter sake with a dollop of vanilla ice cream drizzled in caramel sauce and served with the season's berries.

INTERNATIONAL FOOD HOT-SPOT: BOOSTER JUICE!

Visit their FB page.

This is their website.

Booster Juice is a now international smoothie and juice bar, growing ever popular in its now seven-year life span. Their mission statement is: "To provide customers with an incredible, healthy alternative to fast food that’s great tasting, convenient and nutritious making it perfectly suite for today’s active lifestyle. Our stores & products are ENERGETIC, FUN, NATURAL and ADDICTING!" I can definitely vouch for the 'addicting' part in that. ;-)

Booster Juice does not add any sugars to their products, instead using frozen fruit and their natural sweetness combined with yogurt and vanilla frozen yogurt, among other products (all natural, of course). They also feature products like whey protein bars, matcha green tea (for a hefty price), and sandwiches/wraps made on site.

Booster Juice is definitely my recommendation for a smoothie shop. 

They make:

• Smoothies (High Protein, Power, Berry, Tropical Spirit and Life Choice categories),
• Juices, juiced right in front of you (e.g.: Red Sunrise and Tru Green, but also Orange, Carrot and Apple, etc.),
• Meals (Quesadillas, Chicken Panini, Vegetarian Panini, Tuna Wrap, Greek Vegetarian Wrap, Egg Scrambler Wrap),
• Shakers (Wheatgrass, Acai NRG and Matcha Shaker),
• Yogurt Blends,
• Acai Berry Bowl,
• Zola Acai Tetra Pak.

For every smoothie they offer a choice of Boosters: go to their website, click on "Smart", then "Boosters", and you will have an interactive display to show you their different boosters and their individual benefits.

Booster Juice also caters. =)

The only thing I would recommend to Booster Juice is that they might want to establish a reward system. Although they do accept SPC.

Hope you enjoy this new discovery! =)

Food hotspot in Ottawa: Jugo Juice!

This company founded by a francophone couple is worth checking out, if you can afford the price!

Go to their website for more!