By Alberta on the Plate

Alberta on the Plate has become one of the province’s most anticipated culinary celebrations, not just because of the food, but because of the people behind it. Every August, more than one hundred participating establishments across twenty-five cities and towns open their doors with a shared purpose. For 10 days, chefs, farmers, producers, and diners come together to celebrate what it means to support local food in Alberta. It is a moment when communities gather around the table, when neighbours support neighbours, and when choosing a local meal becomes an act of connection.

Each establishment creates a special menu that reflects the region they call home, and the taste of place is unmistakable. Southern Alberta’s grains and grasslands show up in everything from heritage wheat pasta to grass-fed beef. Central Alberta’s vegetable growers and dairy producers inspire bright, seasonal dishes. Northern Alberta’s boreal flavours bring berries, honey, bison, and wildcrafted ingredients to the table. These regional expressions remind us that Alberta cuisine is not one story. It is many stories, shaped by land, climate, culture, and the people who care for both.

The festival’s impact reaches far beyond the dining room. Alberta on the Plate highlights more than three hundred farms and producers every year, giving them visibility with chefs and consumers who want to support local. Many restaurants use the festival as a catalyst to build new relationships with growers and processors, often continuing those partnerships long after the event ends. When diners choose a festival menu, they help strengthen supply chains, open new markets for producers, and keep more food dollars circulating within the province. A single meal becomes a small but meaningful investment in Alberta’s food future.

*Mangalitsa Pigs at Eh Farms (Wheatland County)*

This sense of connection deepens through Alberta Open Farm Days, which works hand in hand with the festival. Open Farm Days invites Albertans to step onto farms, meet producers, and learn how food is grown and raised. Alberta on the Plate then brings those same ingredients to the plate, showing how chefs transform them into dishes that honour the land and the people behind it. Diners often recognize the names of farms they visited just days earlier, turning a meal into a continuation of a relationship that began in the field. Together, these two initiatives help bridge the gap between rural and urban communities and remind us that local food is a shared story we all contribute to.

*Rouge Restaurant, Alberta on the Plate 2021*

*Eighty-Eight Brewing / Portland Street Pizza, Alberta on the Plate 2025*

Across the province, participating establishments bring this mission to life in ways that reflect the character of their communities. Calgary’s restaurants show how deeply the city’s roots run in Alberta’s local food movement. Long before “farm to table” was a trend, places like Rouge and River Café were building menus around relationships with growers, foragers, and ranchers. Today, a new generation carries that spirit forward. Rain Dog Bar brings a chef-driven approach to casual dining, while 88 Brewing turns out playful, creative pizzas built on Alberta-grown ingredients. These restaurants show how Calgary continues to evolve while staying true to the producers and makers who shape its taste of place.

*The Butternut Tree, Alberta on the Plate 2025*

Edmonton blends long-standing culinary leadership with bold, contemporary energy. RGE RD remains a cornerstone of the region’s farm-to-table movement, while The Butternut Tree offers refined, ingredient-forward dining rooted in Canadian flavours. Fu’s Repair Shop brings cross-cultural creativity and cocktail culture together, and Super Amigos Mexican Street Food proves that local ingredients shine just as brightly in joyful, quick-service spaces. Together, these establishments show the range of what local food can look like in a city that values both tradition and innovation.

*Super Amigos Mexican Street Food, Alberta on the Plate 2024*

Central Alberta embraces local food with heart. 53 on Ross offers elevated yet approachable dining in Red Deer, DNA Gardens invites visitors into a working berry farm and distillery, and Cilantro + Chive continues to champion producers through inventive menus and community partnerships. These establishments reflect the region’s spirit of hospitality and its deep pride in the land.

*DNA Gardens, Alberta on the Plate 2024*

Southern Alberta reflects the strength of Canada’s premier food corridor, where small family producers and large-scale facilities work side by side. This is where Alberta’s sugar beets become locally produced sugar, proudly stamped with the number 22, and where processors like Rogers Lantic and Lays operate alongside ranchers and specialty growers. Nikka Yuko Japanese Garden collaborates with local producers to create serene, ingredient-focused picnics, while Medicine Hat Brewing pairs regional flavours with craft beer in a way that feels both rooted and inventive.

*Nikka Yuko Japanese Garden, Alberta on the Plate 2022*

Northern Alberta highlights creativity, resilience, and community connection. Twisted Fork in St. Paul has participated every year, showcasing multiple producers on its menus and offering house-made preserves through its Economusée status. Cold Lake Brewing & Distilling brings lake views and local flavours together in Cold Lake, while Broken Tine Orchard champions agritourism through its haskap berry orchards and award-winning haskap wine.

*Chef Debra Poulin serving customers at Twisted Fork*

In the Rockies, restaurants blend mountain character with Alberta’s culinary identity. Fence and Post near Cochrane brings thoughtful, ingredient-driven dining to the foothills. The Stirling at the Malcolm Hotel in Canmore offers an elevated experience rooted in local flavours. One98Eight adds a bright, welcoming brunch option, and Olive Bistro in Jasper leans into communal, share-forward meals that celebrate the region’s bounty.

This year’s International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists adds a meaningful layer to the festival. Alberta on the Plate is celebrating by highlighting Alberta beef, bison, lamb, and other rangeland animals that reflect the health and stewardship of the prairie and foothill ecosystems they come from. These ingredients represent generations of ranching families, land managers, and pastoralists whose care and commitment shape Alberta’s food identity. By showcasing these proteins and the people behind them, the festival helps diners understand the connection between responsible grazing, thriving rangelands, and the exceptional flavour Alberta is known for.

Alberta on the Plate is more than a festival. It is a province-wide invitation to show up for the people who feed us. To choose meals that support neighbours. To celebrate the landscapes that define us. And to experience the creativity that emerges when farms and restaurants work together. Every dish tells a story, and every diner becomes part of it.

Alberta on the Plate 2026 takes place August 7 to 16 in conjunction with Alberta Local Food Week. Learn more at AlbertaOnThePlate.com.

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