Casa Doce

Casa Doce Food Truck

Based in the Canadian Tire parking lot 

(Ordze Crescent & Wye Road)

Sherwood Park, AB

It was just a couple days ago that I learned about a Mexican food truck that had recently opened up in the parking lot of the Canadian Tire in Sherwood Park. Given my love of tacos, it's not surprising I wasted no time before heading out for a visit. Named for co-owner Carlos' childhood home in Mexico, the brightly coloured Casa Doce food truck is hard to miss. Several lawn chairs are available for patrons who wish to hang out and eat. The menu offers tacos, huaraches, and tortas with a choice of meats, including pork al pastor, ribeye steak, pollo adobada, and chorizo. Dishes are priced just below $10, in general.

Tacos al pastor (top); Huarache with pollo adobada (lower)

The tacos arrived as a mound of mildly spicy chicken topping several corn tortillas. It was a bit tricky to assemble, but the delicious end result was certainly worth the mess. I was particularly pleased to learn that homemade pickled carrots and jalapenos are available. If you've never had them before, try them. A huarache is a Mexican dish consisting of a fried corn dough base with any number of toppings. Casa Doce's is topped with beans, lettuce, tomatoes, pineapple, avocado, onion, your choice of meat, and finished with queso fresco. Similar to the tacos, the pollo huarache was a messy, but incredibly flavourful experience.

Owners Carlos and Janette hail from different backgrounds, but their combined experiences make them the ideal team for their food truck endeavour. Jeanette has spent her entire life in Sherwood Park, and is the former general manager of Franklin's Inn. Carlos is originally from Mexico City, but trained at the Cordon Bleu Culinary Arts Institute of Ottawa, and has worked in Seattle, California, Italy, and more recently (and locally), at the Sawmill Restaurant. A passion for tacos drove him to open Casa Doce, and both his skill and his spirit are evident in the food. Based on the flow of people during my visit, it's clear residents of Sherwood Park are embracing their new taco truck, and I'm certainly a bit envious Casa Doce is not in my backyard. I guess I'll be heading out to Sherwood Park a few times this summer.

The Common

The Common
9910 109 Street NW
Edmonton AB T5K 1H5
(780) 452-7333

The Common is a versatile establishment both in terms of its menu and atmosphere. The menu includes the range of traditional pub food (think fish and chips) to more refined fare (confit duck, anyone?). Many dishes, such as their rabbit bangers and mash or lobster pot pie filled with chanterelle mushrooms and artichokes, straddle both realms. Visit during lunch or dinner for a lounge-like setting with dimmed lighting, and restrained energy. Friday and Saturday nights, however, a DJ arrives, the tables are pushed aside, and the floor becomes packed with masses of people dancing the week's troubles away.

The small antipasto platter was a great start to our meal. There was plenty of variety in the meats (mortadella, salami, roast chicken), cheeses (one blue, one firm, one soft), and accoutrements. The capers, sauerkraut, and cucumber salad, in particular, I don't often see on tasting plates. There was no risk of getting bored with this platter.

The Common's chicken and waffles were undoubtedly the most popular item ordered on the night of my visit, the presentation was lovely, but don't expect the typical Southern style here. The food itself is a perfect example of comfort-gourmet fusion done right. The crisply fried, boneless chicken and toothsome waffle plant the dish in its soul food roots, while the salty goat cheese and piquant berry-chile sauce add a spirited, rejuvenating twist. The fish and chips featured the catch of the week, cod, battered and fried to a perfect crisp, atop a mountain of addictive, fresh cut kennebec fries.

With an interesting and delicious menu, spot-on service, and a casual dinnertime atmosphere, I was highly impressed with my experience at The Common. Maybe next time I'll stay for the dance party.

Restaurant website