Six green and orange shot glasses stand in line on the table, each topped with a bite-sized, crisp-fried puff ball. Parul Rai, the woman who designed the menu at Junoon, shows me how to pour the tangy, spicy juice into the puff and pops it in her mouth in one bite.
“I want to offer different things so people can experience all the different flavours,” she says as my bite bursts with spices playing on my tongue. The puff is filled with yogurt, embellished with microgreens, and paired with tamarind juice that I could either mix into the snack or quaff to chase it down. Each shot glass is a unique creation of spiced juice — cumin, tamarind and mango — and I experience sweet, sour and savoury as I go down the line. The other golgappe fillings include potatoes, chickpeas, onions and spices, and play nicely with the spicy juice. I feel like I could eat 100 without feeling full.
“These are our Indian digestive appetizer snacks, made for the hot climate in India, with herbs and spices to ease the stomach so you can enjoy the rest of the meal,” Rai says. It feels like an extension of an amuse-bouche but not quite an appetizer, and I know I’ll drive 45 minutes from downtown to taste it again and again.
As I make my way to Ambleside, I’m shocked at the foodie haven I find.
The Italian Bakery group just opened its new Italian market, Tesoro. Google Maps shows me second locations of central foodie spots — Tiffin, El Corazon (in Keswick), The Black Pearl, XO and Japonais Bistro — that have all opened in this part of town.
“The neighbourhood is diverse; you can see it in our school and with the offerings of food here. We like living here,” Rai says of the food community that counters my expectation of the suburban area, nestled amongst the chain stores and empty fields yet to be developed.
Our next course is chicken tikka, with a hanging skewer of Afghani and tandoori chicken (it’s an either/or option on the menu) dripping juicy flavours over marinated cubes of paneer. We admire the presentation for a moment, and I’m wary of disrupting the colourful work of art in front of me. House-made condiments, a fresh sweet-spicy salsa and mint chutney, come alongside. Each taste contrasts the last.
Rai observes the dining room, making instructions as needed, and explains the inspiration for each dish. Her husband, Manvinder, who was once a commercial pilot, runs the back of the house while she maintains the front. Her previous career was in jewellery design, hinted in the gold embellishments over the bar and rich olive-coloured sofas in the bright shiny room. It’s elegant without being over the top and I imagine with the lights lowered it would be a sexy, cozy evening spot.
“We’ve been lucky to travel and try all kinds of things,” Rai says of the flavours and experiences she wants to share with Edmonton diners.
A final course arrives — bright yellow rice, with delicate saffron threads from Spain artfully laid on top to go with shahi paneer, Junoon style (more savoury than sweet) butter chicken and Dhaba chicken. The Dhaba chicken, she tells me, is something one would find at a roadside eating spot in northern India. It’s a savoury, rich and chunky curry that is fragrant and filling. Each bowl is presented with pretty greens and garnishes.
The restaurant is run by the family and talented staff, including “insightful observations from the kids,” Rai says, but it is certainly elevated from the typical mom-and-pop kind of place, with its marble floors and careful lighting.
Junoon is a jewel added to Edmonton’s crown of foodie restaurants, and it’s succeeded in bringing something new to our food scene.
The neighbourhood doesn’t have to go far for a great night out and the rest of the city should make this corner of Edmonton into the new eating destination.
This article appears in the Jan/Feb 2025 issue of Edify
