CALGARY, AB, March 15, 2023 /CNW/ - The Banquet Bar is excited to announce the opening of its second location in Calgary's Mahogany neighborhood located at #1000, 80 Mahogany Road SE. The restaurant bar will be open to the public on Thursday, March 16, 2023.

As a premium dive bar, The Banquet Bar is known for offering elevated pub fare, signature menu items, and creative cocktails. With a focus on providing a unique and enjoyable experience for guests, the new location features a full-size bowling alley, rooftop patio, billiards, games, and more.

"We are thrilled to be opening our second location in Calgary and to be a part of the Mahogany community," said Roger Newton, the owner of The Banquet Bar. "We're excited to offer our guests an elevated pub experience with unique and creative offerings, in a fun and exciting atmosphere."

In addition to the exciting amenities, The Banquet Bar has a busy events calendar, featuring live music, promotions and contests. The restaurant bar is open seven days a week, providing guests with ample opportunities to enjoy the food, drinks, and atmosphere.

This will be the fourth location for The Banquet Bar, with the other locations located in Calgary's University District, Edmonton's Ice District and Fort McMurray.

"We're committed to providing our guests with the best possible experience and we can't wait to welcome everyone to our new location in Mahogany," said Newton.

For more information about The Banquet Bar and its new Mahogany location, please visit the website atwww.thebanquetbar.com.

TORONTO, March 15, 2023: Canadian, female-owned tea maker, Pluck, announced today that it is the first tea company in the world to achieve Upcycled Certified Product Status by the Upcycled Food Association (UFA) and Where Food Comes From. Five of the brand’s innovative, premium teas, made with locally-sourced ingredients, have received the seal of approval. Founded 10 years ago by Tea Sommelier, Jennifer Commins, Pluck has been disrupting the tea industry by prioritizing sustainability and ethical trade with its unique hand-blended, small-batch teas.

"More than half of consumers want to buy more upcycled foods,” said Angie Crone, CEO, UFA. “We are pleased to be expanding the upcycled certification into the tea category with Pluck leading the charge. Having this certification on select products allows consumers to identify and make more informed purchasing decisions that align with their values.”

In 2020, the Upcycled Food Association approximated that $1 trillion of food is wasted or lost globally per year (1). Companies that upcycle to reduce food waste are helping to reimagine supply chains across the world. This process allows brands to partner with fellow food makers to incorporate high-quality ingredients that may have otherwise been discarded.

“At Pluck, we are constantly looking for new ways to ensure our products are in line with our overall sustainable ethos,” said Jennifer Commins, CEO & Founder, Pluck.  “Gaining the UFA’s upcycling certification is another clear step towards our ‘Tea for Good’ commitment. Our goal is to continue to prioritize globally impactful business decisions and reduce our carbon footprint wherever possible while providing a high-quality, delicious and reliable end product.”

A selection of key ingredients in Pluck’s premium upcycled blends would typically be imported, however, by working with local partners, the Toronto-based tea brand can maximize the life cycle of these foods. The Pluck team engages local juicers, vineyards, orchards and other small businesses to work together in a mutually beneficial manner. For example, the cacao shells that are featured in Pluck’s Chocolate Chai blend are sourced from a local bean-to-bar chocolate maker, ChocoSol, eliminating an additional shipment from suppliers and its environmental impacts.

Pluck’s Upcycled Certified teas include Citrus Ginger, Southbrook Berry Blend, CTRL+ALT+DEL, Chocolate Chai and After Dinner Mint. Pluck’s upcycled ingredients include: 

Citrus peel, saved and immediately dried by Chaser's Juice in Toronto, featured in Citrus Ginger and CTRL+ALT+DEL.

Grape skins, saved by the winemaker at Southbrook Vineyards in Niagara, featured in Southbrook Berry Blend

Cacao shells, reserved and roasted by a local bean-to-bar chocolatier, featured in Chocolate Chai and After Dinner Mint

Pluck is currently developing new partnerships and drying processes, and looks forward to adding more upcycled ingredients and blends in the near future.

Visit Pluck at:

Web:www.pluckteas.com

CALGARY, AB, March 14, 2023 /CNW/ - Bernard Callebaut has a rich history of chocolate behind him, growing up outside of a chocolate factory in Wieze, Belgium, where his Great Grandfather diversified the family brewery by opening a chocolate factory in 1911. He had noticed chocolate was gaining popularity and sent his two sons to Meunier in Paris to learn the trade.

Bernard's mother ultimately sold the business in the 1980s, and their original family-owned factory is the largest chocolate factory in the world today.

After completing his electro-mechanical degree in engineering in Belgium and a business management course in Switzerland, Bernard took a leap of faith and started an unpaid internship with one of Europe's most renowned chocolatiers, Rene Goossens of Antwerp.

In 1982, he had a vision: to offer North Americans the same style of superior chocolates Europe had been enjoying for years. His philosophy is simple. By using the purest ingredients, uncompromising quality, handcrafted precision, and continuous improvements – North America would truly experience "chocolate enlightenment." 

After falling in love with the mountains and deciding to settle in Calgary, Alberta, he opened his very first chocolate shop on 17^th Ave SW on March 25^th, 1983.

Having no idea if the public would like what he was bringing to the city, but armed with an understanding that the need for high-quality European chocolate in Canada was undeniable.  Bernard made it his mission to be the one to provide just that.

"The support I received in the city was instantaneous – the first shop on 17^th Ave SW had lineups outside around the building, even when it was -20C. It was then that I knew I was on to something," reminisces Bernard.

After building up his original business to unparalleled heights, Bernard had a dramatic down in 2010.

"Starting from scratch is a daunting task, to say the least, but I saw it as an opportunity to reinvent myself and raise the bar. When passion is in your blood, you can truly do anything you set your mind to. Because of our long-time loyal customers unwavering support of me, I still get to do what I love the most. I will always continue to make your favourite chocolates!" promises Bernard. 

2023 marks 40 years in his chocolate-powered adventure. Today, he continues to create and innovate in the Master Chocolat factory in Calgary.

The legend synonymous with the name Bernard Callebaut would not nearly hold the weight it does today without such a storied history behind him. The true magic in his story is his continued theme of resilience and fortitude. The message is that when you genuinely love something, you never give that up. That is something to be inspired by.

Bernard continues to pour his heart and innovation into every original creation with Master Chocolat – with his singular philosophy always at the top of mind, Master Chocolat is 95% organic, and offers fair-trade certified chocolate bars, accompanied by vegan and gluten-free offerings to choose from. In Bernard's opinion – "everyone should be able to enjoy superior indulgence!"

Master Chocolat is celebrating Bernard's incredible milestone at all four Master Chocolat Calgary locations in the week leading up to March 25^th, 2023. We hope to see you there to help celebrate Calgary's most beloved chocolatier, and potentially try a new creation. (or two!)

LOCATIONS:

Chocolate Factory / Head Office: 560 69^th Ave SW, #130
Marda Loop: 2403 33 Ave SW 
CFM South: 510 77 Ave SE 
CFM West: 25 Greenbriar Drive NW

Toronto, March 09, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Restaurants Canada proposes a win-win solution for the federal government to save small businesses, and specifically restaurants as they continue to struggle with pandemic-related debt. With the Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA) loan reimbursement deadline approaching quickly, Restaurants Canada is proposing a 36-month payback extension, with a scale-down model on the forgivable portion. This could save thousands of restaurants and other small businesses from declaring bankruptcy in the near future.

For the majority of Canada’s foodservice sector, including dine-in and takeout restaurants, caterers and bars etc. the pandemic ushered in a period of unprecedented uncertainty, along with major financial challenges. In response, the federal government launched the CEBA program, which gave small businesses and not-for-profits interest-free loans of up to $60,000 to keep doors open and soften the financial blow which so many businesses grappled with. 

To ensure that the foodservice sector continues to play a major role in a strong economic recovery, Restaurants Canada’s Federal Pre-Budget Submission 2023 recommends that the federal government: 

Provides additional leniency to CEBA recipients by extending it for 36 months;

Implements a scaled-down model on the forgivable portion of the loan with a five per cent decrease every six months to encourage timely repayment.

The extension along with the scale-down model will:

Offer more time for the government to see the CEBA loans reimbursed; and

encourage businesses, and specifically restaurants to reimburse their CEBA loans as soon as possible, in order to benefit from a larger forgivable portion.

“The program was a key tool to assist thousands of businesses who had begun waiving their white flag as a result of the pandemic. Without the CEBA program, Canada's loss of 13,000+ foodservice establishments would have been exponentially larger. However, coming out of the pandemic, restaurant operators across the country are still struggling to keep their businesses afloat,” said Olivier Bourbeau, Vice President, Federal & Québec Affairs. “For that reason, we are calling on the federal government to adopt our recommendation to implement a phased loan repayment approach for CEBA.

Key findings on the restaurant sector’s use of CEBA loans: 

83 per cent of table-service restaurant companies and 56 per cent of quick-service restaurant companies received a loan through CEBA; and 

the majority of restaurant operators required these loans to keep staff employed (77 per cent), to pay for utilities (65 per cent), goods from suppliers (62 per cent) and rent (61 per cent). 

Extend and restructure the CEBA loans to make repayment possible and more palatable 

As the Dec. 31, 2023 repayment deadline approaches, a Restaurants Canada survey has revealed that nearly 20 per cent of the restaurants that have yet to reimburse CEBA will not be able to repay it in part or at all. This finding is unsurprising given that 43 per cent of the foodservice sector continues to operate at a loss or just break even and one in four independent table-service restaurants are not expected to recover from pandemic-incurred debt unless current conditions change.

“The inability of some restaurateurs to pay back these loans is a reflection of the state of our industry as a whole. Our sector emerged from the pandemic as one of the hardest hit financially, with many owners being forced to take on significant debt just to keep their doors open. The industry is also struggling with a number of post-pandemic operational challenges like inflation, labour shortages and supply chain hurdles - all of which are significantly impacting the profitability of these businesses,” said Bourbeau.

Restaurants Canada looks forward to its ongoing collaboration with the federal government to ensure foodservice remains an active part of the nation’s economy.