Empire Ballroom - The Fairmont Hotel Macdonald
10065 100 St., 780-424-5181
The Fairmont Hotel Macdonald serves brunch every Sunday, between 10 a.m and 2 p.m., and has been doing so for 18 years. Don’t just show up; you have to reserve well in advance. They’ll serve you any kind of eggs you want, from Benedict with hollandaise sauce to sunny side up; crispy breakfast sausage and bacon; a specialty French toast; waffle or pancake of the week; a feature potato of the week; corn beef hash or roasted hash browns. They’ll make you the omelette of your dreams; there are chefs strategically placed in the hotel’s Empire Ballroom just waiting for your royal command. At $48 per person, it’s well worth the price.
The Empire Ballroom is a luxurious, beautifully appointed and elegant space, with tall windows, lots of natural light and a pretty view of the river valley. The decor, selection of dishes and attention to detail reinforce the feeling that this brunch experience is very special.
Their basic banquet tables are covered with crisp white linen, skirted with cloth and built up with risers to add height. They change their floral arrangements, urns and vases, and coloured cloth for every season and holiday occasion. The Empire foyer is the meeting space and reception area of the ballroom, where all the cold food is set. The cold buffet has fresh salads, seafood, terrines, a large cheese board with assorted buns, breads and crackers, desserts and an omelette and crêpe station.
The hot food buffet is set up in the middle of the ballroom at a round station, or crescent table, featuring a carving station manned by a chef. Depending on the season, there might be prime rib, roasted leg of lamb, whole roasted pork loin or chicken with pesto cream sauce, and they always have fish, preferably salmon or halibut. Once you are seated, formally attired serving staff will proffer a complimentary glass of mimosa, coffee or tea.
It takes me several glasses of liquid courage before I feel ready to plan my approach to the hot buffet. There are up to 50 dishes to consider and only two ways to approach it: go for the known, or for the unknown. After a good glass of wine, I choose the latter.
The Hotel Macdonald makes a concerted effort to use seasonal and regional ingredients, which means the hot buffet items, in particular, will vary from week to week. I try the prime rib, which is juicy, not too fatty and perfectly roasted. On this particular day, the leg of lamb, stuffed with apricots, dates and black mission figs, was a slice of heaven. So was the potato pavé (similar to scalloped potatoes), which comes layered with cream, Quebec Ermite blue cheese and bacon.
The cold buffet in the foyer features a favourite of mine that is hard to find in Edmonton: fish or chicken galantines (think of a fine meatloaf, highly seasoned, sliced thin and served cold). Saving room for dessert is hard. There are hot crêpes, gorgeous cheesecakes, pies, tarts and squares, cheese and fresh fruit, and bread pudding topped with the hotel’s in-house caramel sauce. Take it from me: it is to die for.
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