Edmonton’s best Caesar celebrates Canada’s birthday with a garnish from every province

The mighty Caesar, a little sweet and a little spicy, has enjoyed a long reign as a Canadian summer staple cocktail.

Local mixologists looking to put a spin on the popular drink recently competed for the title of “Best Caesar in Edmonton.”

Edmonton wine expert Gurvinder Bhatia was one of the judges.

“With a good Caesar, it’s about flavour, it’s about spice — but ultimately it’s about balance,” he said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "With a good Caesar, it's about flavour, it's about spice — but ultimately it's about balance," he said.

Dozens of local restaurants, bars and pubs took part in the event, mixing up some extravagant drinks with exotic garnishes.

READ MORE: The boozy history of the Canadian-created Caesar

“People do a lot of weird things with the garnishes,” Bhatia said. “The garnishes were interesting in some cases, but really the focus was on the cocktail.”

Edmonton’s Tavern on Whyte took home the prize for best Caesar. They dubbed their winning recipe the “Happy Birthday Canada 150 Caesar.”

“The cocktail itself was delicious. It has a mass of garnishes on it, but it actually made sense because they had a garnish from every province and territory in Canada,” Bhatia said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "The cocktail itself was delicious. It has a mass of garnishes on it, but it actually made sense because they had a garnish from every province and territory in Canada," Bhatia said.

Second place went to Jubilations Dinner Theatre, which featured a Mango Chipotle Caesar.

“Really well balanced, different — but very cool,” Bhatia said.

Third place went to Lux Steakhouse and Bar 94.

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“They had a pretty classic Caesar — the garnish was a tenderloin, lobster claw and a mac-and-cheese fritter,” Bhatia said.

During the finals, the cocktails featured no garnishes so judges could just focus on the drink itself.