Hockey playoffs get going in the two NHL-sanctioned hub cities of Edmonton and Toronto on the long weekend beginning Saturday, Aug. 1! To mark the puck drop, Alberta hockey fans can snap up special offers from our friends at Memphis Blues Barbeque and Fork and Farm throughout the playoffs.

Memphis Blues will be offering a Playoff Pack that includes a sinbin full of smoked meats and a six-pack of Russell Brewing Company to wash it down at its Sherwood Park, Newcastle and Millwoods locations in Edmonton as well as its outposts in Cold Lake and Red Deer.

Calgary’s Fork and Farm will be lining up at centre ice with Puck Packs for Four that offer bar and stadium inspired snacks like chili cherry cola and whiskey glazed chicken wings, Korean short rib nachos, dry cured pepperoni pizza eggrolls, salt and vinegar popcorn and more.

Let’s get after it, hockey fans!

Like most of the small and independent Canadian businesses we are proud to support through our one-stop, online hub, we were left reeling when restaurants were forced to temporarily shutter when COVID-19 hit Canada.

After some deep breaths, we came together with 23 Vancouver-area restaurants to launch Breaking Bread as a way to urge public support of the foodservice and hospitality industry at large as well as those whose livelihoods rely on them during a truly unprecedented time.

That was March 13. Now, more than four months down one hell of a rocky road, we’ve got more than 2,200 bars, restaurants, breweries, wineries and cafes across Canada in our Breaking Bread family. It remains our solemn pledge that we will be here through thick and thin continuing to do everything we can to get the good word out about ways to support Canadian businesses in your corner of the country.

The news out of Calgary today that the City will make masks mandatory in all indoor public spaces as of Aug. 1 to try and buck another potential lockdown got us thinking of a recent article by Jillian Wilson for Eater Philly.

The article leans on advice from Dr. Ashley Ritter, a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing and a member of the National Clinical Scholars Program.

Ritter has been working with @dear_pandemic — a collective of female PhDs with backgrounds in nursing, epidemiology, public health and policy that provides the public with safety information about some of the most debated topics, including dining out.