When you live in a region dominated by the largest mall in North America and ringed by suburban power centres, you really have to think outside the big box to find quirky, interesting neighbourhoods in which to shop. That’s where we come in. Every second week in Style, we’ve been introducing you to a fun, unexpected or offbeat shopping area that you might never have noticed, or at least, never fully appreciated. It might be just a couple of blocks or a bigger ’hood with a bunch of worthwhile stops. No matter, you can shop, browse, snack or just stroll around. We’ll walk you through it.

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EDMONTON - Not that long ago, Edmontonians who ventured south of 23rd Avenue were either driving to the airport or to Calgary.

Even now, the Ikea store at the tail end of South Edmonton Common signals the unofficial end of the city along Highway 2, and few of us travel east or west of it in search of anything except the occasional suburban address of a friend.

But around those suburban neighbourhoods in the deep south, like Ellerslie and Summerside, enterprising shopkeepers and restaurateurs are setting up shop, sniffing out wads of disposable income like drug dogs at the nearby airport.

A high-end baby boutique, an all-natural pet food store, lots of family-friendly, beer-and-burger joints and a generous smattering of ethnic eateries are all natural fits in this neighbourhood, where young, middle-class families congregate and increasingly, prefer to spend their leisure time instead of battling the crowds on Whyte Avenue or at the malls.

“Back when we first opened, there was nothing really here — you’d have to go to South Common or down Calgary Trail,” recalls Joti Tung, who, with husband Shawn, opened Zaika Indian Bistro and bar in the fall of 2009.

It was Joti’s father who picked the out-of-the-way location, in a new strip mall at 91st Street just north of Ellerslie Road. “I was a little bit hesitant. I said, ‘Dad, there’s nothing there. It’s a graveyard and an airport road.’ And he said, ‘Just do it,’ ” she recalls. “He has a good eye for that.”

The Tungs have been pleased to discover the “wonderful, appreciative” neighbourhood from which they draw many of their customers. “And now, there are a lot more things going up around us, which is nice to see.”

So many restaurants are popping up in the area, it’s becoming a dining destination strip, says Robert Powell, who, with his wife Hong Yan, owns Dumplings, an Asian fusion restaurant.

“I think that’s a feature, not a flaw. We’re not afraid of competition,” he adds, likening the area to an auto row, where people go to shop for cars.

“I think this Ellerslie neighbourhood is starting to get a reputation like that for restaurants,” he says.

Local residents appreciate the variety, he adds. “We’ve had people say, we’ve lived here a long time and finally, we don’t have to leave the neighbourhood to get great food.”

But word is spreading beyond the ’burbs about the wealth of good food and other finds in the deep, deep south. Here’s our primer, to help you find your way around.

Eat

The best Ellerslie shopping experience is going to be one centred around food, without a doubt. While the neighbourhood has attracted more than its fair share of decent chains like Brewsters, Original Joe’s and The Canadian Brewhouse, it’s around ethnic food that this area really shines.

Strange as it may seem, one of the loveliest-looking Indian restaurants in the city is tucked into a little strip mall here, with the added bonus of offering delicious food.

Zaika Indian Bistro Bar is run by an equally lovely-looking couple, Joti and Shawn Tung, who have managed to attract not only hungry locals to their stylish restaurant, but Indian food-lovers from around the city.

Right next door, Joti’s sister Ashu Gill runs the Summerside Asian Market, where those who aspire to Zaika standards can pick up all the ingredients they need to attempt to recreate the food at home, including Indian spices, condiments and fresh produce.

“Indian food is becoming so popular, people are coming in with recipes, looking for ingredients, asking questions,” says Gill, a trained social worker.

“This is kind of like social work; it’s about helping people.”

If your international tastes lean still further east, try Dumplings, where opera singer and voice teacher Hong Yan Powell has turned her love of cooking into a treat for Edmontonians craving a taste of Powell’s homeland — Szechuan province in China.

The food is “Asian fusion” and includes a mix of east and west, with wraps, rice bowls, salads, soups and bubble tea. The menu also features delicious Szechuan specialties, like spicy Dan Dan Noodle Soup, and cold, spicy Szechuan noodle salad with shredded cucumber, carrots and roasted peanuts.

As the name suggests, the dumplings are standouts, and, thankfully, are available in bags, frozen, to take home.

Open just seven months, the restaurant will expand its menu next month and start serving breakfast, including western offerings with an Asian flair, as well as traditional Chinese noodle breakfasts.

For Vietnamese, particularly the satisfying, soul-warming noodle soup called Pho, there’s Pho Hoa, a chain restaurant with four locations in and around the city.

For Vietnamese sans pho, try Mini Mango, run by the original owners of Sweet Mango in Bonnie Doon, who sold out to their former partners and opened the smaller, takeout-oriented, mini version instead.

They offer a range of appetizers, Vietnamese sub sandwiches and salads, plus vermicelli bowls and rice bowls.

Also in the quick-service category is Good Earth Coffeehouse and Bakery, a franchise with four city locations so far and more in the works. They have the usual range of coffee drinks, accompanied by scones, squares, cookies and muffins, plus light lunches like panini sandwiches, soups, salads and mac ’n cheese.

In the take-out-and-cook-it-yourself category is Real Deal Meats , a butcher shop run by Darcy and Alicia Boisvert, who live in the neighbourhood themselves.

The subtly enticing smell of smoke hangs in the air of their shop, thanks to Darcy’s near-constant stocking of the smoker with chicken, bacon, pepperoni, jerky, sausages and ham. They also sell specialty meats like bison, plus fresh eggs from local Hutterite colonies, organic meats and free-range chicken.

Shop

Independent retailers are slowly finding their way into the strip malls around Ellerslie, opening shops like Wee Love Baby Boutique, where the love comes in the form of high-end kids wear, including the most adorable collection of teeny tiny shoes and boots you’ll find just about anywhere. Baby-sized Bench, Guess, Quicksilver and Roxy fashions are featured, plus a selection of toys, gifts, baby carriers, fashionable diaper bags and the like.

Kids are also favoured customers at Venus Eye Boutique, where owner Mike Christiansen designs hip frames for adults, along with miniature, equally hip versions for children.

For other pampered family members, try The Bone and Biscuit, the franchise that caters to sensitive pets with raw foods, all-natural foods and gourmet doggie treats dressed up with yogurt and carob “icing.”

Three mellow, Jack Russell terriers belonging to owners Angela Lypkie and Ryan Nohr give the place authenticity and charm. As an added bonus, Lypkie fosters a couple of rescue dogs who also hang out at the store, in case you have a hankering to take home some dog with your dog food.

No retailer better illustrates the changes along Ellerslie Road than Ellerslie Gift and Garden, which, when it opened 25 years ago at the city’s edge, sold plants, seeds and a few gifts.

“There was very little around; in fact it was still dirt road access coming from the east. The highway was paved but that was it,” recalls general manager Cinda Thorne. “It’s constant hubub now.”

After a small move to accommodate the interchange at Highway 2 several years back, the shop now has everything the modern gardener could want, plus gifts, classes and a bistro with in-house-made lunches and snacks.

Their customers, too, have changed, from older, hard-core gardeners to young, health-conscious professionals and families seeking lots of advice and simple solutions. “They don’t have a lot of time so they want it to be problem-free,” says Thorne.

“It’s more about taking ownership of your own health and being more environmentally aware, and we try to be that way too.”

Relax

Melange Salon and Spa offers locals an organic, non-toxic alternative in hair and body care, with a range of salon and spa services, plus reiki.

mgold@edmontonjournal.com

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