Paper St

Taking inspiration from street food found around the world, Paper St. offers a completely original dining experience. Since opening in June 2016, the restaurant and bar uses locally sourced ingredients to create innovative takes on traditional food from street stalls, street vendors or food trucks, influenced by flavours from around the world. “Here in North America, we’re kind of different from the rest of the world in the way we approach fast food,” owner James Belcher says. “We’ll go to a chain restaurant to get a burger or something, but the way I grew up, we’d walk down the street a couple of blocks to a street vendor.”

These vendors, James says, would sell a single menu item – one dish they’ve spent decades perfecting. And since most of these vendors operate without refrigerators, they’re forced to use whatever ingredients they can find that day. Together with a team of similarly well-traveled partners, James took the concept of “global street food” and turned it into an experience that not only appeals to diners, but also provides a much-needed boost to Calgary’s struggling economy.