Calgary Food, coffee, etc.
 

When does Artigiano open? I've got to try a new coffee shop.

R- the original estimate was October, but of course Centrium itself (the bldg where Artigiano will be) wasn't completed on time. I googled "artigiano calgary" and found a blog that referenced a JANUARY opening. This is not good news but, ya know, it's almost November, so if it does open in Jan that's only a 2.5 month delay. Seems par for the course- restaurants (and good cafes like this one) seem especially prone to opening delays.

I like the idea of this thread, I can talk about restaurants all I want without feeling any guilt :)


So, folks, where's the best Indian buffet in town? I've been to a few of them, and they seem to be hit and miss. Tandoori hut is probably my favorite, it's reasonably priced and the food is good.

I don't know about buffet, the The Kashmir is ridiculous as far as Indian goes.

I like Glory of India, because it's close and they have butter chicken by the boatload.

Something tells me it's a bit pedestrian for the folks around here though. :P

Please try the buffet at Surya- it's on 11 St and 11 Ave SW in the Connaught Centre building. They have a huge selection and are a couple of bucks cheaper than, say, Moti Mahal. Also unlike MM, Surya has butter chicken on the buffet every day, but I prefer their beef curry (it's so odd how "beef curry" isn't a misnomer in Calgary since so many Indian places here are Sikh or Muslim owned!). They also have completely superb naan, I mean world-beating naan.

Kashmir ended lunch service, never mind buffet, but I agree that it's a great resto.

Freeweed, GoI is one of the most respected Indian places in town!

The new restaurant opening in the old Elephant & Castle space is going to be called "Tangerine Supper Club".

What's with the recent trend of horribly contrived restaurant names in this town?

And come visit my new restaurant, it's called New Century Marquee Restolounge & Grill.

I'll have to go there. Always on the lookout for a new Indian place.

I don't care if the name is contrived, but I am getting damn tired of only high end places opening downtown. If "Tangerine" is a clone of Blink (also a "supper club") that makes yet another expense-account joint on Stephen Ave. I haven't seen the menu at Seven (speaking of contrived names!), but it sounds expensive.

I'm happy to eat shawarma and cheap sushi (which Calgary is becoming increasingly good for- the only ridiculously ovepriced food I had in Germany was sushi, something we're more blessed with here than most people realise since they use Vancouver as a reference point instead of so many other cities that have shitty and expensive sushi). But I wish Calgary had places like, to use a random example, Clyde Common in Portland, which has delicious, creative food in a gorgeous room with mains never exceeding about $18.

We're having dinner at River Cafe tonight- with a gift cert- and though I love River, it's going to be a larf to see how expensive it's become since my last meal there last December. I'm expecting to see no main less than, say, $28.

^^^

Couldn't agree more. At the end of the day, I like a cheap slice of pepperoni pizza or a hot dog cooked on the street.

I've worked as a professional cook, and I like to think I can taste the difference between a dish prepared by someone who knows and loves food and a dish prepared by someone who thinks they can just half-ass it, gloss it over with decor and hot waitresses and then charge 40 bucks for it.

I don't mind forking out at an upscale restaurant as long as the food is actually good. But I'm not gonna be instantly impressed by your dish just because you served it with aioli or blue cheese.

The rest of these yuppies might be fooled, but I know Bovril when I taste it.

The lunch buffet at Royal India must be tried by all. More expensive than most ($16) but quite worth it imo. It's on 4th and Centre, in Sun Life.

Speaking of Portland, another thing I saw there that I was envious of was a surface lot downtown that was lined on two sides with food vendors facing the sidewalks. Think of the Imperial lot with the Montreal Smoked Meat place being just one of dozens of similar options, that would be sweet.

Where in town can you go that has a decent kids menu?

It seems most places (and even some of the high end ones) have crap for the kids - chicken strips, frozen pizza, Krap Dinner, etc.

Where would you go if you wanted kid portions of real food? It seems we have to order a dinner from the regular menu and ask for another plate. They're happy to do that but I feel stupid asking.

I'm having lunch at "Seven Restogrille" or whatever it's called next week... I'll post back as to how it was. I get the feeling it's going to be a lot like Met Grill (same ownership I think).

Best Indian Buffet IMO is Glory of India. However, I just tried Royal Indian lately and it was pretty darn good... had a pretty huge selection, and not nearly as hard to get into as Glory of India.

I miss that bar, I quite liked it. So what kind of place is this "Tangerine Supper Club" going to be?

lol, I read it as the Tangerine Stripper Club at first. lol

No kidding, I'm going to that little Bratwurst stand on Stephen Ave for lunch today, and i cant wait (The Yodeling Sausage for those who don't know).

Glory of India is the best I've been to, but then again I haven't been to many Indian places in town. I do know that Taj Mahal was NOT up to me expectations.

My biggest bit of grief with city is the lack of good, cheap Mexican. To the point that I just don't bother anymore. Better to just save it for trips to the U.S. South. Maybe if I get down to see my Aunt in Texas I can get some more (and yes, they have tons of both Tex Mex and the real thing). Here in Calgary, I've had El Sombrero, Julios Barrio, Los Marriachis. Haven't tried Salt n' Pepper yet. I'll admit, I found Julios Barrio acceptable, when a plate of enchiladas only cost $9. Los Marriachis and El Sombrero are better food, but still cost more. Not in steak-house expensive territory, but still up there.

As for Sushi, I've really been to Sushi Tokyo and Sushi Ichiban. Same place really, just different names. Sushi still costs more than Mexican though, so it's a rare treat for me.

Speaking of Japanese, I tried Soba Ten over the summer. Portions were... small, though I thought it was interesting experience.

Also tried Mongolie Grill over the summer. Good, but expensive just like everything else around there.

On the Mediterranean side of things, Jimmy's A&A is king in my books.

I'm sure many also acknowledge the relative superiority of Kim Anh when it comes to Vietnamese subs. They make things better simply by having good hours.

In terms of Vietnamese sit-down, I'm pretty much a part of the family at Oriental Phoenix. I go to the one down at Chinook, but I think the value of the food is great. I'm a weekly customer, get the same thing most days, but it is nonetheless very good. I'm pretty sure I'm going there for dinner tonight. :)

EDIT: On the topic of street vendors... man, I saw so many of those while on Vacation, but never had the guts to buy something from them (maybe I'm just too timid... or maybe it's because I rarely carry cash on me). There were a whole bunch on Chester Street in Ottawa and in front of Toronto City Hall. I think that Japa Dog must be the most visible one in Vancouver.

Seconded. And, as someone else mentioned. they're usually easier to get into during lunch.

Then again, if you really wanna sneak into GoI without a reservation, just go around 11:30. They always manage to have a couple of small tables open.

It's the one part of Calgary life that I still find funny - half the CBD is at work well before 8am, which is ridiculously early compared to many cities - but people STILL take lunch promptly at noon, for the most part. You'd think if the working day is shifted earlier, lunch might come earlier, but not for most people. Those of us that can adjust get to take full advantage and always get into popular eateries. :tup:

I wouldn't call it cheap, but Juan's (which hides under an office building on Stephen Ave) is fantastic Mexican. Complete with bullfighting music and servers who hardly speak English. :tup:

The complete lack of street vendors is one of my only complaints about Calgary. I don't know why, but there are hardly any here at all. It's not a climate thing, either - Winnipeg has seemingly hundreds in the downtown core during the summer. I wish Calgarians would get into this method of eating; with our "nice" outdoor weather lasting often from March through October, there's no excuse not to sit outside and enjoy some interesting food. The other great thing is the sheer variety you get - and every year it changes up, so it's not the same old "yeah, here's the dozen places within walking distance" year after year.

And now that my beloved Japanese Village has moved really far away, there just isn't anywhere good enough that I want to go over and over again. Except GoI, of course.

Food-related, but offtopic: that mall in Chinatown where Regency Palace (I think?) is - wow! I didn't even realize this place existed. Many neat little import shops. I bet Boris buys much Anime-related items there. ;)

Nah, I get my anime-stuff at the UofC. I get a 10% discount. :D

I've been meaning to try out Cafe Koi, but don't know exactly what to expect. Any opinions? I believe I've seen it in Furry's blog.

"Our 'wurst is the best".

My second favorite slogan ever.

Number one would be Bubba's, a burger chain in Hawaii, which was "We relish your buns."

Do yourself a favour, next time you're out and about taking pics go to somewhere better, like Uptown Sushi on 11th and 11th, (another Furry favourite.) I find Shushi Tokyo to be dreadful.

I've passed by US a few times but never gone in. Thanks for the tip. Again my point of reference isn't very large... Sushi Tokyo or Co-op's sushi pretty much (had Sushi-Q last night...)

One thing about Sushi Tokyo though: they have a killer location!

I didn't know there was an Elephant & Castle pub in Calgary. The only one I've been to is in Guangzhou in China. I'm not sure the company knows their name and logo is being used over there in Asia because it's not on their website, lol. And I'm pretty sure there's one in Dongguan too
:cheers:

Also Globefish for Sushi - I've tried the Marda Loop location - nice.

Glory of India and Tandoori Hut are both good for that area of town. My favorite place is 'Apna Sweethouse' way up in the northeast, so it's not well known, but it is good and cheap.

If you want authentic south Indian cuisine...something you don't see very often anywhere, try Mysore Palce in the northeast. Mysore Palace downtown is the same ownership, but different menu. The one in the northeast has Rasum, and Sambar, true South Indian Dossas, etc... I should mention that it is a veggie place.


Personally I'm not impressed with Moti's, I've heard Kashmiri bites. Has anyone tried Ivory?

Shawarma: -Sammy's (17th Ave and 13th approx.)
-Jimmy's A&A (20th Ave and 13th NW)

Mexican: Salt and Peppers in Bowness

Mongol: Mongolie Grill

Thai: The King and I

Viet: Pho Hung Viet (Bow and 33rd)

Fondu: Grizzly House in Banff

Those are a few of my fav's. My schedule doesn't allow much time for cooking lately, so I rely on these guys to much.

Shawarma: Falafel King (Fouzi is REALLY nice)
Donair: Jimmy's A&A
Mexican: Juan's on 8th
TexMex: Magpie and Stump in Banff
Thai: Thai Sa On
Viet: Sunny's in Chinatown
Indian: Karma (130th Ave SE and Deerfoot)
Greek: Broken Plate (South Macleod)
Sushi: Towa

If you're OK with fairly generic Mexican (Quesedillas, burritos, etc), I'm a big fan of Avacado in Deerfoot Meadows. Really nice little place.

Oh ya, I forgot about Karma... they do GREAT Indian food... also have a lunch buffet.

When it comes to Greek, I love Broken Plate, but there's a little place on the corner of Heritage and Fairmont called Parthenon... little family run place, but has really good food.

And idea what the price range is like at Parthenon? What are the dishes like? It's another of those places that I've passed by quite a bit but never gone into. I've been meaning to find more stuff so that my family doesn't get too monotonous.

I would not that what we think of commonly as "Mexican," Burritos for example, are to real Mexican as Ginger Beef is to authentic Chinese.

Parthenon is excellent! Don't remember the exact prices but it is reasonable in my opinion. <$20 for a main.

I've heard that Parthenon was good. I've never tried it before.

Greek: Broken Plate, or Santorini Taverna. Santorini taverna is expensive, and perhaps not the best value, but it is good food. Mykonos on Centre street used to be really good. Haven't eaten there in a long time though.


Mexican: Juan's

Vietnamese:
for Pho, Tranh's, in Huntington village is IMO the best
Quyhn;s up in Sunridge area is excellent, or Y2K by McMahon


Indian: There are plenty of good Indian restuarants around town, so it's difficult but here's my list

Apna Sweethouse, Clay Oven, or Tandoori Hut, Glory of India Puspa is really good.


Thai: Thai Rose Garden, Bangkoknoi
King and I is good, but a bit overpriced. The atmosphere and decor is the best.

Prices at Parthenon are VERY reasonable... definitely more affordable than Broken Plate. I fully recommend Parthenon to anybody who likes Greek. It feels really authentic with the grouchy old Greek owner serving your food, and his wife as the hostess upon your arrival. And ya, the food is really good. If you're going with a gf/wife/date, I recommend the "Dinner for Two"... on top of getting Calamari and Greek Salad to start, you get a big dinner platter with all kinds of stuff on it... think it runs something like $48 for the whole thing (which is really reasonable, considering you each get meal, salad, and appetizer).

Nevermind.

My 10 year old told him, "This is the best food I've ever had."

I think he almost cried :haha:

Saigon Y2K in the northwest is my favorite for Vietnamese food. Vietnamese Village down in Deerfoot industrial park is surprisingly good.

As far as Thai food, Spicey Hut used to be far and away the best, but they have gone downhill a bit.

St. Germain is the best for French food. Red Door Bistro is pretty decent as well, but it really isn't true French food.

For the last month or so, there has been a Hot Dog vendor at the NE corner of 7th Avenue & 1st St SW. Every time, I get off the CTrain at 1st St, the smell of onions and hot dogs is quite pleasant. :) Haven't had one yet, as I'm usually running across 7th to my bus stop.

Agree completely about Oriental Phoenix in the South. But, haven't been there in ages. Loved the blended pineapple drink. :awesome:

Yeah, for Indian GoI is pretty stellar and the service is always good. The Apna Sweethouse is the cat's ass! A bit ghetto but the food is authentic and they have the best Masala Dossas in town.' Anapurna is also a great choice for all Vegetarian Indian Cuisine. I have always been a sucker for Rajdoot

For those of you in the NW be sure to try Masala Express for takout (Ranchlands). I have been going there for years and it is fantastic food froma mom and pop set up. Cheap too. Green Chili across from McMahon is pretty good but more expensive than Masala Express.

Going to India in December so I can't wait to munch! my biggest complaint is that Indian food still isn't cheap in this city. It is nice that there is more selection than there used to be (Taj and Rajdoot) and this city
s south asian community is certainly growing. But I want Vancouver prices. I'm talking CHEAP Quality indian food.


As for Mile One. I will give it a second chance at some point. But I really wasn't impressed. I went out for a business dinner with the sales team from Highbury last night. I liked the space but I was less than impressed with the service. 6 Servers and the place was empty, yet they were slow to serve you. Simply put, at your table when you didn't need them and not there when you did. Out appies took over 3o minutes to come and dinner was a bit longer. My biggest complaint was the $12+ martinis. Great Martinis but COME ON!!! $12? I don't mind paying that when I am at Melrose and I get a shaker full but $12 for just a tiny two sip martini.....

did I mention that they are $12!? God I love martinis but $12. Oh who am I kidding!? Maverick was paying so it's all good!

When I am not working from home I live at this chinese/japanese place on the Plus 15 level of the Petrofina building.

$6 gets you a heaping plate of chinese food or stirfry, great super spicy ginger beef.

What do you guys think of Drinkwater Grill, Vintage or Bookers? The owners of that group are putting a restaurant called 'Rush' into the base of Harris Homburg Phase I. Thoughts?

Yeah, Apna Sweethouse is probably one of the best hidden gems anywhere. I went there not too long ago, and it was as good as usual but the prices have gone up.

It used to be $6.99 for the lunch buffet which is very good, and now it's $8.99 and on Fridays and $10.99

Skylark out in Forest Lawn is another good Indian buffet. $9.99, and decent selection.


For those interested in Central American cuisine try Casa Latino out in Forest Lawn. It's Nicaraguan/El Salvadorian cuisine. It's very good, I'd recommend trying it.

I'll keep flogging the "compared to Winnipeg" here. Winnipeg has nearly as extensive a +15 as Calgary - and in many ways it's far easier to navigate as it's straight through most buildings.

It isn't the +15. Downtown sidewalks are positively thronged with people during lunch hour. Does the city have some ridiculous permit laws or something?

From Wikipedia, always the most trustworthy source:

If they come from Mexico, they're Mexican in my book. :D

While some may disagree with weather or not burritos are authentically Mexican, I've discovered Red Burrito in Van - you get lotsa beef (or chicken) for 5 bucks. And tasty, too!

My fave Japanese places in Calgary, although they were severely short-staffed the last time I was there.

One of the places I really miss. I love their subs! I haven't had a viet sub since moving. I want a Kim Anh sub right now dammit!

^Subs at Kim Anh are the best, no arguing that. There's a Vietnamese sub place up in Marlborough that's really good also. I can't remember the name of it, but it's kind of hilarious because if you order a sub combo (with salad rols or spring rolls), the waiter goes to another Vietnamese restaurant two doors down and comes back your spring rolls.

Freeweed: As entheosfog noted, it is quite contested. That link to Juarez is not proven, but one of several theories. You'll note if you've had a Mexican burrito how much different it is from one you'd get at a Tex-Mex place. Generally better ingredients, and looks more like a Shawarma than the ball of grease that comes from Taco Bell. Even in the rest of North America there are many variations of the Burrito: Mission style, San Francisco style, Montreal style.

Same thing, but also very different.

Here is a particularly interesting little account of the Burrito:
http://mexicocooks.typepad.com/mexic...ose-of-yo.html

Yeah, when I lived in Calgary, my girlfriend would go to the place across the street for her sub and was defiant that her place was better...almost ended up in a few big arguments! :haha:

Dinner at River Cafe last night was one of the finest dining experiences of my life... and it's amazing with all the reputable high-end places that have opened recently, the RC still manages to pack the house. They have these new "one bite" appies that are bigger than amuses bouches but smaller than average appies and they're only 2 or 3 bucks each- these were outrageously delicious, one was a poached shrimp on a dollop of carrot mousse, and the other was a sort of mushroom-potato cannoli but with more carrot as the "dough." Both were spectacular. We had salads (they have separate "one bite," "appetizer," "salad" and "share" offerings, so there are many ways to configure a meal); mine was a green salad with radish, soft-boiled egg, house-cured bacon and barley; partner had local beets- now I know neither of these sounds that interesting, but both were mouth-filling and gorgeous. Mains: I had the tenderloin with a slew of sides- pureed sweet potato, kale (which I cannot stand but they did an okay job with), roasted blue potatoes, and a yorkie stuffed with bison shortrib (!); partner had one of the specials, a risotto topped with brined, pan roasted pheasant. Both were out of this world, but I wish I'd gone with my first choice which was the risotto. It had wild pine mushrooms, and the flavours were just explosive. Dessert: strawberry pavlova (meh, not that much you can do with meringue, not bad but not special) and an amazing pumpkin spice cake with house-made... ice cream, but not sure what kind, it had bits of toffee brittle in it. Oh, and the cake came with two largeish chunks of poached quince, which I'd never had before. Finally they gave us a couple of truffles gratis.

This was a feast to remember. Four "one bites," two salads, two mains, two desserts and four glasses lf wine were $202 not including tip, and it was well worth it. One complaint I've had about River in the past was how tiny they portion sizes were. No complaints here AT ALL.

I often frequest Taj Mahal -- its lunch can be pretty good but there are other better places these days.

Hear, hear. There's cheap mexican, There's good (read: passable) mexican, but nothing really in between. Julios is a better place to get hosed on margeritas before a movie in July than necessarily good mexican food.

Sushi can be pretty expensive... these days I seem to eat a lot at Sushi Zipang in bridgeland and go for rotating sushi at Kinjo Sushi by Shinook mall. I generally try to stick to Japanese-owned sushi joints, which alas, neither Tokyo or Ichiban are.

I find the service too slow for lunch and I never get around to going there for dinner.

Their large donair is the size of a small child, gotta love it for cheap + awesome!

Which one is Kim Anh? My favorite subs come from the place in Chinatown next to Pho Pasteur facing the Harry Hays Building, but I'm always interested in other placed. Is it on 17th? I wish there were more vietnamese sub places in the burbs -- there's not even a Thai Tai in the north end :(