Calgary Food, coffee, etc.

[IntotheWest]

^Can't be anymore than the $95 we paid for the Porterhouse at Vintage :-)

I'd like to know more about second to nones meats (Galloway beef) first...I'll have to get down there and find out.

[Jimby]

I had lunch at a place called El's Japanese Fusion on 33 Ave SW right across the street from Globefish and in between the Belmont and Avenue Diners. I enjoyed what we had - pork gyoza, miso soup, assorted tempura and spider maki which was a work of art, I should have taken a pic of it.
The green tea was much better than most green tea. They had run out of chicken and beef.
The place is run by a friendly Korean couple who lived in Sydney and Vancouver before moving here. They told us they can't get a liquor license because they only have one bathroom and apparently 2 bathrooms are required.
They offer special dinners with advance reservations for up to $150 a person!

[Rusty van Reddick]

Living - I was there the week it opened and was pretty impressed- they have more than 70 maki! Very friendly service and good use of a small space. It was quite busy which was never the case for Pharaoh's (in fact I never saw more than one other diner there).

[RWin]

We went to the Broken Plate last night (Willow Park).

Excellent. I usually hate lamb. Took a chance on the lamb chops and not sorry I did. I will order that again.

Service was excellent. A little pricier than Parthenon and less choice but on par with quality I'd say.

Another large group came in after us. It sounded like their reservation was screwed up somehow. They weren't turned away. They found a decent place for the group to sit and they didn't have to wait.

[Big Sky]

I apologized if this has been asked already, but what is the deal with the Clover coffee machines? The name comes up up now and then on this thread. Sorry I'm a coffee dumbie, so don't know much about this stuff.

[Rusty van Reddick]

Originally Posted by Big Sky

I apologized if this has been asked already, but what is the deal with the Clover coffee machines? The name comes up up now and then on this thread. Sorry I'm a coffee dumbie, so don't know much about this stuff.

Argh- I posted a long reply and then got a "database error." Abridged version:

A Clover is a machine that makes brewed coffee by the cup very quickly. Before the Clover the only options for brewed coffee where gallon-by-the-time brewing systems (Bunn or Fetco systems) or the very slow individual drip stations or presspots. With Clover you can brew one cup of any bean on the store's shelves and the machine can be calibrated differently for every cup to vary temp, water amount and brew time to be optimised for the different beans. Basically it makes brewed coffee as fast as espresso machines make espresso and some people also think it makes a superior cup owing to control of the variables I just mentioned. Being an espresso man I'm not all that thrilled with ANY brewed coffee even from the Clover but it has its fans. Clover coffees tend to be pricey because the most expensive beans go into them, generally.

[Innersoul1]

Originally Posted by furrycanuck

Argh- I posted a long reply and then got a "database error." Abridged version:

A Clover is a machine that makes brewed coffee by the cup very quickly. Before the Clover the only options for brewed coffee where gallon-by-the-time brewing systems (Bunn or Fetco systems) or the very slow individual drip stations or presspots. With Clover you can brew one cup of any bean on the store's shelves and the machine can be calibrated differently for every cup to vary temp, water amount and brew time to be optimised for the different beans. Basically it makes brewed coffee as fast as espresso machines make espresso and some people also think it makes a superior cup owing to control of the variables I just mentioned. Being an espresso man I'm not all that thrilled with ANY brewed coffee even from the Clover but it has its fans. Clover coffees tend to be pricey because the most expensive beans go into them, generally.

The are amazing machines!



Credit Barista Magazine.

[Big Sky]

Thanks for the info guys!

[Deepstar]

I ate at Taco Del Mar yesterday, and was pretty impressed. It's fast food obviously, but the best quality Mexican fast food I've had so far. Much better than Taco Bell or Taco Time. You have several choices of meat for the tacos, and different choices of beans, etc.. The guac was pretty fresh tasting.

[NumberFive]

Originally Posted by Deepstar

I ate at Taco Del Mar yesterday, and was pretty impressed. It's fast food obviously, but the best quality Mexican fast food I've had so far. Much better than Taco Bell or Taco Time. You have several choices of meat for the tacos, and different choices of beans, etc.. The guac was pretty fresh tasting.

I had it earlier this week and was also impressed. The burrito was REALLY filling!!

[Stephen Ave]

Taco Del Mar is pretty good for a fast food place. It's more expensive than Taco Bell, but is much better quality. Taco Bell is typical processed fast food slop (even though I eat there once in a while).

I ate at a Taco Del Mar in Portland a few years back and liked it. I haven't tried the ones here yet.

[mersar]

Originally Posted by Stephen Ave

Taco Del Mar is pretty good for a fast food place. It's more expensive than Taco Bell, but is much better quality. Taco Bell is typical processed fast food slop (even though I eat there once in a while).

I ate at a Taco Del Mar in Portland a few years back and liked it. I haven't tried the ones here yet.

I ate at the Prince George one the last time I was up there a few years back, it was pretty good.

[Ayreonaut]

Originally Posted by Deepstar

I ate at Taco Del Mar yesterday, and was pretty impressed. It's fast food obviously, but the best quality Mexican fast food I've had so far. Much better than Taco Bell or Taco Time. You have several choices of meat for the tacos, and different choices of beans, etc.. The guac was pretty fresh tasting.

I always eat at the one in Vernon, and always enjoy in.

[SteveP]

Thanks to the folks here on the forum, I just tried Taco Del Mar today for lunch and was reasonably happy. For a fast food type place it's not bad at all.

[Jimby]

where is this taco place?

[Tobyoby]

There's a new Taco Del Mar up in the Sunridge area. In the same complex as the Best Buy.

[Jimby]

Oh thanks Tobyoby, I'm not going all the way up to the NE for a taco!

[Surrealplaces]

Originally Posted by Tobyoby

There's a new Taco Del Mar up in the Sunridge area. In the same complex as the Best Buy.

lol! that's two blocks from where I work. I haven't seen it there yet. I ate there once, down in the states and thought it was decent.

@Living. There's one downtown at Esso Plaza, and one out by Mackenzie Towne. Can't remember the exact spot, but I've seen one there.

[NumberFive]

Originally Posted by Surrealplaces

lol! that's two blocks from where I work. I haven't seen it there yet. I ate there once, down in the states and thought it was decent.

@Living. There's one downtown at Esso Plaza, and one out by Mackenzie Towne. Can't remember the exact spot, but I've seen one there.

Ya, there's one in Esso Plaza. But I think the one you're thinking of in the south might be the TacoTime Cantina at 130th.

[agent_imperial]

Any news on when the Kawa espresso bar is going to open? It's only a few blocks from my office... I'm waiting patiently to check it out!