Calgary Food, coffee, etc.

[freeweed]

Krispy Kreme was definitely a destination store for me. Sadly it was in a really out of the way location.

My love handles won't miss it.

[IntotheWest]

Originally Posted by freeweed

Krispy Kreme was definitely a destination store for me. Sadly it was in a really out of the way location.

My love handles won't miss it.

^Maybe that's what I meant - "my love handles won't miss it" The 25g of fat per donut is quite high.

But, I guess I won't miss it, because I never got there anyway. I wonder a) why they picked the NE in the first place, and b) would it have done better more centrally?

[bigcanuck]

Originally Posted by IntotheWest

I wonder a) why they picked the NE in the first place, and b) would it have done better more centrally?

Exactly why I have never visited the Calgary location - it's not convenient for me. I'm not about to drive 20 minutes out of my way for a donut - sorry. And I'm sure I'm not the only one in Calgary saying this.

[jeffwhit]

Originally Posted by freeweed

Well, you can't get much further away from the retail presence of Kensington or 17th Ave. A strip mall in the middle of the burbs isn't exactly an ideal location for a business that seems to rely heavily on foot traffic and impulse shopping (Vancouver's cupcake place fits this mold as well). That being said, from the other things you describe in there, I'll have to check it out further. Sounds rather unique.

I think it will do well there. Willow Park has already established itself as sort of a high end food destination, and the kind of people who already shop there are going to sell that place out by noon most days I bet, the fact that it has parking and there is far less chance of running into poor people there will attract more than enough business.

[Surrealplaces]

DeVille DeVille was pretty quiet, but it was the middle of the afternoon. You get a great view of the Bow site from there. It'll be a greeat spot to site and have a coffee while watching the construction




Caffe Artigiano was busy yesterday, totally bustling. The streetfront still needs some work, as construction isn't completely finished, but it's coming along. The streetfront across the way at Starbuck's looks like it has improved. I'm not sure what it is, but it looks better than it did last year.

[Surrealplaces]

Originally Posted by IntotheWest

Looks like Krispy Kreme has pulled out of Calgary, after 4 years. A blurb about it in the Herald today said it closed Aug 1.

I only went twice, and probably within the first 1-2 months of opening. I thought for donuts, they were good - but only if they were less than 10 minutes old. My wife picked some up once at a Wal-mart (I believe) - packed that day, but not minutes-fresh...and they just weren't great.

Personally, I won't miss this.

Actually I won't miss it either, but I did like the way they had the operations open to the public. I would like to see a bakery down along 17th or 4th, that has a big open glass area to watch.

[NumberFive]

Willow Park will be a great location for Crave for the reasons mentioned above. There are enough restaurants there bringing traffic through, along with the specialty stores that it will floorish.

[Innersoul1]

SWEET!!! Crave is Willow Park!!! My wife is gonna love me even more now!

[Rusty van Reddick]

Thanks for the coffeehouse pics surreal!! Add Bumpy's, Kawa and Beano to the collection if you're down that way.

I was at all three of Artigiano, DeVille and Kawa today- got a lamb panino at Artigiano, then walked over to DeVille for a macchiato and desert (chocolate tart w/ caramel and a tiny bit of fleur de sel on top- it was as good as the version at Nectar and about half the price, $5 for one gorgeous pastry... and the coffee is superb as well) then home via a beans purchase at Kawa, and it's nice to see that Kawa was very busy- not packed but busy. DeVille does OK, it has many regulars, so I wouldn't worry about it, especially considering that it's actually a pretty tiny shop.

A really high volume shop like Beano can and will sell 1000 or more drinks a day. Phil and Sebastian might do the same clip on a Saturday but given that they're only open from 9-5 whereas Beano is from 6a-midnight, naturally the totals are different but Sebastian tells me they can pull 600 shots on a good day. Those are both INSANELY busy examples- at Kawa they estimate they do about 200 drinks a day, going through about 8 lbs of beans a day, and I'd guess that Deville is a little less than that- but these are all really robust sales.

One standard double espresso takes about 20g of coffee, so you can calculate volume by asking how much coffee a shop goes through a day- at Beano they get shipments every other day. That's far more volume than a typical Starbucks btw!

[IntotheWest]

^Thanks for the info, Furry! Neat to know the details, and see these shops doing well. I heard you mentioning Kawa before on this thread, but don't recall DeVille...so, in your opinion, do you think Calgary's coffee "culture" is getting close to Vancouver's with all these new cafes?

I need to get down there more...poor me in Okotoks drinking my "French Roast Americas" Salt Spring (very dark roast) through a French Press.

I'm craving Crave and a leg of lamb panino at Artigiano!

[Rusty van Reddick]

ItW- I think Calgary's evolution in coffee is matched by no other city in Canada (per capita)- things have improved very quickly in Toronto of late but we've just seen Artigiano, Kawa and Deville open just in 2008, have seen huge improvement in the coffee programs at Beano and Good Earth, hosted the first Prairie Regional Barista Championship, and should see a second Artigiano location opening in the next year as well as some big developments with Phil and Sebastian (can't say what but rumours are exciting).... We are not close to Vancouver, no, but I'd say we can lay claim to the second or third (after Victoria) coffee scene in Canada here.

Salt Spring does some nice coffee but I don't get why so many smaller BC roasters roast so damn dark- Salt Spring, Kicking Horse (which is not really small) and Oso Negro are all for charcoal addicts. I'd actually suggest you get one of the house blends at Good Earth.

[IntotheWest]

^I'd have to say, after being so excited that a Good Earth was opening in Okotoks, I've been a few times and haven't been overly impressed. Tried a cappuccino (which, was first served to me at room temperature...what a shock!), and tried the Redtail and Blue Heron blends. Maybe its because they drip brew?? Maybe Artigiano and P+S have really raised my expectations?

I'll pick up the Redtail and try it at home in the press. I do like typically dark roasts, but admittedly, I'm not in love with this Salt Spring one.

[freeweed]

Christ, I feel like a hick sometimes.

I drink a lot of instant (camping), and the office blah blend.

[IntotheWest]

^I hate to admit (with Furry reading these threads) that when I lived in Winnipeg, I used to stop at 7/11 every morning on the way to work...not saying Winnipeg doesn't have better, I just didn't really notice back then...more concerned with just getting caffeine in the system.

Admittedly, Starbucks (when I first moved to Edmonton) is what triggered me start seeking better coffees. Freeweed, if you haven't spent the money to get a good cup (preferably from the Clover machine) at P+S in Calgary Farmers Market - or any of the others Furry mentions, try it. You'll truly want to drop instant coffees for good.

And if not, get yourself a Tassimo. The Starbucks blends for Tassimo are not too bad actually (just pricey).

[Blader]

Originally Posted by IntotheWest

I need to get down there more...poor me in Okotoks drinking my "French Roast Americas" Salt Spring (very dark roast) through a French Press.

Actually, pressed coffee is excellent, provided one chooses suitable varietals properly roasted for press. There are many ways to brew coffee and espresso is only one. Bright varietals, lightly roasted, will yield a tasting experience, in a french press, that would be a total waste if it were prepared in an espresso machine. I like my espresso, but, nonetheless, many quality varietals would suffer terribly if I processed them through, god forbid, my espresso machine.

Regards

[freeweed]

Originally Posted by IntotheWest

Freeweed, if you haven't spent the money to get a good cup (preferably from the Clover machine) at P+S in Calgary Farmers Market - or any of the others Furry mentions, try it. You'll truly want to drop instant coffees for good.

Nah, I've tried the whole nice/fancy/quality/expensive coffee thing. And at most of the places you guys talk about (we get a lot of free coffee cards @ work). I actually find most of it fairly disgusting - espresso/cappucino/lattes are most definitely acquired tastes as far as I can tell. The higher end blends of just normal coffee just taste like coffee to me, or they're far too strong for my palate.

I'm kinda like that guy who spends months sampling 300 beers from around the world - and ends up sitting back enjoying his Canadian (). But with coffee. Like I said, a hick.

Then again, hot liquids to me serve only 2 purposes - warming you up on a cold winter day, and waking you up on most every morning. Swill does the job admirably for either. I couldn't imagine actually drinking coffee in the afternoons/evenings here, not when it's 25 outside. I think that kinda helps with my lack of taste.

[Rusty van Reddick]

freeweed, with coffee and everything else, you don't have to apologize for what you like or don't like. I'm a coffee geek and I'm married to a wine snob, and you know what? All the wine on the planet could disappear tomorrow and I would not care a bit. I can stomach some wines but never drink wine unless it's offered to me and have never in my life bought a bottle on my own. Not my thing. It's hard to deal with my partner's obsession but I just have to accept this about myself.

I don't actually care for drip coffee most of the time and only drink it, usually, for the caffeine; it's only when it comes to espresso (and cappos etc) that I'm a stickler.

[IntotheWest]

Originally Posted by freeweed

Nah, I've tried the whole nice/fancy/quality/expensive coffee thing. And at most of the places you guys talk about (we get a lot of free coffee cards @ work). I actually find most of it fairly disgusting - espresso/cappucino/lattes are most definitely acquired tastes as far as I can tell. The higher end blends of just normal coffee just taste like coffee to me, or they're far too strong for my palate.

I'm kinda like that guy who spends months sampling 300 beers from around the world - and ends up sitting back enjoying his Canadian (). But with coffee. Like I said, a hick.

Then again, hot liquids to me serve only 2 purposes - warming you up on a cold winter day, and waking you up on most every morning. Swill does the job admirably for either. I couldn't imagine actually drinking coffee in the afternoons/evenings here, not when it's 25 outside. I think that kinda helps with my lack of taste.

okay, fair enough. I know my in-laws used to look at me kinda funny when I pull out the press to make coffee (they're all ranchers)...though, a few times I've had them commenting on how good it is.

[IntotheWest]

Originally Posted by furrycanuck

freeweed, with coffee and everything else, you don't have to apologize for what you like or don't like. I'm a coffee geek and I'm married to a wine snob, and you know what? All the wine on the planet could disappear tomorrow and I would not care a bit. I can stomach some wines but never drink wine unless it's offered to me and have never in my life bought a bottle on my own. Not my thing. It's hard to deal with my partner's obsession but I just have to accept this about myself.

I don't actually care for drip coffee most of the time and only drink it, usually, for the caffeine; it's only when it comes to espresso (and cappos etc) that I'm a stickler.

Wine, coffee, chocolate, steak. Personally, I can't live without those! I even changed my wife's Pilsner country tastes to oenophile over the last seven or so years (just got back with 3 cases from BC wineries a couple weeks ago).

In fact, in Osoyoos, at the Nk'Mip Spirit Ridge resort restaurant Passa Tempo I had a bison flatiron steak covered in a red wine chocolate sauce...with a bottle of Blasted Church Revered Cab. It was amazing.

[jeffwhit]

Speaking of coffee, does anyone know a place in town that carries these?



To me it's the closest you're going to get to Clover at home. I had an old girlfriend with one, now I have a new girlfriend without one, so I need one.
Bodum doesn't have an online Canada store so I'm really hoping to find it in town.