Food & Flavour « Downtown Calgary Blog

Archive for the ‘Food & Flavour’ Category

Lunch at Rush

March 9th, 2010 by Lisa Murphy-Lamb

The first thing you should do immediately after making a reservation for lunch at Rush is cancel your dinner plans. You will not need to eat again for many hours after enjoying the three course set menu offered at Rush during the ten days of Dine Out Calgary. And if you have the time, you may find yourself still enjoying both the restaurant and the food close to the dinner hour. It’s a place where you want to sit back and enjoy.

Photo by Lisa Murphy-Lamb

The restaurant is beautiful and elegant with a contemporary feel. Dark wood, interesting lighting, glass walls and lush drapes offer a sense of luxury. We were seated at an intimate booth built in a semi-circle fashion. Instead of sitting across from each other we sat beside one another and looked out over the dining room. Behind us were more traditional booths and private tables.

Complimentary still and sparkling water is offered and replenished throughout the meal. The restaurant creates their own sparkling water.

The first course was an apple and celery root soup garnished with smoked ham hock. It was a creamy bowl of soup with a fantastic flavour. The ham hock balanced the creamy soup nicely.

It was when the second course, spring creek braised short rib served in a bowl of polenta topped with braised greens was served that I knew my family was on their own for dinner. The polenta, also creamy, was a perfect accompaniment to the short rib which was tender and delicious. The portion was more than ample for a lunchtime meal. I was happy and satisfied when I finished and there was still dessert to go.

Photo by Lisa Murphy-Lamb

Dessert was a lemon tart topped with raspberry sorbet with plenty of tartness to balance the creaminess of the preceding two dishes. If I had the luxury to linger, I would have held off on the dessert and enjoyed a coffee with it as the first two courses were very filling.

Dine Out Calgary was an excellent excuse to check out Rush, a restaurant I knew very little about. The very satisfying three-course lunch experience ($25) with a good friend has left me eager to return and check out the regular menu.

Call ahead for free valet parking at night.

www.rushrestaurant.com

Tags: Dine Out Calgary, Rush
Posted in Festivals & Fanfare, Food & Flavour | No Comments »

Dine Out Calgary Picks: Wil Knoll

March 8th, 2010 by Wil Knoll

Dine Out Calgary starts this Friday, March 5th and runs until Sunday, March 14th. There’s over 90 restaurants participating this year and that means a lot of great dining choices. To help you with your decision our blog writers have chosen their top picks for the 10 days. First up Wil Knoll

I started to go to the gym before Christmas and had been somewhat committed to my 10k runs, and keeping my weight down around the 160lbs mark. The Scotiabank Calgary Marathon is just months away, and I need to be ready.

Christmas came and I battled it. New Year’s came and I hung out with the whereswalter.ca crew (two young Calgarians enjoying the life in a 31 foot Winnebago named Walter) in Las Vegas… Then High Performance Rodeo came and there was drinking more nights out of the week then not.

So, just as I’m starting to trend back down towards the happy 160lbs that is only 5 measly little pounds away, downtown Calgary puts together Dine Out Calgary.

Obviously, you’ll be seeing more of me at the Y in the coming weeks… Here are a few of my picks for Dine Out Calgary. Since over the next 10 days they will be offering a set menu for Dine Out Calgary, I’m going to just give a taste of some of the locations.
(more…)

Tags: Dine Out Calgary, Don Quijote's
Posted in Festivals & Fanfare, Food & Flavour | No Comments »

Dine Out Calgary Picks: Derrick Plotsky

March 5th, 2010 by Derrick Plotsky

Dine Out Calgary starts this Friday, March 5th and runs until Sunday, March 14th. There’s over 90 restaurants participating this year and that means a lot of great dining choices. To help you with your decision our blog writers have chosen their top picks for the 10 days. First up Derrick Plotsky

Decisions, decisions, decisions. Life is full of decisions. And the most recent life-changing decision that I have to deal with? Where to go for Dine Out Calgary. I know, my life is so difficult. But there are just so many amazing places to choose from with so many different types of food; no matter what you like you’ll be able to find someplace to go. (more…)

Tags: Ceili's, Dine Out Calgary, Jupiter, Murrietas
Posted in Festivals & Fanfare, Food & Flavour | No Comments »

Dine Out Calgary Picks: Lisa Murphy-Lamb

March 4th, 2010 by Lisa Murphy-Lamb

Dine Out Calgary starts this Friday, March 5th and runs until Sunday, March 14th. There’s over 90 restaurants participating this year and that means a lot of great dining choices. To help you with your decision our blog writers have chosen their top picks for the 10 days. Next up Lisa Murphy-Lamb

Here is our problem: My husband is away on business travel a lot. This means most of his meals are eaten out while I am at home cooking for the family. When we are together in the same city at the same time, he looks forward to some home cooking and I look forward to him taking me out. Unless I’m prepared with a solid suggestion for a restaurant that is enticing and easy to get to, his business-travel weariness takes over and he begs to stay in and nosh on something homemade and healthy.

Here is one solution: Dine out Calgary which begins Friday, March 5 and runs until Sunday, March 14. During Dine out Calgary, participating restaurants offer a 3-course menu at a set price point especially for the event. This is a great enticement to come and try out some local restaurants, but better than that for me is the website which lists the restaurants and what they are serving. With access to menus, location and price I am well prepared for when my husband returns from Rio and Buenos Aires (I know, right?) next week.

So with a little research by way of my computer perched on top of my cookbooks, here are my top three picks for Dine out Calgary week. Fingers crossed I talk him into at least joining me at one of them. (more…)

Tags: Belvedere, Bistro Piq Niq, Dine Out Calgary, Rush
Posted in Festivals & Fanfare, Food & Flavour | No Comments »

Dine Out Calgary Picks: Sophy Kors

March 3rd, 2010 by Sophy Kors

Dine Out Calgary starts this Friday, March 5th and runs until Sunday, March 14th. There’s over 90 restaurants participating this year and that means a lot of great dining choices. To help you with your decision our blog writers have chosen their top picks for the 10 days. First up Sophy Kors

I always look forward to Dine Out Calgary because it’s a great chance to try new (to me) restaurants. I imagine that eventually I’ll run out, but I don’t think that’ll be anytime soon. With so many choices it’s a hard choice, but the three that I hope to try Blink, Koi and CHARCUT Roasthouse.

The one thing that all of my choices have in common? Dessert! (more…)

Tags: Blink, CHARCUT, Dine Out Calgary, Koi, Le Germain
Posted in Festivals & Fanfare, Food & Flavour | No Comments »

Spur Gastropub

December 17th, 2009 by Lisa Murphy-Lamb

I am glad the temperature has risen and freed me from the bond I’ve developed with my oven over the past week. Happy to leave my filled cookie tins behind and step out into the sunshine I took a walk downtown. Admittedly though, it was just to trade one Christmas chore, baking, for another, shopping. Still, it was a glorious day to get out.

After a few hours of successfully checking off my to-do list, I was hungry. I’m not entirely sure if my hunger was owing from dodging the large numbers inside the shops or the necessary leaping over the shin-high slush puddles outdoors, but it was clear I needed to eat before my walk home. None of my trusty lunch-mates were available so I checked out Spur Gastropub on my own on the recommendation of a friend and because it was conveniently on my route. After sliding into a secluded booth, I checked out the menu. (more…)

Tags: Spur Gastropub
Posted in Food & Flavour | No Comments »

Maharajah

December 4th, 2009 by John Gilchrist

I was downtown alone one evening and got a hankering for Indian food. But Indian food is not easy to order off the menu for only one diner. And since it was evening there were no big buffets around. I was stymied until I came across Maharajah across from City Hall in Rocky Mountain Plaza. They do “thali,” which is a combo platter for the individual diner. Maharajah’s is an excellent one. Or two actually – they have a vegetarian thali and a non-vegetarian one. Guess which one I had. (more…)

Tags: Maharajah
Posted in Food & Flavour | No Comments »

First Down(town) Food Fest : River Cafe

November 26th, 2009 by Lisa Murphy-Lamb

With the Grey Cup, Calgary is offering a chance to eat more than hotdogs and chips-or whatever Grey Cup day fare you may traditionally indulge in. The First Down(Town) Food Fest is well under way offering Calgarians and visitors a chance to get into the game by sampling Grey Cup-inspired pre-set menus for lunch ($15), dinner ($25) or gourmet ($85).

I chose the River Café. It’s on my running route and I like how it looks nestled on Prince’s Island. I also like how it smells and attracts patio dwellers in the summer. This time I made a lunch reservation for two. But this time I didn’t need it. There were plenty of available tables. We got one by the window to watch the other runners, the strollers and the Canadian geese. (more…)

Tags: Grey Cup, River Café
Posted in Festivals & Fanfare, Food & Flavour | No Comments »

Murrietas

November 17th, 2009 by Jill Roberts

Murrietas Named after Joaquim Murietta, legendary bandit and “Robin Hood of El Dorado,” Murietta’s bar and grill delivers a stimulating combination of charm and substance. The restaurant is perched on the second story of Stephen Avenue Mall, hewn from the bones of the historic Alberta Hotel.

We arrived late, cold, hungry, in uncomfortable shoes and without reservations. Lucky to get a table, we were soon pouring over the alluring menu, and seated graciously next to the fireplace.

Offering “something tailored to every taste,” Murrieta’s ample menu had us drooling over nearly everything.
(more…)

Tags: Murrietas
Posted in Food & Flavour | No Comments »

Belgo Brasserie

November 13th, 2009 by Wil Knoll

Hard to put your finger on it, but it’s really tasty

Belgo takes a bit of time to try and explain to you what it is. In fact, it takes the first paragraph of their website’s index to describe what a brasserie is. I’m not too worried about what hours food is served, or if the menus are printed or just listed over the counter. But both my date and I were unsure what to expect when walking into the place. We were pleasantly surprised.

(more…)

Tags: Belgo
Posted in Food & Flavour | No Comments »