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La Belle Patate

I’m not usually in search for poutines, but this La Belle Patate was recommended to me while I was discussing about the fact I didn’t get the opportunity to try the poutine stand at the Calgary Stampede as it was from a food truck in British Columbia.

We ordered a small order of Supreme Poutine which has onion, mushrooms and bacon on top of a bed of fries, cheese and gravy. It was really good, and the chunks of topping was generous and added so much flavour to the poutine. This poutine has set the bar high for all other poutines I may ever eat from now on! The gravy was really good, and it didn’t taste store bought, so that’s always a wonderful sign that they care for the food they prepare for their customers. This poutine had great texture and great flavour, and it wasn’t hard to finish off the entire order of poutine!

We also ordered a Montreal Smoked Meat Sandwich and it was massive! The meat wasn’t too salty at all, in fact it was perfectly prepared! I find with most Montreal Smoked Meat, it just seems too salty, but I’m so proud of La Belle Patate that prepared it to perfection – It’s a huge pile of smoked meat that was juicy and tender! These sandwiches are served on light rye bread, with a coat of yellow mustard which is the perfect vehicle for the massive amount of Monteal Smoked Meat, without any condiments that may take away from the flavour! They also served this sandwich with a Kosher Pickle that was crispy. This sandwich was so big that I almost wasn’t able to finish it up, but from it’s deliciousness, I ate the whole thing in spite of being over stuffed.

Finding this location was fun too, I just assumed that everything is in downtown Canmore, but this is actually tucked into their industrial area. I can see the location being quite busy during the week, but we went on a weekend – of a long weekend, and there were only a few tables – which is still really impressive as it’s not located on the main road of downtown Canmore.

La Belle Patate

102 Boulder Cres Bay 4
Canmore, AB T1W1L2
(403) 678-0077

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Joshua Tree Cafe – Calgary, Alberta

I’ve been wanting a good cup of Rolo Coffee for awhile now, and I finally got a good cup at Joshua Tree Cafe! This was not the original place that introduced it to me, but it was one of the top places in my mind for a Rolo Coffee. It is a specialty coffee, and it’s quite different from some other locations coffee.

We also enjoyed a Chocolate Iced Mocha which was quite standard. It was quite good, and creamy, but it’s nothing extra spectacular! It was refreshing and tasty for sure though!

This was an interesting location we made it to. Coffee stops never take too long, especially when we don’t order food. The worker at Joshua Tree mentioned to us about 45 minutes prior to closing that they will be closing soon, and it appeared that she didn’t want to take our order. We told her that it’s fine, and would still like our order. We did leave prior to their closing, and it wasn’t that we were rushed either – it was because our coffee stop was finished.

They made it really noticeable that they were about to close, at 3pm over the weekend. They started sweeping the floors and what not. It’s not a large location, and I’m sure it’s not too bad if in fact they had to leave 10 minutes late.

Regardless, the rolo coffee was something so special, I will return for it! 🙂

Joshua Tree Cafe

805 Edmonton Trial NE
Calgary, AB
(403) 230-9228

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Red Lobster: Crabfest – Calgary, Alberta

Crabfest is an event that Red Lobster put on annually, and this year, the commercials attracted me more than ever – so I went to try Crabfest for the first time! We didn’t order any starters or anything, but

Red Lobsters is wonderful for their Biscuits which is always buttery, garlicky and delicious! Of course, I inhaled almost all of those before anything else came!

For a drink, I wanted a nice drink, but alcoholic free as I am almost certain I am allergic to alcoholic. I ordered the Strawberry Smoothie which was a wonderful drink, and I would recommend it to all the kids, and people who don’t drink alcohol. It was really refreshing and full of strawberry flavour. Well, in actuality, it is called Sunset Strawberry which is a “Sail Away Smoothie“.

We ordered a Snow Crab & Roasted Garlic Seafood Bake which was 1 full pound of steamed snow crab legs paired with tender shrimp and sea scallops roasted in a garlic and white wine broth. Served with sweet corn on the cob and red potatoes. The steamed snow crab was fantastic, and it was really fresh! As we’re cracking through the shells, it snaps so easily! For crustaceans, if the shells are soggy or they don’t “crack” it’s really not fresh! But, I was really surprised how fresh, and how much food we got with this seafood bake! Even the shrimp and scallops were bigger and better too! The corn was really sweet and infused in the seafood broth – which was wonderful!

We also ordered Crab Crusted Tilapia which had fresh tilapia topped with a creamy blend of sweet crab meat, Parmesan cheese and breadcrumbs, then baked crispy and golden. Served with fresh broccoli. I really didn’t care much for this dish, as I’m not a fan of Parmesan cheese. I eat a lot with my nose and eyes, and I just can’t stand the smell of Parmesan cheese. It was worse when I tried another bite after the dish was cold.

The last thing we tried was the Red Lobster – Seaport Lobster & Shrimp and this was really good. It was a plate with a fire-grilled split Maritime lobster tail, savory garlic shrimp, and a skewer of jumbo garlic grilled shrimp. I got this over some mashed potatoes. The lobster tail was really good and fresh. The garlic shrimp was not my favourite at all. It was soggy/mushy and just in a little tub of garlic butter. The shrimp that was on the skewer was a million times better, both taste and texture!

By the end of the night, there was no room for dessert! We have had dessert from Red Lobster before, and it’s good, but it’s not worth filling ourselves up to the brim. Overall, a super satisfied night with family over really good seafood.

Red Lobster

6100 Macloed Trail
Calgary, AB
(403) 252-8818

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Baker Boys – Apple Cinnamon Pull Apart

Ah, anyone who knows me well, know I go insane for sweet stuff. I have a new love currently, and I don’t want to talk much about it… or they’ll be none for me. But, it’s from Baker Boys Bakery and they’re known as Apple Cinnamon Pull Apart. They are a fantastic treat to start my day with – for breakfast, and to end all my meals with!! I just cut up a little piece and pop it in the microwave for 10 seconds, and the warm icing melts and it becomes a dream come true!

It’s got all the cinnamon bun goodness in little pull apart pieces, baked in a ring pan – or I would call it a halo! I’m not sure if it’s a good thing or bad as I munch on it through the day… and by the end of the day, I have no idea how much I’ve had. I think it’s a good thing, as it tastes wonderful!

What I love most about this is the sweet apple chunks I get throughout, and it become warm and tender after I’ve microwaved it. It’s like a wonderful apple pie, but instead of a crust, it’s on cinnamon bun pieces! 🙂 I would recommend you go try it for yourself, but please leave some in the store for me!

  • Baker Boys - Cinnamon Apple Pull Apart
  • Baker Boys - Cinnamon Apple Pull Apart
  • Baker Boys - Cinnamon Apple Pull Apart
  • Baker Boys - Cinnamon Apple Pull Apart
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Wasabi Japanese Restaurant Ltd

I’ve recently been introduced to Wasabi right on 16th Avenue, and it’s a great little location! The fish is fresh and good, and the prices aren’t bad either! We came for dinner, and the service was quick too!! But, you must make sure you’re receiving everything you’ve ordered, as they almost forgot to give us our salmon roe. At least they didn’t make a huge fuss about it, they just quickly made it for us. They didn’t apologize or anything, as I think in the back of their mind, we ate it and we’re trying to get more… regardless, there wasn’t any problems, and that’s the main part.

We weren’t too impressed with the rolls though… they looked almost the same as we ordered the Dynamite Roll and a Wasabi Special Roll. We actually asked them if we got them both, and she said yes! But, I guess that was our mistake as one of them had shrimp and the other one just seemed to be stuffed with avocado (Wasabi Special Roll)… The Dynamite roll has shrimp tempura and avocado, and the Wasabi Special roll was avocado, salmon, and cucumbers.

We started the evening with a nice bowl of Miso Soup which wasn’t bad! It wasn’t overly salty like some other places, it was just right! Then, we had our plate of BBQ Squid which was a tad over-cooked which made it a bit chewy but the flavour was so good, it was such a minor detail – we ate the whole thing up! (or maybe I did!)

Following that, came our plates of sushi!! Yay!! We ordered things like Hokkigai, which was not only my favourite, but it was one of the items for a dollar! It made it extra good! We also enjoyed rolls and sashimi – both Salmon and Tuna and they gave huge pieces of salmon and tuna!! They didn’t look as good as it tasted, and that’s always a pleasant surprise! 🙂

At the end of the day, we were all very satisfied and our bellies were really full!! The best thing about Wasabi right now, they have a $1 menu!! That’s right, there are special items that you can get for only $1!! As it’s all said and done, it’s a great little location for what it’s worth! I definitely will be back to enjoy more delicious sushi! By the end of the night, we were way to full to have any dessert or anything else for that matter! But, all is good!

Wasabi Japanese Restaurant Ltd

Central 16 Ave N
602 16 Ave NW
Calgary, AB
(403) 282-0092