Boogie’s Burgers – Calgary, Alberta

I guess one evening, my husband really wanted burgers for dinner. He ended up taking me out to Boogies Burger which was very interesting! I’ve seen the sign for it when we drive along Edmonton Trail, but oddly, I’ve never once thought about trying “boogie” burgers! But, we did it! The location can be a little tough to find as it’s tucked in a bit, and it’s not really lit up.

The interior is pretty neat, it’s kind of decorated retro style and it definitely brings you back into the past with arcade games, which my husband did try to play them… and reported one of the buttons was broken, so he stood no chance. I think he just had no chance and came up with the excuse. Regardless, I think he had fun!

I was browsing through the menu and I found a huge section on milkshakes! I love the good old fashion style milkshake, and I was curios to see if this place would hit a home run with it. I got their Strawberry Milkshake as it’s my favourite and it use to be the one I’d get in our old family restaurant. My husband ordered the Pina Colada Milkshake and I’m so happy to report these milkshakes are AWESOME! It’s thick, creamy, delicious and proper! I can’t wait to go back for another shake!

For the burger, I got the Fay’s Burger and it was a decent burger stuffed with a patty, some bacon, mushrooms, onion, lettuce and tomatoes. It almost sounds like a standard burger but the burger was huge, almost the size of my head. The patty wasn’t a well formed patty but it was still good! Being the person I am, I ordered some spicy fries with my meal and it was quite good! It wasn’t too spicy, but well seasoned! I enjoyed the fries!

My husband decided to order their Boog-Mac which is probably their take on a “Big Mac” with 2 patties, thousand island sauce, cheddar cheese, pickles, lettuce, onions and tomatoes. It was a gigantic burger and a messy one, but it as nice with more sauce in the burger! It was nice!

Overall, I fell in love with the milkshakes as it bright me back to my childhood! I would only have the straw to complain about as it seemed too flimsy for the milkshake. I’d suck the straw and it seems to collapse! That’s probably just an Elsie issue though. But, this was a great place to be!

Boogie's Burgers on Urbanspoon

Boogie’s Burgers

908 Edmonton Trl NE
Calgary, AB
(403) 230-7070

Homemade Chicken Pot Pie

It’s been awhile since I’ve posted my own cooking now… but, I recently was asked to make my best friend a fail proof recipe for something chicken and fail proof. I chose to teach her Chicken Pot Pie as it’s very versatile, and you really can’t goof on it.

Ingredients: Serves 2 (you can always make more!)
2 pieces of boneless/skinless chicken thigh (or 1 piece of chicken breast)
1 chopped carrot
1 chopped small onion (1/2 Large onion)
1 stalk of celery
1/4 cup Frozen corn (optional)
1 pack of puff pastry
1 tbsp butter
1 1/2 tbsp flour
3/4 to 1 cup milk

First off, preheat the oven to 375C or 400C, I like to use 375C on my toaster oven as I’m only making 2 pies. Then start by chopping all the vegetables and putting it aside. Then, chop the chicken, and I just do a quick marinade with just salt and pepper. You can add more flavouring to it if you want. Sometimes, I use seasoning salt as well…

Then, I saute the chicken in a pan, low and slow until it cooks through about half way or a little more than half way. Then, I put the vegetables in and cook the entire thing until it’s cooked through. When I get to the cooked stage, I can taste the ingredients to make sure there’s enough flavour throughout.

I then remove all the cooked ingredients out of my pan and start my roux. I keep the heat on low and melt the butter. Once the butter has melted, I put the flour in and make sure it’s completely absorbed. I cook it longer to make sure there’s no flour taste. I normally let the butter brown before I call it done, and the flour/butter mixture will be a dough like consistency.

Once I’ve achieved that stage, I put the milk in add mix with a whisk. As it cooks, the milk mixture becomes creamy and thick, like a gravy! When it’s about the thickness I’d like it, I will add in my cooked chicken and vegetables and taste it again. If I find my gravy is too thin, I cook it longer… if it’s too thick, add more milk. At this stage, you can add the corn if you opted in for it.

When this is ready, scoop the pot pie fillings into a shell. Then, cut the puff pastry into a shape to top it off. Sometimes, I purchase the pre-cut ones to make my life a little simpler.

Now, we just pop the entire thing in the oven and let it bake for about 40 minutes (or until the crust looks golden and delicious). I find in my oven, it takes about 40-45 minutes. Take it out and be careful as it’s really hot!

Now, you’re ready to enjoy your “kind of homemade” Chicken Pot Pie! 🙂

Kilt & Caber Ale House – Calgary, Alberta

Every once in awhile, I have the need for some chicken wings and this time, I found myself on the patio of Kilt & Caber in McKenzie Towne. It’s not a hard location to find at all, and it’s a nice place!

We were seated outside (on a warn evening, of course) and it wasn’t bad! With a newly installed fireplace in the space, it was quite inviting! So, I ordered my drink of choice during this phase, my Virgin Caesar!

From there, we started with wings! We got Salt and Peppered Wings as it was during their wing night! The wings were really good, fried nicely and flavoured fully! Crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside… and it wasn’t meatless wings where it’s just skin and bones! So, we were very satisfied! The picture doesn’t show that it looks good, but we often don’t ask for the celery and carrot sticks when it’s a choice! Veggies isn’t something I eat if I have a choice!

I was trying to eat a little meal, so I ordered their Greek Wrap with soup, and it wasn’t a little meal at all! The wrap was made of their naan, stuffed with chicken, lettuce and cucumbers, and topped with their tzatziki sauce! It was a decent wrap, nothing extraordinary, but not bad either! The soup was their soup of the day, Cream of Broccoli and it was pretty good, and it seemed to be perfect for a chillier patio evening!

My husband ordered the strangest looking Sheppard’s Pie which was rectangular! Strangely, he ordered it with a salad as well, so it was just strange. The Sheppard’s pie tasted fine, but it didn’t seem like it was made fresh. It almost seemed like it was just defrosted and a giant bowl of brown gravy was poured on top. At least he ate the entire thing, but everything tastes better with gravy!

Overall, I think this is a great place for wings and drinks. Unless you’re looking for an average meal where nothing really matters, then it’s fine! I really enjoyed the wings, so I’m sure I’ll be back for those! It is an Ale house afterall! I’m not sure what I was thinking!

Kilt & Caber Ale House on Urbanspoon

Kilt & Caber Ale House

53 High St SE
Calgary, AB
(403) 257-6297

E & W Family Restaurant – Three Hills, Alberta

For those who don’t actually know me… my name starts with an “E” and my husbands name starts with a “W”… so, when we drove by Three Hills and saw E&W Family Restaurant, we knew it was a place for us to try! This restaurant is located near the edge of the highway, and it’s family owned and ran by Chinese but of course caters to a more “Caucasian” crowd with “Chinese” food.

This restaurant had a dine-in menu as well as a buffet. We just figured we won’t be a pain and order from the menu as there was really good looking food sitting at the buffet – so we opt’ed for that option. The owners felt that they should make us some fresh food to top off the buffet, and they insisted to do so, which was really nice!

I enjoyed many servings and rounds of food. Even though I didn’t have pictures of everything, I know I started with an assortment of food that they did have out! A bit of each and I soon realized I fell in love with their Peppered Chicken, so I had more every time I went back! The owners made more as well, to fill the buffet… so I almost felt the need to finish it all! I failed at that challenge, but it was delicious anyway!

I then went back and forth for a bit, and found that I also really liked their Chow Mein so I had plates of that too! I love buffets as I eat tons of what I find that I like! The only problem here was that there was too much I liked… and it was a long drive home!

Overall, we went here with an empty stomach and left really really full! The owner was telling us about Dry Island Buffalo Jump which wasn’t too far from there, so that’s where we went next! What a neat stop here at Three Hills! I’m sure we’ll be back someday! The owner sold some pet fishes from his tank, and I already mentioned next time I go there, I’ll bring a pet fish home!

E & W on Urbanspoon

E & W Family Restaurant – Chinese Buffet

1011 2 St N
Three Hills, AB
(403) 443-2388

Crepes & Cravings – Calgary, Alberta

This one evening, I met up with a good friend, and we decided to grab dinner at Crepes & Cravings located right on 17th Avenue. It’s a cute little place that offers both sweet and savoury crepes, and even gelato!

I never know what I want to eat. It’s best if you order for me… but, this day, I knew I wanted their Philly Cheese Roast Beef crepe, and it was a good one! It was jammed packed with roast beef and provolone, lettuce, tomato, onion and their cheese sauce! It was actually a lot more filling that I would ever imagine!

My husband went for his go-to if he sees it, and so he ordered the Montreal Smoked Meat Crepe and it definitely looked good – filled with Montreal smoked meat with Swiss cheese, spinach, tomato and mustard! We normally would split half and half, but by the time I finished half of my crepe, he was pretty much done! So, I actually never tried it. Clearly, he was in love with it!

My friend ordered the The Sicilian and I must admit, her’s looked THE BEST! I didn’t try it either, but she loved it! Her crepe was filled with Italian meats and provolone cheese, roasted pepeers, tomatoes, onions and olives!

At the end of this visit, we all agreed this is the perfect place for a light dinner, or an awesome lunch! We all thought we would be back! Next time, maybe we’ll split some crepes and make room for dessert crepes or gelato!

Crepes & Cravings - Crepes, Gelato & Ice Cream on Urbanspoon

Crepes & Cravings – Crepes, Gelato & Ice Cream

1013 17 Ave SW
Calgary, AB
(403) 228-6523