Dinner – Page 4 – Elsie Hui

June 1, 2019June 1, 2019

Broken Plate – Calgary, Alberta

It was a special day, and we chose to celebrate it at Broken Plate on Macleod Trail. We lucked out with the table without reservations as the place filled up quickly on a Friday night.

We sat down and the service was amazing and prompt! We ordered our drinks and appetizers and they came out relatively quick. We decided to start with their Prawns Santorini which was like a soup with bread and prawns. I wasn’t sure how to eat it, but I ate all the bread and prawns. It was amazing! The prawns were large, fresh and delicious. The soup was not a soup but a sauce, but we ate it like a soup. It was roasted red pepper sauce and that was full of flavour on it’s own.

I ordered their daily special which was the Steelhead Trout which was as perfectly cooked piece of fish on the grill, over a bed of risotto with seasonal vegetables. The trout was topped with a citrus and blueberry sauce which was absolutely divine! The sweetness of the blueberry with the tartness of the citrus on the fish was a unique and delicious combination.

Lamb seems to be a thing for Greek cuisine, so we also ordered their Leg of Lamb roast which was a hearty main dish, but it wasn’t too rich or heavy. The chunks of lamb was tender and flavourful, great lamb flavour on it’s own as well. Mashed potatoes and seasonal vegetables accompanied this perfectly cooked lamb.

Overall, the experience here was perfect. We didn’t even let them know it was for any occasion and everything was amazing on it’s own. I would definitely recommend Broken Plate for any night, but a comfortable and semi-casual place.

Broken Plate

10816 Macleod Trail SE
Calgary, Alberta
403-225-9650

January 27, 2019

Tokyo Noodle Shop – Edmonton, Alberta

We take random trips out to Edmonton and this particular afternoon we were there and found ourselves at Old Stratcona area fueling up. We decided to eat something before the drive home for the evening, so this was an early dinner when we went downstairs to Tokyo Noodle Shop. It was a busy Saturday night as the place was half full, not sure if everyone else is doing what we’re doing or what’s going on but it was a lively place!

I ordered their Chicken Ramen which the waitress said it comes the way it looks in the picture when I asked if there was corn in the ramen. I know it sounds strange, but I do like corn! The chicken ramen wasn’t bad, a nicely grilled piece of chicken that sits on top of the soup with a generous portion of noodles and toppings!

The other noodle we ordered, they called it Deluxe Udon, which was a bowl of udon with chicken and crabsticks and it also came with shrimp tempura.

The Shrimp Tempera that came with the Deluxe Udon was pretty decent! The shrimp was clean with a good texture and it was perfectly fried to a nice light crisp.

Overall, we enjoyed our dinner here. It was fun to see the beautiful presentation that they have for the customers that order sushi. They really take pride in the work they do, and it does show!

Tokyo Noodle Shop

10736 82 Ave NW,
Edmonton, AB
780-430-0838

January 27, 2019January 27, 2019

Raj Palace Midnapore – Calgary, Alberta

It was a cold evening and I really didn’t want to cook. All I wanted was a warm hug from the inside out. So, I requested to go eat out for dinner and the only thing I said was “I want to eat curry”. As a recommendation, Raj Palace came up and I have never been here before, so I figured it’s the perfect excuse! It’s not a big place and this particular evening, they had quite a few tables seated so we were seated by the door, which was extremely breezy when the door opened. Thankfully we weren’t there that long!

It seems to be a family ran location. I didn’t really talk to the waiter or anything as he seemed really busy with the orders in house and delivery service orders. It was a bit of hustle and bustle so I didn’t want to be bother. So, we just ordered our food and I decided I wouldn’t get my chai as I haven’t been sleeping well. We ordered more premium and got their Prawn Coconut Curry, and I can’t say I tasted the coconut, but it’s got a nice heat level to it. It’s a tomato based sauce with coconut cream which was perfect with the rice. The prawns were big, large portions, deveined and pretty amazing!

The other dish that we had was their Lamb Chettinadu and I got this because it was the only one under lamb/goat that was “boneless”! LOL! I was having one of those evenings. There’s not much to the description to the curry besides “chettinad spices in home style”, but it was tasty!

That’s all we ordered for curry, otherwise, it was our usual suspects of garlic Naan which was a nice treat because it wasn’t only smothered in butter with garlic powder on it. The texture of the naan here was one of the best we’ve had and I think they actually make their garlic butter! It was very tasty.

The other vehicle that I get with curry is Coconut Rice as I find it easier to eat my curry with and it absorbs the sauce, which means I wear less of the mess! The coconut rice was a large bowl and devoured in no time for me with that Prawn Coconut Curry sauce. It was my favourite!

Overall experience here was pretty amazing. It was a chill environment, no one was in a rush for anything, food and service was good. There wasn’t anything to complain about!

Raj Palace Midnapore

15425 Bannister Rd SE,
Calgary, AB
403-454-3345

January 19, 2019

State & Main Kitchen & Bar – Calgary, Alberta

It was New Years Eve and we needed to eat something before heading over to friends place to ring in the new year. I didn’t know where to go, but I didn’t want to go far and a good friend told me to try State & Main in Mahogany. There we went! We were lucky as it was New Years Eve and a lot of other places were closed at this hour, so there was a continual rotation of parking opportunities. The place was busy and you can tell a lot of their customers were going to go to parties afterwards as well. It was a very festive atmosphere!

I knew the night ahead of me would have food and drinks so I didn’t require a lot. I got their Chicken Cheesesteak Sandwich and it was a very large portion and of course I got it with fries and gravy!

We also ordered their Main Burger as it seemed like something they’d be known for. More fries and more gravy! This was a delicious mess of goodness with the normal burger suspects of melted american cheese topped w/ lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle & sauce with 2 patties!

State and Main here in Mahogany was very delightful. We definitely ate more than expected as the potion sizes were larger than expected. And, with it being cold I ate everything! The prices were very reasonable, great food and excellent service. It was busy but they were mostly under control! We had an amazing time so I am sure I will return as it’s close, and awesome! I did have a site supervisor tell me he liked it here as well not too long ago. Maybe I’ll be creepy and try to bump into him one day…

State & Main

470 – 7 Mahogany Plaza SE
Calgary, Alberta
403-452-0802

December 30, 2018

Peking Garden – Calgary, Alberta

This is interesting, as I’m not too sure how we ended up at Peking Garden for lunch one afternoon. We’re rarely in the area and would rarely go for Chinese food if I was in the car stating I was hungry! We also had to wait a good 20 minutes for a table, which I wouldn’t have done if I was that hungry! The place was packed and there was a constant order of take outs. We did get seated and the service didn’t see slow or rushed!

One of my favourite dishes to order are Dumplings as all my coworkers claim I make the best dumplings ever. I always want to find a comparable place to try to trick them… but they’re kind of right, I do make a great dumpling! Here, they make a good one as well, with skins a bit thicker than my own, but the filling is tasty and not dry. I appreciate a well seasoned dumpling then if the skin is thick, I wouldn’t mind. Just like the ones here!

My inlaws use to take me to eat Salty Soy Milk or some call it savoury soy milk. It’s not something I was familiar with until they brought me to experience this and now I love the uniqueness of it. They had it when we went to Shanghai a few years ago and I’d get it when I can. Both sweet and savoury.

Because I’m a huge fan of sweets, of course I needed to try their Sweet Soy Milk as well. Yes, we did order too much of this stuff!! LOL! But, surprisingly we finished it all!! One was more like a drink (the sweet one) and one ate like a soup! So, we separated the two and finished it.

Then, when we were in Shanghai, we ate TONS of Xiao Long Bao, and when I saw this on the menu, naturally I would order it as well. Haha, this lunch does get bigger as well… sadly. But, it was really well made xiao long bao’s, steamed nicely and it did have the soup inside the dumplings still! It’s not easy to make it like this, but they got it!

Alright, your little pig friend finally stopped ordering food. After the order of Sticky Rice. I loved zha choy, and sticky rice, and fried donut… and stick them together, I LOVE IT! So, yes, I ordered some Sticky Rice and it wasn’t as exciting as I’d hope. I was just glad to have some though as there’s really not many places that would make this for you, unless you come to my house, or T&T supermarket. So, just come to my house for my homemade soy milk, dumplings, xiao long bao and sticky rice! I don’t think I’ve ever made a meal JUST this for anyone yet.

Anyway, just rewriting my adventure here at Peking Garden stuffs my belly and makes me proud of what I’ve accomplished at home in my own kitchen. It was a great time here and to top it off, they give me Tofu Dessert! This place is wonderful! So, all and all, this place is fabulous!

Peking Garden

4625 Varsity Dr NW,
Calgary, AB
(403) 286-0488