Lunch – Page 21 – Elsie Hui

December 21, 2014

Rose Garden Thai Restaurant – Calgary, Alberta

I really enjoy eating Thai cuisine and we had an chnace to make it to Stephen Avenue one afternoon where Rose Garden was actually opened for lunch! Without hesitation, we went inside and the place is decorated beautifully!

Once we sat down, we we were approached by really friendly staff and they were quick and knowledgeable. We started with an appetizer called Spicy Deep Fried Thai Fish Cakes and they were really delicious! The fish cakes were flavourful and tender while fried to a nice golden brown outside crisp! It’s like no other appetizer we have had before and I enjoyed this thoroughly. It was not fishy at all!

We had an order of their Thai Curries and we decided we would try their Yellow Chicken curry with potatoes and chicken strips. The curry was mild to medium and it came with quite a few pieces of chicken. The presentation was extraordinary which was really nice!

The last dish we tried was their Pineapple Curry with Prawns which was my favourite. I really like prawns and pineapples, so I ate this dish completely! It was spicy, but it was toned down with the crushed pineapples and coconut milk! It was delicious and I would recommend this dish if you enjoy fruits in your savoury dishes!

Of course, a Thai meal wouldn’t be completed with Coconut Rise to soak up all the delicious sauces from the dishes! We ate everything up – thinking there would be leftovers for the following day or dinner. We couldn’t bare the thought of this waiting to get reheated! It was quite an enjoyable lunch!

Overall, the food and service was top-notch! The location can be tricky if you’re not use to parking downtown or don’t like paying for parking. There’s always the option for public transportation as well. The prices seems a little high, but the location is quite exceptional! It was a fantastic experience and we hope to be back again soon!

Rose Garden Thai

112 8 Ave SW
Calgary, AB
(403) 263-1900

December 16, 2014

Eggoasis Crowfoot – Calgary, Alberta

We decided to go for breakfast at Eggoasis in Crowfoot where there was plenty of parking. The place is pretty big and before you know it – you’re waiting for a table. This place is busy, but their service isn’t that quick either – so just be prepared!

Once we got seated, I decided to order a Hot Chocolate with no whipped cream, and it came in a beautiful cup. It wasn’t as hot as I know hot chocolate to be – which meant it was cold by the time my meal got here. I guess if you asked for whipped cream, it would fill up the rest of the glass and probably insulate it better.

I didn’t know which Eggs Benedict I wanted, but I knew that was what I wanted to try. I ended up opting for their Forrester’s Eggs Benedict which was their eggs benny with mushrooms, swiss cheese and meat – where I picked sausages inside my eggs benny. It was tastier than it sounds! I asked for a soft poached egg and it came out perfect and runny! I wasn’t in love with the hollandaise sauce, but I really loved the potatoes!

My husband went for an omelette, he picked the Hunter’s Omelette which an omelette with bacon, ham and sausage and some Swiss cheese. He loved it and devoured it after he got some Tabasco sauce! It was tasty and the eggs was cooked really nicely!

Overall, it was a decent meal. It’s not the best, but also not the worse. The location was nice, the atmosphere was comfortable, and the prices was about average for a breakfast/lunch location. We enjoyed our company the most, and that was the best part of our visit!

Eggsoasis – Crowfoot Crossing

10 Crowfoot Terrace NW
Calgary, AB
(403) 460-0286

December 15, 2014December 15, 2014

Evelyn’s Memory Lane Cafe – High River, Alberta

We’ve been meaning to drive out to High River, AB to eat at Evelyn’s Memory Lane Cafe for quite some time now – basically after I first heard of them on Foot Network Canada’s “You Gotta Eat Here”. So, we had an afternoon where we didn’t know where we wanted to eat – and here we were!

We sat down by the diner bar and was greeted immediately. The entire team of staff was very attentive, friendly and quick! We started with a bowl of Beef & Barley Soup which was loaded with barley and had tons of soft and tender pieces of beef. I don’t normally love thick soups full of “stuff”, but this one I really enjoyed!

We also wanted to try their Strawberry Milkshakes as I love milkshakes from small towns. I claim they’re different and much more delicious! I was right – it was rich and creamy with the nice consistency and enough strawberry flavours. I believe I read somewhere stating they make their own ice cream, but I’m not sure…

Of course, if there’s perogies on the menu, chances are I will order it. I had an order of their Perogies which was absolutely amazing. Both the skin and filling was perfect and then with the onions and bacon – you couldn’t go wrong anywhere! It was definitely one of the best!

I ordered off their daily special and it actually came with a Cabbage Roll as well. I wasn’t sure about it at first, but once you cut into it – the world of aweseomeness came through. The texture of the filling was nice and it wasn’t dry at all. It had meat and rice in it and it was firm, while the cabbage was sweet and tender. It was nice!

From there, we ordered their Beef Stew also off their daily special. It came in a pretty good size bowl with almost a beef soup looking stew. It was still very hearty and delicious and tons of beef flavour. The vegetables were cooked perfectly as they were tender but not mush! They have the best bread as well!

Just in case we thought we didn’t eat enough, we decided to try a slice of their Pumpkin Pie and it was special! It was darker than pumpkin pie I’m use to seeing, but it was a nice texture. The crust was excellent and we devoured this dessert!

Overall, this was such a fabulous place I look forward to returning. It was a lot of fun, the food was top notch, the service was excellent and the prices were amazing! So, no complaints from anywhere! Can’t wait to return to see the train go around the restaurant again!

Evelyn’s Memory Lane Cafe

118 4 Ave SW
High River, AB
(403) 652-1887

December 15, 2014December 21, 2014

Brown Sugar Bakeshop – Okotoks, Alberta

My coworkers know how much I love cinnamon buns and when they had an opportunity to tell me about Brown Sugar Bake Shop, I went there at my first opportunity! It’s located on the North end of Okotoks right in a strip plaza near Drake Landing.

Once we figured out what we wanted, as there was a lot to choose from, I decided I was going for their Caramel Sticky Buns which was heavenly! It was really light and fluffy with the perfect amount of sweetness from the caramel! It wasn’t a small piece either, everything about it was just perfect!

Then, for some savoury food, we ordered their Taco Beef Bun which was absolutely amazing! It was seriously beef taco in a bun instead of a taco shell. I think I enjoyed this more than a taco! The meat inside was well seasoned and flavoured to taste like beef that you would find in a taco. The bun, again was light and fluffy – but not so light where it just falls apart.

Then, their soup of the day was Chicken Taco Soup which does sound redundant with the options we picked in savoury selection – but everything was so different and delicious! The soup was hearty and well seasoned and made me want to make something like it at home right away!

Overall, a fabulous experience with great food and service. There was a lot of customers that came in just for the sticky buns, so you can tell it was a good one! I know we’ll be back as I enjoyed them so much and there was lots of other goodies I would love to try in their display case. The even have a wide selection of gluten-free products for those who need it!

Brown Sugar Bake Shop

#109 – 235 Milligan Drive
Okotoks, AB
(403) 982-9878

December 12, 2014

Pho Tai Vietnamese Noodle House – Calgary, Alberta

We found ourselves up North as we were looking to try Pho Tai, as our friends has recommended this place to us for a new dish we’ve never tried.

Once we were seated, they put us in the first table on the left – which they forgot about us. What was going to be a quick lunch turned a little long and almost painful as they didn’t bother to take our order. But, when we finally ordered, I got their Vietnamese Chicken Sweet and Sour Soup which has been a new soup that I’ve started to love. They are always bigger portions than the regular pho soups – but usually sweet from pineapples and sour from their Elephant Ear stems, but now days they tend to use lime juice.

The new dish we came to try was their Vietnamese Crispy Crepe which was like a fried egg omelette with pork, shrimp and fresh herbs inside. Then you have lettuce on the side with their fish sauce mixture and you eat it together. I’m not sure how you eat it, but we took ours apart and ate it like a messy salad.

Overall, the food was decent – it wasn’t the best, but it was neat as there was unique items on their menu, which make them special. The people we dealt with in the restaurant was Chinese, so I’m not sure if their kitchen was authentic Vietnamese. The service was a little poor, but we got what we came here for. I think the prices was high for a Vietnamese restaurant, however these were special items ordered – so a bit higher does make sense!

Pho Tai Vietnamese Noodle House

3168 Sunridge Blvd NE
Calgary, AB
(403) 769-9401