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Brewsters Brewing Company & Restaurant – McKenzie Towne

Warm weather spell hits Calgary a few days a year – and when it does, I crave a patio setting. This time, I found myself on the roof top patio of Brewsters Brewing Company and Restaurant in McKenzie Towne. It’s located just off High Street, on the North side. The restaurant is large, but parking is quite limited, unless you’re willing to walk. On nice days, walk!

I ordered a Virgin Chi Chi as I was already feeling dehydrated from being outside all day soaking up the sun rays! It’s really just a blend of juices, but it’s delicious! I actually think it’s more a virgin Mai Tai, but what do I know! 😉

We went during their “Appy Hour” and so we enjoyed some snacks too! We ordered their super delicious Spicy Honey Garlic Prawns which was as the name suggests sweet and spicy. The prawns were quite large and fresh – so the texture was really nice. Tons of sauce and flavour, but not so much where it overwhelms the prawns!

Then, the last thing we ordered was the 1/2 Nachos which really is the perfect size for 2 people! I can see the regular order being great for larger crowds – but this was excellent in all aspects (not just the portion size). The cheese was all melted, ooey and gooey with tons of topping of tex mex cheese, tomatoes, black olives, banana peppers, jalapenos, green onions and creme fraiche all on top of thin and crispy white corn tortillas – served with salsa and sour cream!

Overall, this has been one of my favourite roof top experiences in the city and I can’t wait for my next opportunity to return! Appy hour was a complete success in my books and I should return for a regular meal too!

Brewsters Brewing Company & Restaurant - McKenzie Town on Urbanspoon

Brewsters Brewing Company & Restaurant

11 McKenzie Towne Ave SE
Calgary, AB
(403) 243-2739

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Sho Sushi Bar & Kitchen

I was in a celebrating mood this one afternoon, and I thought “what better way to celebrate than a nice sushi place!?” so I found myself at Sho Sushi Bar & Kitchen as it looks super fancy, and high end from the outside. The parking lot is a little tricky as it’s not really marked one way – but it all works out at the end. This restaurant is in the deep south, on the East side of Macleod Trial.

We were first greeted by nobody for the longest time, and then the hostess came to stand at the podium at the front folding napkins. “It’s alright!” we thought to ourselves as we were in no hurry… until it got ridiculous, we had to go up and say hi first. When we finally got seated, it took forever for any sort of service. It actually was tough getting service throughout the dinner and we watched other customers suffer a bit. We were alright, as we kept the mentality of “we’ve got nothing better to do!” The menus come out on laminated copies and you mark what you want on it with a dry erase pen! It’s pretty neat! We started with some Gyozas as it’s always something I love. They were alright, nothing great, but not nasty – mediocre!

The other starter we had was their Miso Soup which again wasn’t anything special. So far, this celebration night just seemed like a normal night… so, we hoped the sushi was at least great! The miso soup was very bland with a few pieces of tofu in the bottle and one shredded piece of seaweed floating in the soup.

Then, we ordered some sashimi, and we ordered the Salmon Sashimi and the Tuna Sashimi which the tuna was kind of the “wrong” texture. The salmon was really good, but something was funny with the tuna. We ate it anyway without a word, and I must add, our bellies were fine the following day – so it’s all good! The portions were quite generous, and that kept us quite happy.

Then came our plate of sushi, we ordered Smoked Duck Sushi, Smoked Salmon Sushi and Spicy Tuna Roll, and these came out very good! We were very pleased with the duck sushi as it was a nice piece of tasty duck with some rice! The smoked salmon was one of my favourites all night and there wasn’t anything to complain about with this tuna roll. So, things took a turn – and we were satisfied!

The last thing we ordered was what they called Ocean Surprise and it was described as “spicy prawn with mayo and avocado topped with seaweed salad and gold tobiko” on the menu. It was an odd ball, but not gross! It had a good balance of flavours and textures making it unique and special. It was pretty good!

Since things turned out better at the end, we figured it’d be fine to order some dessert. We asked for the Creme Brulee Cheesecake and this cheesecake took forever – as I think it was thawing in the kitchen or something. The top of the cake wasn’t actually bruleed so it was cold and didn’t have the nice topping. The cheesecake itself tasted like the ones you could get from the frozen isle at the grocery stores… so, we wished we never ordered it – since it wasn’t made by them. It’s just not what we were expecting for some odd reason (they’re not a bakery!)

Overall, the dining experience was a decent one. It had it’s moments of ups and downs. It’s average food quality with a higher price tag. Service is kind of lacking, but not a place I would avoid… nor a place I would go to celebrate with again though… you decide whether or not you’d like to try. For their benefit of a doubt though, we went when they were just opened, so maybe it was wrinkles they needed to iron out at that time!

Sho Sushi Bar & Kitchen

7212 Macleod Trail S
Calgary, AB
(403) 252-5199

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Blue Vinny Diner – Stephen Avenue Calgary

Nothing beats a breakfast on the weekend, diner style! We found ourselves at Blue Vinny Diner one weekend morning, and we walked in and thought the place must be new, as the waitress was running around like mad, they ran out of tons of things on the menu, and it almost appeared they didn’t know the menus yet. I guess they’ve been opened for a bit, but it just didn’t feel like it! This restaurant is located right on Stephens Avenue, so foot traffic is at an ideal place.

Once we got seated and what not, we ordered some tea, and we were ready to order. I ordered their Perogy Bowl which was exactly as it sounded, a bowl of perogies with bacon and sour cream. They had quite a few pieces in the bowl and the toppings didn’t overwhelm the perogies either. I enjoyed my perogies and I ate the entire thing! The bacon was nice and smoked and it was perfect, tasty and crunchy!

The other item we ordered from the menu was the Vinny’s Breakfast which was 6oz of Rib Eye steak, 2 sunny side eggs with hashbrown and toast! This was a big and filling breakfast, and best of all, it was super tasty!

We really enjoyed the modern diner experience here! The people were friendly and the food was tasty! So, there’s no complaints from me here!

Blue Vinny Diner on Urbanspoon

Blue Vinny Diner

105 – 8th Avenue SW
Calgary, AB
(403) 263-3880

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NEM Delight

I really had a thing for Vietnamese food this week, and I found myself not too far from home, just off of Bow Bottom Trail. We found ourselves at NEM Delight just because of the high ratings on Urbanspoon. Once we saw that, we figured that this is where we were going to go… so, we ventured off! When we got here, we realized it was just a take-out place only, so we just grabbed 2 subs and called it a night. It was a typical take-out place so it was kind of shocking when she said the wait was about 10 minutes for a sub… but it wasn’t like we were in a hurry or anything!

We ordered a Grilled Chicken Submarine which was actually very reasonable for a sub price. It was $5.70 for a decent sized Vietnamese submarine. The wait was probably the fact they were actually grilling the chicken and onions – which was extremely flavourful! It wasn’t your typical Vietnamese sub, but it was a good one! The jalapeno peppers was quite something – they were very spicy, and they kept the seeds in and all too! We ended up taking the peppers out to finish the subs.

The other sub we tried was their Grilled Pork Submarine and for the same price, we picked pork – as it’s not a common one you see on the menu. Usually, you get the beef and chicken, and that’s it! The pork was really tender and also packed with flavour! The grilled meat in the subs topped with the usual Vietnamese sub toppings, cucumber, cilantro, pickled carrots and onions… which really made it seem like a usual sub to the next level with almost a fusion of flavours!

Overall, these were good subs, but not sure if I’d go all the way over that way for another… the parking lot was small, and there wasn’t a ton of parking spots either. The nice thing is the menu is extensive and the prices are very well priced. The food is quite decent as well.

NEM Delight on Urbanspoon

NEM Delight

6, 13750 Bow Bottom Trail SE
Calgary, AB
(403) 235-5757

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Crossroads Market – Vietnamese Deli

I decided I wanted to check out vintage things and so I ended up at Crossroads Market which is a place I like to go time to time. I went there as I heard they had a new grand re-opening, so I wanted to check it out. It was really quite fun, and as it was still cold, not all the fresh produce markets was out in full force. However, the newer side was bright and offers a lot more food concessions. I just got hungry during our visit and went to stop by at Vietnamese Deli which oddly isn’t even listed as one of the food vendors. Regardless, I ate there and it was okay… but I hate to say… there’s a reason why they had no line!

I ordered a Chicken Sub as Vietnamese subs are one of my absolute favourite things to eat! They did prepare it in front of me but of course, it was just the assembly part of making it – which is fair as all other sub places are like that as well. There wasn’t a ton of meat or flavour, but it was a decent sub. It was loaded with peanut sauce – which I think was most of the flavour. It was then topped with the typical toppings of onions, cilantro, cucumber and pickled carrots. It was still good, but not the best out there!

My other half ordered the Beef Sub, I know, we’re so original… but it was like a late lunch/snack kind of deal. His actually had a lot more flavour so it was better. His sub had a lot more peanuts though, which I had to switch back after eating 1/4 of the entire sub. I don’t do too much peanuts, but I’m glad I’m not deadly allergic to them, as it wasn’t advertised anywhere!

I think next time I’m back, I’ll try something else as there are tons of other options, and considering it wasn’t the BEST sub. However, prices here are much more cheaper than elsewhere for Vietnamese subs and even their pho soups!