Posted on

Tutti Frutti Frozen Yogurt – 17th Avenue Calgary

So, this is an interesting post. It’s not my first invite to Grand Openings and whatnot. However, I must say – this is the first time I’ve attended any invite from my activity in the blogosphere. How could I resist such an invite to Tutti Fruitti?? I’m sure glad I attended as it was what I really wanted – delicious, creamy, indulgent. light and refreshing frozen yogurt! This store front location is perfect as it’s near tons of people, both residential and commercial so this really is an ideal location.

Once in the store, you basically greet the amazing team, and walk straight to the back where the frozen yogurt dispensers are! You first start by picking up a cute cup – large or small, which really depends on how much frozen yogurt and toppings you want to put on. I totally recommend just grabbing the big cup since you never know when you’re going to dispense too much frozen yogurt – or decide on too many toppings. These cups are weighed at the end when you’re ready to enjoy – and at $0.55 an ounce, it makes it a great treat, big or small!

Once you’ve filled up your cup with the frozen yogurt, take a walk back to the front of the store where an huge array of toppings are presented for you to choose from. These toppings range from brownies, to tapioca pearls that have a little burst of flavour, to regular candies and snacks you love to enjoy anywhere! You can really be here forever – and this is where a BIG cup comes handy! Don’t walk too fast like me, I didn’t see the Ghiradelli caramel and chocolate syrups till I was done my yogurt.

I ended up enjoying a delicious cup of yogurt with coconut and pineapple twist (middle lever is a mix of the 2 flavours) as I love that combination – like a Pina Colada! It always transports me to somewhere warm and special – so I love that combination. The frozen yogurt here is really creamy, smooth and light. The texture is great as there isn’t ice crystals throughout! My toppings was simple, I choose some mochi and lychee boba. I love the boba’s Tutti Frutti has to offer from here!

This is really the place to be at – hot or cold outside, it’s the perfect light and delicious treat where you can decide anything! I’ve learned from the past place with so many options… taking everything you like in one doesn’t taste the best when it melts together. My advice now: Have lots of separate cups! 🙂 This place will be a heaven for kids and just a fantastic place just to hang out and catch up with friends and family. This location offers a great comfortable downstairs as well, making it one of the largest Tutti Frutti store fronts out there!

Tutti Frutti Frozen Yogurt on Urbanspoon

Tutti Frutti Frozen Yogurt

858 16th Avenue SW
Calgary, AB T2S0B7
(403) 460-8846

Posted on

World Ground Cafe – Oakland

One afternoon during out trip to California, we decided to slow down the pace and start the day with a nice hot drink. We came across a place called World Ground Cafe which was still in Oakland. We actually like to come here often to pick up some drinks on the go! The location is great for us, the people are always friendly, and the drinks are always fresh and delicious!

I really like to order their Hot Chocolate as it’s rich and creamy! It’s never too greasy tasting – but yet, I don’t ask for whipped cream. It seems to be my “go to”drink in the morning, which I have no problem with!

The other drink we seem to enjoy ordering a lot was their Spicy Chai as it was a nice spicy chai. It’s not the same as the ones we get back at home, but it does leave a nice fragrant note and flavour in the mouth. It definitely warms up the body on those cold wintery months!

Overall, we like this place as it has what we need, at a price we like, and the location that is convenient for us! Most importantly, it’s worth the price we pay too! Especially for something as basic as hot chocolate! I am sure I will be back next time I’m here – since I’ve been back for a few years now!

World Ground Cafe on Urbanspoon

World Ground Cafe

3726 Macarthur Blvd
Oakland, CA
(510) 482-2933

Posted on

Seoul Country Korean Restaurant

During winter, we went to watch the Santa Parade that takes place on Banff Avenue just as the skies turn dark. Right after it, it appears to have a huge swarm of people and families looking for food. On top of the regular crowd, there’s also Christmas parties that are being held in Banff, so there seems to be twice as much people. We didn’t make a reservation for dinner anywhere, and when we walked by Seoul Country Korean Restaurant, and smelled how wonderful the place smelled, we decided to walk in. We were lucky as the the place had tons of tables and so there was room for us!

We decided we wanted to do the Korean BBQ style, and we ordered the Seafood Combination and the Barbeque Prime Rib Eye Beef and it definitely was enough food for 2. Once you order, it comes with a huge array of kimchi’s and I love kimchi, so it was great to eat alone or with rice. Shortly after that, we got our dishes to the table and the Beef was in a huge steak where they sliced it through a little to help it cook evenly and quicker.

Right beside it, but added a little bit later was the Seafood, and to my surprise, it actually tasted great! It was really fresh and didn’t have any fishy smell or taste to it. This combination platter has a huge assortment of seafood, such as mussels, shrimp and scallops!

Overall, the dining experience here was great! Be warned though, afterwards you do smell like bbq!! We tried doing Korean BBQ at home before and it was too much smoke to do at home as the smoke alarms kept going off… so, if you enjoy doing that, here’s a great place to go!

Seoul Country Korean Restaurant on Urbanspoon

Seoul Country Korean Restaurant

215 Banff Ave
Banff, AB
(403) 762-4941

Posted on

Shikiji Japanese Noodles and Sushi Calgary

Japanese food and cuisine in general has always been a favourite of mine – always! I go for Japanese things for great times only – mostly in celebration for something. However, once in awhile, all I want is a great bowl of Japanese noodles, and I’m glad I found Shikiji Japanese Noodles and Sushi even though I’ve only tried their noodles so far!

This restaurant is located right on 16th Avenue and it’s not hard to find. Parking can be trickier, but I just park in the residential areas and walk over (but be careful with the parking permit zones). The restaurant interior is quite dark, but it’s still really comfortable! The staff was really nice and friendly, and the food was relatively quick and delicious. We didn’t have anything fancy to drink as we came here on New Years Eve and we knew there would be check stops everywhere. We just ordered Green Tea which is the usual drink for me when I go to a Japanese restaurant!

We started the evening with a simple appetizer, the Tako Yaki, and basically it’s just a ball of pieces of octopus that is deep fried! It’s an amazing snack/treat! These often come with a sauce that is drizzled on top of the takoyaki’s, and this appetizer was excellent! I really enjoy watching the dancing bonito flakes too – as they tend to wave around when they touch hot foods, and they’re so thin that any breeze/draft will make them wiggle! 🙂 Anyway, these tako yaki’s was stuffed with pieces of octopus with a really nice batter – and deep fried to a delicate crisp!

I ordered a bowl of Shio Ramen which was a large bowl of ramen noodles in a light salt soup base with nice fatty BBQ pork (which I picked), and some veggies. It had a little bowl on the side where I could mix up some toppings for my noodles as well! I liked the fun and interactive way to customize my meal! The ramen had a nice chewy bite and the delicious fatty BBQ pork was nothing less than perfect! I would totally ask for more pork and just pay extra!

My other half ordered something quite fancy actually!! His had an interactive element to his dish as well. He ordered Hot Shikiji Udon which was a bowl of udon noodles with some tempura shrimp, and tons of little things on top that was fried (which added tons of texture to the bowl of noodles), and on the side was a little flask of soup that you pour into the bowl yourself. There was also a quails egg where you can put in the noodle which adds a nice creaminess to the dish. It was neat bowl of udon as the soup hit the fried croutons and bean curds – it really thickened up the soup – making it extremely hearty and filling!

Dinner was awesome, and even though we were sooo stuffed, we still decided to have some dessert. We ended splitting a scoop of Green Tea Gelato which was absolutely refreshing and helped me digest actually! I didn’t feel nearly as stuffed after the gelato – which sounds really odd, I know!

It was a perfect way to end the year, and I’ll be back, as it’s the perfect way to end any day! Even though I know they’re opened for lunch, I think because the portions are so large, it’s a dinner place in my mind! I’ll also have to go back anyway to try their sushi and other noodles! I can’t wait!!

Shikiji Japanese Noodles and Sushi on Urbanspoon

Shikiji Japanese Noodles and Sushi

1608 Centre St N
Calgary, AB T2E
(403) 520-0093

Posted on

Blue Dragon – Thai Red Curry Paste

I really love products out there that helps me make meals that are quick and delicious! I got to try this new paste from Blue Dragon called Thai Red Curry Paste that comes in a convenient jar.

Here’s my little recipe for my meal:
Ingredients: (serves 2 large portions)
– 2 carrots sliced
– 2 stalks of celery
– 1 small onion
– 4 to 5 white mushrooms
– 4 pieces of chicken thighs
– 1/2 jar of Blue Dragon Thai Red Curry Paste
– small can of Coconut Milk (165mL)
– Cooked Rice

I wasn’t too sure what to do with this sauce and on the back of it, it kind of states that it’s extremely versatile, so I decided to basically make stir fry with the sauce (stir fry with chicken and vegetables over rice), and it was really simple! I first prep my vegetables by cutting everything into even pieces. I just used whatever I had in the fridge, which was onions, celery, carrots and mushrooms. Of course, wash and cook your rice to start with. The entire meal takes about 30 minutes to make start to finish.

Put the vegetables aside, and slice the chicken thigh. I did do a quick marinade of salt and pepper as I love to add a little something on my meat – always! After it marinates for a few minutes, I heat up a wok and some oil. Then, I add the chicken to the wok and leave it for a few minutes. Once the chicken is about half cooked, I add in the onion and carrot into the wok. Once the chicken is almost cooked through, I add the rest of the vegetables and cook it until it’s a nice tender crisp.

Basically, we’re on the home stretch now – it really is this simple! From here, I add 1/2 a jar of the red curry sauce due to my portion sizes, and a small can of coconut milk. I turn the heat down as I like to cook my coconut milk gently. I stir and let my stir fry simmer away for a few minutes so it can absorb the great flavours.

From here, I added a few more chili flakes as I like my curries a tad spicer. But, we are ready to serve and eat already! Just get a bowl of rice and top it off with the delicious curry!

The finished product is filled with Thai flavours such as ginger, lemon grass, and chilies. It’s absolutely amazing and it tastes great even if you opt out the coconut milk.