Caesar’s Steak House Downtown – Calgary, Alberta

We have actually been here before, and it’s a place where we’d go back to – so we did! We made a reservation here for a special occasion at the Caesars Steakhouse downtown Calgary location. We lucked out with parking on the side street, but apparently there’s complimentary valet parking after 5pm.

We sat down and ordered some drink. We ordered the same thing, the Caesars – one regular, and one virgin. It was off to a rough start as our waiter had messed up placing whose drink goes with whom. So, I ended up with the alcoholic one in front of me – but I was quick to tell it wasn’t a virgin drink. The drink did taste really good though! Then, came our toast, which was a few pieces of buttery toast – grilled! Once slice had cheese and the other was plain. It was really buttery and quite tasty!

For an appetizer, we had their Escargot which came out in their shells, instead of the typical escargot plates which we really enjoyed from here! The meat was tender and the flavours were tasty and buttery – and it was even sauteed in butter with walnut & butter filling!

Then came a bowl of soup, we had their French Onion Soup which was standard. Nothing special, but definitely nothing to complain about. It was just a little bowl, so it wasn’t substantial as we were excited for our steaks at this point!

We then got a salad, their House Salad with their house dressing. This was quite a disappointment as the salad was wilted and drenched with dressing… it unfortunately didn’t look or taste too good – but it’s a salad, not the main highlight of our trip here!

Finally, the highlight of the show – I ordered the small New York Strip with a side of twice baked potatoes! It was fantastic! The meat was cooked perfectly, it was tender and juicy and tons of flavour!

My husband had their T-Bone Steak which he enjoyed thoroughly and devoured! Well, to be honest, I had quite a bit of his steak as well. The fries were good, but nothing too special or anything!

Our overall experience was good! We enjoyed what we came here for, with a few hiccups. We were told while we were ordering that there was no Steak Dianne, and the table right next to me, pretty much in the seat next to me got one… so, I was a little disappointed with that. Steaks are worth the trip to Caesars downtown location for sure though!

Caesar's Steak House on Urbanspoon

Caesar’s Steak House

512 – 4 Ave SW
Calgary, AB
(403) 264-1222

Pho Dau Bo Vietnamese Beef Noodle House – Calgary, Alberta

My coworkers and I have been talking about going to pho for awhile, and this one afternoon – we went! They brought me to Pho Dau Bo for their pho and it was so good that I brought my husband there!

I really enjoy having Salad Rolls so naturally I ordered them. I was kind of hungry so it didn’t matter. The salad rolls were really good and fresh, the skin was thin and delicate but it held the roll together.

I guess this location is known for their Pho Sate, my husband had to try it with beef! He really loved the flavour of the soup and the meat was really good. It’s like no other satay pho we’ve had! I really enjoyed the soup and he seemed to agree with me!

I ordered the weekend special, which was Bun Bo Hue and it has always been one of my favourite dishes – although not every restaurant has it. This one only has it on weekends.

Overall, the experience here was exceptional! The service was friendly and fast, the food had large portions and they were really tasty, the atmosphere was clean and comfortable – it accomplishes its purpose and there’s quite a bit of parking outside in the Little Saigon Center!

Pho Dau Bo Vietnamese Beef Noodle House on Urbanspoon

Pho Dau Bo Vietnamese Beef Noodle House

Little Saigon Centre
4909 17 Ave SE
Calgary, AB
(403) 272-5160

Pho Binh Minh – Calgary, Alberta

This one evening I was heading up closer to the North side of town when I wanted to stop for some pho. We decided we would meet up with some friends when they recommended Pho Binh Minh which was located at a strip plaza, so there was plenty of parking available.

We decided we would start with Gha Gio – Spring Rolls and they were really delicious! They’re hot and crispy with really flavourful filling. It was silly as there’s 4 of us, and we got 1 plate — not enough!

I ordered their regular noodles, Pho Tai – Medium Rare Beef Noodle Soup which was amazing! This was the bowl of pho that was recommended and I’m glad I took it! There’s nothing I can think of that I didn’t enjoy!

Originally, we were going to go to a place across the street for Pho Sate, but we ended up here – so we ordered a bowl anyway. It definitely wasn’t what we were expecting as it turned out to be a bowl of pho tai with hot sauce. It tasted fine, but it wasn’t really a nice satay soup.

Our experience here was pretty amazing, the spring rolls and the bowl of pho was almost as tasty as they come! The service was quick and they’re quite friendly even though they were packed!

Pho Binh Minh on Urbanspoon

Pho Binh Minh

4710 17 Ave SE
Calgary, AB
(403) 235-2521

Yann Haute Patisserie – Calgary, Alberta

I’ve heard many great things about Yann Haute Patisserie and when I was given an opportunity to try them – I didn’t hesitate or turn it down! I was there! The little house/store front can be hard to look for if you don’t know what you’re looking for!

We went pretty much when they opened and there was already a good amount of customers going in and out. We knew we were going to buy half a dozen of macarons and they’re package really nicely. They have quite a large selection of flavours as well – which is always nice (and difficult as I’m quite indecisive). The flavours we got durings this visit was (left to right): london fog, jasmine, chai and blueberry, pistachio, eggnog, and salted caramel. My favourite flavour from this visit was their London Fog followed by Jasmine! They’re different, light, and delicious!

Then on our way out, we couldn’t help but notice the beautiful pastries they had and the wonderful croissants. We couldn’t leave without picking some up! I picked their Pain au chocolat as well as their Almond Croissant. These were both amazing, fresh and flaky! They tasted amazing and to be honest, I liked them more than the macarons!

Overall, the visit was really delicious and wonderful! There’s not room for you to enjoy your purchases inside, but I do recommend you eat your purchases as soon as you can!

Yann Haute Patisserie on Urbanspoon

Yann Haute Patisserie

329 23 Ave SW
Calgary, AB
(403) 244-8091

Purple Perk – Calgary, Alberta

We were wandering around Mission area when I got a little hungry. We walked into Purple Perk as their special at the door was very interesting to me at that time!

I ordered a nice cup of Latte to enjoy during my quiet visit to Purple Perk. The coffee was rich and quite delicious and it was really perfect for a chilly morning!

The special of the day was Spaghetti Bolognese which was a huge plate of food, with garlic toast, the plate was pretty much covered with spaghetti and that was covered with an awesome meat sauce! The food here was excellent as the pasta was cooked to perfection and the meat sauce was saucy, meaty and tasty!

This was a really amazing place to either sit and chill, or grab a bit for a meal or snack! The options here are endless and the coffee and food was delicious!

Purple Perk on Urbanspoon

Purple Perk

2212 4 St SW
Calgary, AB
(403) 244-1300