calgary – Page 18

November 14, 2014

Sumo Grill Japanese Restaurant – Calgary, Alberta

We didn’t know where we wanted to go for dinner this one evening, but we were checking some stuff out over at Sundridge Mall in the Northeast where we saw Sumo Grill Japanese Restaurant and figured I haven’t been here in ages, we would come back – remembering it was decent food. We did come closer to closing time, but when we were done, they closed the gate off and wouldn’t let us go back through the mall, so we walked back in to take a picture.

This restaurant is ran by Chinese people, so it’s not authentic. We weren’t actually hungry so we decided to order a Sushi and Sashimi Combo which had 7 pieces of sashimi, 5 pieces of sushi, a California roll and 2 pieces of house special rolls. The quality was decent!

Then, we decided we wanted a bowl of udon, and decided we’d do something a little different – so we got their Spicy Chicken Udon which was really different. It reminded us of a Chinese dish, but just using udon noodles. It was tasty actually! They used ground chicken which was interesting as it fell to the bottom of the soup.

Overall, a decent experience. We don’t have much complaints and the nice thing it’s in the mall – which would be ideal for cold days! But, they close the gate before the mall closes.

Sumo Grill Japanese Restaurant – Sunridge Mall

2525 36 St NE
Calgary, AB
(403) 568-6886

November 11, 2014November 11, 2014

Menyatai Japanese Noodles – Calgary, Alberta

I recently wasn’t feeling too great and all I really wanted was a bowl of noodle soup. I was expecting something a little more bland but we pulled up to Menyatai Japanese Ramen where I couldn’t decline the offer to eat here as I’ve been meaning to try here for awhile now.

Once inside, it’s a small but cute location where the staff is friendly and authentic! We were excited to be here so I ordered their Miso Ramen. I’ve tried a few in the city so it’s fair that I order this to compare! I found that the ramen had a great texture, the soup was fantastic and the piece of pork was amazing! This miso ramen has just found it’s way to the top of my list in Calgary so far! Pretty exciting news!

We also ordered a bowl of Beef Udon which is another one of our favourites to order when at a Japanese restaurant. Although the udon and the beef was excellent, it wasn’t any different that can set itself above anyone. Definitely not a bad bowl though! The beef taste in the broth was amazing, the bee was tender and delicious and the udon texture was really good.

We added an upgrade to one of our meals by having their Inari Set which basically comes with 2 pieces of inari and I love them, so we figured we’d go for it. It was good, no complaints – although we thought it was weird as it didn’t come with wasabi or soy sauce. So, we just ate it plain.

The overall experience was amazing. Even though I was sick the food tasted great and the staff was amazing. The prices seem costly but the portions are massive and the food was perfect. The location is tucked off the main street, but there’s quite a bit of street parking available.

Menyatai Japanese Ramen

24-12 St NW
Calgary, AB
(403) 263-3666

October 30, 2014

Saltlik – Calgary, Alberta

We were in downtown one evening looking for something when we decided we’ll have dinner there as well. We found ourselves walking straight into Saltlik Steakhouse where we have been here about 10 years ago and figured we would try it again.

We ordered some starters, what they called Almost Famous Dry Ribs which were ribs with a spicy honey glaze. The sauce was absolutely delicious and although it wasn’t “dry”, it was still excellent ribs.

Since we knew we walked into a steakhouse, it would be foolish of us to not order steak. I had their Prime Sirloin with their soup of the day which was Beef Barley soup. The steak was cooked to perfection, tender and juicy with awesome char marks and great smoke flavour.

My husband ordered their Ribeye Steak with Rosemary butter on top. It was a great cut of steak and also cooked really well. Absolutely tender and juicy and seasoned to perfection. The butter was almost unnecessary! He ordered his meal with their fully stuffed baked potato which had perfectly crisp bacon on top which was the highlight of the potato!

Overall, a fantastic experience, a wonderful evening with great food, great atmosphere and great company! It was almost the perfect night! The prices was very reasonable and the top notch quality made it a great re-visit! It’s nice to know they are doing things right and still doing so great after 10 years (our first visit)

Saltlik Calgary

101 8 Ave SW
Calgary, AB
(403) 537-1160

October 30, 2014

Golden National Family Restaurant – Calgary, Alberta

I was really excited to see a new Chinese Restaurant pop up and it’s called Golden National which is a restaurant family owned and operated that began in High River. As we all know, I love small town Chinese/Western restaurants so I was really excited to come here and try it out – in the city!

We started with some Fried Chicken Wings which was really awesome! Although it seemed a little strange that both the middle piece and the drum was still attached together, it was really tasty! It was battered the perfect amount, fried nicely in clean oil to a perfect crisp, yet still juicy inside and then seasoned just enough for it to taste great but still have chicken flavour! My husband loved this and pretty much ate the entire dish.

We then ordered some Wor Wontons as it’s been a new trend that I do… I order it and see how much I like it. This one, I really loved. The soup was flavourful, the wontons was large and full of flavour. It was a generous portion and nothing to complain about.

Then, we ordered their Shanghai Noodle with Chicken, B.B.Q Pork, Shrimp and Szechuan Sauce which was a unique type of Shanghai noodles as those don’t normally have shrimp and it’s not normally spicy. This plate was delicious and no matter how spicy it got, we just kept eating it. It was addicting so we left absolutely stuffed and really satisfied.

Overall, the prices are really fair here with nice portion sizes and great food quality. Cleanliness and quality is important to them and I see great success if they keep it up! A special note, we ordered tea and they actually use really nice tea leaves – so fragrant and wonderful. The tea does cost $2/person which seems high, but it’s really nice tea. We’ll be returning and recommending this place to family and friends!

Golden National Family Restaurant

3 High Street SE
Calgary, AB
(403) 257-9777

October 22, 2014

Starbucks (17 Avenue) – Calgary, Alberta

We found ourselves wandering around 17th Avenue when we decided to stop into Starbucks for some coffee. Located right on 17th Avenue where there’s a lot of traffic and foot traffic – and near a high school, it was busy as expected.

It was fall and I decided I was going to have a Maple Latte which is one of my fall favorites. The coffee wasn’t bad at all, but you can’t go wrong with anything with maple syprup!

We also ordered a Cheese Croissant and honestly it wasn’t that great. It was dry and it seemed old – which was weird as they’re so busy! Perhaps it was just coffee people were getting and not snacks/treats.

Overall, it was a nice place to sit and window watch with a nice cup of java (or alternative). The location is ideal but there are a lot of other coffee shops along the same street!

Starbucks – 17 Avenue SW

715 – 17th Ave SW
Calgary, AB
(403) 209-2888