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Jelly Modern Doughnuts

I finally made it to Jelly Modern Doughnuts after all the hype during summer 2011! I went there this one afternoon during the Christmas break and found myself relaxed against this large banquette in the corner, where the atmosphere was all decorated in pink (my favourite colour)! I was so excited to be there, especially after I thought I would get to try one of their Maple Bacon Doughnuts during BaconFest over summer – where they sold out left their booth… But, I got to try it!

The Maple Bacon Doughnut was a very interesting doughnut – definitely freshly prepared with the light batter they used, and great maple syrup drizzle they put on top. The balance in texture for this doughnut was really well thought out! I love the crunch of their delicious bacon against the light doughnut with the sweet drizzle of maple syrup! This doughnut is a masterpiece and no wonder it’s been in the talk around town for such a long time!

The second doughnut we bought was Peanut Butter Cup Doughnut and this one was by far better than the maple bacon doughnut to me! It was really light and fluffy doughnut and the peanut butter cream on the top was really smooth and creamy, and also kind of airy! It’s like the beat it to incorporate air into it and it just made it quite heavenly!

We also ordered some Hot Chocolate and I must say, it’s one of the best hot chocolates I’ve had in a very long time. They actually do it properly, and it’s not just mixing powder with water – so it was really delicious. It had a nice chocolate flavour that wasn’t too sweet! Just the right subtle flavours and I am sure I will be back for their hot chocolate any day!

I love this little doughnut shop, except for the fact it’s in a terrible location for me to just drop by as parking is hard, but I’m sure I’ll make the effort to going there again. However, apparently there are a few parking spots designated for Jelly Modern Doughnut customers in the back. I like their decision to using eco-friendly products in both their decorations for the interior to their cutlery.

Jelly Modern Doughnuts on Urbanspoon

Jelly Modern Doughnuts

100, 1414 8 St SW
Calgary, AB
(403) 453-2053

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Good Earth Cafe

I went to Cranston in Calgary this one afternoon to Good Earth Cafe to try one of their season drinks as I saw an ad for it in the newspaper, I finally went to try it and I was happy I did. The location was really interesting to get to, but I think it’s easier to stay on Cranston Avenue SE and making a right hand turn into the parking lot, instead of going around through the residential area. The actual cafe is really cute and it’s really bright with all the large windows from this corner bay at the strip plaza.

The drink I tried was called Toasted Coconut Chai and it definitely tasted like toasted coconuts. After drinking half of the small, I think I got use to the taste and I didn’t taste the coconut as much. I’m sure it would be better if I ordered food with my drink – so I’ll be sure to do that next time. The chai wasn’t as strong in the spices they used, but you can still tell it’s chai!

The menu at Good Earth Cafe is extensive and the selection of drinks are plenty! I didn’t try anything to eat this time, but I’m sure I will be back as it is a cute cafe – not too far away!

Good Earth Cafe on Urbanspoon

Good Earth Cafe

356 Cranston Rd SE
Calgary, AB
(403) 294-9330

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The Ranche Restaurant – Calgary, Alberta

I really enjoy going to Fish Creek Provincial Park in Calgary, it’s a beautiful location where the Bow River passes through this park. At the edge of this park lies a wonderful little restaurant that is delicious and known as The Ranche Restaurant. I’ve only been here twice – ever! Both times I’ve been here so far was during the Christmas season and it’s jammed packed! Somehow, they always manage to bang out delicious food, and great service!

This time, we started our dinner with Blue Corn Crusted Red Spring Salmon and Lobster Cakes Lambs Lettuce with flaxseed Vinaigrette, pickled red onions and lime aioli. This appetizer was amazing, and you definitely know it’s salmon cake as salmon does have it’s own distinctive taste. The lobster adds lightness to the cakes and makes it sweeter. It’s a wonderful combination and unfortunately, I don’t have a beautiful picture of the appetizer. I’ve got to say it’s one of the best “seafood” cake appetizers I’ve had in a long time!

For the dinner, I tried Roasted Brome Lake Duck Cider braised red cabbage, pancetta crisp, ricotta parsley gnocchi, maple raisin gastrique – which is caramelized sugar, deglazed with vinegar. The gnocchi was little light pillows of potato goodness. It was really light and fluffy and infused with flavour. The duck was really well made, and delicious – even though it was slightly on the tough side.

The other meal we had was Seared Atlantic Scallops and Braised Porkbelly which was made with Roasted fingerling potatoes, cauliflower puree, aged balsamic reduction. The pork belly of course was a fattier part of the meat, but it makes the pork so tender, juicy and pork tasting it was great! The crispy skin on the pork was very memorable. The pieces of scallops was quite large, and thankfully it wasn’t over cooked at all. It wasn’t rubbery at all and it was fresh and sweet!

Desserts was something I really loved. I ordered a Chocolate Lava Cake with decadent rich, dark chocolate that souffled out of the ramekin and a pool of chocolate oozes out when I started digging into it. I never did figure out what the custard sauce was, but I mixed it into the molten cake. It was really delicious and definitely a highlight of the evening.

The final dessert we ordered is a Milk Chocolate Hazelnut Café Napoleon Caramelized Orange Sherbert, Chocolate Tuille. This wasn’t really what I was expecting, as I was thinking it would be in layers of light crispy phyllo pastry or something like that – where in fact, the dessert was really hard and brittle. It tasted great, but not the dessert I had imagined it to be.

The Ranche Restaurant is a wonderful place to eat for any occasion – whether it’s for a romantic night out, a party or gathering, it’s just a nice place! It’s great for families and entertainment! The best part is, they always seem to serve excellent food!

The Ranche Restaurant at Fish Creek Park

15979 Bow Bottom Trail SE
Calgary, AB
(403) 225-3939

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Q Haute Cuisine – Calgary, Alberta

We went out for a fancy dinner to Q Haute in downtown Calgary. We weren’t planning on it, but we did as I purchased a LivingSocial voucher for who knows when… that of course expires at the end of 2011. We made a reservation which was pain free and got ready to go for our evening date. Because it was so close to the Christmas Holidays, the place was decorated elegantly. Once we entered the main doors, there was a nice grand staircase that brings you up to the restaurant.

The service was really good, and the atmosphere was warm, inviting and very romantic. The dining room isn’t large at all, but it’s cozy and comfortable. We chose to pick our dinner from a la carte as we weren’t hungry enough to eat a huge course dinner in “surprise” form. Once we ordered, first came some bread and some great citrus herb butter and an appetite starter (Cold Canapés) of brioche crostini with Prosciutto wrapped goats cheese.

I then got my first course, which I choose to try Seared Digby Scallops which was prepared with sauteed broccoli ramps, roasted abalone mushrooms and wild boar sausages. The scallops were fairly large and cooked to perfection, but it was a little under seasoned. It was really quite a nice starter dish as it was fresh, crisp, simple and elegant! It was my favourite by far!

The other first course we got to enjoy was Venison Carpaccio which essentially is a plate with raw venison with soft boiled quail eggs, carrot griddle cakes, gherkins, Vin Cotto with some pickled winter radish ad frilly mustard greens. The venison was cut into this slices and it was really easy to eat! It was fresh and tender – so I quite enjoyed this unique carpaccio! The quail eggs was very memorable as it was soft boiled to perfection! it held up its shape and when punctured by teeth or fork, the yolk came oozing out – and it was a beautiful bright yellow colour.

My main course – or what they called second course was amazing! I ordered the Roasted Alberta Lamb Chops and it came with 2 lamb chops, sous vide loin from the canon with warm carrots, vanilla bavarois and honey glazed Heirloom carrots. When you first bite into the lamb, you definitely know it’s lamb, and it wasn’t tough at all. I asked for it to be medium, and it came out medium, full of flavour and it was 2 big lamb chops!

The other main course we enjoyed was the Sous Vide and Roasted Beef Fillet which was a plate with delicious tender roasted beef fillets with ploppino mushroom brioche pudding and drizzled with Madeira jus.

This was definitely a delicious dinner, and we still ordered a dessert to share. We ordered a Mango Cheesecake with some tea and espresso to end our evening. The cheesecake was really creamy, light, and fluffy – just the way we liked it. It had a layer of mango jellie where most of the mango flavour came from. On top was a super thin and crispy layer of cracker that balanced itself on some sorbet. It was really a refreshing dessert even though it seems quite heavy.

After dinner and dessert, while we thought we’d be getting ready to pay the bill to leave, another treat came to the table. It’s what the waiter called The Last Bit and this was a chocolate ball with orange flavour, then it was rolled in coconut. It was really nice! There was also a nice light mousse which I thought was a perfect pair for the last bit. It came in a really neat magnetic spoon, and it was on a magnetic carrier.

We really enjoyed our evening out at Q Haute! The location was really nice as it was in front of the river – it was quiet, remote, and romantic. The food and atmosphere was really nice. We sat at a table next to Dave Bronconnier, so if this location is good for the former Mayer, it is good enough for me!

Q Haute Cuisine

100 La Caille Pl SW
Calgary, AB
(403) 262-5554

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Pho Taurus – Calgary, Alberta

We really like Vietnamese cuisine, not only are they filling, but they usually are very reasonable in prices – especially when you can find a location that is really delicious! We’ve been going to Pho Taurus for a few years now, and we stopped with a 2 year period in between… and in which they’ve renovated the place and the food it seems.

I love their appetizers especially their Roasted Quail dish! It comes in a plate with 2 quails, and they are always perfectly cooked and tastes delicious! The skin is always crispy and the meat remains juicy. They are something I always get from Pho Taurus and I still love it! And, of course when you visit a Vietnamese restaurant, you always have to order their Vietnamese Spring Roll and these come in a plate of 4 crispy fried spring rolls filled with ground pork, chicken & vegetable

For the actual meal, I like to get the Rare Beef with Beef Balls Noodle Soup which seems to be my trend, while my husband just gets the Rare Beef Noodle Soup which is the same thing without the beef balls. Usually, this place makes these bowls of pho packed with flavour, but this time, it seemed quite watered down. We don’t normally stock up on tons of Hoisin Sauce and Srichacha Sauce but this time we weren’t left with any choice but to do so…

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As Pho Taurus was once my favourite locations back in 2008/09 and suddenly upon returning, it was quite disappointing that the soup was watered down so badly we didn’t know what to do with our noodle soups. Hopefully it’s a phase they’ll soon recover from.

Pho Taurus

#311-500 Country Hills Blvd NE
Calgary, AB T3K5G9
(403) 567-1228