Back in September, I took a little day trip out to Calgary to visit SC. I didn't think there was enough pictures to warrant individual blog posts so here's a short and sweet recap of our food adventures in YYC!
C H A R B A R
618 Confluence Way SE
Calgary, AB
(403) 452-3115
Located in the East Village, charbar joined forces with Phil & Sebastian and Sidewalk Citizen Bakery in re-purposing the historic Simmons Building. charbar is sister restaurant to Charcut, a Calgary favourite steakhouse. charbar is slightly different than its predecessor, with an Argentinian concept, a cuisine also known for its affinity for beef.
A trip to Calgary would be blasphemous without brunch, so we decided to try charbar's brunch for something unique.
SC ordered the vine tomato & sustainable tuna salad with garlic milk aioli (full size $18.00) . SC had a traditional leafy green salad in mind so she was surprised when the actual dish came out. It had yellow and red vine tomatoes with shredded cooked tuna, capers, and aioli. I tried a bite and thought the aioli was quite creamy and garlicky. It'd be a bit heavy if you were eating a whole portion of the salad to yourself though.
I decided on the fried eggs and empanadas ($18.00) with chimichurri and hot sauce butter. The menu doesn't specify the empanada filling so it probably changes from time to time. On my visit, the flaky crust was filled with shredded pork in a taco-esque seasoning. Although flavourful, it was a bit too salty for me.
Although our dishes could use a few tweaks, charbar's unique brunch menu is worth checking out if you're tired of the same old choices for breakfast.
M A R I B A K E S H O P
Calgary, AB
(587) 356-4461
Part of the reason (well, maybe the main reason) why we chose charcut for brunch was its close proximity to one of my favourite bakeries in Calgary (Yann Haute is another favourite). During my last trip here, I absolutely fell in love with Mari Bakeshop and knew a repeat visit was warranted.
There's almost always a half dozen or more roll cake flavours, so it could be a hard decision selecting just one. We decided on the cookies and cream roll cake ($4.50). Like before, the cake was light and fluffy, and the cream, studded with chunks of Oreo cookie, was not too sweet.
I follow their Instagram so I can keep updated on their special flavours. I'm hoping their bing-su rollcake with condensed milk cream, azuki, mochi, and kinako will still be in their flavour rotation next time I'm in town!
Of course, my favourite goodies from Mari are their choux! We got a box of six ($14.00), which saves you a dollar if you were to buy them individually ($2.50). I'm a bit fuzzy on which flavours we ended up getting but rest assured, the choux are always delicious!
After some car troubles and a shopping trip to CrossIron later, we debated our options for dinner. Japanese was the clear winner, and after a bit of research, we went the AYCE route.
O I S H I I S U S H I
8338 18 St SE #338
Calgary, AB
(403) 475-8333
Oishii Sushi is located in the south Riverbend neighbourhood of Calgary. It's a larger space than I expected looking from the outside.
AYCE dinner is $29.99 a person or $35.99 for the deluxe menu. We didn't think the options on the deluxe menu were that appealing, so we stuck with the regular menu which already had a ton of food choices.
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| Salmon, tuna, red snapper, mackerel sashimi |
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| Special scallop sushi, spicy shrimp sushi, salmon rose sushi |
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| Takoyaki, scallop karaage |
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| Prawn tempura, yam tempura |
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| Spider roll |
Always room for dessert! I often wonder why Calgary has awesome choices for artisanal ice cream (Village Ice Cream, Made by Marcus) but Edmonton does not. Someone out there must have a business plan...
M A D E B Y M A R C U S
Calgary, AB
(587) 353-9414
I think what makes Made by Marcus stand out from their competition is their unique ice cream flavours. Village Ice Cream has what I feel are "safer" flavours, but Made by Marcus isn't afraid to experiment and push the boundaries. They also sells pints which you can purchase in Edmonton at Blush Lane Organics, so no need to drive three hours!
We decided to go to their second location in Hillhurst, which was a little further away but had easier parking. (Note that their soft serve and sundaes are only served at their 17th Ave location.) We both ordered one scoop ($5.00) which actually comes with two scoops of ice cream. You can choose up to two flavours with your "one scoop" which I actually didn't realize until after. If you were really only after one scoop, I think you can order their kid's scoop.
SC got Jon's greatest hits, a seasonal flavour, and wildberry lavender which was actually vegan (made with cashew milk). I decided to get their lemon curd wild blueberry which was nice and tart.
Thankfully we ended our food-filled day on a good note. Ice cream has this magical ability to make everything better.
- CT
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