Calgary Downtown Dining Week

[HybridTheory]

http://www.calgarydowntown.com/events/diningWeek.php?pageId=15

Have any of you been to it before? What restaurants would you suggest checking out?

[t-im]

Only the "fine dinning" ones...the other ones don't seem that worth it...

[CaptainReboot]

Yes, only fine dining restaurants are the ones to go for.

I've been to the Fairmount Palliser, Centini, and will be going to Hy's this Friday.

It's a nice way to try a fine dining restaurant without breaking the bank. I would recommend making reservation probably 4 - 5 days in advance, since they book up really quickly.

Teatro for instance was booked up for the whole week on the 1st day a year or so ago.

[kaput]

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[t-im]

How does it exactly work? I read somewhere where it's

$25 dinner
one appetizer, entree and dessert - drinks taxes + gratuity extra.

You can pick from a 'special' menu that have 3 choices for each thing??

is that about right?

[CKY]

The fine dining restaurents don't have dress codes right?

[t-im]

Originally posted by CKY
The fine dining restaurents don't have dress codes right?

Many of them do, but it's nothing major.

[HyperZell]

Originally posted by t-im
How does it exactly work? I read somewhere where it's

$25 dinner
one appetizer, entree and dessert - drinks taxes + gratuity extra.

You can pick from a 'special' menu that have 3 choices for each thing??

is that about right?


Click the link and read the page. It's not all the same for each place, but they all have special menus for you to choose from.


Thanks to HybridTheory for this, because after much menu perusal (and hunger) I've made reservations for lunch at La Brava next week...I'll tell you how it goes!

[HybridTheory]

Originally posted by HyperZell



Click the link and read the page. It's not all the same for each place, but they all have special menus for you to choose from.


Thanks to HybridTheory for this, because after much menu perusal (and hunger) I've made reservations for lunch at La Brava next week...I'll tell you how it goes!


You're welcome. I just finished making my dinner reservations at River Cafe for next Wednesday so hopefully it'll be good.

[CKY]

I think we should all post our feedbacks on here after going to anyone of the above restaurants.

I'm gonna try and make a reservation for River Cafe for the weekend. I've heard nothing but good things from that place.

So is the dress code like just no sandles, no shorts? It isn't something like shirt and tie right?

[t-im]

Originally posted by CKY
I think we should all post our feedbacks on here after going to anyone of the above restaurants.

I'm gonna try and make a reservation for River Cafe for the weekend. I've heard nothing but good things from that place.

So is the dress code like just no sandles, no shorts? It isn't something like shirt and tie right?

River Cafe is good :thumbsup:

I usually just wear dark pants (jeans/dress pants) and some random sweater...and loafers.

Though I have seen people @ Hy's in sneakers and shorts...

[HyperZell]

Unsure of the dress code? Put on something you won't be embarrased to make a first date in. And don't be presumptous either, and say "well shorts and sandals are fine for my first date".

A nice, clean shirt, as well as clean pants (jeans? personal call, but not torn and dirty) and shoes that you wouldn't wear in a gym. That, to me, is just showing some class.

Keep in mind that this is for a fine dining restaurant, and that ultimately it's up to you to decide what to wear. Whether or not you're denied service is a risk you take if you decide to dress shabbily...show some class, and you should be good to go.

[redline]

Very good

Escoba - Wine and Influenced Cuisine
#8, 513 - 8th Avenue SW
Lower Level Pennylane Mal
T2P 1G3
Phone: (403) 543-8911
http://www.escoba.ca
$25 Lunch Menu
$25 Dinner Menu
Escoba serves up innovative comfort food in its charmingingly rustic setting.
View Menu

Catch Restaurant
100 Stephen Ave SE
T2G 0K6
Phone: (403) 206-0000
http://www.catchrestaurant.ca
$25 Lunch Menu
$25 Dinner Menu
Calgary’s premiere seafood restaurant committed to bringing “jet-fresh” seafood to every customer every day.
View Menu

La Caille Restaurant
100 LaCaille Place SW
Calgary, Alberta
T2P 5E2
Phone: (403) 262-5554
http://www.Latavola.ca
$25 Lunch Menu
$25 Dinner Menu
Enjoy classic fine dining at the only establishment in Calgary that has both a beautiful view of Bow River and the tranquillity of a park setting.

River Cafe
Prince\'s Island Park
T2P 4R5
Phone: (403) 261-7670
http://www.river-cafe.com
$15 Lunch Menu
$25 Dinner Menu
Located in the middle of Prince's Island Park, on the lagoon where the Bow River passes though downtown Calgary, River Café features seasonal Canadian cuisine.


Don QuijoteTapas Bar & Restaurante
#100, 309 - 2nd Ave SW
Calgary, Alberta
T2P 0C5
Phone: (403) 205-4244
http://www.donquijote.ca
$15 Lunch Menu
$25 Dinner Menu
Calgary's #1 dine and dance destination, Don Quijote is a careful blend of everything that is good about Spanish style, cuisine and hospitality.
View Menu

[max_boost]

Originally posted by t-im


River Cafe is good :thumbsup:

I usually just wear dark pants (jeans/dress pants) and some random sweater...and loafers.

Though I have seen people @ Hy's in sneakers and shorts...

Our neighbour is the sous-chef for River Cafe....never been there, but I can definately tell when he's cooking at home! Smells so good!

[GSR Zero]

I went to Escoba last year. The food there was great! Give it a shot.

[kaput]

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[t-im]

Hey, so who's gone to any places yet??

I might go to Quincy's..but not sure if it's worth it

opinions??

So what restaurants are worth it to eat at during this downtown dining week?

[kaput]

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[HybridTheory]

I just came back from trying out La Caille for the dining week special. Overall, I thought it was very good.

Restaurant name: La Caille
Location: 100 La Caille Place SW
Food: 4/5
Ambience: 4.5/5
Service: 4/5

The price per person is 25 bucks like the rest of the dinner specials for dining week. The main components of the meal was the prawn cocktail which was the starter and the duck which was the main course. First we started off with a goat cheese mousse with cranberries and carmelized onions. Next was the bread which came with 4 different types of spread. I think the goat cheese and the bread are standard with any meal. Anyway, the prawn cocktail was excellent, good size prawns with a nice sauce on them. Then there was the main course which was duck thighs, butternut squash and potatos. The main course was a good sized portion. I'm not a big fan of duck but I would say that this was pretty good.

Ambience wise, La Caille is a good place to go on a date. It's very quiet, romantically lit by candles and has an excellent view. Service wise I thought our waiter courteous and friendly. I had heard from a co-worker that the service wasn't great but I thought our waiter was very polite.

Overall, I would recommend checking out La Caille for dining week. You get a pretty good value you for the dinner that you have. I took a look at the website to see how much the dinner I had would be regularly and the prawn cocktail would be about 14 bucks and the main course of the duck would be about 34. The meal doesn't come with dessert like some of the other places but there are some interesting desserts starting from 10 bucks.

[HyperZell]

Originally posted by kaput
We tried to go to La Brava (I think) but they wouldn't answer their phone or return messages for a reservation so it wasn't worth the effort. Anyone had better luck with this place and is it worth it?



Originally posted by HyperZell


Thanks to HybridTheory for this, because after much menu perusal (and hunger) I've made reservations for lunch at La Brava next week...I'll tell you how it goes!

[kaput]

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[HyperZell]

Originally posted by kaput
^We phoned several times and even left a message and still haven't gotten them to answer or call back. Post after you go and let me know if its worth the trouble or I'll just try somewhere else.

From the menu, I think that it will be worth it...but I'm going on Thursday, so I don't know if I can get a review in on time early enough to be helpful. If you'd like, try another place...but give them a shout one more time during the day (not lunch hour) and you should be able to get through.

[DowntownCowboy]

I did Skazka's dine out dinner menu on Friday night. Its the Russian restaurant where the old Sally Anne's used to be on 1st & 5th Ave SE i think. It wasn't full, we had an excellent server (think older lady who used to be a party girl in younger days) and the cheesy live band with the Wedding Singer big hair at 8pm was entertaining.... my female friend loved the waitress eventhough she wasn't familiar with the menu at all, however she was very sweet and helpful. My Turkish friend enjoyed the food and kept saying its a good place to have a wedding, and was amused by the naming of some of the menu items. The decor is nice, orangy/red interior. Semi-formal/casual, there were a few families there.

You get all 3 of: Perogies, Chicken Romanoff (breaded cutlet), and a 1/2 Cornish Game Hen (which are usually really dry but this one was excellent). The plate also includes some cabbage and your choice of sides (salads, potatoes). It was more food than I can finish.

We tried the hot beef tongue/mushroom/cheese, small portion but it was enough as it was heavy. Tasted more like mushroom soup and cheese. The fried cheesecake for dessert was interesting as well. Paired it with one of the Georgian wines, i forget the name they let us sample two we picked one.

All in all I'd go back, it can get pricey if you do the regular menu though.

[Si_FlyGuy]

River Cafe was fabulous as always tonight. :)

[HybridTheory]

Originally posted by Si_FlyGuy
River Cafe was fabulous as always tonight. :)

What do they have for their dining week menu? Since it's not listed on the website

[Si_FlyGuy]

Originally posted by HybridTheory


What do they have for their dining week menu? Since it's not listed on the website

We were soooo full because we ordered the Smoked Fish and Game Platter (good thing the server told us that we can order 1/2 size). So for $25, you got this tasty mandarin salad, a HUGE piece of Bison rib, and some custard/shortcake dessert. Well worth it!

I think that there were options on the menu last year, but not this year.

[HybridTheory]

Originally posted by Si_FlyGuy


We were soooo full because we ordered the Smoked Fish and Game Platter (good thing the server told us that we can order 1/2 size). So for $25, you got this tasty mandarin salad, a HUGE piece of Bison rib, and some custard/shortcake dessert. Well worth it!

I think that there were options on the menu last year, but not this year.


Thanks for letting me know. Sounds pretty good, I'll definitely be looking foward to dinner there later tonight.

[HybridTheory]

I went to River Cafe tonight and I must say it was amazing. Way better than the dinner that I had at La Caille. The mandarin salad was good to get the appetite going. The Bison short ribs were amazing. And they gave me a really good portion. I liked the vegetables that were served with the Bison as well. The celery root puree tasted great with the Bison. And as for the dessert, that Lavender shortbread and and the custard thing was so good! It was creamy and so filling. And I also ordered the Maple Rosemary Lemonade and that was the best lemonade that I've had. Overall I would say that this was definitely a great value for 25 bucks because the food was amazing and they didn't skimp out on the portions.

Service was great. Our server was very polite and came to fill up our water many times. She explained all of the items on the menu to us. As well, the presentation of the food was also done very nicely. And the ambience of the place was very naturistic. I have absolutely no complaints about River Cafe. It deserves :thumbsup: for sure. I still have 2 more places to go to, but I'm betting that River Cafe will be the place that I like best. I'll definitely be back there.

[Si_FlyGuy]

Originally posted by HybridTheory
I went to River Cafe tonight and I must say it was amazing. Way better than the dinner that I had at La Caille. The mandarin salad was good to get the appetite going. The Bison short ribs were amazing. And they gave me a really good portion. I liked the vegetables that were served with the Bison as well. The celery root puree tasted great with the Bison. And as for the dessert, that Lavender shortbread and and the custard thing was so good! It was creamy and so filling. And I also ordered the Maple Rosemary Lemonade and that was the best lemonade that I've had. Overall I would say that this was definitely a great value for 25 bucks because the food was amazing and they didn't skimp out on the portions.

Service was great. Our server was very polite and came to fill up our water many times. She explained all of the items on the menu to us. As well, the presentation of the food was also done very nicely. And the ambience of the place was very naturistic. I have absolutely no complaints about River Cafe. It deserves :thumbsup: for sure. I still have 2 more places to go to, but I'm betting that River Cafe will be the place that I like best. I'll definitely be back there.

Great write-up. I feel the same way about River Cafe. YUM! Which other two places are you off to? I wanted to try Catch, but the menu is very small, and I've heard that it's not that great anyway.

[HybridTheory]

Thanks :) I'm going to Chicago Chophouse tonight and to the Panorama Dining Room on Saturday. I doubt that they'll be able to top River Cafe. It's just so damn good! My friend said that she tried Catch but the portions weren't great. She said that it was steelhead with some weird fried cabbage thing on top. She thought that River Cafe was way better.

[HyperZell]

Just got back from La Brava, and here's how it went:

The place was smaller than I thought it would be, but still very well decorated and designed. Massive oil paintings dominate the walls, and the elegant black tableclothes with red napkins does much for the ambience. We were seated quickly, and althought it was very busy we did not find service lacking. Menus came quick, and we placed our order - I had Bruschetta and Fettuccini Tetrazini, and the lady had Ceasar Salad and Filet of Salmon with fresh vegetables.

The appetizers came after a few minutes, and although my Bruschetta, two slices of bagguette topped with onions, tomatoes, olive oil, etc. was tasty, the Ceasar Salad was reported as merely pedestrian. Fair enough, ceasar salad is getting hard to impress with. The server showed up with some buns shortly after, which I then used to tempt my lunching partner into eating, knowing full well she wanted to watch the carbs for Lent. Shortly after, our entrees came, and we were not disappointed. Her Salmon was slathered in sauce and grilled liberally, and was also delicious (I can vouch for that) with a little lemon. My Fettuccini was also quite tasty, consisting of mushrooms and generous amounts of chicken. I ended up taking some home, partly because we were going waaaay over our lunch hour. Our server was very accomodating and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves - recommended!


Food - 3.5/5
Ambience - 3.5/5
Service 3.5/5

A nice place to frequent for a tasty meal without the pretenses.

[kaput]

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[HyperZell]

Well the way I see it, 5/5 is perfection. 4/5 is very good, excellent in fact, and 3.5/5 is very good. Everything I said remains true, but it didn't knock me off my feet - any place over 3/5 I would recommend at least one, so this is a good one.

In context, a place like Saltlik would've been 4/5 or 4.5/5 in many areas for me.

[Si_FlyGuy]

Too bad I saw this thread a few days too late. I also wanted to try Piq Niq and Fairmont too.

[t-im]

I'm going to La Brava for dinner tommorow ..

Is there parking nearby?

[wildrice]

I went to the metro grill last year, not bad.

[atomic]

how was piqniq?

i drive by it everyday . i have yet to go .

[Si_FlyGuy]

My colleague and his wife loved Piq NIq.

Went to Murrieta's tonight (not participating in dining week). Best ribeye steak that I've ever had, but the service was subpar for a 'fine dining' establishment. I haven't seen so many waiter faux pas in a while.

[HybridTheory]

Stupid friend bailed on me so I didn't get to check out the Chophouse, but meh. Where's Piq Niq? I've never heard of this place. What type of food does it have?

[CKY]

Originally posted by HybridTheory
Stupid friend bailed on me so I didn't get to check out the Chophouse, but meh. Where's Piq Niq? I've never heard of this place. What type of food does it have?

Check the site on the first post.

[kaput]

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[Si_FlyGuy]

Originally posted by HybridTheory
Stupid friend bailed on me so I didn't get to check out the Chophouse, but meh. Where's Piq Niq? I've never heard of this place. What type of food does it have?

Damn, I would've gone there instead of Murieta's. I've heard good things about the Chophouse. Beyond dinner buddies club lol.

[HybridTheory]

Originally posted by Si_FlyGuy


Damn, I would've gone there instead of Murieta's. I've heard good things about the Chophouse. Beyond dinner buddies club lol.

Hmmmm my boss told me good things about Murieta's, but I think I would still rather check out the Chophouse.

I looked on the dining week menu and that Piq Niq place isn't listed, maybe it's not part of the dining week restaurants.