Downtown Calgary Dining Week

[CKY]

So it's coming up March 8th to 17th, 2007, I'm pretty excited except there are a lot of restaurant's I havn't heard of. Maybe it's just me. But does anybody have any recommendations from that list that I should attend:

Currently the ones on my list are:

Blowfish
River Cafe
Milestones

Oh and here is the link to the website for those of you that don't know

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

[Rav4Guy]

River Cafe = :thumbsup:

try their goat cheese cheesecake! the BEST!

[Artega]

i feel like being ripped off by some of these places

$35 dollar menu at Earls and blowfish....
for the food you're getting i doubt it'll be more expensive if you order them separately (based on 2 person)

but for places like River cafe and Mets
that's certainly a good deal

I just don't like the fact that some of these places are praying on uninformed customers

[eb0i]

So can I book online for Calgary Dining Week? Or do I have to call them and specifically ask for the special? I have never ever been to this so don't have a clue how it all works.

[HybridTheory]

+1 for River Cafe. I also want to check out the food at the Calgary Tower.

[Isaiah]

I was at River Cafe twice several years ago and I thought the food was mediocre, the portions were too small, the service was atrocious, and it was extremely overpriced. Maybe they've changed but I've been hesitant to go back. For those who recommended it, can you elaborate on what made it so good?

[el_fefes]

Maybe you had bad luck... I've been there a couple times and the service was great! First time I went I had a hard time finishing the steak. :thumbsup:

[CKY]

Anybody had experience with Pig Niq? Buchanan? Simone's? I quite like their dining week menu

Blowfish's dinner deal doesn't seem very good, but lunch however, seems justafiable.

[bigboom]

Originally posted by CKY
Anybody had experience with Pig Niq? Buchanan? Simone's? I quite like their dining week menu

Blowfish's dinner deal doesn't seem very good, but lunch however, seems justafiable.

Piq Niq is really good...but it just seems over priced at $35 per person, ive been there a couple times and really enjoyed it though but its a really small restaurant and can sometimes get a litle crowded.

and i agree with the opinion that the river cafe is not worth it, everytime i eat there i walk out of there still hungry and never satisfied.

[Si_FlyGuy]

My picks this year based on the menus are:

Buchanan's
Piq Niq
Don Quiote


Will probably also try:
Murrieta's
Tribune
Escoba
Blowfish

[saiyajin]

Originally posted by eb0i
So can I book online for Calgary Dining Week? Or do I have to call them and specifically ask for the special? I have never ever been to this so don't have a clue how it all works.

:werd: sounds interesting

[Si_FlyGuy]

You gotta call ahead and make reservations. You also have to tell them that you're going there for the DDW menu. Call soon because they typically fill up fast.

[kaput]

.

[HyperZell]

There was a thread made for this last year, so there are some good comments in there. I couldn't find it using 'search', but if you look for Calgary Downtown Dining Week in Google the thread is archived.

Anyways, I went to La Brava last year and plan on visiting new places this year...maybe La Paella? Post your experiences starting today!

[Si_FlyGuy]

Originally posted by kaput
It was good in the past at up to $25 but its no longer worth it for $35 IMO. Even when it maxed out at $25 you would only save $6-8 at all the places I went to. If your willing to pay that much for their set menu you could probably order what you want for about the same.

Considering each entree at these restaurants are in the $20-50 range, it's not that bad. Besides, we typically order one appetizer platter in addition to the menu. It's more about trying out new places, and less about saving a whole lot of money.



Originally posted by HyperZell

Anyways, I went to La Brava last year and plan on visiting new places this year...maybe La Paella? Post your experiences starting today!

I did La Paella 2 years ago, and was thoroughly disappointed. The service was super slow for a 1/4 full restaurant, and my paella came out half grossly over-cooked, and half almost raw (I guess they haven't grasped the concept that different ingredients cook at different rates).

[HybridTheory]

I strongly recommend making reservations before you try any of the places. My friend and I decided to go out tonight as a last minute thing and we tried Muriettas, Catch and Piq Niq and they were all booked up. We ended up at Blink just to try one of the places.

I thought it was good value for $35 since I couldn't even finish all the food. The service was a bit slow since we got there at 6:30 and we didn't leave until 9. The appetizer dish of mac and cheese was rich so that mostly filled me up. The bison short ribs were good as well but I didn't end up finishing it. Meanwhile the dessert of the mascarpone brownie was really good, not too sweet and it went well with the raspberry compote.

[Si_FlyGuy]

Did I read that correctly? Mac and Cheese?

[HybridTheory]

Hahaha ya it was fancied up mac and cheese. I think metropolitan grill has that on their menu too.

[sneek]

Can you get the front of line thingie for this, if you have AMEX?

[Si_FlyGuy]

Originally posted by sneek
Can you get the front of line thingie for this, if you have AMEX?

No, but cleavage helps.

So far:

Piq Niq - great service, food was above average, excellent atmosphere, good value. Will be back.

Don Quijote's - Good atmosphere. Gigantic portions (10 oz prime rib). Food was too salty, but not bad. Will only go back for Tapas and atmosphere.

Buchanan's and Escoba up next. Full reviews to come.

[eb0i]

So are the portions smaller than normal for Dining week?

[Si_FlyGuy]

Not for a lot of places.

[HyperZell]

So, I went to La Paella with a friend on Tuesday for lunch. Nice little place, with a great sounding menu, especially if you love seafood.

The Downtown Dining Week menu gave us some choices, and she had salad (nice, if a little heavy on the sauce), pollo porillo (chicken in a broiled mustard/something/something sauce with vegetables) and vanilla ice cream. The chicken was pretty tasty, but on the menu the ice cream was 8 bucks! I had the minestrone (tasty!) and the paella la valencia (rice with saffron and lots of seafood) with a rum-soaked flan for dessert. The paella was good, with a bigger-than-expected portion, but it wasn't unreal. The flan was interesting, but tasted better with the ice cream.

Not a bad place, overall, but service is a little on the slow side. Our server was nice, but it just seemed to take longer than it should've - I was an hour late back to work! Plus, I had about half my paella packed up because I didn't have the time to eat it, and they forgot to bring it back to me. An interesting experience...anyone else go anywhere?

[eb0i]

Went to River Cafe today and it was pretty good. The pork shoulder was really good:drool:

Tomorrow I go to Chutney and Bonterra on Friday:drool: :drool:

[Artega]

I heard the menu for Metropolitan grill was different than posted on the website

I heard Mac and cheese too, but that's not on the website menu

could someone confirm?