Taste of Calgary 2011

So, me and the husband decided to go check out Taste of Calgary as suggested by my sister Diana. Since it was a nice sunny day and I woke up early for once, we headed off to Eau Claire Market to check out the food.

Let me just start and say by the time we got there, I was hungry and ready to bite off anyone's head that talked to me, so I needed food A.S.A.P. After getting our tickets and doing a quick walk around, I stopped at La Jawab and grabbed their Shanghai Fish.

Omg, was this ever TASTY! It was some spicy goodness that woke me up and curbed the beast that was ready to come out. The fish was cooked perfectly and was super moist. I have no clue what the spices were in this thing, but before we left, I went back and got another plateful of it.

Now I love me some sliders. So we set off to the White Spot booth and got the Pulled Pork and Legendary sliders. NOM NOM NOM! I tasted some of the coleslaw that came with the pulled pork, but coleslaw is not my thing. The husband liked it though. To be honest, anything snack size gets my two thumbs up.

Next we hit up Satay House and tried their Beef Satay Skewers. It was so-so. I wasn't to impressed with it, so Peter ate it all. Whatever seasoning they use was not up to par with any good bubble tea house would've served.

Peter got some of the Mini-Melts Tropical Punch. I don't even know what to say about those. They tasted like those chalk candy that you get at Halloween. Kind of creep me out as the texture was so cold against my teeth.

I tried some Pad Thai from Delicious Thai, and it was not delicious. It was not worth the five tickets. It had no flavor, no eggs, no meat, not even veggies in it. A total rip off. Thai Express in a food court tastes better then this. I was a unhappy camper while sampling this dish.

So, wanting another dessert, we decided to go back to White Spot's booth and picked their Blueberry Pie. OH MY! Peter and I devoured this dessert in less then twenty seconds. Kidding. The blueberries were ripe and juicy. The crust was buttery and flaky. The only thing that could've made it better was more whip cream.

To end our trip downtown, we took a walk over to Chinatown and went to Try Again, my favorite bubble tea place. I got my usual Green Apple Green Tea with Lychee jelly and Peter got Mango Lemon Slush. The day ended well and we were happily full.

Haru Sushi & Grill Review

I am the hugest sushi fan. Seriously, what is there not to love about it? The melt in your mouth goodness of a good piece of tuna or salmon pretty much rocks in my world. So, when I found out a new sushi place was opening in my neighborhood, you bet I was darn happy over the moon about it.

It started off being called "Blue Fin Sushi," which worried me as I thought it might be one of those take out joints that you see in the mall, but when going to get some DQ one day, the sign has gone up and now it was Haru Sushi and Grill. Upon finding out that it had already been opened a month, I dragged hubby there for our date night dinners.

Haru Sushi is amazing. I love the decor and the atmosphere. The place was well lit, the tables spaced out nicely, cause honestly, who wants to hear what their dining neighbors are saying. It was welcoming ambiance and I like it.

But seriously, we are talking about my new found addiction to this place. The waiters are all super friendly and by the third time I was there, they mentioned "Ooh! A regular." I am not sure if I should be embarrassed or not, but I guess three visits in less then a week is a bit much. Let me tell you why I was there three times in less then a week. The spicy tuna tacos.

Oh my god, it is a bit of heavenly goodness that pretty much party rocks in your mouth. The crunchiness of the taco shell with the tuna, avocado and sauce is indescribable. At first reading off the menu, I was like "wtf?" but second glance and wanting to try something new, I ordered it. I am so glad I did. It's a unique concept and just works so well. My sister, Mary, didn't believe how tasty it was till we came here for lunch on my second visit and now she is hooked. I can order just platefuls of this. I now want one so bad. It`s completely drool worthy, happiness and sunshine.

Next, I sampled the spicy salmon sashimi. It was nicely cut chunks of salmon with that addicting spicy sauce of theirs. It was topped with some kind of crunchy, deep fried sticks on top, with a bed of cucumbers and some grape tomatoes. The combination of all those textures together made me want to eat the whole thing to myself. Too bad though that I had to share.

Me and my sister are addicted to tofu, so obviously we had to sample the agedashi tofu. Now, I wasn`t fond of this dish as I am with other sushi places. The outside was crispy and held up well against the broth it was in, but the inside tofu just didn`t have that silky texture that I am in love with. I am definitely passing up this appetizer when I am there. It just isn`t worth it.

The special roll we ordered was the rainbow roll. Nom nom nom! I love this roll. With Sushi Haru, they added tamogo inside their roll. Which I think is the best idea ever! So with one bite, you get salmon, tuna, avocado, shrimp, tamogo and crab, all exploding in your mouth. The roll is big enough that you get what you are paying for, but not to big, where you can`t eat it all in one bite.The hubby really liked this roll.


The agedashi gyoza was perfectly deep fried and tasty. The prawn tempura was not greasy and the crispy outside was not oily at all. It was light and fluffy and I wanted more. I am definitely making another trip soon, and sampling the other yummy dishes that they have to offer.

Haru Sushi and Grill Address Location

#150 35 Mckenzie Towne Ave S.E.
Calgary, Alberta
Canada T2Z 0S8
Phone : 403-457-5880

Haru Sushi and Grill Hours of Operation

Monday – closed
Tuesday – Friday : 11:30 – 2:00 and 5:00 – 9:30
Saturday – Sunday : Noon – 2:00 and 5:00 – 9:30

The Great Food Experience

Finally! I am going to start writing about my love of food. Hopefully, I will be able to keep this up to date, with reviews from all the places I have eaten in Calgary, recipes that I have tried, pretty much everything about food. I wouldn't claim to be a foodie in anyway, as I usually wait awhile before trying new places, due to my fear of crowds. But if it is delicious, then I am there. Lucky for me, I have two partner in crimes that love food as much as I do. So here's to me for giving this a try, and hopefully, having someone out there trying one of my recipes or my favorite places to eat.