Izumi Sushi

I used to love Tokyo Gardens when they were still there, and one day I found out that it has closed down and a new sushi place has opened up in their spot, I was a little hesitant on eating there. So flash forward a year later, I decided that me and Hubby should make a trip and test it out of course. Plus, we just started pre-natal classes and it was at Southport AHS, so we decided to make a dinner date out of it. 

On entering the restaurant, we noticed that it was definitely brighter then what it used to be in there. I loved how they redecorated it, though it was a little weird when you look up at the ceiling and realized that there is a mirror right above you. I guess it would be easy to creep other patrons if you were into that. =)

Service was quite fast and efficient. Our waitress was super nice and explained all their rolls as she brought them out. Though I would like to say it was a little weird getting my rolls first before the appetizers. 

We came on a Wed night and their special was cheap pricing on their special rolls. Score! So we decided to try their Rainbow Roll. I was pretty impressed by this one, as their crab mixture was really creamy and had tons of great flavours. Each piece had a different topping, so smoked salmon, shrimp, avocado and tuna. There was one that has some kind of green veggie like thing on there that I was not too impressed with.

We ordered two appetizers. First was the Mentai Calamari. Honestly, this was pretty good calamari. It was super lightly battered and the squid was melt in your mouth goodness. I like how they had it on a bed of salad with this lemony taste to it. Definitely a must have if you come here. 

Next up was Smoked Salmon and Spicy Salmon rolls. Personally, I didn't like either of these rolls. My Hubby makes better smoked salmon rolls at home. Something about it didn't taste right to me. The spicy salmon rolls were alright. Nothing special.

Appetizer two was Baked Oysters. Okay, it's been a long while since I had it, and Tokyo Gardens made amazing baked oysters. So I kind of had high expectations for this. It was a let down. It was more cream and cheese then oysters. I don't think there was an oyster in there. I was quite sad to be honest. 

Last speciality roll that we ordered was the Spicy Bomb. I have to say these rolls were huge! I have to say about Izumi rolls is they don't cheap out on the fish at all. Hubby says this roll was quite yummy. 

All in all, I would definitely come back for their speciality rolls on Wed night. Portions were bigger then most sushi places for sure. If I was in the area, I would drop by here to eat, either then that, I wouldn't make the trip from the deep south. 

Sea. Fish n'Chips

So it was a cold Saturday afternoon and I was starving as usual (being pregnant means hungry all the time), I decided to bug hubby to grab some food before we went grocery shopping. Now I have driven by this place many times in the past two years, but have never dropped in. Thinking it was a take out only kind of place, we bundled on up and headed out for some of the most amazing fish and chips I ever had.

Upon entering the restaurant, I realized that it is a take out and had sit in dining as well. The waitress was super friendly and we were seated right away. Now we got here about 3:30 in the afternoon and by the time we left an hour later, this place was filling up fast.

Taking a look at the menu I realized that they served alot of amazing sounding seafood dishes besides fish and chips. Now since we were only here to eat a quick bite as we had dinner plans already, me and the Hubby decided to share everything.

I am in love with chowder, so we had to have some. Seafood Towne Chowdah was amazingly rich and creamy, without being too heavy, and just chocked full of fish and veggies. It came with a side of garlic toast that was just amazing when you dipped it into the chowder. We got the bowl to share and let me tell you, it was a HUGE bowl. I actually am drooling a bit as I am reliving this chowder moment. Definitely amazing, and definitely will be going back for this.

Our second dish that we ordered, was the Jaws plate. We choose cod as our fish, and it came with 2 prawns, 2 scallops, 2 oysters and of course, some chips! There were three different sauces that came with it, one was kind of a lemon mayo dip, and the other was more sweet and sour, plum sauce kind of taste and the third was unknown to us, that we couldn't figure out. I found the batter around the cod was perfect. It was crunchy and crispy and the fish was super tender. The batter for the oysters however, was a little too much, where there was more batter then oyster. I know not all places are going to give you big huge honking oyster, but I felt kind of sick just eating so much batter that I could not enjoy it. It was alot better with the scallops and prawns though.

All in all, this place is amazing and me and hubby will be coming back again for sure to sample the rest of the menu. I still can't believe it took us two years to finally eat here.

Blue Star Diner

It was my little baby sisters last day in Calgary, before her big move to Edmonton, we decided to go out for brunch at Blue Star Diner. Now, I've read a lot about this place other food bloggers, so I was really excited to try it out and see if it lived up to it's hype. Lets just say this place was so good, that I ate here on the Friday and Monday as well. =)

Blue Star Diner is located in Bridgeland, with 2 hour parking off of the main road there. Let's be honest, I am cheap and refuse to pay Calgary Parking Authority unless I have too. So if you are coming here to eat, park off of 7A St. The wait wasn't too bad when we got there. Took about twenty mins to get a table, and we took awhile to order as my cousin was running fifteen mins late. They do offer complementary coffee while you are waiting for a table, which is a super nice touch in my opinion. The diner is small and cozy and the servers to the hostess were all amazingly nice and welcoming.

For myself, I ordered the Stuffed French Toast with hash browns on the side. Stuffed inside was cinnamon cream cheese with field berry compote. Talk about yummylicious! The french toast was nicely coated and cooked. I finished this within five mins of getting it on my table. The hash browns weren't as crispy as I like, but they were tasty nonetheless! I love the seasoning that was coated on them.

My sister had the Smoked Salmon Avocado Eggs Benny. Now I am not going to lie, I wanted her eggs benny so badly, but being 22 weeks pregnant I had to skip it.  As I watcher her devour it, (yeah I am creepy), I can see that the eggs were done perfectly where the yolks just ran right out the egg whites all done the smoked salmon and avocado. I must admit to all my readers, I did eventually take a bite when offered and it was delicious! Honestly, as soon as I have this baby, me and hubby are going here and I am getting one of my own. 

My cousin had the blueberry banana pancakes minus the blueberry or banana, as she doesn't like fruits, so there is no picture. 

Since this place was so yummy, I brought my husband here for brunch on the holiday Monday. Wait time was about half hour this time, but we figured as it was the long weekend, it would be a little longer of a wait. This time we were sat at the bar, which was actually quite comfy! Now, I don't know what it is about the orange juice here, but I love it. 

Husband ordered the Albertan Three Egg Omelette. It came with a side of toast, your choice, he picked sourdough. The jam of the day was an apricot one which he really liked, and hash browns. The omelette was fluffy and stuffed with a bison chili and tons of cheese. He was in heaven. I sampled a bite of his, (okay I had more then a bite, it was really good), and I am not one to try something different such as bison, but it was FANTASTIC! I think this is my second fave dish here besides the eggs benny my sister had. 

I'm not really into breakfast burrito, but I thought I would give it a try since my mind was on it after reading if off the menu. I am glad that I did! I got the Blue Star Burrito, stuffed with eggs, bell peppers, red onions, mushrooms, cheddar, and refried beans. Talk about burst of flavors and textures in your mouth. The combo of burrito, avocado, sour cream and salsa made my taste buds dance and sing. That's right, I went there. Dance and sing I tell you. Everything was just so fresh and better then any of the other breakfast food places.    

I give this place two thumbs up, and recommend that everyone try this place out at least once. Great service and amazing food has made it me and hubby's new brunch date place. 

Blue Star Diner

Bridgeland

809 1st Ave NE

Calgary, AB

http://www.bluestardiner.ca/

Mirch Masala

So I have been craving Indian food real bad, and where else can you go besides the North East for some authentic Indian cuisine. I decided on Mirch Masala, where I have gone once before with my sisters, to satisfy my cravings. Along with me I brought the husband and my sister Diana.

For our appetizer, we of course had to have the beef samosa. Nom nom nom! It was nicely spiced and the outside was super crunchy. A perfect start to the meal. My favourite dipping sauce was the green one. I'm not sure what is in it, but it was delightfully spicy.

I love Butter Chicken, so that's what we had to order. The chicken was nice and tender, the sauce was super creamy. Perfect for dipping with the naan bread and I pretty much soaked my basamati rice in it.

I love how fluffy the naan bread was. It was slightly butter on top still, and writing this is making me want some. The rice was cooked perfectly. 

Next was the Beef Rogan Josh, this comes in different hotness, and we picked med, as the husband and sister aren't big on super spicy hot food. The chunks of beef were perfect mouth size and the sauce once again, perfect for dipping!

For our third dish, we ordered the Chicken Tikka Masala. I love the spiciness of the chicken and how big the chicken pieces are. There's just no word to describe how delicious this whole meal was. We ate EVERYTHING.

I love the ambience of Mirch Masala. The decoration and the colour scheme is so bright and cheery. I love the background music they have on. It's just such a fun relaxing atmosphere. Whenever I am in the mood for Indian, this is definitely where I would go. Even though it's a far drive my place.




Mirch Masala Restaurant 

6208 Rundlehorn Drive Northeast
Calgary, AB

(403) 293-7440 ‎

Bagolac Saigon

So it's Saturday night and it's getting cold out so decided to stop in to Bagolac Saigon near Chinook Centre. We've been here once before the renovations and it was as good as I remember.

Now it doesn't matter what Pho place I go to, I always order Deep Fried Spring Rolls. I liked how their rolls were not greasy at all, and the filling was really good, I just wished it wasn't so toothpick looking. 

I love the pho at Bagolac! The broth is so flavourful and the noodles are cooked perfectly. Nothing worse then too soggy of a noodle or to hard of a noodle. They give you a decent amount of beef balls, and the beef was tender after it was cooked in the broth. As my father says, "if you are dripping sweat then it's a good bowl of pho!"

Husband got a rice dish. Pork chop with two fried eggs. I love this dish. I love making it at home, and going out to eat it. There's just something about the mixture of egg yolk, rice and pork that is so comforting and reminds me of home. 

The service at Bagolac was excellent. She came by and refilled our water and made sure everything was okay. The food came out quick and hot. We did have to wait ten mins for a table, and they were busy on a Saturday night. All in all, if I am in the Chinook area, I would definitely drop by for a bite. 

6130 1A St SW 
403-252-5588

Monday: 11:00am-10:00pm
Tuesday: 11:00am-10:00pm
Wednesday: 11:00am-10:00pm
Thursday: 11:00am-10:00pm
Friday: 11:00am-10:00pm
Saturday: 11:00am-10:00pm
Sunday & Statutory Holidays: Closed

Ric's Grill Steak and Seafood Chophouse on 17th

Happy New Year fellow food bloggers and readers. I can't wait to see what 2012 brings, as 2011 has been a good eating year for me and my husband. To celebrate, we ended up at Ric's Grill on 17th. I came upon this restaurant when I googled New Year Eve dinner Calgary and this came up on the Opentable website. They had a set menu for $59/person, and the hubby has been here before and said it was good, so next thing I know, I had booked a reservation.

We started off with some drinks, I had the Pomberry Pleaser and the husband had a Manhattan [Husband Edit: If you've never had a Manhattan, it is the manliest girlie looking drink ever, and it's delicious]. Personally, my favourite drinks are red and this drink was a definite pleaser.

For my appetizer, I chose the Ahi Tuna Carpaccio and it was perfection! The tuna was sliced thinly and seared around the edges and just melted in your mouth. It was drizzled with a citrus lemon miso sauce that had enough of a tang to it and complimented the tuna, while the spinach gave it a nice crunch. I admit, I licked the plate clean for that lemon miso sauce.

The husband had the Crispy Calamari, as he is a huge squid lover, especially when it is deep fried. The squid was tender and not chewy at all and it was perfectly crispy. Ric's house made tzatziki was delicious. They added roasted tomato skins to their for an extra kick and I loved it.

Four our soup course we both picked the Clam Chowder. It was smooth and creamy with nice pieces of veggies in it. There was plenty of clams in the chowder and it was delicious. Me and the husband both swoon over this soup.

We both decided on getting the Sirloin as our entree, but I had lobster tail with mine and the husband had king crab legs with his. The entree came with roasted potatoes, and veggies. We both asked for the steak to be medium and they came out a little on the rare side. The steak was super tender though and the seasoning was perfect  in my opinion. It was perfectly charred on the outside, which I really like when I am eating steak. The lobster tail was tasty, especially when I coated it with melted butter. The roasted potatoes were nicely done, but I hate veggies, so I skipped that while the husband ate everything on his plate. We both agreed it was a great piece of steak done right. His king crab legs were amazing he said.

For dessert I settled on the Creme Brulee and was so happy that I did, as I was so stuffed by this point. The husband had the ten year port, so we shared the Creme Brulee. I love how they didn't burn the sugar, it was nicely browned on top. When I poked my spoon through it made a nice crackly sound. It was smooth and creamy and just made it the perfect sweet ending to a perfect dinner with my husband.

I love the atmosphere of Ric' Grill! The booths are so quaint and cosy! I love the dark hardwood against the the gold and red backings of the booths. It was dimly lit and they had music quiet enough that you can hear still here the other person that you are dining with. Nothing worse then being in a restaurant where you have to scream to be heard by your dining partner. I give it a five out a five for a magical New Years Eve dinner.





Ric's Grill
1436 8th St SW, Calgary, Alberta
Tel. 403.269.7427 (RICS)