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)