If an area ever needed a new brew pub, it’s this lonely corner in Victoria Park. Someone told me there was a recent move to rename the area Victoria Landing to obscure the neighborhood’s ghetto past, but I haven’t seen any evidence of this myself. But no matter what you call it, the people who work and live in this part of town don’t have many dining options.Inside, a soft launch lunch was jammed with customers, mildly frazzled service staff and good food. The former Olive’s has been stripped down from a high-end Italian restaurant to the rough-hewn Vagabond Brewery, offering more casual fare and beer, beer… and beer. Still, I managed to order a sauv blanc.I sampled the Kale Caesar Salad (yummy with ginormous homemade bacon bits) and a hearty Pulled Pork Pizza. Also: the Lobster Dog. Deep fried in beer and corn batter, it’s a classier version of the deep fried everything that will be available just across the street at the Stampede Grounds in July. Vagabond is perfectly positioned for noshing pre- and post-concert at the Saddledome.
Category Archives: Savor
Gateau Louis Vuitton
Celebrating the birthday of one of my favorite people this weekend, I was delighted to discover what happens when chocolate and Louis Vuitton collide: This cake gives a whole new meaning to a la mode. A match made in my personal heaven, it’s from the talented bakers at Buttercream Bake Shoppe on 17th in Calgary. They do calorie-laden customer orders for wedding cakes, cupcakes – you name it. I’ll let you do the talking because my mouth is full. Tasted just as good as it looked.
Tempting Tapas
If the pink ox on this 17th Avenue awning doesn’t mooove you to mosey into Ox and Angela, this should:“The spanish table” is a prix-fix menu of muy delicioso munchies. Instead of angsting over your choice, go with the chef’s selection of the tastiest tapas. It will add at least fifteen minutes to your sparkling witty conversation window. And if it happens to be a slightly dull date, the new plates of food that keep arriving should get you through. Meant to be shared, the dishes will give you a base line of common ground.Owned by the restaurateurs behind one of my other faves in Calgary, Una Pizza + Wine, I predict Ox and Angela will be my new go-to: I’m yoked! Tempting tempranillo and lovely service make it una noche maravillosa.
Lactose Tolerant Model at Model Milk
Monki Business
Brrrunch
When it’s -15 on a Sunday, a snowboarding girl’s thoughts skip the slopes and turn to brunch. At Cassis, my favorite french bistro in Calgary, a Mimosa was merely a citrus starting point for a Croque Madame… accompanied by a Kir Royale – champagne with creme de cassis, bien sur. Earrings from The Artworks in Edmonton. Sweater: Hache from Beckley Boutique in LA.
Hopeful crocuses hint at spring. Ha! See you in May.
Meanwhile, fervor for fashion will have to keep us warm. Environmental scientist Andrea Douglas looking appropriately tres francaise et tres chic. Hat, Chapel Hats. Sweater, Club Monaco. Watch, Links of London.