Select - Four Course Table D'Hote

My friend and I agreed to meet at Select on 106th Street in Downtown Edmonton to enjoy a special four course meal offered on a Groupon for $75 for four courses for two people.  We made reservations on Open Table (and have been granted our Open Table points) and arrived at 7:00 pm to a very busy room which continued throughout the night.

Most visitors were also making use of the Groupon which was a great deal as they value the cost of the meal at $130.  While we did have some service issues, I do not believe they were related to the presence of a Groupon or that we got "less than" service because of it.

The menu consisted of four courses with a choice of one of two options in each course.  This surprised me a little.  It would have been very simple to post such a menu on the Groupon deal.  Instead they made it appear that you had a choice of any of the regular menu items.  Oh well, it was not a big deal and we could easily find an item we each liked from the selected courses.  In fact, we just decided to have one of each in each course so we could try everything.

What I have to say is that the food was very good.  The calamari appetizer was absolutely exceptional and probably one of the best preparations of this dish that I have enjoyed.  The calamari was quite tender and the batter very light.  Delicious.  The other appetizer was a Chicken Tikka Masala Perogie covered with bacon and onions which had very nice flavour but for me the calamari couldn't be beat.

We then had a few service issues but it was no big deal.  We were enjoying our company and talking and catching up.  Eventually our salad and soup course arrived.  The soup was a tomato source which I had a bight of and was quite nice.  A small salad with mandarin, feta cheese and a nice viniagrette.  Nice.

Next we shared the two main entrees Beef Cheeks and Artic Char.  We both wanted to try the Beef Cheeks as neither of us thought we had ever had them - and we're foodies after all!  We can't have not tried Beef Cheeks!  They were good, they were very tender.  There was a nice bordelaise reducation sauce on them.  But, to me, overall nothing outstanding, tasted like pot roast.  The Artic Char on the other hand was delicious.  Covered in a delectable teriyaki sauce.  The fish was light and perfectly cooked.  It was sitting on a bed of delicious risotto with fresh crisp vegetables.  I would say the fish won over the beef.

For dessert we had an option of a Duo of Chocolate with a Chocolate Brownie and Chocolate Mousse and a Creme Brulee.  We had one of each of course and I think we both enjoyed our chosen choices.  And we were full!

Overall, a lovely evening.  Great company and great food that with the Groupon presented really great value.

The Cajun House

My "Foodie Group" recently had a meet up at The Cajun House.  This had been on my short list for awhile as a friend had been raving about it.  So I was happy to head out to St. Albert on a Saturday to meet up with the group - and I was glad that I did!  The food and drinks here are reasonably priced with generous portions.  This is the seafood gumbo.

I had the Oysters Rockefeller which was just okay.  Pretty dry.  Not enough pernod taste.

My neighbour had the pecan crusted chicken which looks delicious and is a go to favorite for her on repeat returns to this restaurant.

Creole Shrimp was a hit for the day and my other neighbour had the pork medallions about which she loved.

But the piece de resistance of this restaurant every time 

is the deep fried cheesecake in a phyllo pastry with a rasberry coulis.  This is DELICIOUS!  And worth the visit just for this dish.  AMAZING!

XIX

Went to XIX for another visit to enjoy some appies and drinks on the patio in the sunshine.

Had to start with the world famous (okay that might be a stretch but they are SOOOOOO GOOD) Ahi Tuna Twists.

Next up was the Pan Roasted Sriracha Octopus with Chorizo.  Our son loves anything and everything with Sriracha on it so we knew he would want to try this.  This was the first time we had tried this (and our first time trying a grilled octopus preparation).  The octopus was tender and not chewy at all.  Very good!

And then a favorite - bone marrow.  I've had it at a few places now since the last time I had it at XIX and with all my newfound experience I can easily say this is the best bone marrow I've ever had.  I didn't want it to end!  Oh and the fried oyster was very good too!!

And we tried the Gnocchi for the first time which was excellent - the gnocchi were like little pillows.

And we again very much enjoyed the pork belly in the ponzu butter sauce with a 63 degree egg.  This is one of our favorite go to dishes.

And as our last appy we enjoyed the Beef Tenderloin Tataki.  We couldn't leave without dessert though so we shared the Creme Brulee and the hot cookie with ice cream.  Delicious!  Another outstanding meal at XIX.

Sabor - Seafood Festival!

 

A girlfriend and I attended Sabor for dinner for the first time to enjoy their summer Seafood Festival.
When we arrived, we discovered that their sister restaurant Bodega had a half priced wine happy hour until 6:30 pm so we decided to grab a table outside, enjoy the sunshine and have some wine!

The inside of Bodega is beautiful and sits in front of Sabor on the main floor (Sabor is up the stairs).

We also ordered a tapas of Soft Shelled Crab (how hard is it to get that in Alberta?) and I think it was only $6 which was crazy, ridiculously cheap.  It was great!

The inside of Sabor was beautiful as well.

Once inside for dinner we ordered the Seafood Festival Price Fixe Menu that they offered for $55 per person.  We started with seafood in a white wine garlic sauce.  It was out of this world!  I don't normally eat bread but the sauce was so good that we finished our plate of bread and ordered a second one so that we could sop up all of that excellent sauce.  As you can see from the picture below, the seafood was also excellent, plump and fresh.

The next dish was probably the best salad I have ever enjoyed.  The flavours, the herbs and the freshness were just amazing.  Totally delicious.

As our main course, we enjoyed halibut and scallops on a lobster risotto.  I was really looking forward to this dish.  The seafood was cooked perfectly as was the risotto.  I personally, however, enjoy a creamy risotto vs. one with a tomato like sauce so this wasn't my favorite but only because of personal taste.  My friend loved it and was able to take a generous portion home for lunch the next day.

We had a lovely trio of desserts as well - creme brulee, cheesecake with strawberry sauce and a chocolate mousse.  All were excellent and my friend enjoyed a great cappuccino.  Overall a lovely evening and a wonderful meal.

The Keg - LobsterFest!

Every year we make sure that we hit The Keg for their annual LobsterFest, usually more than once.  This year was no exception.

This year's menu added a few new items which we were more than happy to try out.  First we tried the Szechuan Lobster.  It was spicy and definitely had a kick.  Our waiter, who was great by the way, told us to be careful with the peppers as they were super spicy.  My husband tried them anyways - and our waiter was right!  You will notice from the dish though, there is more shrimp than lobster - this is a theme with this year's menu.  More on that later.

Next up were the Lobster Tacos.  The lobster was good.

This year they also added a Lobster Roll to the menu.  I don't often see Lobster Rolls on the menu so when I do I am always compelled to try it but so far I haven't been impressed.  Do you see all the shrimp in the picture above - and below?

I must have missed getting a picture of the Lobster Gratinee.  I get it every year and it is always delicious.  This year the amount of lobster was sorely lacking.  The price of lobster must be up this year, causing The Keg to scrimp on amounts and to augment the dish by filling it with shrimp.

Our service and our evening was excellent as usual.  Our waiter was superb and even brought me a piece of Billy Miner Pie for my birthday.  

New York City Michelin Star Restaurants for 2016

For those of you that care about such things, the 2016 Guide to Michelin Star Restaurants in New York City is out. All of last year's three star restaurants maintained their top billing - Chef's Table at Brooklyn Fare, Eleven Madison Park, Jean Georges, Per Se, Le Bernardin and Masa. 

Another ten restaurants received two stars including Modern which increased it's rating from one star in the 2015 Guide.  And many received one star. 

Blue Chair Cafe

I recently had the pleasure of visiting The Blue Chair.  We went for the book launch of a friend of a friend and it was awesome!  I had wanted to try this place out anyways so it was a bonus!

Unfortunately, I just had my phone with me so the pictures are, again, substandard, but this place had a great vibe and ambiance.  It is super cute - way more than these pics show!

This is the limited menu that they had available on the night we visited.  They were in the process of revising the menu and expanding it but I notice that their website still does not show their current menus.  They should really post them online because their food is absolutely excellent!  You should be able to increase this menu so you can read it.

The food we had was all ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!  The best that I've had at a lot of places for a long period of time.

Above is their signature bean soup and the salad with salmon - look at the size of salmon that they offer?  I don't think Lisa was able to finish it all.  Also above is the absolutely best Roasted Cauliflower soup that I have ever tasted.  It was sooooooo good!

These are the Seafood Cakes.  These were crusted in potato and were absolutely delicious.  Below is the Ahi Tuna and the Chicken and Shrimp Pad Thai that Melanie graciously let me try.  Both of these dishes were delicious as well.

 

What a great evening.  Great food, great wine and excellent company!  And the book reading was amazing!  I will definitely be looking for an opportunity to return to this great little, funky café in the near future.

McDonald's - The New CBO

Okay, I know it's a little odd for me to write about food at McDonald's but, in all fairness, I did write about the Lobster Roll when it was offered for a limited time - and this sandwich is really worth it!!

McDonald's has a new sandwich out called the CBO (stands for Chicken, Bacon, Onions - yum!). I have to say that it's been a really long time since I've gotten excited about anything on the menu at McDonald's but this is it.  This chicken burger is absolutely amazing!  I've actually been wanting another one since I first tried it a few days ago.  The Chicken Burger is on an onion bun and topped with chopped bacon and onion crisps.  It also has a creamy pepper sauce that adds a little bit of a kick (but I had to add a bit of McChicken sauce as the bun was a little dry - this made it perfect!)

Now in fairness I have been sick for awhile and haven't been able to keep anything down and this was the first thing I was able to eat for awhile so maybe my views are skewed.  But, honestly, a VERY good offering - for McDonald's. 

La Cage Aux Sports

Only stopped in for a drink and to watch the Blue Jays game so can't comment on the food.  But the atmosphere was great.  We sat upstairs at the outdoor patio which was very nice.  Our table overlooked the cobblestone street below so great spot for people watching!  And lots of outdoor tv's to watch the game.  Drinks were reasonably priced so good place for a stop.