Dinner for One

I was crazy tired from my long day attending my 3 day workshop - and during my week long break- no less! So, after a nap and working out I decided that it was time to make something for dinner! Not having gone grocery shopping yet, I contemplated eating the same meal I had Sunday night - a turkey, smoke salmon, and provolone with pesto on olive & herb ciabatta bread (from my last visit to the Italian Centre). The only problem was, I had no cheese and no smoked salmon. Luckily, Sobeys downstairs hadn't closed yet, so I quickly headed down to pick up some food. Here is the finished product:
 

Steak seasoned with fresh garlic and ground pepper, topped with a quick-made mushroom sauce of basil, garlic and ground pepper; and a side of basmati rice sprinkled with dill. Quite delicious! It's true that sometimes the best steak is the ones you cook at home! Oh and just in case you were wondering, I did not eat the entire steak. Only half,as it was probably a bit much for dinner after 9:30pm.

Upper Crust - dissapointed

Clearly, I have a hankering for brunch places lately. That and every Saturday seems to land me at a different brunch spot! Early March found me at my previous fave & go-to brunch place - Upper Crust. I say previous fave because this last brunch certainly left something to be desired. Now, don't get me wrong. I do like Upper Crust, in fact, my workplace even catered from them for a social. AND, ever since I moved to Edmonton 3 years ago, I've considered Upper Crust amongst my list of brunch places. I like Upper Crust for many reasons: It's in the University area, easy to walk to, and generally it's a central brunch place for most of my friends. However, having gone there for brunch twice in the past 3 months and not receiving the stellar service I remembered, has left me wondering if I should return.

I should point out though, that they do deserve credit for honouring their agreement when my friend called earlier in the week to book a table for a Saturday brunch. Apparently, they do not take reservations for Saturdays, but they were gracious in keeping their promise and a table for 10 was set aside for us. Once we sat down, our drink orders were taken and promptly arrived. I ordered a coffee and was thankful to see it refilled as we waited for the rest of the ladies. Coffee & milk were on the table and easily accessible for all who ordered the dark elixir. However, once everyone had arrived and ordered, the brunch took a considerable amount of time to arrive. We ordered at 11:30am, and brunch did not come until at least 12:15pm. The restaurant did not appear to be filled, but our server was kept busy attending to her tables (perhaps they were short staffed?). Having been to Upper Crust several times throughout the years I often order the Eggs Benedict. I had heard good things about their french toast so I decided to try it out. Plus, the description mentioned fresh jams & preserves and fresh fruit garnish (typically a skewer of fruit from previous eatings). So, you can imagine my slight disappointment when this arrived: 

Sadly, no skewers of fruit were to be found on mine nor on any of my friend's plates. Only 3 lonely pieces of toast with minimal egg, a small piece of pineapple and one strawberry halved stared back at me. Notice also the empty coffee cup. I would have asked for a refill, but the waitress was too busy tracking down my friend's Eggs Beni another server had accidentally taken it. Needless to say, by the end of the meal we were all slightly disappointed with the long wait times, smaller portion sizes, and lack of fruit.  Not to say that fruit is incredibly important to me, but they used to have an actual skewer of fruit, complete with different varieties of fruit.

So the next time you have a craving for brunch on a Saturday, it may be best to head somewhere else. Perhaps the NYBC, Culinas, or any of the original fare restaurants.

Skinny Legs & Cowgirls - a sort of Bistro

Update: This location is now closed. Rumour has it that they opened a restaurant out in B.C. Uncertain of the name. 

Continuing with Liane Faulder's recent review of brunch places & restaurants, we decided to try out the newly relocated Skinny Legs & Cowgirls for dinner (after brunch at the NYBC). Telling our friends where it was located, proved to be slightly difficult at first, as they had just moved into their location a few weeks ago (we went end of February). However, knowing that Skinny Legs was now located beside the downtown Planet Organic made it much easier to locate as well as the tall woman's leg and high heeled shoe picture that we told our friends to look for. 

One inside the restaurant, we were greeted with a wall of framed newspaper articles about the restaurant. While waiting for the server to seat us, I glanced briefly at the many articles suggesting a variety of dishes  - from PEI mussels to coconut rice to a much raved about bread pudding. The restaurant pulsed with warm red tones, wooden chairs and tables and dimmed lightning. Patrons were just starting to trickle in, seeing it was around 6:00pm on a Saturday night. Seeing that the table across from us was eating off a huge wooden platter, Dan and I's interest about the menu was piqued. A quick glance at the menu suggested that we were looking at share plates for the whole table as serving sizes and the food around us indicated as much. As we waited for our friends, Dan and I observed an interesting sight. It seemed that Skinny Legs was running low on supplies, so staff was seen bringing in bags of pita chips, cartons of eggs, potatoes and other organic goods from their conveniently located neighborhood organic store -  Planet Organic. It was quite interesting, as one only begins to wonder if they had a back door that may have been more appropriate, unless they were using it as a marketing ploy! 

Regardless, once our friends arrived we quickly made a decision about what to order. We decided to go with the "Cowboy Platter - a carnivore's cornucopia" ($100)  and the Seasonal Vegetable Platter ($25). We briefly considered the salad, but seeing another table's interesting display of their Caesar Salad, 4 hunks of romaine hearts (not ripped) drizzled with dressing, certainly did not whet our appetites for raw veg.  

First dish - 4 succulent lamb chops, a rack of ribs, beef medallion, and pork tenderloin on a bed of scalloped potatoes. Shared between 4 people it was great. My table mates commented on the amazing mint sauce, and the seasoning on the lamb chops. I, however, liked the texture of the lamb, but felt that the intense mustard seasoning took away from the 'true' taste of the lamb. The scalloped potatoes were well done and tasty and so was the beef medallion. Food note: try not to get too carried away with the meat and try to taste each piece while hot! 

2nd dish: Seasonal Vegetables. Sauteed mushrooms, mashed sweet potato, asparagus, carrots, eggplant, zucchini, and a lone bok choy.

   

This place also advertises itself as 'a sort of bistro'. I would agree mostly with that. My idea of a 'bistro' is a small cozy, bustling yet not like a traditional restaurant, and has a wine bar. While Skinny Legs did have the aesthetics for the 'bistro' atmosphere, it seemed to lack a bit in the wine bar department. Certainly there was a wine bar, but the position of the wine bar was also the only route to and from the kitchen, and for patrons leaving. So, although the wine bar was a good length, patrons could not sit down beside it or stand along the length of it for fear of being in 'the way'. Now, set-up usually works well in most bistro-like restaurants, but I'm not sure the patrons sitting next to the wine bar were overly enthused to have wine goers right above their heads, staff whizzing by and patrons attempting to leave. Equally so, wine-tasters didn't seem comfortable as they not only had no place to put their coats & purses (aside from the one chair they could squeeze gently out before it would be in the way), but a place to set their wine glasses down if needed.

Overall, the food was tasty, servers were attentive, but the tab was on the not-so-skinny side. 2 shared plates + 2 beers for 4 people was almost $150. So, probably not the regular go-to place for dinner, but a great suggestion for meat lovers, a twist from the usual bistro and home to unique share plates. 


Skinny Legs & Cowgirls 
12202 Jasper Ave. 
780-423-4107
http://www.skinnylegsandcowgirls.com/
also on Open Table
 

Noodle Maker - Satisfying Bowl of Chinese Noodles

Update: This place is now sadly closed! We wish Mr. To the best and hopes he opens another restaurant soon! You can still get his montreal style bagels from the same location his restaurant was at. 

Noodle Maker recently joined the Edmonton China-town area this March. It is opened by Mr. To who is known, in some circles, for introducing green onion cakes to Edmonton! Mr. To's new restaurant is located in Chinatown close to the Harbin Gates. 

As there was a group of us that day, we had the advantage of ordering a few of their noodle bowls. Now, every time I go to a chinese noodle place with roots towards Shanghai or Taiwain, I always look for their version of the Beef Noodle Soup or 'niu ro mian' (牛肉麵), as it is my favorite noodle. I was certainly not disappointed with Noodle Maker's. The noodles are truly satisfying. The soup base is tasty and the noodles are done just right. They have a chewy, but firm texture. Mr. To also mentioned that all of his noodles are made in Edmonton. Pictured below is the Beef and Beef Tendon with Shanghai Noodle and bonito broth.  

We also tried these bowls as well. All were great choices! Just remember, that if you're ordering the Dan-Dan Mian or the Ja-Jian Mian, you will want to mix up the noodles first before eating. That way, all the flavours of the sauce will be well mixed with the noodles. The broth is pretty consistent in all of the noodles and can be described as flavourful. However, for those that are not used to Goat, the Goat Noodle may be a bit different as it is flavoured in the traditional way, and may have a 'sour' taste for some palates. 

These were also a great choice on our second visit. 

The Terriyaki Chicken Ramen in a red miso broth was very good. It hit the spot! Perfect on those colder days, or even when you have a craving for ramen. The Gyoza (fried Japanese dumplings) were prepared well and remained crispy. The sauce that accompanied them gave them a little extra boost in taste.   

So, if you're craving for a good bowl of noodle stop by Noodle Maker in Chinatown. You can't go wrong with their combination of noodle, soup and taste.  Perhaps, you'll also have a chance to meet Mr. To!

Noodle Maker

9653 - 102 Ave
(780) 428-0021
Open: Monday to Friday - 11am to 10pm
Calling ahead is recommended especially during the evening.

Hungry for Brunch? - New York Bagel Cafe

Hearing Liane Faulder's review of several brunch places on CBC radio back in February, made me hungry for brunch. As luck would have it, I had a friend from Toronto that weekend who, due to long shifts on her stint at the hospital, didn't had a chance to truly taste and see Edmonton ...or more like 'my version' of a good Edmonton visit! So after touring her through the Strathcona Farmer's Market and taste testing all the best places for dip, hummus, fresh veggies, bagels & pesto AND visiting the Strathcona library, we decided to try out the New York Bagel Cafe (NYBC). Every time I go to the farmer's market I've wondered about this place. From the outside it seems to occupy a small space half a block down from the market. In the summers, the place seems to be positively bursting at the seams, with people lined out the door waiting their turn for brunch. So, we made our way over to the NYBC to see for ourselves what it had to offer us. 

 The space, as most of you that have been, is small. Fitting about 8 tables in the space, and with a chair at every possible table space - makes the atmosphere feel quite homey, but close. However, with that being said, I would feel sorry for the person that would have to squeeze themselves into the corner table! After waiting approximately 15 minutes, we were seated and presented with the menus. Since we were all at a bagel place, we felt inclined to order something with at least a bagel in it! After much debating, I decided on the eggs benedict with smoked turkey on a multi-grain bagel, Dan decided on 2 over easy eggs on a cheddar bagel & S decided on the asparagus & prosciutto eggs benedict also on the cheddar bagel. There was a generous helping of fruit, which I was quite happy with, and the typical hash browns that accompany a dish of this sort. Also having heard that the coffee at NYBC was fresh ground, I ordered a house coffee. Unfortunately, the house coffee which was impressive as it came with steamed milk, came much earlier than my eggs beni leaving me with little coffee to enjoy my brunch with.

Despite the somewhat cramped conditions (I was sitting in the aisle with just enough room for the server to walk through), and the wait for the food and thus coffee getting cold, everyone was  impressed with their plates. We did wonder about the various 'condiments' on the table such as a bottle of what resembled white chocolate nutella (slightly opened previously, but not fully until us!) and the jam on the table. There were no separate knives or spoons to use these too, so I was a bit wary. Regardless, seeing that this was our first time here I think we will try it again. Prices though on the higher side was reasonable given the portion size. The fruit assortment was an assortment with strawberries, blueberries, kiwi, dragon fruit and even starfruit! 

New York Bagel Cafe

8430 Gateway Blvd NW 

(780) 432-2003

The Bothy

Several weeks ago,  I had the chance to check out "The Bothy" for lunch. We decided to sample both their share plates of cheese & charcuterie as well as their soup of the day & sandwich. Sharing plates seemed reasonably priced, comparable to the one that Danprime & I had at The Bison in Banff. Any 2 items from cheese & charcuterie was $12, any 3 was $17 and so on.  First up, the Colston Basset Stilton from England paired with a smoked meat from Alberta.

We chose this Charcuterie as the very helpful server pointed out that it would only be on their menu until Monday. So, of course, we had to take advantage of this limited edition Charcuterie!  The bread that accompanied this platter was quite delicious - with a soft, yet crunchy feel to it. The Stilton was quite a powerful cheese, seeing that it borders among the family of blue cheeses. Danprime enjoyed the soft and lingering taste of the cheese, while I on the other hand ate 2 lactaids to ensure that I too would enjoy the meal :P  mm..either way, it was a tasty combination. However, I'm not sure if I was a big fan of the 'jelly' that came with the platter as they did not seem to go well with the cheese & Charcuterie. For the price, and the amount that we were given, I'm thinking that having a few more slices of Charcuterie or some additional accompaniments would have added to the plate.  

The squash & bacon soup finished with a hint of cream was equally appetizing, although small in portion sized. Having it with the maple yam spread, roasted red peppers, calabrese and chevre sandwich seemed a good choice though. The sandwich had a bit of heat, but the yam spread help to balance the spice in the calabrese. Overall, an enjoyable lunch time meal with good service, food and company.


The Bothy  - Wine & Whisky Bar
5482 Calgary Trail
Tue-Sat: 11:30am-late
Sunday:5pm - late  
780-761-1761

Comfort Food

Attending the Edmonton Foodie Meetup last week left me inspired to bring my blog back to life. It's still in the works of an overhaul as I'm planning on changing the template, perhaps with the help of danprime it'll get some readjustments in no time. Meanwhile, back to food. With food on my mind and how to make good heartwarming food, I had the sudden urge for eggs. Not just any eggs mind you, but Strathcona Farmer's Market (SFM) eggs - courtesy of Sunworks Farms. Here is the end result. My omelet filled (more like stuffed!) with again, SFM cucumber, slices of tomatoes, aged applewood cheddar cheese & slices of garlic turkey (from the Italian Centre). Looking at the picture again, reminds me that I need to perfect this skill again. The aesthetics is somewhat lacking, but it tasted great. Continuing with my inspiration, as I had several bananas browning away I turned them into my banana bread. This time, it's slightly different than my usual, but we'll have to see once it gets eaten tomorrow. The big loaf is made with 5 bananas, dark chocolate chips and the rest of the ingredients that hold it together. The mini one is my 'test' one. Same ingredients as usual as well as raisins and a cinnamon-sugar crust.