NoBow Calgary: Fun Off-The-Beaten-Path Food Places
After I posted my blog about Fun Off-The-Beaten-Path Food Places in Edmonton and Airdrie, several people emailed me about how much they liked the blog and suggested I do something similar for Calgary. I accepted the challenge.
I decided to focus on Calgary’s inner city neighbourhoods as I know them the best. To be considered “off-the-beaten-path” the restaurant, café, bakery etc. had to be where you wouldn’t expect to find a fun food spot or in a location where it could easily be missed. NoBow looks at place on the northside of the Bow River, a future blog will look at places south of the Bow River aka SoBow.
Queens Breakfast Cocktails (Greenview)
What a strange combination breakfast and cocktails, especially when it is open only from 8:30 am to 2pm daily.
What is perhaps even stranger is its location in a industrial area of auto repair shops and light industrial shops.
If you go, treat yourself to Cr’Q Forestie ($19) Porcini Mushrooms & Gruyere, Truffle béchamel. The Queens Breakfast ($19) lets you sample everything from their lemon ricotta pancakes to Sub Coyowl organic beef sausage. I am told the Black Angus Burger ($19) is a must for lunch. Or maybe you’d like the Ahi Tuna Waffle ($23). Breakfast Cocktails include several Mimosa’s, as well as specialty cocktails like Lambretta and Italian Connection.
FYI: I expect the name comes from the Queens Park Cemetery, just a few blocks to the east. The décor is very upscale, even speakeasy-like, with a long bar, booths and a dimly lite back room full of portraits of queens.
Located at: 3927 Edmonton Trail NE
4th Spot Kitchen & Bar (Mt. Pleasant)
Located at the north end of Mount Pleasant’s main street 4th St NW at 26th Ave. (not to be confused with 4th Street SW) is 4th Spot Kitchen & Bar - part pizza parlour, part sports bar, part neighbourhood pub and part restaurant. It is exactly what every neighbourhood needs / wants.
The puff pastry of the Baked French Onion Soup and the Chicken scratch pot pie are simply decadent - melts in your mouth. Everything I’ve tried on the menu is very good.
I also love how the decor reflects the community. The Dean Stanton paintings link to the huge block long Stanton mural along the fence of the St. Joseph School nearby. There is a huge aerial map along one wall on the second level where everyone get to place a star where they live. There are toy fire trucks that pay homage to the fire station across the street.
It doesn’t get any better than this.
FYI: It is very family friendly, although they didn’t ask me if I wanted any crayons, like they did the kids beside us.
Located at: 2620 4th St. NW
Dairy Lane Café (West Hillhurst)
Dairy Lane Café first opened in the 1950s as Milk Bar, serving homestyle meals and milkshakes.
Today it is Calgary’s oldest restaurant, still serving great burgers and fries with traditional milkshakes in the aluminum vessels, as well as tasty breakfasts and other meals.
It is located along West Hillhurst’s main street (aka 19th St NW) which is currently undergoing a mega makeover with new multi-family residential infill projects, with commercial space on the ground floor. It is very small, which means there is often a line-up, but it is worth the wait.
Located at: 319 – 19th St NW
Made By Marcus (West Hillhurst)
Just down the street, from Dairy Lane Café is Made By Marcus ice cream shop that is open year-round. The ice cream is made from scratch, which means the kitchen makes small batches with some of the weirdest and wackiest flavours – Lemon Curd Blueberry, Apple Cider Cinnamon Sorbet, Moonshine Brown Butter Pecan and Monogram Espresso Toffee Pretzel are just a few of the flavour combination.
FYI: Marcus is a real person, he lives in the West Hillhurst neighbourhood and has a BSc in food science and nutrition from UBC.
Located at: 221 – 19th St NW
Edelweiss Village (Capitol Hill)
Located in Capitol Hill, just up the hill on 19th Street NW is Edelweiss Village, a café, bakery, deli and gift shop that has existed for 30+ years.
It is a great place to browse as the store is packed with everything from a wall of cuckoo clocks, to huge deli counter.
The intimate café (not open due to COVID) is a great place for lunch or meet a friend for coffee. The bread counter is fun as they will cut your bread to various thicknesses using an old wooden measuring device. We never leave without getting one of their Jelly Donuts. Edelweiss is a little bit of Austria or Switzerland in the middle of Calgary, as often customers and staff are speaking languages other than English.
FYI: Edelweiss is a white flower found high up in the Alps.
Located at: 1921 20th Ave NW
Jimmy’s A&A (Capitol Hill)
Also in Capitol Hill, a few blocks east of Edelweiss is Jimmy’s A&A, a Mediterranean deli located in one of several mid-century corner stores along 20th Ave NW. Jimmy’s was still a corner store in the early ‘90s, when they added a couple of donair spits in the back corner, and as they say the rest is history.
Today it is famous for its beef donair and chicken shawarma. There is no indoor seating, but there are several picnic tables outside. It is not uncommon to see several people outside enjoying a donair or falafel at noon - even in winter.
FYI: Jimmy’s has a new grey and white façade that gives it an is strange institutional look. I liked the old look, which was more like a corner store or an infill home. Jimmy’s has a second location at 1304 4th St SW, but the 20th Ave NW is the original.
Located at: 20th Ave at 13th St. NW
Lazy Loaf (Parkdale)
I love any place with the world “lazy” in the name. We love the Kettle Bread (nine grains, no dairy, eggs or fat, weighs in at two pounds) and Raisin Bread. The carrot cake is one of the best I’ve ever tasted and the turtle brownie is so sweet it makes my teeth ache, just writing about it. You can easily share a piece of carrot cake or the turtle brownie with a friend. It is a great place for a soup and sandwich.
Lazy Loaf is located in Parkdale just off of Parkdale Boulevard, which in reality is just an extension of Memorial Drive that runs along the Bow River.
Located at: 8 Parkdale Crescent NW
NOtaBLE The Restaurant (Montgomery)
In downtown Montgomery aka Bowness Road, is NOtaBLE, an upscale restaurant by Ironman Chef, Michael Noble. This is an upscale restaurant, on a low-brow main street, that is slowing evolving with new infills and a new bike lane to become more trendy. NOtaBLE makes a mean burger and their wood-fired rotisserie chicken is one of their signature dishes.
FYI: Michael has represented Canada in numerous international culinary competitions and yes he did participate in the Iron Chef competition – I believe the only Canadian to do so.
Located at: 4611 Bowness Rd.
Angel’s Café Edworthy Park (Parkdale)
A little further west is Angel’s Café. FYI: you have to turn off of Parkdale Boulevard at Shaganappi Trail into the Edworthy Park parking lot to get to the café by vehicle, as it is actually located along the Bow River walking and cycling pathway. Look for a bunch of people just hanging around near the pedestrian bridge over the Bow River and you will be there.
The café is very bohemian, with only take out at the moment due to COVID, but there is lots of outdoor seating. It offers everything from Avocado Smash to Heavenly Breakfast on a bun. There are soulful (their term not mine) soups, a charcuterie board and poutine. The menu is pretty extensive, with lots of kid options. It is a great place for people watching or just chilling with friends. In the summer it is a great place to watch rafters floating along the Bow River.
FYI: There is a popular pebble beach on the other side of the bridge if you want to dip your toes in the Bow’s glacier green water.
Euphoria Café (Varsity Estates)
Euphoria Café is located on the westside of the Dalhousie LRT station, tucked away on the edge of Varsity Estates, next to a large multi-building residential complex in the Varsity Medical and Professional Building.
It is a bit of a bohemian oasis in the middle of suburbia, with local art on the walls and a mural at the entrance.
The café is bright and cheerful, dare I say – euphoric. It offers the usual array of café drinks, toasties, waffles and pastries. The café’s signature drink is a Spanish latte. The banana chocolate chip bread vies for Calgary’s best, with just the right mix of banana and chocolate chips.
FYI: Calgary based food and wine writer Shelly Boettcher swears by their banana chocolate chip bread. I am very fond of One Way Foods’ banana chocolate chip bread on the southside. Perhaps we might have bake-off in the future.
Located at: 8 Varsity Estates Circle NW
St. Lawrence Bagels (West Hillhurst)
If you like St. Viatur bagels in Montreal, you will like St. Lawrence Bagels tucked away in a tiny strip mall on Parkdale Boulevard, just west of Crowchild Trail.
I was told, the owner/baker, used to work at Montreal’s iconic bagel bakery.
While it doesn’t have the hustle and bustle and showmanship of St. Viatur, it does offer great bagels.
Located at: 2638 Parkdale Blvd NW
Cheese & Dough (Banff Trail)
Tucked away on 20th Ave NW, near the Banff Trail Community Centre is Cheese & Dough. I first discover this place while flaneuring the community when it was Wheat by Jay, who sold it a few years ago and the name was changed to Cheese & Dough.
I think there have been more ownership changes as every time I go there are different people in the kitchen, but what remains are the great pizzas – the same menu, same fresh ingredients and sane friendly service. Our favourites are the House Pizza, First Date Pizza and Meat Pizza. Pizzas come in 10” and 12” thin and thick crust. They are very generous with the toppings.
FYI: Cheese & Dough is takeout only.
Located at: 2220 20th Ave NW
Sweet Home Bake Shop (Bowness)
If you are into mid-century bakeries, drive along Bowness Road, past downtown Bowness to 77th St NW, where you will come to old, tiny strip mall, with a large surface parking lot.
Here you will find Sweet Home Bake Ship (you can’t miss the retro red sign, with all the classic sweets - Poppy seed Butterhorns, Chocolate eclairs, Cream Horns, Date Squares and Nanaimo Bars. And they make great cakes.
The Napoleon is very popular for its flaky pastry, fresh whipped cream sprinkled with icing sugar. It is messy and gooey, just like my grandmother Goodman use to bring from a downtown Hamilton bakery when she visited us in the ‘60s. We loved her the best.
Located at: 7930 Bowness Road
Cannibale (Bridgeland)
Don’t be fooled by the barber shop at the entrance, Cannibale is quirky spot to meet friends for a drink or have a meal. It is a tiny space that packs a big punch with a cozy, fun vibe that can even be rambunctious at times. Cocktails have quirky names like - Spicy Dead Lady, Bourbon Renewal (I assume this is a play on urban renewal, which is happening all around it) or Manic Pixie Dream Girl. They have a small but good selection of local craft beers. The food menu is limited, but includes a signature Alberta AAA Pork Burger, various Tacos and the Hot Fudge Brownie Sunday and Warm Gingerbread Cake are just what my sweet tooth needs.
FYI: There is a special Barbershop Drink Menu - any drink on the menu is included in the price of your haircut or hot shave. Come for the hair cut, stay for a drink….
Located at: 813 1 Ave NE
Last Word
My apologies if your favourite NoBow off-the-beaten path food places are not listed. Let me know what is your favourite food spot in NoBOW and why, and I will add them to this list.
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