Briggs Kitchen and Bar

My father-in-law was visiting and we wanted to go to a nice restaurant. We rolled the Urbanspoon dice and Briggs Kitchen and Bar came out on top. It’s located in the old Cannery Row space, which has a nice aged, warehouse look complete with exposed brick and wood. I liked the atmosphere. But, how was the food? With chefs like Xavier Lacaze of Top Chef Canada fame, it should be good.

The menu layout, we found a bit confusing, as the appetizers were in the sharing plates section. Some dishes did not come with sides, and the sides were bundled with the sharing plates. No matter, we decided to order the calamari as an appetizer. It was crispy fried served with a side of thousand island like dressing.

Crispy Humbolt Calamari fennel, tomato aioli, lemon
Crispy Humbolt Calamari
fennel, tomato aioli, lemon

Hubby had the roasted chicken. He really enjoyed it. I snuck  in some of his fries and they were crispy and fried to a turn. Father-in-law ordered the 6oz AAA top sirloin and he thought it was quite good. Since he is not from Alberta, he is getting his fill of our fine Alberta beef at every opportunity.

Grilled Half Chicken  house slaw, kennebec fries
Grilled Half Chicken
house slaw, kennebec fries

I was totally famished from my run an hour earlier, so I decided to replenish with carbs. The lobster ravioli was delish. The only complaint was that the sauce was a perhaps a little too heavy on the butter, but on this day I really didn’t mind. I could have eaten two orders of the green beans, they were so good. It helps that I love garlic.

House Filled Lobster Ravioli lemon zest, lobster butter, sweet peas French Green Beans garlic sesame sauce
House Filled Lobster Ravioli
lemon zest, lobster butter, sweet peas
French Green Beans
garlic sesame sauce

We went to town on dessert. We ordered all three of their desserts. The MLF stands for mille feuille. The wafers were a nice crisp contrast to the creamy coffee custard and the crunch of the caramel coffee. This was my favorite so far.

Winter MLF  coffee cream, caramel toffee
Winter MLF
coffee cream, caramel toffee

The chocolate pot had a texture of a lava cake. Crisp on the outside and gooey in the middle. Pure heaven for chocolate lovers.

Chocolate Pot pecan brittle, vanilla ice cream
Chocolate Pot
pecan brittle, vanilla ice cream

Then I tried the lemon pie. I liked this as just as well as the mille feuille. It was a nice finish to the meal, as the clean citrus flavours cleaned up my palate after the attack of the rich chocolate and coffee.

Lemon Pie meringue, lemon ice cream
Lemon Pie
meringue, lemon ice cream

The service was good; the servers didn’t miss a beat and were very friendly. This is a place that I could come back to.

Briggs Kitchen and Bar on Urbanspoon

Briggs Kitchen and Bar

My father-in-law was visiting and we wanted to go to a nice restaurant. We rolled the Urbanspoon dice and Briggs Kitchen and Bar came out on top. It’s located in the old Cannery Row space, which has a nice aged, warehouse look complete with exposed brick and wood. I liked the atmosphere. But, how was the food? With chefs like Xavier Lacaze of Top Chef Canada fame, it should be good.

The menu layout, we found a bit confusing, as the appetizers were in the sharing plates section. Some dishes did not come with sides, and the sides were bundled with the sharing plates. No matter, we decided to order the calamari as an appetizer. It was crispy fried served with a side of thousand island like dressing.

Crispy Humbolt Calamari fennel, tomato aioli, lemon
Crispy Humbolt Calamari
fennel, tomato aioli, lemon

Hubby had the roasted chicken. He really enjoyed it. I snuck  in some of his fries and they were crispy and fried to a turn. Father-in-law ordered the 6oz AAA top sirloin and he thought it was quite good. Since he is not from Alberta, he is getting his fill of our fine Alberta beef at every opportunity.

Grilled Half Chicken  house slaw, kennebec fries
Grilled Half Chicken
house slaw, kennebec fries

I was totally famished from my run an hour earlier, so I decided to replenish with carbs. The lobster ravioli was delish. The only complaint was that the sauce was a perhaps a little too heavy on the butter, but on this day I really didn’t mind. I could have eaten two orders of the green beans, they were so good. It helps that I love garlic.

House Filled Lobster Ravioli lemon zest, lobster butter, sweet peas French Green Beans garlic sesame sauce
House Filled Lobster Ravioli
lemon zest, lobster butter, sweet peas
French Green Beans
garlic sesame sauce

We went to town on dessert. We ordered all three of their desserts. The MLF stands for mille feuille. The wafers were a nice crisp contrast to the creamy coffee custard and the crunch of the caramel coffee. This was my favorite so far.

Winter MLF  coffee cream, caramel toffee
Winter MLF
coffee cream, caramel toffee

The chocolate pot had a texture of a lava cake. Crisp on the outside and gooey in the middle. Pure heaven for chocolate lovers.

Chocolate Pot pecan brittle, vanilla ice cream
Chocolate Pot
pecan brittle, vanilla ice cream

Then I tried the lemon pie. I liked this as just as well as the mille feuille. It was a nice finish to the meal, as the clean citrus flavours cleaned up my palate after the attack of the rich chocolate and coffee.

Lemon Pie meringue, lemon ice cream
Lemon Pie
meringue, lemon ice cream

The service was good; the servers didn’t miss a beat and were very friendly. This is a place that I could come back to.

Briggs Kitchen and Bar on Urbanspoon

Khao San Thai Kitchen

Looking in from the outside, this restaurant looks like an inviting oasis from the Calgary cold. The decor is tasteful, and the house is packed.

We started with the golden tofu and scallops. The tofu was crisp and the sauce packed a flavor punch. The scallops remind me of something you might see in a fine dining restaurant.

Moving along to the pad thai. One of my friends commented that it was the first time the noodles were done al dente. The panang salmon was an interesting dish. The battered fish in the sweet and sour basa stayed crisp as the sauce pooled nicely on the bottom of the plate.

It’s really popular, and there seems to be an endless number of regulars, as the waitstaff greet the customers with friendly recognition. The service was spot on, even when it got really busy.

Golden Tofu
Golden Tofu
Khao San Salsa Scallops
Khao San Salsa Scallops
Pad Thai
Pad Thai
Crying Tiger
Crying Tiger
Salmon Panang Curry and Sweet and Sour Basa
Salmon Panang Curry and Sweet and Sour Basa

Khao San Thai Kitchen on Urbanspoon

Shigatsu Fusion Japanese Sushi Lounge

Missing the old Gunkan sushi, but eager to see what popped up in it’s place, we headed to Shigatsu. I’ve heard lots of rave reviews, so we went there for lunch. I like the decor.  It seems well suited to a romantic dinner. We had a late lunch around 2pm so we were the only customers in the restaurant.  I wonder if it would be loud if it was full.

We started off with the Aji Fry, which was tempura fried horse mackerel on greens with a mustard vinaigrette. Tasty.  We each had combo meals, a roll combo and sushi combo.  I do admit that it was a plain choice. We must not have been in an adventurous mood.  I thought it was pretty average. We also had a Dynamite roll which I thought was pretty good. The complimentary Rice Krispie balls dessert was interesting. Service was good (We were the only ones in the restaurant for most of our meal).  I appreciated the creativity in their menu and felt that I didn’t give them a fair chance by ordering normal items.  Will be back for some of the fusion and more unique choices.

Roll combo (top) and sushi combo
Roll combo (top) and sushi combo
Rice Krispies Balls
Rice Krispies Balls

Shigatsu Fusion Japanese Sushi Lounge on Urbanspoon