SA LUTE S & S H O UT O UT S
With Mike Pigot and Shamir Bechara in the kitchen we have high expectations, and Calgary’s Pat & Betty delivers. This 40-seat room, 10-seat private dining room, and mezzanine floor, not only look like where you want to eat, (great job Fort Architecture, Chef Pigot and partner James Martin!) but they want to make food they want to eat, and we want to eat it too. Beautifully balanced flavours, colours and textures are the hallmarks of these dishes, served on local Spiritware plates, and complemented by GM Sabrina Raaymaker’s wine list. Reservations recommended. 3-11pm, closed Mondays. With more than 25 years in Indian cuisine, Lazeez Affair is open at 10813, 170 Street NW, Edmonton. An extensive menu means there's plenty for veggie lovers and meat eaters alike (and butter chicken samosas, yum!) weekend lunch buffet, and happy hour every day from 4-8pm. D Spot started in Scarborough, Ontario, eight years ago and has 11 locations there and three in Calgary – and now in Edmonton at 3803 Calgary Trail. A huge menu of hotdogs and pizzas, pancakes and waffles, cakes and ice cream, is all made in-house. 7 days from 1pm. The folks behind Brekkie and Sammie cafes have opened a new breakfast and lunch spot, Maven, in the ex-Janice Beaton location at 1006 17 Avenue SW. Dishes from Chef Michelle Lee-Hobbs’ Asian and German family roots feature on the menu, with noodles, congee, and kaya toast, alongside pork schnitzel and bennies aplenty too! It’s a beautiful space with 6 Culinaire | March 2022
thrifted furniture, and a café in the back shared with Plant it Modern - the plants you see are for sale too. 8am-3pm, 7 days. 6 years ago, husband and wife team, Gavin Fedorak and Braede Harris, opened Edmonton’s Love Pizza - and it fast became a hotspot with weekly specials, keto crust options, and a tater tot menu. Now they’ve opened their 5th location, in Leduc at 5411 Discovery Way. 7 days 11am-9pm. After a two-year gap, Calgary’s Milk Tiger Lounge has moved six blocks south, to 2004 4 Street SW. GM Jordan Wiltshire repurposed much from the space’s previous incarnations to create an airy spot, full of people coming for cocktails from talented mixologists, 11 local beers on tap, and Chef Alison Bieber’s menu of elevated diner food. Try deviled egg with Miss Vickie’s chips and relive your childhood with Wiltshire’s mom’s homestyle meatloaf (all perfect for gluten-free). Watch for take-out and RTD cocktails, and the huge patio. No reservations, 5-11pm, 7 days. Just down the road, for the sweet tooths with a sense of humour, you’ll love TBB Desserts, the new cheesecake, cookie, pudding, and pie shop at
2312 4 Street SW. Colin and Shane (the OG bitchy baker), bake more than 20 flavours of their Calgary-style cheesecake (softer and creamier than New York style) and support local makers too - Motherlode Coffee, Space Pantry Candy, Campfire preserves, local jewelry and bath products. Delivery in Calgary and occasionally to Edmonton. Closed Mondays, see tbbdesserts.com for hours and orders. Village Ice Cream has added a fifth store in Calgary’s University District at 4019 University Avenue NW, right by the Cineplex VIP Cinema! Open every day from 11am. First built as a garage in 1927, Kensington’s Plaza Cinema has been operating as a theatre for 87 years – and it’s had a major refresh. Now with a cool all-day cafe and bar for hot drinks, craft beer, cocktails, and snacks from locals Empire Provisions and Our Daily Brett. theplaza.ca. Take a gastronomic tour of Africa at Chakalaka’s Mama Africa pop up on Calgary’s 17 Avenue SW. It’s so successful, it’s being extended! Enjoy dishes from all over the continent: South Africa, Morocco, Ethiopia, Ghana, and Kenyan cuisines, along with cocktails and African music.
