You had me at Fries: A review of Fries & Dolls Food Truck

The Fries & Dolls food truck is arguably the hottest and sexiest of the seven food trucks. The hot pink exterior, the dolled up ladies taking orders and serving fries, the suggestive “cup” sizes…everything screams “Eat me!” (literally and figuratively).

Well, I finally got the chance to check them out today after hanging out with Blam!wich at Casel Marche today. Having spent close to 3 hours inside the Blam!wich food truck, I was surprised by the line-up outside the F&D food truck (keep an eye out for an in-depth look at Blam!wich). The ladies at Blam!wich were knocking out sandwiches every 5-7 min., yet there was a relatively large line-up at the food truck serving fries? What the what…?

Nevertheless, I decided to check it out as it was a gorgeous fall day and I wanted to get a little bit of sun in before the dark days of winter. Unfortunately, it was a very slow moving line as I waited at least 15-20 min. before I was able to place an order. The Dolls were nice enough to pass down a sampler of their “Sandra D” which consisted of yam fries coated in sugar & spice and everything nice like cinnamon. It was delicious, but I was in a mood for something savoury. My eyes immediately drifted to the “Sophia” fries with truffle oil and Grana Padano parmesan (‘B’ cup – $6). There were many more delectable options as well but I wanted something more traditional, and hence, opted to go with the potato fries.

I asked for a doggy bag as I was driving home, but the sublime earthy aroma of truffle oil couldn’t be contained by a measly paper bag. There was no way I was going to muster up enough will power to wait until I got home, so I just dug in. And it was heaven. The combination of truffle oil with the parmesan Grana Padano was fucking out of this world. I love it when simple ingredients combine together to produce something that is much more than the individual components. The fries were crunchy and crispy yet soft and mushy on the inside like good fries should be. Dip the fries in the house chipotle sauce for a smoky yet tangy, with a little-bit-of-a-kick experience for your mouth. Amazing.

I have to be honest: a food truck serving fries was pretty low down on my priority list for that exact reason – it’s just fries (they also serve hotdogs if you want something more substantial). But now that I have had a taste of what these ladies have to offer, I am more open to tasting some of their other items.

My only complaint is I don’t understand why it takes that long to make the fries. The wait was long enough that I considered leaving thrice (the third time was when I almost at the front)! I personally have no patience to wait in line for 15-20 min. for French fries, but I was probably in the minority judging by the line-up behind me. Considering Blam!wich was knocking out entire sandwiches in 7 min., and had a smaller line-up, I don’t understand why it took F & D a similar amount of time to make French fries…

Anyways, other than the waiting time, I was pretty pleasantly surprised by F & D! It’s definitely a truck to check-out if you have some time to spare and are willing to bear the wait times!

-Kiran

Review of Africana Eatery & Cheers Pub

Summary: While we purely checked out this place for its quirky name, it quickly became apparent to TSD that Africana Eatery is a hidden gem waiting to be discovered. 

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Seriously, the only reason we checked this place out was cause of the hilarious name. That’s it. After the disastrous Calgary vs. Pittsburgh game, I suggested to Kent that we check out this place for early dinner. He didn’t even hesitate when he said yes.

Located outside the central Indian district of Falconridge, Africana is actually two steps from the massive Canada Post facility in the NE, off of Airport Blvd NE. It looked pretty ghetto/industrial from the outside, just like a good hole-in-the-wall ethnic restaurant should. The mystery of the “& Cheers Pub” became clear once we got there: it was a pub attached to the restaurant by the same owner. It served the same food, in a pub-type setting…kinda similar to the whole Wicked Chilli situation.

The restaurant interior was a pleasant surprise – less hole-in-the-wall, more family-type restaurant. It wasn’t anything too memorable, except that it was actually quite nice and pleasant. Unfortunately, I seemed to have forgotten/neglected to take photos…The current owner is of Indian descent, but originally hailing from Tanzania. Apparently, he first moved to Toronto and then eventually to yyc, where he drove buses for Calgary Transit for a year. Didn’t like it too much, so he got into the restaurant business.

What Africana lacked in decor and ambiance, it made up in its menu, which was quite extensive, and covered not only East African, but North Indian and Hakka cuisines as well. The first thing the server did after she took our orders was to drop off a thali with all kinds of delicious Indian chutneys like yogurt, coconut, tamarind, and some special hot sauce from hell that even I was scared to try (honestly, chilli powder in water anyone?).

Unfortunately for me, most of the East African dishes were non-vegetarian, so I couldn’t try any of the main courses. However, the appetizers looked pretty mouth-watering and I ended up ordering the Nairobi Bhajia (potatoes coated with flour and fried until crispy, golden brown) and Mogo (cassava fries) with Pili-Pili sauce.

Both the bhajia and the mogo looked delicious, but they tasted even better. I was floored by how delicious the appetizers were. The bhajia were perfectly spiced and battered. I tried them with almost all of the chutney’s but my favourite combination was probably with the tamarind chutney. The mogo fries also turned out to be delicious with a magnificent and satisfying crunch that was complimented by the spicy/tangy paprika sauce – they reminded Richard & I of the sweet chilli potato fries at Singh & I. So good.

Surprised to see a hakka component to their offerings, I couldn’t help but order the vegetarian Hakka noodles. I love this shit…I don’t know why. I guess it’s probably the years of eating Indian Maggi noodles that marry the concept of Chinese noodle dishes with distinctly Indian spices. Anyways, regular readers might remember the Wicked Chilli review where I pretty much trashed their version of the hakka noodles.

 Africana’s version was a 100x better. There was a right proportion of noodles to veggies; it wasn’t overly salty or greasy and you generally taste both Chinese and Indian flavours in the dish. Although I was already pretty full, I couldn’t stop shoving this sh*t into my mouth!

Richard’s Ruminations

I arrived a bit later than the other two, but was just in time to dig in to “Chuma’s World Famous Beef Ribs,” which are short ribs that you can get in a variety of wing flavours (eg. mild/medium/hot/suicide, honey garlic, teriyaki, etc.).  We got sweet-chilli flavoured ones, which fit pretty well – they were nice and tender and the serving size seemed reasonably generous.  As Kiran mentioned, the pili pili mogo was pretty kickass – and also reminded me that I still need to check out Nando’s (perhaps the most prolific purveyor of piri-piri chicken known to man).  I’m guessing pili-pili and piri-piri refer to the same pepper, but maybe that’s just because I’m Asian.

The menu appears to be mostly Indian-based (including the hakka dishes – I don’t understand why these seem to be all the rage these days), but reminding me of the way that “Chifa” restaurants in Peru are Chinese-based – where Peru seemed to have a decent amount of Chinese immigrants, east Africa had Indians.  The immigrants kept their style of cooking but utilized local ingredients – in this case, using things like cassava and pili pili chillies.  It’s a pretty successful melding, I’d say.  As their sign out front says, they do also serve several “western” dishes such as cheeseburgers and Philly cheesesteaks – handy in case there’s a picky eater in your group of friends (though I have no idea how good their burgers are).

Kent and I split a mixed thali, which had both meat and veg curries, along with tandoori chicken – it was a hell of a lot of food for one person, so I think we made the right choice by splitting.  Surprisingly the server asked us how spicy we wanted it – I wonder if they you ask for spicier whether they just grind in some more piri piri chillies into your curries?  It was pretty solid overall, though the roti was hardly a substitute for proper Indian naan.  On the plus side, the roti and rice came standard with the meal – none of that BS where you think prices look good until you realize that rice is $4.  On the downside, if you’re on the Atkin’s diet the carbs might go to waste.

Kent’s Two Cents

For an appy, I ordered a plate of beef ribs. I had to: they claimed they were world famous. They weren’t the spare ribs you would expect at a pub, but were larger beef short ribs. And you definitely get bang for your buck, not only are the ribs big and meaty (that’s what she said?), but you get a big plate of it. It could have been a full meal if I wanted it to, but I was leaving some room for an actual entree. Oh and they tasted great. Might not be the best I have had, but you get awesome value and a big selection of flavours to choose from. Some of the cuts are slightly fatty though. Oh well they are ribs.

Also an appy, the mogo fries. Also delicious. Crispy and dipped in Indian spices with tomato sauce. If you have been to Safari Grill, they are pretty much the same. I would get this stuff all the time if they served it in pubs and other watering holes.

The mix thali was made of a beef curry, chicken curry, 2 veggie curries, BBQ chicken, samosa, rice, roti, and gulab jamun as dessert. So yeah, its a lot of food for what you’re paying. Since I already scarfed down most of the beef ribs, Richard and I decided to split this one in half. Though for a single person, the mix thali alone would make you quite full. Everything was satisfying, and I wouldn’t hesitate to come again if someone asked, but I was less impressed with the main than the ribs and mogo fries. I was probably oversaturated by all the different tastes and got tired, haha.

Summary

What’s interesting is that the current owner used to co-own/run Safari Grill with his brother before they decided to part ways. Kent mentioned how similar the dishes were between the two restaurants..I guess it wasn’t creative differences that caused them to part ways…family problems?

At the end of the day though, I was blown-away. Africana is definitely a hidden gem in Calgary that must be on your “to check-out” list.

If you want to know more about East African/Indian inspired restaurants, check out the Safari Grill vs. Tiffin Curry eat-off organized by Chow down in Cow Town!

Ranking

	Kiran	Kent	Richard
Ambiance	4/6	4/6	4/6
Service	4/6	4.5/6	3/6
Plating	4/6	4/6	4/6
Taste	6/6	5.5/6	5/6
Originality Authenticity	6/6	6/6	5/6
Value	5/6	5/6	4.5/6
Overall	29/36 = 81%	30/36 = 83%	25.5/36 = 71%

Review of That Schnitzel Place! A new hidden gem in Calgary

Summary: Simply put, the next Tubby Dog. Due its awkward location and limited hours, its popularity will never reach the mythical proportions of Tubby Dog. Good, ‘cause that will keep the fuckin’ hipsters out.

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The thing I love most about writing a food blog is discovering hidden gems that no one else’s heard of or knows about. And once in a while, a series of serendipitous events conspire together to bring you to such a place and completely blows you away.

Well, today was that day. Walking home from work, I walked past That Schnitzel Place (TSP). I had walked past this establishment quite a few times, but never had had the time or inclination to check it out. Luckily, my plans for post-work drinks and dinner with Kent and Richard fell through, so I needed a place to grab dinner. That Schnitzel Place satisfied that gaping hole.

The first thing that caught my attention was the big, bold “That Schnitzel Place” on red background. The next thing that catches your attention is “BIG, HOT, JUICY.” Enough said.

To the uninitiated, schnitzel’s are essentially breaded boneless meat that is tenderized and friend until crispy, golden brown. Technically, you can pound, bread, and fry anything and call it a schnitzel. I was quite surprised by how vegetarian-friendly TSP is. Pretty much every item of their menu can be made into a vegetarian version using Portobello mushrooms. In addition, there were some pre-existing “vegetarian-friendly” items on their menu already.

After chatting with the proprietor and his son (the cook), I decided to go with the Mexican-inspired Daily Special “Poncho Villa.” The latter consisted of Raspberry chipotle sauce; Havarti cheese; chilli-lime pico de gallo (with avocado, tomato, roasted corn, onion, red and green peppers); and topped with pea sprouts. I could have just as easily gone with the other vegetarian-friendly offerings, but this one just appealed to me the most.

Dave, who is one of the co-owners, decided I should also try his mushroom soup. This turned out to be the best decision of the day: I have never had better-tasting mushroom soup. I generally enjoy the earthy, neutral taste of mushroom soups, but this one had a delicious peppery kick to it. I was instantly sold. The bar was already set pretty high, and I hadn’t even seen the schnitzel sandwich yet!

Finally, it arrived. I bit into it with anticipation and instantly heard the satisfying crunch of the breaded Portobello. I love that sound. The sweetness of the raspberry-chipotle combined with the pico de gallo to produce a combined sweet-tangy taste that was very pleasing. I loved how all the flavours combined to produce a harmonious effect overall. This Schnitzel’s Delicious (= “TSD”…This Sh*t’s Delicious…get it? ;D)! The cherry on top of the icing is the fact that TSP sells beer and wine!

Now for the behind the scenes look at the team behind TSP. I usually do this at the beginning, but elected to do it after reviewing the food once I realized how much material I had.

Dave (one of the co-owner’s) is local Calgarian born and raised here since 1951 when the population was only 89000 (wtf!). He’s truly seen Calgary grow from a small dusty, little prairie town to the hip, urban, multicultural town that it is now in a span of slightly more than half a century. His family is originally from Europe and was in the garment industry making FR oilfield clothing until competition from overseas made it uneconomical for them to operate the garment factory. Dave then went over to the company that makes polar fleece as a consultant.

Dave’s Calgarian roots are clearly reflected in the large very hip, urban posters that adorn TSP’s walls. I didn’t notice this initially, but each poster has TSP branding overlaid on Calgary landmarks like the Calgary Tower or the iconic Saddledome. Very cool. 

The point of the above personal history is that Dave & co actually have purportedly no prior food industry experience. They essentially knew the previous owner of the place who no longer wanted to own or run the place once his wife took ill. Dave and his co-owner saw an opportunity to own a restaurant and decided to buy the place from him. Just like that.

What makes this whole story even more amazing is how well put together this whole enterprise is. TSP is very well branded for a couple of retirees with no prior food industry experience (to be fair, maybe the co-owner does – I didn’t ask). From the matching t-shirts at the front counter to the website design, everything screams “meticulous” – branding is clearly at the forefront of the owners’ mind (intentionally or not). In fact, TSP reminded me a bit about Jelly Modern in that when you walk into JM, it is quite clear everything has been thought about twice and is a labour of love. This is no fuckin’ mom-and-pop operation, that’s for sure.

My only nitpick would be that I was hoping that menu was home grown considering family has European roots, but it appears that the menu was designed by a chef who also comes up with ideas for Daily Specials regularly. The chef (external, 3rd party) is the brains behind the menu and does the daily prep work, leaving the actual cooking and assembly to Dave’s son. But does this really matter? This sh*t’s delicious, so who gives a fuck?

Closing Remarks

It’s not often that I come across a hidden jewel that none of the bloggers have heard of before. Most of the traditional blogs wouldn’t cover a place like this anyway as they mostly focus on the big-name restaurants. But TSD’s always held the opinion that it’s the small and hole-in-the-wall establishments like Canada Dosa Corner, Tu Tierra, and now TSP, that truly define the very fabric of a city. I am truly honored to be the first second yyc food blogger to review this place. Miss Foodie’s Gourmet Adventures has the honour of being the first.

Ranking

	Kiran
Ambiance	4/6
Service	6/6
Plating	4/6
Taste	5.5/6
Originality	5.5/6
Value	4/6
Overall	29/36 = 81%

 

Review of Blue Star Diner

Blue Star Diner is a new restaurant in Bridgeland opened by the same guys who run Dairy Lane Cafe, taking over the space on 1st Ave where Artisan Bistro used to be. They work on a similar concept as Dairy Lane, serving a solid selection of breakfast and lunch dishes. But I hear that they will offer a dinner menu in the future (at least, that’s what the sign in the window says! –Richard).

A lot of the food comes from local Alberta producers, and there is a lot to choose from if you go down the gluten-free or vegetarian path. Many of the burgers on the menu offer a gluten free bun for an extra $2. Like many new establishments in Calgary, hype gets built up, and hipsters and foodies all feel like they need to check it out ASAP just so they can tell their friends “oh this place is new, you probably haven’t heard of it before”. So the four of us were asked to wait about 20 minutes one Sunday before a table was available. It was busy, but thankfully the turnover was pretty quick. They offer coffee (not free, but all you can drink) as you sit at the bar or stand outside waiting. I didn’t know cream and sugar was available near the entrance until after I sat down, so I drank it black. And everyone knows the saying, once you go black, you’ll never go back. It was really good brew, in my limited coffee drinking experience.

I had the pulled pork tacos ($14), which came with a side of yam fries. Standard chipotle mayo with the fries, jalapeno salsa with the tacos. The yam fries were some of the better ones I have had. Cinnamon was sprinkled on top, which sounds kind of odd but it works really well. The pulled pork tacos were a bit disappointing though. They were loaded with fresh toppings, but the meat itself I found to be quite dry. But the jalapeno salsa made up for it as it added much needed flavor to the tacos.

Richard’s Experience

This place is literally right around the corner from my condo, yet I never really noticed that it had replaced Artisan Bistro until my cousins were all like “ooh Blue Star, you should check it out!”  I figured it would be worth a shot, so I called down Kent and Kiran for a leisurely lunch.  The fresh robin-egg blue and white made the place feel modern yet comfortable, which fit a new diner quite nicely.  Like most breakfast places in the Edmonton Trail area, this place was hipster central, which Kiran had to explain to one prospective customer (she didn’t stick around ultimately, but it wasn’t the hipsters that scared her off, it was the prices -Kiran).

As Kent mentioned, we got to have some coffee while we waited, and as it turns out, they actually have two kinds – a medium roast (“Guatemala”) and a dark roast (“Cup of Excellence”).  I went with the dark roast, and it was nice and smooth without a hint of sourness – just how I like my coffee.  Of course, it turns out that it was $4 for a (admittedly bottomless) cup – it seems the medium roast is only $3, so if you have had enough Excellence for the week then you can save a buck by choosing the medium roast instead.  They have white mugs for the medium roast and blue for the dark so they know which one to top you up with – clever system!

Having not been to Dairy Lane, I found the menu quite exciting (any place with pork burgers gets a +1 in my book!), though I am told that they share some similar items – I am guessing the “Dairy Lane burger” isn’t just a coincidence.  I ordered the honey Dijon chicken burger, but was a little surprised when it came out as a patty (wholly my fault, as it’s written right on the menu that it’s ground chicken!).  It was quite nice, if a little lacking in mustard for my tastes (though I could actually taste the honey, which surprised me).  Fortunately for me, I also ordered the stuffed French toast – to split with everyone for dessert, of course – which I thought was REALLY good.  Lightly-egged slices of toast sandwiching a sweet, sultry, slightly melted centre of cream cheese and fruit filling… and topped with berries!  $12 is a bit steep for something of this size, but I thought it was worth it.  The French toast came with a side of hash browns, which I thought made kind of an odd pairing.  The potatoes seemed to be of quite good quality (with a nice natural flavour), which was fortunate because they were rather plain with only a bit of green onion to spice things up.

The service wasn’t the fastest, but it wasn’t too bad given the patron to wait-staff ratio – but I thought the food was solid enough and menu interesting enough to warrant future visits.

Kiran’s Observations

Kent and Richard don’t really do justice describe the ambiance of this place. Having recently come back from NYC, the New York “feel” is still freshly pressed in my mind. Blue Star Diner reminded me of  that “NYC feel.” It was a cloudy fall day, so the floor-to-ceiling windows let plenty of natural light in. The place was humming, but it didn’t feel crowded. The dining area itself wasn’t very large, but felt spacious as the tables weren’t packed in too close together. The tables were square, instead of the annoying rectangular, which facilitated the flow of conversation, but left plenty of room for your plates and utensils. And of course, when you first walk in, you are immediately greeted by the bar, with its row upon row of glasses and wine bottles. I almost considered giving a 6 for Ambiance, but it didn’t feel right…I don’t know why.

I wasn’t feeling too hungry as I had already eaten before, so I opted to get the black bean soup instead. It turned out to be the best decision of the day. The first thing that hit me when I scooped it in my mouth was “wow.” This was possibly the best ”soup” I have ever had – “soup” cause clearly this was more like a vegetarian chilli. You had lime just jumping off every bite without overwhelming the heat and spice in the dish. The thick, spicy broth of corn, beans, onions made for a great dish on a cloudy fall afternoon.

I also tasted the stuffed French toast, which I felt was underwhelming. It sounded so good on the menu, but it failed to inspire in its execution. The  “stuffed” part was essentially a French toast sandwich with some filling in between. Apart from that, there was nothing really that special or different about this dish compared to regular French toast offerings.

Bridgeland is, for some reason, quickly turning into breakfast/brunch central. I love the feel and ambiance of Bridgeland, (and I personally think it’s the next Marda Loop) so it’s great to see this area developing a great restaurant scene. I had a pretty good time at Blue Star, but be warned that the prices aren’t the cheapest. I don’t think you get the full value for your menu, esp. if you are a vegetarian. But apart from that, there’s very little reason to NOT visit the place.

Back to Kent

In terms of value, its okay. Not really that expensive, but no cheaper than any other diner place in Calgary. And if you are a firm believer in buying local and putting those poor oil companies out of business, its a worthy restaurant to support. Everything else on the menu sounds really good, so Blue Star is a place I will have to visit again.

-Kent

	Kent	Richard	Kiran
Ambiance	4.5/6	5/6	5/6
Service	5/6	4.5/6	4/6
Plating	4.5/6	5/6	4/6
Taste	4.5/6	5/6	5/6
Originality	5/6	5.5/6	4/6
Value	4/6	4/6	3/6
Overall	27.5/36 = 76%	29/36 = 81%	25/36 = 69%

Review of Indonesian Kitchen

Indonesian Kitchen is officially named Calgary Sweet House because they originally focused on Indian food and desserts. On urbs (what I call urbanspoon), there is one listing for Calgary Sweet House, and a separate listing for Indonesian Kitchen. They are, in fact, the same place.

To make it even more confusing, when you look for this place, its main signage says Calgary Sweet House with Indonesian Kitchen printed on a smaller banner on the window underneath. The place has apparently been open for five years, but only in the past year have they started serving Indonesian food alongside Indian food (on separate menus). I am considered the Gordie Howe of urban navigation in some circles, so I didn’t have trouble finding this restaurant, but I can how some people might (ie. me –Richard).

Richard and I came for the Indonesian food. The owner is actually Indonesian, but I am sure she does a fine job with the Indian food too.

Alright, story time:

I got there first and decided to take a wide photo of the restaurant from the inside. Immediately after I took the photo, this big burly dude asks “was I in the photo?”. No smile was made, he looked pissed. I think I offended him and at that instant my testicles ascended into the depths of my body cavity. I was going to die that night.

My reply was “um, no sir”, and I sat down. I take a photo of the menu because us at TSD (This Sh*t’s Delicious) folk tend to forget names of dishes. BBD (Big Burly Dude) then asks “are you stealing food ideas for your own restaurant?”. This place is in Forest Lawn. If I were to disappear in this lawless land, no one would know! My response was “um sir, I am actually writing a review for a food blog”. Five long seconds passed before he said “oh cool” and went back to his meal.

Now to the food:

(Kent didn’t take notes and it took us 3 months to get around to writing this, so it’s all me from here! –Richard)

The first thing out was a plate of some sort of salty, southeast-asian tasting chip – it had an… interesting flavour, but I wasn’t a huge fan of it – it was rather stale and unevenly salted/spiced.  Hey, at least they were free!

We ordered a variety of things to split, as the only Indonesian food I’d ever had previously was from a food court in Singapore and I was eager to try something new.  Kiran wasn’t with us so we took the opportunity to order all meat.  Our server recommended the deep fried wontons to start, and we went with the rendang stew and satay skewers to flesh things out.

The wontons were kind of floury tasting, but nice and crispy – and the dipping sauce had that complex tangy/vomit-y (not in a bad way) taste that you only seem to get with Southeast asian cuisine (tamarind-y?  My flavour vocabulary is rather limited here, sadly – if you know what causes the flavour I’m talking about though leave a comment!).  The rendang was pretty good – rich like a curry, but not spicy at all.  The satay skewers had a very unique flavour – kind of grassy, very peanutty, and with a sort of lofty bitterness that reminded me of vodka.  Also, they put fried onions on everything (or something resembling onions, as they didn’t have that strong of a taste).

We were also treated to a plate of ayam goren ibu sari – quite the mouthful!  What was this, you ask?  “Mother’s recipe”, we were told – piping hot and very tasty chicken wings!  Probably the best dish we had there, and we didn’t even order it!

To top it off we got a 30-layer cake, which sounded like a real pain in the ass to make.  It smelled warm and cinammony, and it had subtle yet exotic flavours that I can’t quite describe.  You’ll have to try it yourself!  Oh yeah, I almost forgot to mention that the coconut juice has floaty bits in it – just like Orbitz, if anyone remembers that.

All in all, the food was decent, though the servings seemed kind of small given the price and the foot wasn’t all that hot (though maybe we were just eating too slow).  The Indian menu, on the other hand, seemed damn cheap from what I saw (lots of dishes under $10, which I’m pretty sure isn’t typical in Calgary!).  The service was good, but it wasn’t very busy so hard to say what it might be like on a different day.

The owner (the husband half of it, anyway) sat down for a chat with us near the end, and was quite the talkative guy – apparently he’s quite the well-traveled renaissance man.  Car importer, correctional officer, school board member, restaurant owner – oh, the stories he could tell!

Summary

The food was hit and miss (though the hits were really quite good), but the people and place were cool (there’s even a stage there where they hold speeches, weddings, and other events), so if you’re ever in the area and in the mood for something different, it’s worth checking out.

-Kent & Richard

Ranking

	Richard	Kent
Ambiance	Interesting	TBD
Service	5/6	TBD
Plating	1/2	TBD
Authenticity	5/6? Who knows	TBD
Taste	4/6	TBD
Value	3.5/6	TBD
Overall	18.5/26 = 71%	TBD

Butternut Squash with Chickpeas Tagine (Moroccan)

Once in a while, you come across a recipe that is so fantastic, it becomes a permanent part of your culinary armoire. Today, I want to share one such recipe with you.

I randomly stumbled upon this recipe while looking to make something unique for one my earlier not-a-dinner-parties where the secret ingredients were squash and chickpeas. Having travelled to Morocco, I am a big fan of the cuisine, especially tagines, so I couldn’t say no to recreating a cornerstone of the Moroccan cuisine. The results were fantastic and the dish was an instant hit. I have been making this dish ever since for special occasions, and it has never failed to impress anyone. The recipe also comes with instructions to making a basic couscous dish to accompany the tagine

The original recipe can be found here, but I will recreate the ingredients and directions on this page for the sake of convenience. My only piece of advice would be to use half the “medium” butternut squash, instead of the whole thing. Apart from that, make sure to follow the recipe to the tee…you won’t be disappointed!

Butternut Squash & Chickpea Tagine Recipe
(Serves 4)
1 can of chickpeas, drained & washed
10 vine ripened cherry tomatoes
1 medium Butternut squash, peeled & cut into 2 inch chunks
1 onion, finely chopped
4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
2 tbs of finely chopped parsley
2 tbs of finely chopped coriander and more for garnish
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp paprika
2 tsp of tomato paste
1/2 tsp of sugar
1 1/2 tsp of sea salt
1 pinch of freshly ground black pepper
2 cups of water

Method:

1. Finely chop the coriander and parsley. Set Aside. Peel the squash and cut into 4 x 4 cm pieces.
2. Finely chop the onion and garlic. Heat the oil in the pot and add the onion. Cook over a low heat until soft.
3. Add the garlic and cook for about 20 seconds, then add the cumin, turmeric and cayenne pepper. Cook for 30 seconds, stirring continuously.
4. Add the paprika, tomato paste, sugar and half the coriander, parsley, salt and pepper. Stir.
5. Add the tomatoes and the drained chickpeas. Stir and then add the pumpkin and the water, stir and then cover with the lid. Once simmering, turn the heat down to low and cook covered for 35 minutes.
6. Cook couscous according to packet instructions with vegetable or chicken stock.
7. Just before serving, garnish tagine with more coriander or parsley and serve with couscous.

Couscous Recipe
1 cup of couscous
1/3 cup of raisins
1 handful of Pinenuts
1 handful of chopped mint
1 cup of vegetable stock
Method:

1. Bring the vegetable stock to the boil. Add the couscous and stir once. Cover and take off the heat and let it sit for about 5 minutes.
2. Remove the lid and fluff the couscous up with a fork. Add the pinenuts, raisins and chopped mint.
3. Fluff the couscous again and then serve with the Tagine.

Quick Review of Pushpita Indian Restaurant

Summary: an adequate Indian restaurant that is best served as a quick fix to your Indian craving

After having spent a couple of days in the metropolis of Northern Alberta known as Peace River, I was ready to come back to good ol’ Calgary and savour the sights and sounds of a big city once again. I was super-hungry getting off the flight, so the first thing I did after dropping my bags off was to head out to Pushpita, which is only a few blocks from my place. I have been eyeing this restaurant for a while now, but hadn’t had a chance to patronize it. Today was going to be the day…

I didn’t want to hang around and have the full restaurant experience, so I decided to get a couple of items to go: paneer masala ($10.99), dal ($9.99), and garlic naan ($2.50). The items weren’t over-priced, but considering Pushpita isn’t in downtown central, I was expecting the prices to be a bit lower. Their take-out lunch buffet is also $10.99, so ordering items a la carte, unfortunately, is not going to be a an everyday occurrence.

Anyways, onto the food.  The paneer masala was the first item I wanted to try as paneer (Indian cottage cheese) in anything is one of my most favourite things. In this case, it was paneer cooked in a (watery) broth of bell peppers, onions, carrots, and Indian spices.

I like to taste the broth first as it’s the part that’s exploding with flavour. I was a bit surprised and disappointed with the broth: surprised ‘cause the broth was spicier than I was expecting; disappointed ‘cause it tasted like the chef threw in a much of chilli powder just to spice things up. The paneer was also a bit uneven as there were some pieces that were soft and chewy whereas other pieces were harder – odd as both varieties tasted the same. Overall, I enjoyed the dish, but I have had better.

Next up was the daal, which was a perfect dish for a cloudy day. Daal is a simple dish that consists of lentils in a simple broth mix of mustard seeds, cumin, and red chillies. It’s one of the most basic of Indian dishes that you shouldn’t, nay, can’t screw up. In retrospect, I should have had it after the paneer masala as the more complex spice mix simply overwhelmed the simpler daal. It tasted alright, but I have nothing really to add apart from that.

Where the naan in all this, you might ask? The naan served as the sponge to soak up all the spicy goodness in both dishes. Once again, the naan was nothing to write home about: although it was soft, it was also weirdly chewy. The end effect was that it felt like I was chewing on doughy naan. It was edible no doubt, but it’s nothing compared to buttery, flaky, soft naan served at more well-heeled establishments.

So, all-in-all, I wasn’t blown away by this little restaurant. I was really hoping to discover a hidden jewel, perhaps much like Canada Dosa Corner, but found instead, a mediocre restaurant that will serve as a temporary fix for my Indian craving from time to time.

The final saving grace is that they have a pretty extensive menu consisting of meat, poultry, seafood, and vegetarian dishes (that’s probably part of the reason for the mediocre food – spread too thin), so I just might get some other vegetarian options to taste. Stay tuned!