Greta Bar – No Man’s Dinner #1

February 13, 2019October 17, 2021 Hitting the SauceLeave a comment

“Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.” – William Congreve

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When I applied to No Mans Dinner – a supper club in Calgary – I was informed that no female members are permitted. I pointed out that rule 5 stipulates no female guests, but there was no rule about female members. Despite my outstanding qualifications, I was still rejected. Being the private person I am, I had to post this devastating blow on my Instagram feed.

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I joked to Loaf2go about having our own supper club – No Man’s Dinner. Loaf2go was also initially joking when she encouraged this, but after some back and forth and a coffee date, our new club was born. Loaf2go designed the logo and created the rules. Please note – despite our name, we are inclusive of all foodies, with one exception. No children.

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We picked Greta Bar for the first meetup. Even though it was -27 weather, the adult arcade bar was packed with customers. You’ll either love or hate the music – a fun, nostalgic mix-up of 80’s and 90’s music. I enjoyed listening to Bon Jovi, Spice Girls, New Kids on the Block and Biggie Smalls. For this post, let’s listen to Bon Jovi’s ” Living’ On a Prayer”.

Loaf2go texted me saying she would be a little late. I was in the same boat. Traffic was awful. She and her husband T arrived 3 minutes late. L and I were literally seconds behind. Happyeatsyyc and Lizarooprai were already sitting at our table when we arrived.

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L was surprised there were so many men in our party, considering our club is called No Man’s Dinner. There was Iatehere, Pak_to_Eating_yyc’s boyfriend, Lizarooprai’s plus one, and the spouses of the Founder and President. I finally met HangryinYYC, my go to expert for dim sum in Calgary. I already knew ShellyKirks from my travels to Japan. The last to arrive was Jeanie.Mark. I found out she was late because she saw a car accident and she had to stay as a witness.

For happy hour, house beers, wine and select cocktails were $5. Shop Fries, Greek Doughnuts, and Jamaican Patties were $5. The Greta Brown was tasty – with notes of espresso and chocolate. I preferred the brown over the Greta Blonde, the latter being a bit too yeasty for my taste.

I enjoyed the Greek doughnuts ($6.50, HH $5) more than I thought I would. Each piece was warm and puffy, tasting a bit like a deluxe Tim Horton’s crueller Timbit. I didn’t find the addition of honey too sweet. I’d order this again.

Loaf2go shared her Ginger Beef Baos ($13) with us. The sirloin beef is from Community Foods. I liked the squishiness of the homemade white buns. The beef was cut thin and lightly battered.

The table’s favourite dish was another one of Loaf2go’s picks – the Currywurst Pretzel ($13). She said she knew it would be good because the sausage is from Empire Provision. The house-made curried ketchup had a hot kick to it.

Shelly ordered the Jamaican Patties ($10, HH $5). The wagyu meat was also from Community Foods. I enjoyed the heat in the curry ground beef. Shelly liked the turmeric pastry because of its thin, crispy shell. I liked the ratio of filling to crust.

I ordered the Street Nuggets ($12) – buttermilk brine chicken with pickles and onions. I picked hot sauce, which was very hot. Loaf2go enjoyed the this dish more than I did. I prefer my nuggets with more a crunchy exterior.

I also ordered the East Coast chip shop fries ($5.50, HH $4:00). The potatoes were made from fresh-cut Hutterite red skin potatoes. Everyone thought the fries were a tad overcooked.

I tried some of Loaf2go’s Thai Mango Salad ($6.50). I could taste the fish sauce in the dressing. I wasn’t expecting to see a Thai salad that looked so authentic.

L and I were impressed that Greta was not afraid to use some heat. I thought it was cool that a bar that sells this range food of international dishes didn’t dumb down the spicy dishes. I wonder if the clientele appreciates the heat.

Our next foodventure is going to be at Bar Modern, a new steakhouse on Stephen Ave for happy hour. If L is good, I might even splurge and buy him a steak dinner. Modern Steak serves beef from its prize-winning Black Angus Bull with Benchmark Angus. I’m pretty curious to see the difference between ranch specific Alberta beef and the sale stuff I buy from Safeway.

Cheap Eats · Chinatown · Chinese · Restaurants

Ho Won – Lobster and Wine

February 2, 2019October 17, 2021 Hitting the SauceLeave a comment

It’s a small world. It turns out Bottlenick knows the daughter of the chef at Ho Won, aka the flash-fried squid magician. If you don’t recall my fake news blunder on Reddit, you can read it here.

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Bottlenick, L and I decided to visit for dinner when the Magician was working. Pro tip – you can bring your own wine for a small corkage fee. Bottlenick said he would bring a bottle of bubbly. For this post, let’s listen to Amy Winehouse’s song, “Fuck Me Pumps”.

I asked my friend the Wine Wizard what sort of wine pairs best with fried squid. He recommended something that has great acidity like a Riesling or an Austrian white called Gruner Veltliner. I went to Highlander Liquor store to shop for something that fit that description. An employee recommended Weingut Robert Weil – Klosterberg Klosterberg ($48).

I thought I was quite clever to wrap a wet tea towel around my bottle and then to freeze it so that the icy cloth would keep the wine cold. However, when I arrived at the restaurant, my dripping brown bag alarmed the servers. Pro-tip – get a reusable cold bottle sleeve like Bottlenick.

Bottlenick popped open his bottle first. Got to say, I preferred his pick over mine. I thought the dryness of his sparkling wine worked better with the squid than my Riesling, which was a tad sweet and I thought for the price, wasn’t anything special.

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We ordered pea tips, lobster with fried noodles and salt and pepper squid. The first to arrive at our table were the pea tips. Bottlenick was expecting a more dainty dish – not the luscious, vibrant greens that we received. Pea tips taste like a hybrid mix of peas, spinach and gai lan (Chinese broccoli). I love the delicate crunch of the stems. I’m not sure how much the lobster or pea tips cost, because L didn’t take the receipt and couldn’t remember how much they cost. Pea tips normally average around $23 dollars a dish.

The fried squid ($13.99) arrived so blistering hot I could feel the heat steam in my mouth. The squid itself was toothsome and not chewy. The batter was stellar – thin, brittle and broke apart when you bit into it. I usually eat fried squid with plain white rice and hot chili sauce. However, I passed on ordering rice because I thought the noodles would be enough.

I haven’t had lobster in a long time. Usually, I’ll wait till I visit my family back in Richmond. The lobster was cracked in such a way that made it easy to remove the sweet meat. The lobster dish with noodles is a must order at Ho Won. The noodles retained its crunch despite the white sauce, which tasted like Alfredo without the cheese.

I prefer the ginger and green onion version as its more fragrant and flavourful. I told Office Dad I never tried the white sauce before and I thought all Cantonese style lobster and crabs were served with the green onion and ginger sauce. He said the white sauce is automatically given to non-Asian customers unless specified. Dammit L and Bottlenick – you got me the wrong sauce.

I remember as a kid, when we went to a Chinese restaurant for a banquet, lobster would be a messier affair. We would use slippery metal lobster crackers to get to the meat. There would be bowls of hot lemon water to wash our fingers afterwards.

At the end of our meal, we received fortune cookies. Bottlenick viciously crushed his cookie and then left it on the table. I don’t think he likes fortune cookies.

At 7:00 pm on a Saturday night, Ho Won was packed. I noticed the majority of the clientele are Asian, which is a good sign that the food is good. The Magician does indeed have special powers. This visit was far superior to the lunches I’ve enjoyed in the past. I’d love to return again, particularly when he is working. Hitting the Sauce gives the Magician two fat thumbs up.

Restaurants

Peasant Cheese Shop

October 13, 2018July 10, 2021 Hitting the SauceLeave a comment

9:20 a.m. on a Friday morning and I was already thinking about dinner. I didn’t want to go out or cook. I thought I would be considerate for once and do something I know L would enjoy. At 10:00 a.m., I called Peasant Cheese Shop to order a mixed cheese and meat platter ($25). For this post, let’s listen to Bus-ta Rhymes “Gimme Some More”.

The Mélange a Trois ($25) platter includes two cheeses, one meat, crackers and garnishes. When I called to place my order, I was informed that the store requests customers order 24 hours in advance. The male on the phone said he could prepare me a plate by that afternoon, but he would have to use a disposable tray instead of a wooden platter

L said that Peasant Cheese’s rules doesn’t leave much for spontaneity, and a cheese shop should know a thing or two about romance. I told L that this popular cheese shop is too busy for procrastinators. When I arrived at 3:00 p.m., the shop was packed.

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I decided to save some money by taking transit back home. On the first train, I stood by several hungry U of C students. A young Asian man looked particularly impressed and eyed my platter.

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I wanted to tell him that this was nothing – Peasant Cheese offers much more elaborate spreads and if pre-orders, he can get it on a nice wooden tray.

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The second train wasn’t as busy. I got a seat this time but my arms were getting tired and I was starting to wish I splurged $15 for an Uber.

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It started to get really windy and I was clutching the plastic cover to prevent the platter from blowing away. Luckily, L came and picked me up so I didn’t have to walk another 11 minutes.

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The garnishes made the two cheeses and one meat into a meal. The platter included green olives, figs, currents, physalis, tart cornichons and what tasted like a white wine jelly.

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The capocollo was thinly sliced and not overly fatty. If you eat a lot of charcuterie, you’ll know what I mean. Some meats taste so oily. Not this one. L could detect some heat. I couldn’t detect any spice.

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The Chateau de Bourgogne was ripe, creamy and buttery. The currents paired well with the cheese, as it gave it more flavour. I think this cheese would go well with champagne because it left no aftertaste. I enjoyed eating the rind.

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L liked the hard cheese – Lindsay. The texture was firm and crumbly. The flavour was earthy and nutty. I did not enjoy eating the rind. The only thing I didn’t care for was the wine jelly. Perhaps it was because I wasn’t drinking, but the smell was off-putting.

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It would have cost me more than $25 to buy all the crackers, cheese and garnishes from a store. You have to pay a deposit for the wood platter, but I would recommend it. Cutting into the cheese on a plastic platter took away from the experience. I could have rearranged it on our larch wood platter from Knifewear but I was feeling too lazy. I would order from Peasant Cheese again in a heartbeat. Hitting the Sauce gives this Kensington gem two fat thumbs up.