Dining Week Success

Last week was Edmonton's Downtown Dining Week, finally a valid reason for me to hit some restaurants and try their menus. I only went to two restaurants: Niche and Tzin, because I was thinking on behalf of my wallet and not my tummy. But both were successes and with great food, and conversation what more can a girl ask for?

Wednesday night, me and Erika headed to Niche. I went for the 5 course for $50 and hers was the 3 course for $25.





Yellow Lentil and Braised Pork Soup

We both ordered the soup, it was a very generous portion of a big bowl of soup. The texture of the lentils along with its color reminded of this Chinese dessert pudding I ate while growing up. However it was very savory and hearty and a great way to start the meal.



Spring Creek Beef Carpaccio in a Dijon Sauce finished with fresh Parmesan



Antipasto Plate: Prepared Meats and Cheese served with complimenting condiments and preserves



Erika's main: Confit of Brome Lake Duck with Golden Mashed Potatoes and Lemon Thyme Gravy

Her duck was so tender and falling off the bone, I'm pretty sure she enjoyed the dish very much.



My main: Maple Sage Brown Buttered Salmons with Golden Mash Potatoes

Usually I don't like my meat with a sweet sauce. But after I was done with this dish, I used my knife to wipe the brown buttered sauce off my plate until there was no more. Maybe it was the brown butter sugar that enticed me but it really worked all together and gave a different and tasty element to a simple dish.



Erika's dessert: Salted Caramel Brownie with Honey Lemon Cream

Though good, it was rich and heavy after the meal we just had. The salt was also very noticeable and made a sharp contrast of flavor when usually there should just be a hint of salt.



My dessert: Chai Masala Spiced Bundt Cake

This dessert surprised me, the chai worked great in this cake and it just me wanting to finish every last bite.


Niche
11011 Jasper Ave
Edmonton, AB




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It's been too long since I visited Tzin and I missed the warmth of the restaurant and the delicious food the place offers. And when I found out they had a dining week menu, I knew it was one of the places I had to make time and money for. It was a great deal too: 3 tapas for $50. We had 4 people and ordered 9 tapas to share. Not only was there great, attentive service from the staff and owner, the view of the working kitchen and its aroma just added to the evening.

All in all, in was a great night. There was good conversation, laughs and entertainment from the owner himself. Thank goodness I made reservations early, the owner had to turn so many people away throughout the night. They never rushed us to finish eating, I think we spent a good solid 3 hours in there. In fact they provided us with more and attentive service which proves they focus more on quality of serive for their customer than the numbers they bring in. I glad to state it will not be my last time at Tzin.



Wild Boar Pate: served with Grilled Flatbread & Cranberry Chutney



Lobster Crostinis: Lobster with Spanish Onion, Gruyere Cheese and Sauce American



Antipasto Plate: featuring Cheese & Cured Meats



Chicken & Sausage Strudel: In a lightly Smoked Tomato Sauce, Served with Lemon and Chive Aioli

Hands down this was the winning dish of the night! Everyone raved about it and wanted more. Not only is it the perfect finger food to share and fight over but it was packed with taste and texture. The pastry was so flaky and crunchy and with the hit of flavor that came from the chicken and sausage. It was a lot coming from a triangle strudel.



New Zealand Lamb: Grilled & Served with Raspberry Vinaigrette

Little rack of lamb, doesn't it look so cute? It also tasted very good too. Usually I tend to avoid lamb because of its strong smell and distinctive taste, but this NZ lamb was way milder and was very tolerable and tasty.



Creamy Chili Prawns: Pan Seared, Finished with Cream & Warm Chilies

I just love this dish. Perfect prawns and awesome sauce. I would just love a bowl of the sauce and some bread.



Scallops with Chorizo

Hmmm, scallops. The scallops with the tasty chorizo together gave great flavor and texture.



Filet of Beef: Served with Potatoes & Lobster Cream

They were very good potatoes, and the filet of beef was also very tender and smoky in flavor.



Chocolate Cake



Lemon Tart from next door Queen of Tarts


Tzin Wine and Tapas
10115 104 Street Northwest
Edmonton, AB T5J 0Z9

Red Ox Inn

In light of Fork Fest Raeanna and I wanted to take advantage of this awesome dinning opportunity and try some new places. I really like what the Red Ox Inn had to offer for their menu so we headed there. It was a three-course meal at $45.00 from their current menu! (BTW our server told us that their website was hacked into so their menu may be different in person than on the website. Why a restaurant website? No idea)



I love how small and quaint the restaurant is, very dim restaurant lighting which is so bad for my pictures but perfect for a dinner date.







My Appetizer: Creamy butternut squash with creme fraiche and duck confit.

This soup although a bit sweet than I would like was great. Great color, texture and just added warmth to me. The braised duck was the texture and taste of Peking Duck was added a bit of salt to the sweet soup. All in all it was a great pretty bowl of soup.



Raeanna's Appetizer: Golden Beet Salad with Arugula with candied walnuts and pear vinaigrette.

This salad looked so light and fresh, the pear vinaigrette added great tartness to the salad according to Raeanna. I love the little bits of candied walnuts, a added bonus to taste and texture.



My Main: Duck: Grilled breast, butternut squash caponata, crisp risotto cake, red wine reduction

This was a very hearty main. The duck had the perfect crispy skin and fat with a medium rare inside. The Risotto cake just reminded me of the grilled cheese Raeanna had in Prague. But it was ok, since I am not the greatest fan of risotto to begin with.



Raeanna's Main: Char: Pancetta wrapped roast garlic stuffed Arctic Char, chorizo potatoes, and sherry vinaigrette

She enjoyed her dish very much. However the bite I had, I wished there was more pancetta flavor.






Raeanna's Dessert: Individually baked warm chocolate cake served with vanilla bean ice cream



My Dessert: Blueberry and white chocolate bread pudding served warm with creme anglaise

My oh my how looks can be deceiving. This simple cut of their bread pudding was deadly. Warm, gooey and full of blueberry and chocolate flavor it was going to make me over stuffed for the evening.



Red Ox Inn
9420 91 Street Northwest
Edmonton, AB T6C 1Z5
(780)465-5727

Gathering at Allegro

A couple weeks back, I went to Erika's Bday Dinner at Allegro. However, I was terribly sick and could not truly taste what I was eating. Sad I know, the only thing I was able to do was comment on texture. So the following are just some pretty pictures to savor at.








Baby squid lightly floured served with spicy marinara sauce ($14.95)



Chicken, sun-dried tomatoes, mushrooms, garlic, olive oil, white wine and feta cheese ($18.95)



Homemade pasta stuffed with milk fed veal and cheese with mushroom cream and marinara sauce ($17.95)



Breast of Chicken sauteed with mushrooms in a sherry cream sauce with pasta ($24.95)



Combination of shrimp, calamaretti, clams, mussels and scallops, served in white wine sauce, garlic and olive oil ($20.95)

Allegro Italian Kitchen
10011-109 Street
Edmonton, AB
(780)424-6644

Famoso Saturdays

Last Saturday, I went out to lunch with Raeanna before heading to work. We met up at Famoso downtown location. It was a surprise when I entered, I had no idea it was so causal and so small. It was like a upscale, very upgraded version of a fast food restaurant with service.



My Nutella Mocha ($4)
Really rich and just full of yummy Nutella flavor, but be warned: this is a dessert treat itself!



Sandwich and Soup Combo: Small Prosciutto Arugula and Fire-Roasted Tomato Bisque Soup ($10)



Pizzetta and Caprese Salad ($13.75)
Raeanna got the Quattro Formaggi pizzetta which surprisely, was able to finish her soup, salad and small pizza for our lunch date. I could barely finish my sandwich.

Hardware Grill/Pre-Birthday Dinner

So this evening, I met up with two friends and we had a nice dinner at Hardware Grill. The atmosphere was comfortable and warm. We were probably the youngest party in the restaurant this evening, and I was probably the youngest person! We ordered a bottle of Riesling from Germany, and all of us agreed it held out quite well all night. But I was probably buzz halfway through the appetizer. I was happy when we could still order from the Early Grazing Menu even though it was one minute passed 6:30pm, and even happier when all three of us all ordered something different which means more pictures to be taken!!











My appetizer: Pepper Crusted Rare Ahi Tuna with Warm Provençale Tomato Tart, Wood Smoked Tomato Vinaigrette and Aged Balsamic.

I really like the ahi tuna, there were some non-crushed peppers on top which added a neat change of texture and a very strong pepper profile. The tuna was yummy and it was a good portion size and fun to share.



Ben's appetizer: Blue Crab Cakes with Chipotle-Lime Aioli & Corn Relish.

When Ben saw they had crab cakes, his appetizer was decided. I usually avoid crab cakes because of a bad experience before, but the ones Ben had ordered was a pleasant surprise. It was warm and smooth and creamy. HMM



Erika's appetizer: Feta-Terranean: Roasted Peppers & Portobello Mushroom with Chèvre Feta, Tomatoes, Rocket Pesto, Balsamic Syrup & Extra Virgin Olive Oil.

I loved how the colors came out on Erika's dish, even though how the dish was plated suggest something else... Anyways, she too enjoyed her dish, roasted vegetables with warm cheese inside.



My main: Truffled Mac ‘n Cheese with Baby Lobster & Shiitakes mushrooms.

I was surprised how big my bowl was, I was afraid I couldn't finish it either. It was very good but also very rich too, mainly because of the strong truffle flavor and the cheese. It was fun finding the baby lobster bites and the shiitake mushrooms which cuts the richness a little bit.



Ben's main: Hand Rolled Butternut Squash-Mascarpone Tortelloni with Truffle Butter Cream Sauce & Fresh Chanterelles.

Ben really like this dish, I would too from the bite I took. The squash was sweet and smooth and works well with the rich sauce.



Erika's main: Bison Carpaccio Chèvre Noir, Truffled-Potato Salad & Cold Pressed Organic Hemp Oil.

From the bite I took from Erika's plate, I must have tried hemp oil before because, I swear I tasted in some asian dish before. The carpaccio was quite thin and along with the crispy fries or chips it added the right amount of salt and texture.



My Dessert: Salted Caramel Crème Brûlée with Cinnamon Doughnuts.

This was some good crème brûlée, the custard was warm, creamy, and rich in caramel flavor and it was under a hard but "crackable" crunchy sugar barrier. I would lick the bowl clean if I didn't have company. hehe. The cinnamon doughnut was also quite good, warm and fresh, it was a "runaway" doughnut.



Ben's Desset: Chocolate-Hazelnut Truffle Cake with Raspberry Gelato and Pistachio Daquoise.

Another of Ben's favorite, chocolate. Though the cake had a very tough, unbreakable coating, the cake was very rich and soft. I guess that's why Ben had to ask for coffee to accompany his rich cake.



Erika's Dessert: Warm Prairie Gingerbread Cake with Rhubarb-Saskatoon Compote, Mango Ice Cream and Warm Caramel Sauce.

When her dessert came out, we both knew there was no way she will be able to finish her plate. Her cake was really, really warm and was perfect with the warm caramel sauce. But I think her most favorite part and the only reason she got the dessert in the first place was the mango ice cream and it did not disappoint her.

I was really glad and happy to share a meal with friends, it nice to not work, enjoy good food and wine and have some laughs inside a cozy and nice restaurant on a freezing cold Edmonton evening.



Hardware Grill
9698 Jasper Avenue Northwest
Edmonton, AB T5H 3V5
(780) 423-0969