What I Thought of It

• Q Lounge

  Bars / Pubs, Eating Out, Wings No Comments

  Q Lounge
  2359 Banff Trail NW (inside the Quality Inn)
  Calgary AB  T2M 4L2
  Phone: 403 289 1973

  The Q Lounge is the pub inside the Quality Inn Motel, one of the motels in Banff Trail’s Motel Village.

  As soon as you enter the Q Lounge you feel like something is missing. The place is basically a room with a bar and 15 Video Lottery machines, 2 pool tables, and some tables and chairs. There is no atmosphere to speak of. If you were to put all this stuff in your basement, den, or garage, you would probably end up with a more pleasant hangout than this lounge.

  The staff do nothing to help the ambiance. They are friendly but not really (their smiles are more like smirks), and they don’t really listen. I got ice in my drink after requesting no ice.

  Thursday is Wings Night at the Q Lounge. Chicken wings are only 20 cents each and there is no minimum order of each flavor. You can choose from a long list: barbecue, honey garlic, teriyaki, lemon pepper, mild, medium, hot, etc. The wings are pretty good and very meaty, better than most cheap wings elsewhere that cost 25 cents per wing. The wings even come with ranch dip, something you’d normally pay extra for. The dip went really well with the barbecue and honey garlic flavors.

  The server asked if I wanted another drink, but it was not a free refill. I was charged for 2 drinks on my bill.

  Last thoughts: The Q Lounge probably gets most of its business from motel guests who come to kill time on the gambling machines. The wings were actually great, but with such a bland atmosphere this place will not see me back anytime soon.

  Food ++++
  Service +++
  Ambiance +
  Washrooms +++

  Tags: cheap wings, Motel Village



• Sun Chiu Kee (Sun’s BBQ Restaurant)

  Eating Out, Restaurants 7 Comments

  Sun’s BBQ Restaurant (Sun Chiu Kee)
  6-1423 Centre St NW
  Calgary AB  T2E 2R8
  Phone: 403 230 8890

  I’d been craving Chinese food, so on driving by Sun’s BBQ Restaurant my friend and I agreed to investigate what they might have to offer.

  Sun’s BBQ is connected to the Chinese supermarket Lambda on Centre Street, just south of Highway 1 on 14th Avenue NW.

  The restaurant’s exterior gives a good first impression that goes out the window as soon as you step inside. Yes, the booths and tables are reasonably pleasant, but the dining room’s ready view into the kitchen makes the place feel messy and chaotic.

  On our visit there were several wait staffers roaming the mid-sized restaurant, but somehow it was still difficult to get any single one’s attention. Their demeanor was not friendly and their communication abilities were limited.

  The food arrived quickly, but it did not have the authentic Chinese-ness that we’d been craving. Again we had been misled by the facade of Sun Chiu Kee, which leads one to imagine a kitchen that knows how to prepare real Chinese fare. Our food tasted like the efforts of someone trying to duplicate a Chinese dish recipe for the first time.

  One thing that really bothered me were the abysmal washrooms. The restaurant shares one men’s and one women’s bathroom with Lambda Supermarket. These are often busy and very, very dirty.

  And we’re still wondering about the leftovers. We only ate a quarter of the hot-and-sour soup, so we asked for the rest to be packed up. The doggie bag came back with visibly less soup. I really hope they didn’t use some of our leftovers for someone else’s order.

  Last thoughts: I tried Sun’s BBQ Restaurant once, and you’ll never see me there again. I would bet that any other Chinese restaurant in Calgary will have better (and likely cheaper) Chinese food.

  Food ++
  Service ++
  Ambiance ++
  Washrooms -

  Tags: Chinese food



• Tony Roma’s, Calgary NE

  Eating Out, Restaurants No Comments

  Tony Roma’s
  3010 23 St NE
  Calgary AB  T2E 8R7
  Phone: 403 242 7427

  When I get a hankering for ribs or steaks, I always think of Tony Roma’s. On one such occasion, I made a beeline for the Tony Roma’s restaurant in northeast Calgary. It’s visibly situated on Barlow Trail, between 32nd Avenue and 16th Avenue (Highway 1).

  This Tony Roma’s has a classy-looking dining room with plenty of tables and booths. On our Tuesday visit it was packed, but we were still seated right away.

  Tuesday is all-you-can-eat-ribs night: all the pork ribs and beef ribs you can chow down for $21.99 per person. Tony Roma’s brags about being “famous for ribs”, and this claim is not unfounded. Tony Roma’s ribs never disappoint.

  Service, however, can be hit-or-miss. On this night we were not so lucky with our server. She did her job but we were often ignored. Later she apologized and said she wasn’t feeling well. At least she was aware that the service should have been better.

  Last thoughts: Tony Roma’s is the place for meat-lovers. I love their ribs and they also do great steaks. The Tony Roma’s in northeast Calgary will be getting more visits from me. The whole package is just right at this Tony Roma’s location.

  Food +++++
  Service ++++
  Ambiance ++++
  Washrooms ++++

  Tags: all-you-can-eat, ribs, Tony Roma's



• Toad ‘N’ Turtle Pubhouse & Grill

  Bars / Pubs, Eating Out, Restaurants 2 Comments

  Toad ‘N’ Turtle Pubhouse & Grill
  2475 27 Ave NE
  Calgary AB T2E 8M1
  Phone: 403 717 0670
  The Toad ‘N’ Turtle on 27th Avenue is next to Barlow Trail just north of Highway 1. The ambiance is more than just your neighborhood pub - it’s elevated by tasteful decor infused with lots of wood, warm colors, and eye-catching knick-knacks. If you’re in the mood for distraction or not being able to hear your companions, this small-ish pub boasts no less than 7 TV screens and extremely loud music.

  We dropped by the Toad ‘N’ Turtle on a Saturday evening around dinner time and were surprised to find it relatively empty. It turns out we were just early, because the place was buzzing by the time we left.

  Service did not seem to be a priority at the Toad ‘N’ Turtle. It was 10 minutes before we were acknowledged by a server. Though our food didn’t take long, at the end of our meal the bill took more than twice as long to arrive.

  Our server seemed intent on ignoring us as much as she could, such that I had to walk to the bar to ask for ketchup.

  The food was okay. I ordered the bison burger, which wasn’t too bad. The bread was nice and the burger was tasty, though dry. I guess the cook at the Toad ‘N’ Turtle doesn’t share my preference for juicy burgers. My friend got the fisherman’s pie, which the menu likened to shepherd’s pie, but made with seafood instead of ground beef. In reality it was more like fisherman’s soup. Everything under the mashed potato topping was swimming in sauce. The saving grace of this meal were the sweet potato fries, which must be some of the best in Calgary.

  Toad ‘N’ Turtle Pubhouse & Grill offers WiFi Internet, but it’s free only for the first 20 minutes (and slower than normal, too). After that it’s $2.50 a day or $5.00 a week, a bit steep if you ask me. I believe pub patrons would use WiFi just to quickly check something online, like e-mail, so the WiFi access should be free like it is in most WiFi-enabled establishments nowadays.

  Last thoughts: I’m not itching to pay the Toad ‘N’ Turtle another visit. The service bordered on rude and the place was way too noisy. But maybe - just maybe - I would go back for the sweet potato fries.

  Food +++
  Service +
  Ambiance +++
  Washrooms +++

  Tags: bison burger, fisherman's pie, sweet potato fries, WiFi



• One Week

  Movies / TV, Recreation No Comments

  One Week is the story of Ben Tyler (Joshua Jackson), a guy in his mid-twenties who is diagnosed with terminal cancer in the film’s opening scene.

  Ben is a schoolteacher and set to marry his fiancee in 3 months. However, after his diagnosis, Ben is seized by the urge to get away from it all for a couple of days. Leaving Toronto behind, he hits the road on a vintage motorcycle heading west.

  Ben’s journey takes him through the beautiful and varied Canadian landscape. Along the way he stops and poses alongside several “world’s biggest” monuments (goose, nickel, Muskoka chair, paper clip, dinosaur, …), which are small-town Canada’s claims to fame. Inevitably the trip stretches longer than a couple of days. The closer Ben gets to the Canadian west coast, the more he learns about life.

  One Week sends a powerful message about how most of us have become stuck in a certain pattern of living, and how a single event can make us question this pattern.

  Last thoughts: One Week is one of those movies that will stay with you for a long time. It combines a deeply human story with deeply moving scenery. After seeing this movie you’ll want to jump in your car or on your motorbike and take to the road, just to experience a different side of life.

  Go to the TRAILER for a sneak peek before you hit the theatre, and find out more about One Week on the official movie website.

  Genre: Drama (March 2009)
  Length: 94 min
  Rating: PG
  Story +++++
  Cast +++++
  Humor ++++

  Tags: Canada, drama, Joshua Jackson, road trip, terminal illness

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