Coffee and…

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The name says it all

One of my most memorable coffee experiences was at SnowDome Coffee Bar in Jasper. My Americanos were expertly crafted on a high-end Slayer espresso machine and went down well with house-baked cookies.

But what really stuck with me was the location—in the corner of a subterranean laundromat, surrounded by gleaming stainless machines. Which got me thinking: Why aren’t there more such obvious partnerships, turning a chore into a pleasant hangout in a captive market?

Jasper’s late, great SnowDome Coffee Bar and laundromat

That was 12 years ago, and not much has changed, other than the closing of SnowDome. But if I expand my horizons beyond laundromats, I can find a half dozen such “more than just coffee” places in Calgary, a couple quite new.

The most popular of such marriages is the coffee and bike shop, often extended to include skis in the winter. The idea is to offer espresso-based drinks and pastries while your bike or skis are being tuned.

I don’t know how I missed this, but Bike and Brew (921 1st Avenue NE: “Calgary’s Original Caffeinated Bicycle Shop”) has been offering cycling gear and services for nine years along Bridgeland’s busy 1st Avenue NE, close to the city’s expansive pathway. The drink and food menu is impressive, from Fratello-based cold brew coffee and local craft beer to Peppino Italian sandwiches and fresh-baked cookies.

Bridgeland’s Bike annd Brew

Velet (105, 206 11 Avenue SE) is Calgary’s quirkiest cafe—a bike/ski repair and tuneup shop, on the edge of downtown, that also serves excellent coffee. Oh, the entrance is from a back alley. When I visited, owner Hakan Kayabasi was doing it all: ski/bike technician, expert barista and purveyor of fresh-baked Turkish treats.

Velet subterranean cafe

Want to avoid the persistent Marda Loop traffic jams? Just jump on your kick-ass Italian bike and head to The Wheelhouse (2136 33 Avenue SW) for a “decent espresso” or to join an organized ride into the foothills.

Detour: A long, long ride north of Calgary in Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, excellent Midnight Sun Coffee Roasters shares space with vibrant bike shop Icycle Sports.

Want a facial or lip wax with that latte? Distilled Coffee House (2408 34 Avenue SW) is a combination coffee shop, wine bar and beauty bar, also in Marda Loop. Order a Rosso Roastery coffee and  a fresh-baked cookie or charred beet salad.

Distilled’s beauty and the brewsy

This isn’t the only instance of caffeinated beauty in Calgary. At the new Kennedy and Oaks (1919 Sirocco Drive SW), you can browse an expansive menu of Vietnamese-style coffees while getting your brows worked on.

Kennedy and Oaks high-brow beauty and Vietnamese coffee shop

Bonus: I recently noticed a Calgary laundromat offering coffee, but it was Nespresso. Does this count?

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Fabulous Middle Eastern Sweets

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Phillistines produces a gorgeous display of Middle Eastern sweets

You may be reluctant to drive all the way out to industrial northeast Calgary for a few pieces of honey-soaked baklava. But it’s well worth the effort to experience arguably the most spectacular display of hand-crafted sweets in the city. And while you’re loading up on delectable Arabic desserts, you might want to go next door to order a pita pie that rivals many of Calgary’s best pizzas.

But at Phillistines Bakery & Sweets, I’d start with a treat or two, washed down with an espresso or a Turkish coffee. There are more than 15 types of “baklawa” on offer, ranging from assobeh and pistachio rolled pastry fingers to the divine ash al bulbul (bird’s nest). Or how about seven varieties of show-stopping baked kunufa dessert?

I’m just scratching the surface of sweets I’ve never heard of, inspired mostly by a grandmother’s Palestinian recipes. Like ma’amool mad with kishta, sable cookies or creamy warbat. Even the familiar has a fusion twist: see za’atar croissants.

A flock of birds’ nests

Obviously, I need a few more journeys up Deerfoot Trail to sample just a slice of these Middle Eastern delicacies. Or I can simply follow the lead of seasoned customers and fill up a bag with goodies

To balance the honey loading, walk next door to the affiliated Mr. Meat Pie, a newish place that produces Middle Eastern flatbreads known as manakeesh. Choose from more than a dozen toppings—from za’atar spice and cheese to a spicy beef sausage known as sujuk—and then watch your pie bake to blistered perfection in a giant, high-temperature oven.

Giant “pizza”oven at Mr. Meat Pie

Best eaten piping hot, the four slices make an ample meal for one, mostly for less than $10.

Fabulous flatbreads

Phillistines Bakery & Sweets (Mr. Meat Pie is next door, opens at 8 am)
3003 21 Street NE, Calgary
Opens daily at 9 am except 10 am Sunday
587-968-6050

Mari Bakeshop: Calgary’s Best Pastries

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A few of Mari’s mouth-watering croissants

Well worth the wait in a fast-moving line

Thick sandwiches on sourdough

Mari Bakeshop
103 St Matthew Square NE and one other Calgary location
Daily 8 am-4 pm, except closed Monday and Tuesday

My Best Calgary Breakfast

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Fabulous benny bowl at The Sweatered Hen

It was the best breakfast I’ve had in Calgary in years… and the most expensive. It was a BBQ brisket bowl at the Beltline’s Sweatered Hen. At $23.50, it was worth every glorious forkful.

A newish Beltline classic

Here’s what was in this outsized bowl. Two perfectly poached, medium-runny eggs smothered in house-made hollandaise. Loads of roasted potatoes and onions, along with burnt brisket ends, swimming in Kansas City BBQ sauce.

What put it over the top was the execution. Quality ingredients. Efficient delivery. Everything hot, including the house-made potatoes, which in many places are just warmed-up hash browns. Bottomless cups of locally roasted coffee (an additional $4).

Being a bowl, my meal didn’t come with toast. Didn’t miss it. In fact, my companion and I could scarcely finish our marvellous breakfasts. His Mediterranean bowl was a whopping $26.50, but with an ingredient list this long (see photo), he wasn’t complaining.

The catchily named The Sweatered Hen is the inspiration of owner and chef Andrea Darling, who also started Calgary sandwich shop L’il Black Rooster.

The Sweatered Hen
819 17 Avenue SW, Calgary
Opens daily at 8 am
587-387-7272

Costco’s Big Cheese

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Costco’s iconic $1.50 hot dogs

Costco’s most legendary meal deals are its $1.50 hot dogs and sodas—the price not raised in decades—and $8 rotisserie chickens.

As well, its cheese prices are significantly lower in an otherwise expensive Canadian dairy market. Which is why I always pick up a hefty $10 wheel of its Kirkland double brie whenever I’m shopping there.

The latest deal is a Kirkland partnership with Coastal cheddar, arguably the best, crumbliest cheese in the Costco roster. While the $19 price may not sound cheap, the 810-gram block is a virtual doorstop. If you like full-bodied cheeses, I’m sure you’ll love this one.

Fabulous Coastal cheddar

A couple of Costco deals I never take advantage of. Gasoline is considerably cheaper than elsewhere, but I can never bring myself to wait in line to fill up (also, you can’t clean your windows). Second, Costco will accept almost any returns, but again I won’t wait in line to return a bag of avocados that didn’t ripen.

Waiting in the Costco returns line

Hungry Thaiger Has Given Up the Ghost

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Hungry Thaiger is now a sit-down restaurant

Nearly a year ago, I extolled the excellence of Hungry Thaiger, a Thai ghost kitchen in Oakridge Community Centre in suburban southwest Calgary.

But owners Somp (chef from Bangkok) and Travis (Saskatoon) have just realized a bigger dream: opening a full brick-and-mortar restaurant, a stone’s throw from the original.

Before

That means sitting down to a steaming plate of pad Thai noodles instead of slurping them down in a parking lot. Ironically, for logistical reasons, takeout isn’t initially available in this new home.

After

Either way, the food is fresh and fabulous, from standards like tom yum soup to more exotic bird’s nest noodles. Indeed, it’s arguably the best, most affordable Thai I’ve enjoyed in Calgary.

Excellent drunken noodles

But I’m not the only one to discover this gem. After a surprise CBC radio visit, it was standing room only, especially on weekend evenings.

Pro tip: The quietest times are early lunchtime on weekends.

Hungry Thaiger
3109 Palliser Drive SW, Calgary
Tuesday to Thursday opens at 4 pm, Friday to Sunday at 11 am. Closed Monday
587-229-8386