On Mother’s Day, I was treated to Brunch at this restaurant.http://www.avenuecalgary.com/Restaurant-Listings/index.php/name/Cleaver/listing/29682/ It is quite new to Calgary and it is wonderful.
The menu is ‘set’ and at the bottom of the menu it boldly states ‘changes and modifications are politely declined’. I love it! They have a great variety to choose from and believed me, they are different than anywhere else you wish to dine in. The drink menu is even wackier. As our server “Bowtie Brett” stated, if they wanted to be like everyone else, they would not have opened.
There was four of us and the three ladies were treated to a complimentary Royale Kir. YUM! I had these all over France when we were there and I think it is their ‘national beverage’. Then we started. The first round of drinks consisted of a Moby Dick with Jameson, Lemon, egg white, truffle oil and a rosemary sprig, which was lit as it came to the table. The second drink (and voted the best at our table) A Farewell to Sober. This was white rum, 3 drunken maraschino cherries on a silver pick, lime and grapefruit juice. OMG…This, is a drink. A Caesar cocktail was ordered and the last drink was a Who’s Your Daddy Now and this consisted of Tequila, Tamarind, Cointreau, Grapefruit. Ginger, lime and topped with a crispy chicken skin.
The second round was a little calmer…..a New Zealand Pinot Gris ..guess who ordered this? A Stiegl Grapefruit Radler Beer. Now, I don’t normally drink beer, but this, my friends, could easily change my mind. It is really nice. Someone ordered A Word In which was Vodka, bitters, honey, grape juice, muddled basil and frozen grapes.
Now, we come to the food part….A steak sandwich looked great and it was slices of steak with horseradish, arugula Portobello mushroom which was to die for telaggio cheese on a baguette. The portion is huge. Doggy bag, please!
A Tuna sandwich (slices of perfectly cooked tuna – not from a can) with spinach, cheddar cheese, lime in between two slices of their in-house made Nutty Brown Bread was ordered. There are not enough words in the English language to describe this except you say you will NEVER taste better bread, anywhere.
A Full Irish was ordered…this would feed a family of 4, I think. It was an egg, sausage, bacon, Black and White puddings, a huge pork chop, tomato, mushroom, and Nutty Brown Bread.
I ordered (and I believe was the best) French Toast with pears, arugula, Ricotta and Maple Syrup. This was also huge, but…….enough said!
Now you would think 4 people have had enough to eat, right? Not a chance. We ordered the pudding. It was a warm salted caramel fondue in a bowl, large slices of homemade marshmallow, and mini doughnuts covered with sugar. You dip the marshmallow and the doughnuts in the caramel fondue and then everyone was trying to scoop every last drop of the sauce out of that bowl.
I hope everyone in Calgary goes here. It is new, fresh and wonderful. Loved it. e were told that everyone behind the counter in the kitchen is a Red Seal Chef..so anyone can prepare your meal at anytime.
