Butter Chicken Hut Restaurant Review

I've been on a cyclical ketogenic lifestyle for about 6 months now and along with daily yoga and cardio, have greatly improved my health & wellness. Jesse on the other hand wasn't completely sold on a low carb lifestyle until now. He started reading a book called The Primal Blueprint by Mark Sisson and we've decided to adopt a strict primal/paleo(ish) lifestyle starting today. So last week we got our carb cravings out, especially for rice and bread. I've had a bad craving for Indian food for awhile now and the last time we had it was months ago. 

Pho Dau Bo Vietnamese Restaurant Review

Today is a cold snowy day and also my best friend's birthday. I wanted to treat her for lunch and she decided on our favourite staple, pho. She didn't want to go to our usual place and wanted to go somewhere different, maybe up north (we live and work in the SE quadrant). It was so much easier now to get to the northeast quadrant of the city since Stoney Trail opened up. 

Izumi Sushi Yokozuna Restaurant Review

Assorted Sashimi

Izumi Sushi was formerly Tokyo Gardens, my beloved lunch sushi spot that closed down after being sold. The new owners renamed it Izumi Sushi Yokozuna and made some changes to the interior decor as well as the menu.

Haru Sushi & Grill Restaurant Review

Grilled Squid

Haru is nestled in the strip mall on the McKenzie Towne side of 52 Ave. The decor is very modern & upscale, in comparison to the more traditional, homey look of nearby Ichizen. 

Their menu has most of the traditional sashimi and nigiri sushi staples like salmon & california rolls but I did notice some items that were not so typical. 

A Taste of Saigon Restaurant Review

Satay Beef Pho

About 2 years ago, our family doctor took a sabbatical and moved to Vancouver with her daughter. Last month, I got a call from her office advising that she is back and would like to know if we wanted to be her patients again. 

Sea Fish & Chips Restaurant Review

Fish & Chips

When you feel like good ol' fish & chips, this hidden gem in McKenzie Towne won't let you down. This is pretty much the only place I will eat battered seafood and fries. We've been going here since they first opened and they are still putting out a fantastic meal to satisfy our cravings. 

Seoul Country Korean Restaurant Review

View from the back entrance

We went here for a big family lunch right after the gondola ride. This restaurant is pretty hidden if you're strolling down Banff avenue without knowing exactly where it is. It's tucked behind the same building as my favourite candy store in town, The Fudgery. 

There's a parking lot in the back but during peak times, it's pretty busy. We had to aggressively stalk for empty stalls. My dad finally got tired of it and scooped a spot across the street as soon as we saw someone leaving.

The restaurant decor is pretty standard for a Korean resto. It wasn't too big and was not too busy at 1:00 pm during a long weekend.

Another view from the back entrance

For a party of over 10, which we had, be prepared to pay an automatic gratuity of 20%. I'm a big believer of tipping based on service so this didn't sit too good with me. Luckily, our server was very friendly and attentive so I did not have an issue with it when it was time to pay the bill.

This whole section filled up shortly after we arrived

Each table is set up with a gas burner for  either a hot pot or cook yourself bbq. I was a little concerned with the fact that there were no exhaust vents for each table which was typical of K restos since cook yourself bbq tend to get a bit smoky. We were not planning on ordering bbq this time around so it was a moot point.

We had 16 in our party and we were spread out over 3 tables.

Seafood Hot Pot

We ordered seafood hot pot for each table, which came brimming with crab, scallops, salmon, mussels, tofu, udon noodles, & assorted veggies. It also came with a side of red hot kimchee paste to mix with the broth to taste.

Seafood Hot Pot and side dishes

Each meal is served with an assortment of side dishes. Ours came with bean sprouts, pickled daikon, kim chi, spinach, & of course, rice.

Side dishes

My mom's favourite dish is the seafood pancake. I absolutely loved this dish as well. It's a Korean pancake with squid, scallops, shrimp and green onions. It comes with a bean paste dip that is absolutely fantastic with the little bit of the hot kimchee paste.

Seafood Pancake

To round out our order, we ordered jap chae or glass noodles, and some grilled beef ribs that was served on a hot plate with mushrooms and 2 kinds of onions.

The jap chae was tasty and had a good ratio of noodles to veggies. I found the meat a little tough & chewy, especially the way it was cut which did not look like it was against the grain but the flavour was delicious especially wrapped in lettuce with some bean sauce & kimchi.

Beef Ribs

My parents being creatures of habit love going here every time they visit Banff. I would certainly go back and try their K bbq as well as order the seafood pancake again.