...Eden at the Rimrock Resort Hotel (Banff)

Overall - 9.5/10
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Food - 9.5/10
Service - 9.5/10
Ambiance - 9.5/10

Over the past few years there seems to have been a trend in the Calgary dining scene towards more rustic and homestyle fair. Some of the most popular places like Model Milk, Cibo and Briggs all focus on simple flavours, generous portions and a casual atmosphere.  These are the places we gravitate to most often when we're looking for a great meal, but there comes a time every so often when you just want to get dressed up and try something different. When it comes to a complete dining experience, Eden at the Rimrock Resort Hotel is a close as it gets, being the only AMA 5 diamond restaurant in 2015.  The food is unique, exciting and inventive while the dining room is as stunning as the food.

Although you pay a premium for the food and the view, we have never walked away regretting our time at Eden. They offer both an a la carte menu as well as a chef's tasing menu. This evening we both went with the tasting menu.

The evening was started with an amuse bouche of house made bresaola (dry aged cured beef) with mustard and herbs. This little bite was savoury and really whet our appetites for the meal to come.

The bread seemed to be a course in itself and included sourdough, crusty baguette and a whole wheat loaf served with three types of luxurious butter; a goat milk butter, olive oil whipped butter with balsamic and a hay-smoked butter.

Our soup course was a rich and deeply aromatic elk consume.

Our fish courses started with a generous serving of three large freshly shucked oysters in a herbacious parsely sauce. Granted I'm not usually the biggest fan of parsely but in this dish it did compliment the briny flavour of the oysters.

Our next dish was like a deconstructed sushi roll- a half seared tuna served with a smoked tuna mousse and sweet avocado sorbet.

The foie gras course I felt was the most creative and was actually a rich and savoury soup made from the foie gras. The usual accompaniments like toasted bread and fruit where present but in the form of a spiced crouton and plum pureé.  The dish was unique but familiar at the same time.

A refreshing red currant sorbet was provided as a palate cleanser.

As we were dining just after the Christmas season, the main course for the night was an homage to the traditional holiday dinner.  Instead of the usual turkey, we were served a perfectly roasted deboned quail stuffed with a delicious dressing and served with cranberry pureé a crispy brussel sprout croquette.

The cheese course was a nice segue between the savoury and sweet courses. The Brillat Savarin if you've never had it before is a triple cream brie that is soft, runny and quite salty. Paired with the carefully prepared 'encapsulated honey' and berries it was a great match.

Our desserts started with a warm spice cake which again was a nice reminder of the recent holiday season.

The petit fours were served on the edge of a large glass bowl full of boiling dry ice in very theatrical presentation.  Included was a chocolate truffle, chocolate cake and what we believe was an almond cake. 

We still have very fond memories of our dinner at Eden and hope to return for our next special occasion.

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...Fairmont Banff Springs Afternoon Tea (Rundle Lounge)

Overall - 9/10
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Food - 8/10
Service - 9/10
Ambiance - 9/10

We made our annual getaway to Banff after Christmas this year with our daughter in tow.  One thing that is worth trying at least once in Banff is the afternoon tea at the Fairmont Banff Springs hotel in the Rundle Lounge.  Although it was pretty much out of the question this time around, we had the pleasure, pre-baby last spring.  Afternoon tea is really an experience that should be enjoyed at a leisurely pace, especially if you are able to reserve a window side table overlooking the mountains.

The experience begins with a server bringing out a cart of 12 different teas for you to choose from.  You are able to smell the teas and before making your choice.  At the time, I was pregnant so I opted for the herbal "Berry Berry" which was quite good.

 The set menu begins with a small selection of fresh berries.  To be honest, I was initially hoping for a little more than what was served but in hindsight the amount is probably just right in light of all the food that is to be consumed.

The best items on the menu in our opinion was the scones.  The savoury sun dried tomato and the sweet berry scones together with the Devonshire cream and strawberry jam really was quite amazing.  They were soft, light, flaky and everything you would want a scone to be.

After the scones, the beautifully arranged 3-tiered tray is brought out with the finger sandwiches and pastries.  

The sandwich selection included cucumber and avocado cream cheese, egg salad on a croissant, smoked salmon with Boursin cheese, beef pinwheel and chicken mango sandwich.  Overall the sandwiches were very mild in flavour and were very standard.  Although we did not expect anything overly creative, we were slightly disappointed by the offerings.  For example, we could not taste the mango in the chicken salad sandwich and or the avocado cream cheese in the cucumber sandwich, despite my hypersenstive palate. 

The top two tiers showcased the sweet pastries: madeline, berry mascarpone cheesecake, key lime meringue tart, macaroon and a chocolate dipped pecan brownie.  By the time we started on the pastries, we were starting to feel full.  Luckily we were able to box up the ones we could not finish and the server even asked us if there was anything else we wanted to take home (unfortunately the scones were not included in that offer).  Our favourites out of the selection was the chocolate dipped pecan brownie.

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...Banff Springs Hotel Brunch Buffet

Overall - 8/10
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Food - 8/10
Service - 8/10
Ambiance - 9/10

The past two years we seem to have started a traditional post-Christmas trip out to Banff to escape the hustle and bustle of the holiday season for some skiing and good eats. This year we decided to check out the brunch buffet at the Bow Valley Grill at Banff Springs hotel. Thankfully we made reservations in advance as the place was packed with vacation goers escaping the city like us. In order to get some decent photos of the food we really had to control our impulse to fill our plates to the brim which was really hard considering the delicious spread that was set out!

Photo courtesy of Fairmont Hotels & Resorts

First off was what I call the breakfast plate. Starting from the bottom and going clockwise is the eggs benedict; an egg, bean and cheese breakfast bake; corned beef hash; orange roasted duck; beef rib eye; and farmers sausage. Perhaps the best thing on this plate was the eggs benedict which had a perfectly poached egg with runny yolk and delicious hollandaise sauce.  

Next up was the cold plate that included grilled veggies with aged balsamic; smoked mackerel; smoked salmon; lemon pepper grilled shrimp; and hot smoked salmon. In addition to this chilled seafood there was a huge array of leafy green, pasta and vegetable salads to choose from. The fish on this plate were expertly smoked and cured highlighting the delicate seafood flavours.

The seafood dishes were also a highlight of the buffet and included clams in a cream sauce; swordfish in a orange butter sauce; shrimp and salmon in a cream sauce; braised red cabbage; and roasted tomato penne. The fish was very fresh and well cooked which was a surprise as fish at a buffet can easily overcook sitting under the heat lamps. The orange butter sauce on the swordfish was really unique and lent a great sweetness to the fish. 

True to Albertan values, the meat section of the largest of all the sections of the buffet. My excitement got the best of me this trip and I may have overloaded my plate just a touch. In any case starting from the bottom is a roasted pork loin; goat cheese mashed potatoes; beef tenderloin in a Saskatoon berry sauce, chicken in a cream sauce; and roasted lamb. The lamb was some of the best I've ever had, perfectly cooked and tender to boot.

Unfortunately the photos above are only a small fraction of what was available that day. Thankfully the dishes seem to stay the same over our last few visits so even if you're full you can always go back to sample what you didn't get a chance to the first time around.  The buffet was priced at $45 per person and was a bit pricey, but considering the great views and huge selection of high quality dishes it was a nice treat after a busy holiday season.

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