...Jule's Wellness Subscription Box (September 2015)

This post is a little different as we have not reviewed anything other than restaurants.  However, I've had such a great experience with Jule's Wellness Lifestyle Subscription Box so far that I wanted to share it here on the blog.  Also, they feature several food items in their boxes so I thought it would be relevant.  If you're interested to know more, read on.

I've always been curious about subscription boxes and like the idea of receiving a surprise in the mail every month (who wouldn't?!).  After doing some research, one of the boxes I signed up for is Jule's Wellness.  Jule's Wellness is a Canadian company that offers gift baskets and an online store filled with "luxury health conscious" products ranging from skincare, snacks, chocolates, teas to baby/kid items.  The subscription boxes are often filled with female focused organic, artisanal and natural full sized products.  Each subscription box is $34.32 + GST (includes shipping in Canada) and you can subscribe to 3, 6 or 12 months at a time which saves you some money.

My experience with Jule's Wellness has been fantastic.  I left a comment whilst checking out never expecting a response, but received an email from Julie herself thanking me for the order and reassuring me of when my box would arrive.  The subscription box arrived as promised not a day late in my mailbox.  Here is what the September 2015 box looked like when I first opened it:

The box came with a helpful list of the products and a little description of each one.  Here is a snapshot of each product and their prices.

Consonant Organic Foaming Face Wash - $18

The Honest Leaf Serene Loose Leaf Tea - $13

Wash & Beauty Co. Konjac Sponge - $14

K's NRG Bar - $3

Manitoba Harvest Hemp Heart Bites - $7

Consonant  DHE Mask - Sample

The total value of the box was $55, which in my opinion is a great deal especially since I loved all the products I received.  The hemp bites were something I enjoyed and wouldn't have tried on my own and I am excited to use the skin care products.  I am thinking Jule's Wellness Subscription Box and baskets would make a perfect gift for any health conscious person in your life.  I hope this post was useful to some of you.  What is your favourite subscription box?

This post is not sponsored, all opinions are my own.

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...Ohh La La Patisserie (Calgary)

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

There is something about the rainbow of colours in a display of macarons that just speaks to my five year old self who would wonder if crayons tasted as delicious as they looked.  The perfect macaron to me is light, airy, not too sweet or chewy and tastes intensely of the flavour as advertised by its name.  We've had the pleasure of sampling many a macaron over the years in France as well as here in Calgary.  The best ones we've encountered in Calgary thus far are found at Ohh La La Patisserie.  We loved their macarons so much we had them as party favours for our daughter's full moon celebration, which our guests loved and still talk about.

Our favourite macaron flavours at Ohh La La are the pistachio, matcha and lemon velvet.  These encompassed the perfect macaron for us.  Our least favourite was the lychee and raspberry which was still wonderful but the lychee flavour was too subtle to detect.  The list of current flavours can be found on their website.  For our daughters full moon, we spoke with the very friendly owner and pastry chef, Sebastian Judkovski, who was able to fulfill our requests even on short notice.

Also unique to Ohh La La are their macaron cakes.  We tried the mini macaron cakes in matcha and raspberry flavours.  Again, they were just the right texture and not too sweet, topped with fresh fruit.

Our daughter trying to grab at the cake- she already has good taste!

Other than macaron cakes, Ohh La La also makes other impressive cakes and this cute hazelnut dome shaped cake was a taster of what we believe to be their larger "Rocher" cake.  Rich and decadent, it tastes as amazing as it looks!

Not to be missed are their croissants which are flaky and delicious, our favourite is the almond croissant.

On the more savoury side are their caprese rolls which strike the perfect balance of savoury flavour.

Finally we also had their raspberry scones which currently may not be available since they are seasonal but if their other scones taste anything like these, you can't go wrong.

Our overall impression is that Ohh La La takes careful measures to ensure the quality of each pastry.  There has never been a time when we thought their pastries were less than fresh or their seasonings too sweet (or salty).  Everything from the beautiful presentation of the cakes to the personable service reflects chef Sebastian's worthy sense of pride in his craft.  Needless to say, we already have plans to go back and try what we missed!

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...Bistro Suzette (Calgary)

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

Until recently, the rising profile of other cuisines from around the world captured the appetites of many, from Spanish tapas to the now ubiquitous presence of Asian flavours everywhere you look.  French food is making a steady comeback since chefs have reimagined traditional French cooking.  A while back we compiled a list of our favourite French Bistros in Calgary for Taste Trekkers and if only Bistro Suzette were open then, it certainly would have a place on that list.

Bistro Suzette opened just over a week in the former location of one of our previous favourites, Bistro 2210.  Suzette serves dishes from the Normandy and Brittany regions of northern France. There is an emphasis on rich and earthy flavours cooked up without pretense. Attention to little details from the French speaking wait staff to the Opinel pocket knives repurposed to steak knives all serve to transport you straight to France.  Darrin had the recommended semi dry apple cider in a latte cup (as its traditionally done according to our friendly server) and I had the Kir Breton which was sparkling wine with cider.

Their specialties are the galettes and crepes. The Breton style galettes are crispy and thin buckwheat pancakes that are stuffed with various savoury ingredients. We chose the Forestière at the recommendations of our waiter which was filled with cremini mushrooms, oyster mushrooms, potatoes and topped with a light salad. Earthy and satisfying are the two words that come to mind when eating this dish.  What we appreciated the most was the delicate balance of flavours; each ingredient was enhanced by the other and perfectly seasoned.

Our mains included the steak frites and the fish of the day, trout en papillote. The pre-sliced steak was tender and perfectly rested while the frites were thin and crispy just the way we like them.

To our surprise the steamed trout stole the show with how fresh and moist it was. Trout doesn't have the same fat content as salmon and has tendency to dry out which is why we typically steer clear; however Suzette utilized the method of steaming the fish in its own parchment pouch rendering it perfectly cooked. The lemon beurre blanc added a wonderful dimension of flavour and richness to this delicate dish.

For dessert, we chose the Suzette and Normand crepe.  The Suzette was topped with orange juice, zest and Grand Marnier which was flambéed table side.  Eating this crepe is almost like eating an orange itself; sweet and refreshing.  The slight bitterness of the zest and the Grand Marnier kept it from being overly sweet.

The Normande is topped with caramelized apples, flambéed Calvados and vanilla ice cream.  This was like eating a delicious apple pie in crepe form.

Bistro Suzette's focus on Northern French cooking is unique in Calgary, and we hope to return in the near future.

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