Calgary, Canada Restaurants

Bow Valley Ranche Restaurant

Bow Valley Ranche Restaurant encourages diners to ‘escape city life without leaving Calgary’, with its tranquil location in Fish Creek Park, one of the largest urban parks in North America. Open for lunch, dinner and Sunday brunch, the recently-renovated restaurant offers contemporary Canadian cuisine, which matches perfectly with the restaurant’s setting in a restored ranch house. The menu features dishes such as elk prosciutto, sous-vide venison leg with a roasted garlic Yukon potato and parsnip puree, and grass-fed Alberta striploin steak. The restaurant also offers 300 labels of wine, and a six course tasting menu that changes each week.

A mainstay of Calgary’s fine dining scene, Teatro serves Italian cuisine with a French twist. Housed in the Dominion Bank building, the restaurant’s interior features high ceilings, large windows, a few historic bank features, as well as an open brass kitchen. The menu highlights local organic produce and game, offering a selection of antipasti, pizzas prepared in a wood-burning oven, risottos and pastas. The restaurant also offers an extensive selection of Canadian, French and Italian wines.

The Belvedere

One of Calgary’s most stylish restaurants, The Belvedere is a local favourite for special occasions, business lunches and dates. The contemporary menu is complex and constantly changing, focusing on seasonal food. Foie gras is frequently offered as an appetizer, along with mains such as venison served with peppercorn cream sauce and Alberta bison served on a beetroot risotto. Set in a historic sandstone building, the restaurant’s interior features walnut woodwork, plush draperies and a large skylight. The restaurant also offers an impressive wine selection, with more than 750 wines to choose from, as well as 5- or 7-course tasting menus with wine pairings.

Laurier Lounge

Laurier Lounge is an intimate restaurant set in a century old heritage building, the childhood home of George F.G. Stanley, designer of the Canadian flag. The restaurant’s eclectic menu draws inspiration from French cuisine, featuring tapas, sandwiches, and creative poutine dishes, including a Bouillabaisse Lobster Poutine with Quebec cheese curds and PEI lobster. The restaurant is best known, however, for its fondue, with diners able to choose from several different cooking styles. In addition to the cosy dining room, the restaurant also offers seating in a relaxed bar area or out on the patio during the summer months.