The Pig's Ear Celebrates Irish Fare



Organic Salmon

Being our first time in Ireland, we didn’t have a clue where to dine. Thankfully @AWeathergirl13 lived in Dublin and recommended that we take the time to dine at The Pig’s Ear. A casual eatery serving Irish fare, their food is better than in some restaurants owned by celebrity chefs. Located near Trinity College, they offer healthy sized portions at reasonable prices.

Having seen some of the plates that other diners had, we opted to skip the appetizer and go straight to the entrée since we had already seen their dessert menu and knew there was plenty to choose from.

De New Kid on the Block - DeDutch Grand Opening

The Windmill

Invited to the Grand Opening of DeDutch, I couldn't pass up the chance to check out what a Dutch pannekoeken really was, since I missed the opportunity while in Amsterdam last month. Along with by faithful bodyguard, @thepolishviking, we were pleasantly surpised to enter the restaurant and find it looked nothing like what we were expecting. As opposed to the typical purveyors of breakfast foods whose space looks a bit dated and sterile, at DeDutch, the space was bright and modern. With yellow, white and orange colors dominating both the walls and the furnishings, it was certainly a welcome change from other drab breakfast joints.

Anniversary at Alloy

Zebrino tomato and queso fresco

For the humans’ third wedding anniversary, I really wanted them to do something different than the last few years, which consisted of going out for dinner…. Whopeee….  Granted, they have had some great off menu dinners, but other than that, it wasn’t much different than any other night.

So I contacted Uri at Alloy Restaurant and asked about the possibility of doing an off menu dinner there, and he was more than happy to oblige! We arranged for a date and he asked for a list of the humans favorite ingredients, as well as how many courses they would want and I left the rest in his hands.

Nomiya not so Nommy

Fresh Oyster Nigri

Located in a storefront in the plethora of stores located between Calgary Trail and Gateway Boulevard, Nomiya offers a variety of Japanese food, not just sushi and bento boxes. Their menu is quite extensive and is pages and pages long, offering a huge variety of items.

Consider the length of the menu, it took a substantial amount of time to look through and decide what to order. The server was a bit too eager and we had to send him away several times so we had time to get through the menu and actually choose what we wanted to order.

Satisfying A Craving for Vietnamese Food - The Golden Bird Restaurant

5 Star on Vermicelli

On one summer evening, we were craving Vietnamese food and decided to venture into Chinatown to satisfy our cravings. Unfortunately, our first choice, Pagolac was closed for vacation, so we had settled with finding another place nearby. A few doors down, and less familiar to us was The Golden Bird Restaurant. A decent sized space with quite a few tables, decorated with a Western sensibility with a variety of paintings. The restaurant was empty, so we were quickly shown to a table and handed some menus. The menus were expansive, with pages upon pages of items listed out, but it contained many pictures, which were very helpful in some cases.

Viajante - Have Blind Faith (CLOSED)

Amaranth with sorrel

When deciding on restaurants to dine at in London, I chose Viajante Restaurant on a whim after reading a review in the Edmonton Journal about a restaurant that does blind tastings. Unlike many other restaurants in London, Viajante doesn’t provide you with the menu prior to the meal, the only decisions you get to make are how many courses you want and if you want the wine pairings. The servers say it takes the stress out of eating, allowing the chef to take you on a relaxing, culinary journey. They do of course make accommodations for food allergies and any food you are really adverse to, otherwise, they hope that you will eat whatever they put in front of you, as it was meant to be served. The dining room is divided into two areas, the one we were in which was more secluded with a fireplace without a fire, and the other right by the open kitchen. That evening we chose the 6-course meal and I opted to have it with the wine pairings. In reality, it wound up being more than 6 courses once you add in all the amuse bouches.

Missing the Boat at Culina Millcreek

I’d heard that Culina Millcreek was a good place to go for brunch, and their food was fairly solid regardless of the meal. So on one sunny Sunday morning, I ventured out there with my bovine bodyguard, @thepolishviking of Dine and Write.

The restaurant itself is fairly small, but the menu was quite extensive and everything looked good. After perusing and debating, we managed to narrow down our choices, even though we could’ve easily ordered almost every item. We began with grilled cornbread, accompanied with Saskatoon berry butter. The cornbread is dense, and slightly sweet, a good start to our morning, while the Saskatoon berry flavor doesn’t quite manage to break through the butter taste.

Meandering Dinner at Red Ox Inn

Pork Belly

We had heard from many people that Red Ox Inn was one of those places you take someone on a special occasion, but hadn’t a clue where it was located. So when the male humans boss offered to take the humans out to celebrate the males seven years with the company, I suggested they go to the Red Ox Inn and take Moo with them.

Located on the South side of the river in what looks to be a very residential neighborhood, the small strip of stores stuck out. The restaurant itself is very small, so small that we had to wait outside while they got our table ready. Inside there are banquettes lining all the walls, with tables in front of them and chairs on the other side of the tables.