In TO now- last time there, in August, Sam James had not yet opened, so very much looking forward!

Caffe Rosso downtown (in the convention centre near Centini) is open but IMHO it looks sad and dark with cheap-looking furniture, nothing like the glorious reno that Insomnia is, but perhaps they aren't quite done with carpentry etc. Brand new Synesso though and coffees from Terroir. As well, the new (third location) of DeVille has its signage up at Fashion Central- looks like the space where Fiasco Gelato used to occupy.

There is, I heard, yet another indie coffee bar opening soon in the space that used to be Pharaoh's donair at 12 and 12 SW, east of Crush.

I doubt very many places will be open New Years Day. Chinatown might be your best bet.

I'd second this, we were driving down 16th ave NE near centre the evening of xmas day and the only shop with an open sign on was a chinese restaurant.

thx yah my friend was going to take me for dim sum a few times i guess so...

I went to the new Rosso (which seemed to happen entirly during the 12 days I was gone at the beginning of the month) and agree with you about the decor, it's a little drab, however, the coffee was not bad at all. Unfortunately, I can't see a reason to go there with Insomnia right there and Deville around the corner.

I went to the refinished Pints and Half Pints last week, now called Fiddler's Court British Pub in Crescent Heights. It was as I feared: pearls put on a pig. It's quite a cheap face lift. I was hoping for something along the lines of a James Joyce with some quality wood and fixtures. Alas, it was not meant to be.

On a good note, my pints of Keiths cost less than $5 (though it may have been happy hour), so I can't say I won't return. :tup:

I'm not surprised it isn't fancy, the place was slapped together in less than a month. Personally, I'd take cheap beer over quality wood. Besides it's who you're sitting with that makes a night out fun, not the paneling.

How was the food?

I had the fish and chips and they were decent. Against my recommendation, my brother had the roast beef with yorkshire puddings. It was definitely at least a day old; they looked microwaved and soft. His wife had a burger and salad and both looked quite nice. Burger was cooked medium, but she didn't mind. We'll definitely use it as a watering hole.

Been to Fiddler's Courtyard many times now since it opened. Not the fanciest place in Calgary, but friendly staff and more than fair prices.

If you want a massive burger, try the Fiddler's Burger, as it is 2 giant patties, with bacon, cheese, and all the other toppings.

Can anyone recommend a restaurant downtown tonight?

The provisions are that it would preferably be in the $15-25 range, and within 2-3 blocks of the Hyatt. Probably doesn't leave much choice. Gypsy Bistro looks interesting. How is it for price?

hahah my friend ended up there on a drunken night out. He told me about the massive burger, so large he couldn't figure out how to eat it. I didn't really care. I was more amused with the name. Fiddler's Courtyard. Pretty much the worst pub name in the city. Every time I hear it I think of migets in court jesters uniforms playing the fiddle! LOL :jester:

Why did Wildwood shut down?

Really it shut down?:sly:

I heard that they goofed and failed to renew their lease..

No idea, but according to this month's City Palate, the space has been taken over the the Mercato people, so don't count on it being empty for long. As well, it's highly likely that Wildwood will re-emerge somewhere in the future.

But let's focus on the future- the pics and plans for Una Pizza, the place taking over Wicked Wedge space on 17th, look pretty amazing considering how much they seem to be squeezing into the space. Food looks damn fine as well.

http://unapizzeria.tumblr.com/

This is a question for Rusty since he seems to be the resident expert, or at least one of them. I like coffee, but my taste for it is decidedly not mature. Where would I go to get, in our opinion, Calgary's best a) cappuccino b) brewed cup of coffee.
thanks

The best cappo in town is in my kitchen (I have references!) but some things to look for is that the espresso part is done right (beans ground to order, good-looking 20-30 second shot), that the milk is steamed properly (not burnt, not re-heated; the milk should be textured not like meringue but like silk and you should be able to drink a proper cappuccino right away, not having to wait for it to cool off), and that the drink is the proper size in a 5 or 6 oz cup. No 10, 12, or 16 oz drinks. There are tons of places to get good ones and I'd say any of Artigiano, Bumpy's, De Ville, Rosso, Kawa, Phil and Sebastian, Insomnia, Ladybug, Cafe Crema can pull one off. I've never had a cappo at Good Earth but they seem to be doing things right these days too. Sadly I can't think of any restaurants that do a really good cappuccino, but I'm happy to be schooled on that end.

Brewed? Not really my thing, but jeffwhit extols the press pot coffees at Insomnia. I'm more an espresso/macchiato person.

^^ Thank you sir.

^^ Yeah, for brewed coffee Insomnia's French Press (particularly the Ethiopian, if they have it, they do two a day) is the best I have had in Calgary or anywhere.

Personally, I like Phil and Sebastian's and Kawa's espresso just a little better than everyone else that Rusty mentioned, though since I work downtown, I find myself going to DeVille for that. Needless to say, there is (suddenly) a HUGE abundance of great coffee in the Centre City area. \

I've also had fantastic French Press at the Sheldon Chumir Good Earth (the Cup of Excellence bean at the time) and really, everyone who likes coffee should try a clover at Kawa or the Centrium Place Caffe Artigiano at least once.

^Phil and Sebastian (both locations) have Clovers too.

I hope somebody starts to sell siphon-brewed coffees. Calgary absolutely smears Toronto for 3rd-wave coffee places, but I saw two shops there over Xmas that had siphon setups. None that I know of in Calgary do, yet.