alibioe

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Oh golly... I need to bake again.

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The Move: Finale

I've officially moved everything over to my new Wordpress site.

Find me at alibioe.com

So long Tumblr. It's been nice knowing you and the only reason I'll check in is to see my frieeends XD.

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Aaand we might as well finish this food storm today with a picture of dog. DOG.

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GAH and this is what "Good afternoon" looks like XD.

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Lol, the bagel's all, "NOO I'MA BE EATEN."

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This is what "Good morning" looks like.

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YEAH 'cause having a series of GIFs makes it look so much easier XD.

Seriously, this is so cool.

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Woohoo! Alibi: OE broke into the top 50 and it's all thanks to you, readers and clickers and fellow foodies! Thanks bunches y'all, because if you didn't click this blog wouldn't be on that front page (=

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Oatmeal is oh-so-good for you. It's also a healthy and nutritious meal to start the day. Here I have oatmeal drizzled with evaporated milk and fresh blackberries. And then I have it mixed up. Om nom.

Aaaand now I want some oatmeal. Rawr.

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Muku

The number of times I've been to this place is nearing the number of fingers on my hand (but am I counting the thumbs?!) but there's a very good reason for all my continued patronage.

This time, Vivi and I visited to catch up and grab some delicious chow We ended up ordering the same dish and an appetizer to start the meal off. The takoyaki (4.95) was steaming hot but not crispy (which it should be), and soft and chewy on the inside (which it should be also). One outta two ain't bad, especially with the sauce and mayo, and it was definitely good enough that we started eating before remembering to take a picture.

Our beef yakisoba (9.95) came shortly after and, hands down, after two and a half years this dish is still my absolute favourite at the restaurant. The sauce is sweet, the egg is thick, the beef is tender and the noodles... well, the noodles could star in a musical. A Japanese opera. The quantity of food is also ridiculously lots, and is enough to fill even my tummy until I am so happy-full.

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Muku 326 - 14 Street NW Calgary, Alberta T2N 1Z7 403-283-6555

Pros: Lasting quality, straightforward and very polite service and decent prices all around.

Cons: Seating can get a bit busy but if you can get to the restaurant just a little bit earlier than dinner you'll get in fine. The hours are strange, with Muku being closed sometimes in between lunch and dinner, but it's still okay.

There really isn't much else I can add to the list of glowing reviews Muku's already earned, except to point out that despite me being the picky, frugal eater I am, I've returned to this place more times than any other sit-down restaurant in Calgary, and would go once more in a heartbeat.

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loungeburger

I apologize ahead of time for the quality of the photos. The place was extremely dim and I didn't have a proper camera with me *bows head in shame* ... then again, I rarely have a proper camera with me XD.

Anyway, five weeks ago J and I went on a bit of an adventure and rambled along Stephen Avenue into Central Park, Central Park Library and... then we found ourselves at loungeburger. Actually, J had the whole thing planned out (or it sure seemed like he did) so we arrived at loungeburger right on time for our reservation and armed with a Living Social ($20 for $40). The place was cool, dim and felt like a trendy keep, as if someone had turned a castle guardroom into a bar for all the town fops.

At first glance the burgers seemed standard in price, until we realized that all burgers came a la carte and sides required a minimum of 3 more dollars. Huh. With our Living Social coupon though we were somewhat okay with the prices (but still not entirely!)

J and I ended up ordering two burgers and three sides. While the restaurant was almost entirely empty (there were two groups of two beside us) we waited for at least 20 minutes before the waitress took our order, and another 40 minutes before any food came. Conversation sure gets stale when you start taking turns with your dinner partner wondering aloud when the food will come.

Finally the food came. Hurrah. Jack had ordered a Big Kahuna burger (14.75) and waffle fries (3). While the burger was decent, the pineapple was a little disappointing (being very small and limp and therefore not prevalent). The taste overall was bolstered by the teriyaki mayo and bacon (bacon almost always saves the day) but J said without the pineapple he had been expecting, the burger was standard fare. The waffle fries on the other hand were pretty amazing, being hot and crisp and probably right off the fryer. They tasted similar to curly fries and I'm pretty sure the extra crisp is simply because the waffle cut allows for more surface area to be deep-fried (and subsequently saliva-inducing).

We ordered a side of kettle chips (3.5) too (more to get the most out of our Living Social) and those were tasty too, although with both chips and fries the quality was inconsistent. Some waffle fries were crisp and hot, others cold and slightly mushy, and it was the same for the kettle chips. Neither of us cared much for the dip that came with the kettle chips, since it tasted (and had about the same appeal) as an overly greasy mayo.

My burger came with a side of soup, and both were pretty tasty. What pleasantly surprised me was that my Black & Blue burger (12.25) had a good helping of blue cheese indeed, but the flavour of the blue cheese wasn't so overwhelming that I couldn't appreciate the taste of the meat itself. The barbecue sauce paired well with the rest of the burger and worked out surprisingly well with the blue cheese; the overall effect was a slightly pungent but sweet and tangy bite.

The feature soup (4) was even better, and turned out to be the star of my meal, being a carrot and ginger puree. There was so much ginger that the heat warmed my belly well over (just like ginger should be used), and I was surprised that the waitress hadn't given more of a warning. In fact, she had completely forgotten to tell us what the feature soup was and only responded when we asked a last minute question before she left. Regardless, I appreciated the buttery sweetness of the carrot, plentiful use of ginger and citrus notes (I think they added orange juice to the puree, because that fruit usually pairs well with those veggies).

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loungeburger 270 - 14 Avenue SE Calgary, Alberta T2G 0L3 403-250-2747

Pros: Food is well-done for the most part and decor is pretty chill.

Cons: Prices are higher than what I'd usually pay for a burger and yet the quality can be a hit and miss, as evidenced by the information above. The wait was ridiculously long combined with the waitress' inattention wasn't impressive.

If someone had another coupon, I might chance coming back to loungeburger. Their soup certainly beckons. Unfortunately that doesn't determine a re-visit. The burgers aren't amazing and the other sides are lacklustre, and for what else would you want to visit a burger joint?

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Dairy Lane Cafe

Just under three months ago, Gaia and I got together to check out the Dairy Lane Cafe, a place I had heard much about but hadn't had the opportunity to visit, until now. The place was much tinier than I expected, feeling almost like I was invading someone's front room. However, the atmosphere was friendly and full of what seemed like other friends catching up. We got in right before the dinner rush (always a good idea to head in half an hour before you'd actually want a meal, really) and managed to get a seat without much wait.

The menu is short and sweet, something I like because it means less chance of choice paralysis. Gaia and I ended up ordering the same Dairy Lane burger (11.75), albeit hers with fries and mine with soup (+1). The wait was pretty long for such a small location; I think we waited for about 45 minutes before any food arrived. The waitress did give us a heads-up that they were making a fresh batch of fries and apologized for the wait, but still, a 45-minute wait is no insignificant amount of time.

At long last the fries arrived and... well, I have to warn you, I think they were trying to make up for the wait time with this amount of fries, because I didn't see any other table receive a platterful like ours:

Our burgers arrived with the fries (the burger behind is a better shot than the one coming up) and mine came with soup. The soup, a black bean and corn soup, was oh-so-worth-the-extra-dollar. Seriously. I could have ordered a large bowl of that soup and gone home happy and content. The black beans were enhanced with a bit of heat, the sweetness of the corn emphasized by the tinge of lime juice and the cilantro just made everything better. Oh yes. Cilantro offsets spice so nicely, because it doesn't take away the heat but it makes your mouth feel clean, so you've got a wonderful juxtaposition of refreshing warmth on your tongue.

Oh yeah, the burgers were good and so were the fries. They were, however, pretty standard fare, especially the fries. The only thing that really stood out about the burgers was the produce rather than the meat. Don't get me wrong, the burger itself was flavourful enough but it was the perfect butter lettuce leaf and the massive slice of juicy, savoury tomato that made the burger beautiful. For me this was the first time eating "local produce" really made a difference, and the simplicity of the burger allowed the produce to shine.

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Dairy Lane Cafe 319 - 19 Street NW Calgary, AB T2N 2J2 403-283-2497

Pros: Dairy Lane Cafe is probably the first restaurant that I would recommend if someone wanted local produce; they make good use of their ingredients and their food is simple enough so individual ingredients shine out.

Cons: The cons of this restaurant all come down to logistics: limited seating, a slow kitchen and (it seems) an inability to keep up with a full house gave me plenty of time to catch up with my friend, but kept us wondering when our food was going to show up.

I could write poetry about soup, because I'm slowly discovering that it is one of the tastier (and often cheaper) ways to eat at a restaurant. Dairy Lane Cafe's food is no exception to my musings, but with the wait time I could probably pen an epic about a hungry heroine and have time to spare.

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Banzai

One blustery windy downtown day, Gray and I decided to try a fast-food Japanese place. No, I don't mean Umi Sushi. I mean Banzai, and as I've found out... well, you'll see.

Banzai is a pretty chill location. Located on the edge of downtown, Banzai looks like a cross between a sit-down restaurant and a fast food chain. You order up at the register and if you stay they'll bring the food to you. We got there on a weekday about half an hour before the lunch hour and ordered. I had a coupon from the SUTP books to use, so we ended up ordering two entrees and receiving one free.

The food came quickly enough, and just in time, too; the place started getting real busy right after Gray and I started eating. Gray had ordered a chicken udon bowl (7.95) and it looked and tasted pretty swell. The chicken was juicy and the meat plenty.

I ordered a tempura udon (7.95), and for those of you wondering whether the tempura was soggy or not: it wasn't! The tempura came on the side and it was quite a lot for a bowl the same price as Gray's chicken udon. Not to brag, but five pieces of tempura and a full bowl of udon sure feels extravagant at this price. (For comparison's sake, Sakana's tempura udon is $10.50 at lunch and the tempura is about the same). Even without the tempura I would've been pretty happy: naruto and caramelized onion garnish always makes for some tasty eats. The broth in particular was well done. I'm pretty sensitive to over-salted soups and normally don't drink it with my noodles but this broth was so tasty I wanted to drink all of it. 'Twasn't too salty and the broth complemented the noodles well. The tempura wasn't too heavily battered and the amount was enough to make me feel satisfied, which is better than stuffed.

Our free entree (from the coupon) was a special roll, called the BC roll. At 6.95, the 8 pieces of salmon, roe, tobiko and garlic chips was more than enough and a great deal. The fish tasted fresh and the garlic chips gave the mostly-soft roll a welcome crunch. Om nom.

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Banzai 526 - 4 Avenue SW Calgary, AB T2P1V5 403-262-9060

Pros: Fair pricing, speedy service and tasty food can all be found here. I'd pay full price for this place. Don't expect gourmet food but you'll get a good, solid and satisfying meal.

Cons: Busy times mean longer waits and this place definitely gets into a bit of a slog during the rush hour. Best to come early if you want to savour a meal without having to stand too long in line.

All in all, Banzai was a delightful discovery and I'm going to go back this summer before school starts again. Heh heh heh.

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Look! I went back in time and landed on a mountain. Also, the hat's pulled low over my face 'cause I didn't want my poor nose to burn D:

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Just over a month ago I made Charm a peach lady cake for her birthday. I kid you not, the lady cake here represents what I think of Charm: peaches (= sweet and delicate), light custard (= gentle) vanilla (= appreciation of daily life) and fluffy (= comfortable). She's the most feminine of my friends but also one of the most loyal, honest and godly women I know.

The peaches in the centre were sliced really thinly so they could curl slightly. Yes. The curling of those petals was a happy moment.

On another note: work's almost done and I'll be back to blogging more soon! Bahahaha!

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Lunch Bags and Water Bottles

Sandwiches are the best kind of meal when your mum makes them and cuts the bread the way you like it. I've probably eaten over a thousand sandwiches made by Mum, all cut diagonally because eating along the hypotenuse makes the sandwich feel larger than a horizontally-cut one.

In the midst of pb&j sandwiches and filled water bottles I realize that if Mum has taught me one thing it is to love through serving others. She expects neither recompense nor gratitude and likes knowing that we're eating the lunches she packs rather than food from outside. Indeed there have been days where I've snapped at Mum impatiently in the morning, only to unpack and eat the sandwich box that she filled at lunch and remember that I as a daughter still have a very long way to go in learning to love Mum appropriately.

Peanut butter and jelly and multigrain bread are glorious, not for themselves (although they are good) but because they remind me of the many ways in which Mum loves. Thanks, Mum.

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Aaaand this is for J XD.