Once exclusively the domain of ultra-fancy French restaurants, tartare is in! With casual pubs and creative high-concept restaurants all adding it to the menu, tartare is no longer a rare delicacy in Calgary. Here are some recommended spots to sample this “It” dish.
Tartare in a sports bar? With its cheeky decor and chef-driven menu, Home and Away isn’t your typical sports bar, and its slam dunk of a beef tartare – made with Brant Lake Wagyu and served with deviled egg aioli, mustard greens and pork-butter toast – is not your typical appetizer.
With a one-seat barbershop out front, Cannibale is the pinnacle of cocktail cool in Calgary, but its kitchen also puts out some bites that go far beyond typical bar snacks. The beef tartare is made with AAA Silver Sage tenderloin, simply dressed with truffle powder and an egg yolk and served with crostini.
Located in the Wyndham Garden Hotel near the airport, the stylish Eleven Kitchen and Bar has a surprisingly sophisticated menu that includes a classic beef tartare with cornichons, egg yolk, crispy capers and horseradish. For something different, there’s also a vegan “tartare” consisting of roasted beets, apple chips, cashew cheese and pea shoots.
Outstandingly creative cocktails are Bar C’s biggest draw, but its menu of small, medium and big plates offers some pretty tasty fare. The restaurant’s raw bar mostly features oysters and other delights of the sea, with a bison tartare served with potato chips representing land dwelling livestock.
A proper Parisian-style brasserie should serve an excellent beef tartare and Parc, thankfully, does not disappoint. Served in the traditional style with pickled onion, egg and crostini, Parc’s expertly seasoned tartare is available either as an appetizer or an entree.
One of Calgary’s best French restaurants, Cassis was doing tartare before it was fashionable, and the Killarney restaurant’s version remains one of the tastiest in town. Its beef tartare au couteau is made of Alberta Prime beef and comes with a side of duck fat potato chips for an extra indulgence.
This elegant oasis in the Manchester industrial area just west of MacLeod Trail features a menu full of classic dishes with a touch of Mediterranean flair as well as subtle Asian and other international influences. Chef Rogelio Herrara’s Alberta beef tartare is made special with mole verde, chipotle jam, potato chips and heirloom tomato.
For something completely different, try kifto. The Ethiopian equivalent of French tartare, it consists of minced raw beef, a chili spice blend and clarified butter infused with herbs and spices. Fassil, a friendly Ethiopian place on International Avenue with a varied and flavourful menu, offers a particularly good kifto alongside its other meat and vegetarian dishes.