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Escoba Bistro & Wine Bar
Categories: Restaurants Canadian (New) Nightlife Bars Wine Bars Canadian (New), Wine Bars [Edit]
624 8 Ave SWCalgary, AB T2P 1G4
(403) 543-8911
- Hours:
Mon-Fri 11 am - 10 pm
Sat 5 pm - 10 pm
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Price Range:
-
$$$
- Take Away:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Wi-Fi:
- Free
- Music:
- Background
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Smoking:
- No
- Coat Check:
- Yes
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Good For Dancing:
- No
- Has TV:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- No
- Dogs Allowed:
- No
12 reviews for Escoba Bistro & Wine Bar
12 reviews in English
-
Review from Nick S.
3/31/2012 4 Check-ins Here
This is a regular lunch haunt of mine.
First, I love that I can book a reservation online... they call me to confirm the day of the reservation ... and when I get there, the place can be jam packed (as always) but I am seated immediately.
For me, the service has always been A+. They push the wine, but that's ok, as the wine I've accepted has been very good.
The food has also been very good, to excellent.
I'm deducting one star, because SOME of the menu items have been overdone in the "smokiness" aspect, in my opinion.
For example, the salmon main. It permeates the whole meal, risotto included, rather than just the salmon. Some contrast there would be nice. Otherwise, think a smokey jambalaya.
I'd also lose the TV's showing the fireplace DVD. Some real fireplaces would add to the ambiance. TV's.... not so much. Your restaurant actually stands on it's own, without the need for props.
But don't get me wrong... the overall experience has always been great for me, and I will continue coming back. -
Review from Diane F.
3/21/2012
We went here for hubby's birthday a couple years ago and had a great dining experience. Our waitress was funky, cool and efficient as well as friendly.
I love the ambience... nice, dark and romantic. Perfect for a birthday dinner celebration for two(or more if you choose)!
The food was really good. We split the cheese plate and stuffed mushrooms to start. I ordered the roasted chorizo and chicken. I don't remember what hubby ordered because mine was so good I couldn't get past it to pay any mind to the hubby's meal.
For dessert we split the dessert tasting and were in love with all 4 offerings.
This is definitely a place I would frequent again. Hmmm.... hubby's birthday is not too far off. -
Review from Jarett L.
Calgary, AB
12/21/2011
This is definitely one of my favorite restaurants in Calgary, had my birthday dinner here not too long ago. I was introduced to this place for a work lunch and been in love ever since. The ambiance is really dark at night I find, it kind of puts me to sleep.
Service and food has always been exceptional. Going to eat there again tomorrow night, can't wait! -
Review from chris M.
Calgary, AB
1/14/2012
Im kind of between a 3 and four star rating on this one. Overall our experience was really good. We went in for Tapa's and felt more like they were appi's. I know everyone rants on their spring rolls, but it was the paoched pear salad and bison dumplings enjoyed most..
Althought the decor is rustic, it felt slightly dated. having said that, its nice when the quality of food met our expectations as it had the first time. -
Review from Carrie P.
Escoba is one of my favorite restaurants in Calgary. The food is unbelievable, but really, I think what keeps me coming back moreso is the ambience.
When you walk in, it is rustic with lots of stone and tile. The back wall in the dining room also has its unique flair with the wall made out of wine corks. Nice touch! The lighting is slightly dim and the restaurant always smells amazing. Even though it may be jam packed in there (which it usually is over a lunch hour), for some reason, I don't feel crowded in there at all. The tables are spaced in a way that you are not in each other's space. I have always felt relaxed and unrushed, despite the hustle and bustle of a popular lunch place.
I have been to Escoba for dinner a few times, but the majority of my visits have been over a lunch hour, since it is located very close to my office. I went to Escoba with 8 colleagues on Friday and we had yet an unbelievable meal.
Some of my favorites on their menu are the Poached Pear Salad. I am stealing the verbiage off the menu to make sure I don't leave anything out. It comes with: Poached pears, golden beets, pickled red onions, manchego cheese with rhum vinaigrette & crispy Prosciutto. Yep, it tastes as good as it sounds! You can also for $7 have a protein added. Today, I had the lemon prawns, which were delicious. They weren't chinsy either. I got about 8 large prawns with my salad.
The soup of the day today was Beef Barley Soup, and it was flavorful and thick - almost like a stew. Since the soup was heartier than I expected, the soup and salad actually stuffed me, to the point where I had to say "no" to dessert.
Our group also tried four of the appetizers, which included: their award-winning springrolls (Oven baked, feta, toasted almonds, spinach with sweet chili aioli sauce), as well as crab cakes (Rock crab, sweet roasted corn, house made guacamole & chipolté aioli), beef carpaccio (fresh bread sticks, sundried tomato pesto, tapenade, arugula with balsamic drizzle) and stuffed pimento peppers (eggplant caviar, feta cheese, kalamata tapenade over basil oil). All appetizers tasted even better than they sound. Everything was fresh, delicious and rich with flavor.
If you are on the west side of downtown, Escoba is a gem. It is a little on the pricer side, but absolutely worth it if you are looking to treat yourself.
7/30 -
Review from Ken S.
Calgary, AB
10/19/2011
I work right around the corner so in the past five months Escoba has become something of a regular haunt for me.
Service is always great but what keeps me coming back is the food!
IMO there are a few must try items on their menu. For starters the capaccio and spring rolls are both incredible! The spring rolls (which are baked not fried so not completely sinful) are particularly good. For mains the beef tenderloin (literally melts when you eat it) and chorizo & chicken pasta can't be beat.
While its great and I'll continue to take customers there it does get a little noisy so serious conversation can be strained at times. -
Review from A. L.
Calgary, AB
2/14/2012
The atmosphere is very relaxing and the service is great!
I love wine flights and they have four to choose from. We tried two and they were both amazing.
The food was excellent. The crab cakes are very much worth a try. Our entrees were both great. Overall, I can't say anything bad about my experience. -
Review from Starkie S.
Calgary, AB
1/30/2012
Too bad Escoba that you chisled me on the soft drink refill charge and one fill on the coffee! 25% of our $89.50 bill for lunch was for (4) glasses of pepsi and (3) single cups of coffee. WOW!
This was my first trip here for a business lunch and everything was 5stars until the cheque arrived...$4.00 (first) + $2.00 (per refill) for pepsi and $3.50 per coffee.
Based on the chisel I will not return to Escoba and would not recommend based on this fact. The service was alright, the food was alright, the speed at which the food came from the kitchen was unbelievable - way to go kitchen!
The chip I received from the chisel will grow back. -
Review from Nyssa R.
4/19/2011
Great location, sometimes a little hard to spot if you're not looking for it. Went here for a business lunch. Would definitely return to try more of their options, or maybe experience a different service standard. It was good, but not great food wise, and I was definitely disappointed with the service.
I didn't feel very welcome coming into the restaurant. After someone talked to me and brought us to the table, they were nice enough. The server didn't come over for a while. We had to wait for others so we had water in the mean time. Upon arrival, we ordered further drinks which didn't come until the meal was half done, she had forgotten. She didn't tell me what the soup was but I ended up getting it anyway. I tried the soup and dumplings. I didn't find the dumplings very flavourful, probably wouldn't get them again. Others said their food was good, but one of the orders was incorrect. Water wasn't refilled generously and I didn't feel that comfortable with the amount of room at the table.
The server was nice enough but I didn't find getting things that easily, more than three times. I will definitely try it again and maybe my review will change but compared to other places I've been for lunches around the area I didn't find it that impressive or welcoming from my first experience. -
Review from Amanda L.
Calgary, AB
8/15/2010 ROTD 12/2/2010
My boyfriend (J) and I spent yesterday hiking in the mountains, and as we were driving back in to Calgary we were considering going somewhere for a nice late dinner. We used his opentable app on his iPhone to find places downtown that had a 9pm opening and I read reviews on Yelp to narrow down our choices. When Escoba came up, both with a 9pm sitting, and positive Yelp reviews, I knew we had a potential match. I had been to Escoba several years ago (in its old location) for lunch and rememberd being impressed. I recommended it to J and read some items off the menu and he was sold.
We arrived about 20 minutes early for our reservation, but the hostess was very accomodating and had a table cleared to seat us early. The restaurant was still very full considering the time, a good sign of a happening place.
Our server was very attentive (but not in your face) for the whole dinner, he is definitely experienced at what he does.
For appetizers we had the Stuffed Mushrooms and Prawn Skewers. Both were full of flavour and well presented. J was head over heals for the Prawn Skewers... the sweetness of the prawns and the salty of the calabrese balanced really well.
For our mains, J got the Seafood Bake and I got the Duo of Lamb and Bison. I went with the recommended Rioja pairing for my meal, but J, not being a fan of whites, opted for a Malbec rather than a sauvignon blanc. My main was delicious. The braised bison short rib was fork tender and full of flavour. The lamb was perfectly seasoned and grilled and beautifully rare. Even the compliments, roasted vegetables and potatos were delicious. Thought definitely went in to every component of this meal. I sampled J's Seafood Bake and it was also full of flavour. I thought it may have been a little overcooked, the scallops were slightly chewey and the tuna was not as moist as I would expect, but overall it was still delicious. The portions were also larger than I was expecting.
For dessert we had the truffles and port for two. I was a little dissapointed with the truffles, they were reminicent of cheap truffles you buy in a box from zellers. I was expecting something more Callebaut calliber.
Overall it was a great meal to remember, I felt like we received good value, and I will definitely be back. -
Review from Sapna G.
Calgary, AB
4/10/2010
Last night after dinner, the crew was in the mood for a nightcap, so we headed down the street (we were already on Stephen Ave) to Escoba Cafe & Bar.
WHY have I never been here before?!?!? Seriously. I have fallen head over heels in love with this place.
What's not to love?
Contemporary atmosphere, a European, bistro-like feel, excellent service, friendly people, delicious food and orgasmic dessert.
Another thing I absolutely love about Escoba is that even though they specialize in wine, they don't make it awkward for someone who doesn't drink anymore. The staff isn't pretentious and snobby, and they have just as much selection in food and dessert, as they do in wine.
Escoba is the perfect getaway. You step in, and you feel like you've been transported to a remote destination somewhere in Europe. Good lookin' food, good lookin' decor, and good lookin' people. Yes, yes and YES! -
Review from Calgary Guy A.
Calgary, AB
4/7/2010
Escoba is great!!! I went to Escoba's new location on 8th Ave & 6th Street SW before the Michael Franti & John Mayer Concert at the Saddledome with a group of friends. I was pleasantly surprised to see that many of the decor and menu features that I enjoyed so much at the former Penny Lane location had made their way over to the new establishment.
Our group started things off with a host of appetizer platters before delving into a great assortment of mains....Tiger Rose, Ahi Tuna, Beef Tenderloin Linguini, Bison and Lamb. Everyone raved about their meals. Several of us also had dessert...save room for the Cookies & Cream (like a giant chocolate lava cake topped with homemade vanilla bean ice cream...YUM!). For those with less room, try the Chocolate Truffles and Port for 2.
Food was great; wine list is extensive and contains some eclectic picks; service is friendly, attentive and knowledgeable; decor is great. Darren the owner even built a cork wall for one of the rooms using his vast collection of corks amassed over the years. He decorated much of the former location and I assume his artistic touches are throughout the new venue too.
Our group really enjoyed their experience at Escoba and we'll definitely be back.
