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Cross-Posted from Calgary is Awesome.
CHARCUT has gotten a lot of positive buzz and fans since it opened almost two months ago in the swanky Hôtel Le Germain downtown. B. and I were in the area last month to check out Decidedly Jazz Dancework's production of 2010: A Tap Oddity (which was really good, btw) and so we decided to drop in and see what the fuss was all about.
CHARCUT is well-known for their house-cured meats (there's a window to their aging room where you can see all the hanging carcasses in the open kitchen - pretty neat), but I'd forgotten about their beer sommelier! The selection of beer is just as - if not more - extensive as wine on the liquor list, and Kirk was walking over to each table, introducing himself, ask them how the beer is tasting, and encouraging diners to ask him for appropriate beer pairings.
I was happy to see that some Dieu du Ciel beer had made its way on the list.
Ok, ok - so I know this is "Calgary is Awesome" but indulge me a little bit and let's go to Montreal for a minute. Dieu du Ciel is a popular brewpub in Montreal that churns out a huge variety of beers; at any given time they have at least a dozen types of beer on the menu. Some are quite traditional while others have the craziest flavours - the last (and only) time I went, for example, there was a sour cherry beer and a green tea beer. While most of the beers are only available on tap in Montreal, it turns out that they have a microbrewery just outside of the city that bottles some of the flavours and ships them - mostly to places in Quebec, but obviously across the country as well, to places like CHARCUT. One of them is the Route des Épices - a rye beer with peppery notes that sort of linger on your tongue. So. Good.
But back to the food: since there were only two of us - and B. wasn't particularly keen on trying bone marrow - we tried to maximize the variety of food that we could try by ordering the CHARCUT platter ($36)...
...and a side of grilled broccolini (tossed with olive oil and parmesan cheese, $8) because we had to get our veggies in somehow! This was a deliciously simple dish, though I would've liked a bigger portion.
This is the famous Pig Head Mortadella! They make it by taking ground pork sausage and mixing it with pistachios and truffles (among other things, I'm sure), before stuffing it in a pig's head then shaving off really thin slices. In contrast to what I'm sure is a very complicated and time-consuming process, the mortadella tasted very simple - not too salty, and it paired well with the Brassica mustard that came with it.
The salami was good, but a little bit dry.
B. didn't really like the Head Cheese, which is essentially a meat and vegetable jelly. However, I thought the combination of flavours and textures was really neat - the aspic, which was broth-based and had a texture somewhere between applesauce and Jello, held together a combination of tender shreds of meat and soft vegetables and herbs.
The duck ham/bacon was really good - it was difficult to believe that you could get such a fatty cut of meat from a bird! The meat was smoky and tender.
The surprise favourite was definitely the lamb heart croquettes; perhaps partly because they were the only warm item on the platter. There was no "offal" taste to them at all - if I hadn't known I would've guessed that it was just a "normal" meatball/croquette, though with a bit of a deeper/richer undertone. And of course, the aioli that came with it was great too.
I know that this opinion is probably going to make me unpopular, but while I enjoyed the food (and beer) at CHARCUT, it didn't wow me in the way that it has others. Granted, I didn't have the opportunity to try their other signature appetizers and their entrées, and I know their menu is constantly evolving. Even though I might not be itching to go back there right away, I definitely wouldn't mind tagging along if I was invited to go back again.
CHARCUT Roast House
101-899 Centre St SW
Calgary AB T2G 1B8
(403) 984-2180
Open Mon-Tues 11 AM-11 PM; Wed-Fri 11 AM-1 AM; Sat 5 PM-1 AM; Sun 5 PM-10 PM. Reservations can be made by phone or via OpenTable.
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5 comments:
Last time you went to Dieu du Ciel! was with me! Are headed back to Montreal anytime soon?
So after seeing your entry I immediately made reservations tonight. It seemed like an interesting place to try that had a bit more selection that your typical steak house, i.e. Open Range or The Trib.
Had the CharBoard to start, but tonight they had a terrine of duck instead of the headcheese, and did not have the salami or duck bacon (Really disappointed about the duck bacon). The duck terrine was a bit dry, and a bit more fat or aspic would have been a welcome balance for it. They had a lamb ham and kielbasa to round out the plate, which seemed a little pedestrian compared to the other items.
I found the pig head mortadella to be nice, very easy to eat, just the right amount of fat in it. The pistachios were a bit subtle for my tastes and would have preferred something with a bit more accent.
The croquettes were a braised pork instead of the lamb heart, The croquettes were the best thing in my book, although they still do not come close to these Serrano ham croquettes I had in Toronto before.
My room mate and my friend's wife had the butcher's steak (skirt steak) with arugula and Parmesan, which that seemed to be alright. My friend and I had the lamb leg on beans in what seemed to be a mint pesto. The lamb was surprisingly tender and not overly game-y, and the beans were done just just right, as not to be gritty and mushy
Had the iron press smores and some type of gelato (i forget) for dessert. The smores was more like a brownie with melted marshmallow on top. The brownie was not too sweet but had an extremely heavy texture and feel to it. The gelato was nice and light, and the waffle cone it came in was light and crispy as well.
I ended up having the same beer you did (the rye pepercorn brew), as well as a belgium sour sparking lambic (The Cuvee Renee?) which I found really refreshing without the normal heaviness of most lambics. I would have like to try more of their beers, but having to drive kinda of takes limits what I can sample in a night. I was a bit disappointed in their wine selection as it is a bit limited.
I tend to agree with you that Charcut is nothing special. The beer selection makes it entirely, and the value is there. Steak was $19, charboard was $36, and the lamb was $29, which is pretty good value for the kind and style of food they want to be known for. I'd go back every once in a while when I can't think of anywhere better to go, but I wouldn't make a special night of it either.
Lazyjai - Thanks for your review! I'm relieved that I'm not the only one who's not raving about Charcut. I totally agree with you about the mortadella and the beer; maybe if I go again I'll have someone else drive me so I can have more of the latter.
I think Calgary is still in a culinary infancy. There's a lot of pretentious places with crap food, and a lot of great places that no one hears about, causing them to go under.
Once an above average place pops up, it gets swarmed and gets "great" ratings because people aren't used to anything nicer/better.
Places like District that people only mention in passing, but has great poutine, meats, house smoked bacon, and upscale pub food. It's places like that which should be the staple of the downtown crowd but don't seem to be just there for whatever reason.
I am a huge bone marrow fan! You have to go back to review it!
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