Wanderlusting: Calgary

There’s a lot more to Stampede City than pancake breakfasts and herding cattle. But they do make for a good time.

If you’ve kept up with Top Chef Destination Canada, you know we adventured our way through Calgary and Canmore, Alberta, over the last 2 episodes. We dove deep into local pancake breakfast lore, as well as beef and berry culture, and challenged our cheftestants to forage for a cornucopia of native plant species for an unparalleled open-fire cookout. Over the course of our shoot, I also had time to explore the city, and I’ve compiled my top eating and drinking picks below. It wasn’t my first time in Calgary. My husband has close family there, and we used to visit about once a year before we had kids, but it had been several years since my last trip. I’m happy to report there was plenty of great food to discover. Calgary is often overlooked by Americans, viewed as a stopover on their way to Banff for world-class skiing, hiking and outdoor expeditions. And while Lake Louise (just over an hour north!) is a show-stopping destination in itself, Calgary is well worth a trip for great shopping and a far more authentic restaurant culture than the famed ski town.

But…before I get into it all, an unrelated life update: We went to Disneyland!

If you can believe, it was my first time there since I was 5 years old, of which I have zero recollection. I’ve never been one for crowded amusement parks and, until now, could not work up the courage to take my family. But my dear friend Lesley Bargar Suter convinced me we were overdue and my ideal window with the kiddos was dwindling. In a whirlwind of planning and logistics, we were on our way, Mickey ears and all. See my recent IG posts here and here for a snapshot of our favorite rides, snacks and experiences at both Disneyland and California Adventure Park. For those interested (I’m in awe of how much knowledge the Disneyland fanatics out there have!), we stayed at The Westin Anaheim Resort, which was immaculate and relatively serene considering how many families stay there. We had exceptional service, spacious rooms, and access to the rooftop terrace, which has the best views of the nightly fireworks by far, just five minutes drive from the park. Bonus: we skipped dinner in the park one of two evenings, opting to eat at Puesto, a Mexican restaurant near the hotel. It was much calmer, with solid tacos, superior guac, delicious aguafrescas and, most importantly, excellent margaritas for the grown ups.

We were guided by a friend who works with Visit Anaheim to take advantage of their newly created Imaginagency, an online resource of itineraries and travel suggestions curated by kids to help you make the most of your Anaheim-area adventures. I will say, it made all the difference. Highly recommend! We returned to Brooklyn completely exhausted, but confident we squeezed every last drop out of our escapades. Any questions about what we did, ate or discovered? Ask me in the comments. I’m stillI processing, and happy to discuss.

Now…Onward to Calgary!