dtf downtownfood a modern Bistro on 8th

An unexpectedly excellent meal with attentive service. Katie did an excellent job, and both the pork and fish entrée looked and tasted incredible. Will be back here for sure!

I have always had great experiences at Downtownfood and would highly recommend. I have been here for lunch, dinner and special events, and dtf has done all of these well.
During the work week, they do a $ 25 3 course prix fixe menu, which is an excellent value.
The service is always great, and a nice atmosphere as well. Can’t wait for Chef D-​Mac to open his new restaurant in Mission!

Yet another pleasant surprise of late. Walked in here on a recommendation from a co-​worker.
Decent ambiance, quick service and very nice folks working here.
There were a couple of lunch selections that suit vegans/​vegetarians which was awesome. They had hot tea to choose from as well.
Jeff had a burger which came served with a mini root beer float — interesting and unexpected touch that Jeff really enjoyed.
The calamari was ordered as well and was spicy/​not greasy and a very interesting take on the dish as well.
We would definitely go back here for lunch. I wouldn’t mind seeing what the dinner/​evening menu is like in here as well.

I don’t usually give 5 stars but I couldn’t find a single thing wrong with this place. Or server, Kat, was phenomenal, making great recommendations and telling us all about every dish. You could tell she was really excited about the food they serve. We got the Big Taste 3 course dinner menu. For an appetizer, I had a spot prawn ceviche with coconut milk and lime, topped off by tandoori popcorn. My friend had roasted beet tartare with a horseradish aioli and Granny Smith apples, served with cumin crisps. Amazing flavours, starting off sweet and ending with a bit of spice. Had the wild boar belly with wasabi grits and sautéed kale fr a main. If I died and went to heaven, every meal would taste like this. Perfect flavours, amazing presentation. Finally for dessert, a tequila lime pie with marshmallow meringue, tequila sorbet, chili pickled limes coconut and salted agave crisps which was a party in my mouth of textures and flavours.
You can tell this restaurant puts lots of care Into the food thy create. Hands down the best meal and service I’ve had in Calgary so far.

Fantastic food and excellent service!
Had the pork belly and the variety of tastes was astounding. The dessert, a tiramisu, was equally fantastic.
I have no qualms recommending this place!

This is one of those places that you pay a lot of money for not that much food. If you go in expecting that then you can have a great dining experience because the food is pretty solid.

Darren is a fantastic chef and completely committed to bringing you the BEST food. I love this place.

It was a Wednesday evening and my girlfriend and I booked based on the Unilocal rating,… pulled up in front and the restaurant looked empty, as empty as they get,. this didn’t look good and we looked at each other and wondered if we should continue…
We’re very glad we did!
The restaurant does not attract a lot of foot traffic /​drop ins given its location. A few other diners strolled in and we were all seated in the same section so it didn’t feel as though we were completely alone. The service was excellent and the waitress was very knowledgeable about the menu and attendant to our needs.
My girlfriend is gluten intolerant and the menu had many options that appealed to her and to me. In fact, the key lime pie we shared for desert was rated by her as the best GF desert she had had in over a year.
Overall, the restaurant is excellent. I would definitely go back to explore the menu as it changes.

Do not come to Downtownfood at lunch without a reservation. It will be impossible to find a seat. Partly because this area of Downtown Calgary lacks good lunch spots at reasonable prices, partly because of the stir Downtownfood has caused since they opened.
My problem with Downtownfood is that the food is not particularly Chinese, Japanese or even Western for that matter. It’s a jumbled mess of fusion that is refreshing to some but sad to others. I’m of the latter camp.
The menu lacks cohesion. Or perhaps it is cohesively fusion.
Do come for dinner, reservation strongly recommended.

Ignore the dumb name… this place is in the top tier of Calgary fine dining.
Beef tartare and the sushi roll appetizers give you an example of how wide-​ranging the influences here on the cuisine; both of these were well executed, in fact 2 of us are not normally tartare fans but liked this version. All 4 of us slipped into a delicate dance of politeness vs. greed when it came to fighting over the last sushi piece.
Crispy duck is fabulous; two folks got the boar chop and loved it.
Didn’t have room for desert; I don’t think they have a wide variety but based on other friends sounds like they are as tasty as the other courses.
Service was very nuanced; they were very good at balancing being fun knowing when to let us finish our stories before interrupting (a rare skill).
Recommended!

The chef and owner of this restaurant is clearly one of the most dedicated food professionals in the city, with a strong dedication to local (including from the restaurant’s rooftop) and sustainable (e.g. OceanWise seafood) ingredients. I’ve been putting off updating my old-​as-​dirt review until I went again for a standalone regular dinner, but that hasn’t happened yet. Why? There are so many special events in town that either happen at DTF, or that they participate in, or that they do in-​house collaborations with that I’ve eaten there many times without a regular reservation! Regardless of the menu on a given night (note that the lunch menu is less inspired), at this often Asian-​tinged eatery virtually everything is made from scratch, including the tofu. As Kierkegaard once said «once you label me, you negate me», so don’t put too much stock in the Asian-​tinged comment, as I don’t know many Asian themed restaurants that serve lemon tart and buttered beer. No matter the subject, the taste is usually spot on and the presentation appealing. Chef Darren wears his heart on his sleeve, and on the plate. Eat here and you won’t be disappointed.

I’ve never been disappointed with a meal at downtownfood and tonight was no exception. Although I came to order my favorite dish (crispy duck leg) it wasn’t on the menu tonight so opted for the prime rib. The steak was cooked to perfection and was paired with bok choy, mushrooms, and bacon. For appetizers we also ordered spicy tempura maki, scallop ceviche, and beef tartare. The flavors of lime and coconut in the ceviche were to die for, and the addition of quail egg on the maki was quite a nice touch. When you get your food the staff take the time describe everything you are about to eat, even the way it’s prepared. You can tell the chef really takes pride in the menu and uses the freshest ingredients for each dish. The menu changes frequently to accommodate the season so I always look forward to what’s new on the menu everytime I visit.

Wow, what a fabulous restaurant! The room itself is quite lovely, although the front part is a little awkward. I love the large artwork of Calgary cityscape’s and the wood totally rocks! If I wasn’t there for a family dinner I most definitely wood have sat up at the wood for dinner. The service is phenomenal, from the hostess to our insane rock star of a waitress to the chef coming out to explain each dish, I was blown away!
We had an amazing dinner; the menu is small but packed with interesting, exciting plates packed with flavour! The high point was most definitely the civiche — hands down the best civiche I have ever had. Instead of being a chopped style, it was more like a stacked canapé. Mmmm, delicious! One thing that I will warn, the protein portions are very large. Much bigger then I think they ought to be. We ordered only 2 entrees between the 4 of us so that we would have room for dessert; we couldn’t even finish the wild boar dish. Just too big and thus sadly, no dessert.
If you are looking for a place to go for an excellent meal, put Downtown Food at the top of your list.

(Visit Oct. 4^th)
Well, I made a shout out to Unilocalers of Calgary and they came through with flying colours. I said give me the best and they certainly did. I was dying to get downtown and see what Calgary really had to offer. After a short ride on the C-​Train I found myself enjoying the couple block walk to the restaurant which was easy to find.
When I entered I was surprised. I suddenly felt under dressed (is that possible in Calgary?) but asked to sit at the bar for lunch and enjoy the ambience. I love this place! Went to freshen up in the ladies room. GORGEOUS, (not me) the restroom!!!
I head back out to read the menu. It is one sheet that indicated it was their «Fall menu». There was a Prix Fix menu offered but I chose just to go with their Asian style burger with a last minute change of fries to salad. I was hesitant to ask for the change as I had already placed my order; but once I made it to the bottom of their menu and read «most of the things you are eating were grown on our roof», I could NOT pass that up. I was not disappointed. The smell of fresh greens and house made vinaigrette got my taste buds excited! It had been days since I had good food I was ready to savour the sights and smells I was about to receive.
Being a slow eater my burger came out before i was finished my salad. No worries. Although the burger was small to look at it was big in taste. And honestly, very thick. It was pink inside, of which I am not used to, but it made it extra juicy. The meal included a surprise mini Root Beer float. I slowly indulged in the food and drinks around me. I had such a stressful week I felt I «owed» my self a fine dining experience.
Thank you so much to Jada and Noelle for extending their gracious Calgarian hospitality!

I went there based on the Unilocal reviews… at the beginning I didn’t think a little and hidden place like that would have good food… but after having dinner there, I have to agree with all Unilocal reviews… The wine In this place is really good… All the dishes from the appetizers to the desserts were great! … In addition, the service was excellent… I definitely recommend this place…

Have you tried downtownfood yet? You need to. For real, put it to the top of your list of places you want to try.
The food is oh-​so-​pretty. Every time I’m in, my phone’s out taking another picture to make all my friends drool (yes, I’m that girl. But what’s a Unilocaler to do when she wants to share her appreciation for what’s in front of her?).
You might be thinking, «But Wendy… pretty food is nothing if it doesn’t make me want to roll my eyes into the back of my head with palatable pleasure.» You would be correct, there’s nothing worse than food that doesn’t live up in taste to how good it looks. Here, you will not be disappointed. There is such attention to detail on the flavours and textures and I’m sure all other manner of food considerations that I know nothing about. If you aren’t pleased for whatever reason, let them know! I’ve never met a Chef as committed to an exceptional eating experience for his patrons as Chef Darren.
The menu is ever changing, with daily lunch and dinner specials. In the past, I’ve enjoyed items like:
— banh mi board
— tuna tataki
— eggplant wantons
— pickerel
— tacos
— silken tofu
— salmon nigiri
— pan seared foie gras
The list continues…
You must try the 777 bacon.
Tips:
#1. Bring friends who love food and love to share food.
#2. If you’re budget conscious, make sure it’s your splurge night, or visit at lunch. It’s like when you go on the vacation of your dreams, you want to enjoy every bit of it without worrying what your price tag will be… dtf is an experience worth paying for.
#3. Sit at one of the tables, unless you can get a full booth. The benches and the chairs are at different heights and it makes your meal a bit awkward when you aren’t eye level with your dining mates.
#4. If it’s still on the drink menu, order a silk kimono.

I feel like not a lot of people know about this place but really it’s great! I love the décor and I think they are extremely creative wi the types of food they pair together. Love that I had eggplant dumplings as an appetizer. The servers are hilarious, and I love that they use DTF on their menu. The food was splendid and I would say my favorite part was that they used truffle oil (seriously obsessed with that stuff) and they have a micro green garden on the roof where they grow and utilize there own crops. Fantastic! How many places do you know that do that? I would come back here Ina heartbeat. Love it!

It’s not every day that I take pleasure in being able to eat my own words.
A week before my visit, I got to talk to the chef about a really mean story that I overheard about him 2x from someone that I trust. We got it all sorted out, and he even sent me a picture of him…
HOLDING A BABY GOAT.
Whaaaat. Service here was fucking amazing, Megan is a boss and super-​friendly. It’s not every restaurant that I can go to in town that is not only vegan-​friendly, not only goes out of their way to assure you that they’re vegan-​friendly, but even makes their own silken tofu and makes me a tofu charcuterie board. And vegan versions of their appetizers so that I don’t feel left out! I teared up.
Then they made a dessert that wasn’t just plain cut-​up fruit! A week later, and the picture I posted on IG is still getting likes from all over the world. It tasted every bit as good as it looked. It was almost too pretty to eat.
So thanks, Chef Darren and the crew at Downtown Food! You guys are my new favorite.

Recently I attended The Big Taste Pop Up YYC six course pop up dinner at downtown food with some foodie friends. It was hosted by John Gilchrist and had a stellar line up of Chef’s in attendance: Chef Darren MacLean, Chef Duncan Ly, Chef John Jackson, Chef Roy Oh. Each Chef prepared a dish for each of the six courses plus we were teased with a delightful Amuse Bouche to start the evening.
The décor & ambiance in the bistro is very modern. Immediately upon entering you notice how inviting, warm and friendly the restaurant is. The staff go out of their way to make you comfortable and ensure you leave happy.
The food during the Pop Up was decadent, erogenous, flavorsome and full of love. You could tell a lot of work went into the planning of this event. Definitely left us wanting more.
I look forward to returning and trying out more on their menu.

Do you want to know something that will make you feel good? Eating good food while knowing you are supporting a great cause. I went and joined the Unilocal Eats at Downtown Food yesterday evening and did just that!
I was quite pumped to try this venue after looking up the menu online which promised wonderful mixtures of Asian and French influences in a modern setting.
When I sat down on the soft white chair in a semi private area of the restaurant, there was already some tapas and apps on the table to try out so I started to just dig in! I tried many and all had their own little something special… This list included:
Crispy House Smoked Oysters, Ewenique Farms Chicken Liver Mousse, Roast Jungle Farms Beet Salad, Tuna Tataki, Sweet Chili Scallops, Vodka beer battered smelt, crostini and a portion of the market pasta which was house made noodles with «triple seven» bacon in an egg emulsion sauce. This pasta was creamy but surprising had no dairy! Also we tried the flourless chocolate cake and lemon tart…
Yes, it was tons of food but since we all shared — it was nice to be able to get a feel of what they had to offer!
It was refreshing to sample, nibble and taste freshly prepared food from a kitchen that enjoys creating these plates vs. some other places that just whip something up for a dollar.