Sunterra Market

I miss the old Sunterra: the personal touch that makes it Ok to pay more for things and staff that cares.
I was their Keynote location yesterday wanting to buy ingredients for a Caesar salad — love their dressing.
No dressing out, had to wait in line and get someone to dig some put from the back. Wanted shredded Parmesan cheese — none. Woman at the cheese counter said they are too busy to shred any.
Guy at the bakery counter didn’t know if they had any croutons. Told me to take a look around.
On the bright side, they did have over priced romaine lettuce.
Next stop — Sobeys.

I’ve been a customer at Sunterra for years, and with the exception of my experience today I’ve always left satisfied. Today I went in to Sunterra Keynote for lunch with a few clients. I hit the salad bar on the main level, paid for the salad downstairs than went upstairs to get a bowl of soup. The manager upstairs named Rahel accused me of stealing the salad (IN FRONT OF MY CLIENTS!!) and escorted me downstairs to track down the cashier who took my payment. The cashier was on a break so she made me wait there while she tried to find her, it was the most humiliating experience I’ve ever had. Who steals a $ 7 salad?! I ended up walking out, terribly embarrassed with no apology and an unresolved issue with this manager. I can’t believe they would treat a customer this disrespectfully.

They are an okay market — a bit pretentious and over priced. It is pleasant enough to shop in. The bakery goods are okay, but often too sweet. The restaurant is hit and miss for quality but very reasonably priced. I used to frequent them but I just prefer to go other places for groceries and eating out mostly.

Sunterra, I love your amazing salad bar. There’s like every ingredient on the planet!!! I love the chocolate muffins, I LOVE the caramel bars. OH MY. I love the drinks selection too. Lots of healthy options. I love the points system.
What I wish Sunterra would do better is season some of their food! Just add salt, pepper and perhaps some herbs or spices to the chicken or salmon before putting it in the salads, please! It’s always so bland. Same goes for the salad rolls. No seasoning. It has been like this for years. Ho hum.

I wish all grocery stores looked as pretty as this one. I’m not a fan of grocery shopping, so when I do it, I want the environment to as pretty as possible.
Sunterra has fabulous deserts, baked goods and fresh OJ. The fresh meats are better than other grocery stores, by far. The cheese selection is a total delight for a cheese lover.
They’re pre-​prepared food are great in a pinch. In general, most dishes lack robust flavor, so it’s not my first choice. I know they try new recipes, but they should try new ones more often. I’d also love for them to collect customer feedback so they can improve the take away goods.
The staff are delightful and I love visiting.

went up to the restaurant for breakfast today, and I was happy we did! lots of room to sit, and lots of choices to eat.
I got the Classic Breakfast — 2 eggs (poached) 3 sausage links, 2 slices of toast, and a huge bowl of fruit! for $ 6.95, which is a great deal. in my opinion.
the set up is kind of a Shitshow for ordering — lots of weird lineups that make it so you’re awkwardly standing in the middle of an aisle, but you can’t really move without blocking the opening for the staff to get in & out, or the drink cooler, etc etc.
but whatever — a decent breakfast for a good price — who cares where I have to stand!

I am a Sunterra fan and I desperately hope that they open one in my neighborhood. This one is not near my house but as the Keynote location I’ve been meaning to check it out. I had hopes that it would be similar to the one on Sirocco Dr and I was not disappointed. The main floor is a fully stocked grocery with the large selection of ready made meals you expect from Sunterra. There is also an extensive bakery, great selection of fresh produce (organic is well represented) and then all of your staple grocery items with some neat items like Philip Adams products. I stopped in to pick up lunch for a visit with a friend so I headed right to the ready made section. Next time I will try the restaurant as I’m told it is worth the stop.

Much improved since opening day. For those customers who avoided this Sunterra due to the first couple years of disorderly rude employees and disorganized shelves with missing pricing, come back and you will find a new store. They hired a new grocery manager from Sobeys who reorganized, retrained and did an awesome job to transform Sunterra Keynote to its original vision. The Management change has seemed to positively influence all the other departments as well.
The best quality about Sunterra is the availability of unique items and while pricey, they don’t blatantly gouge you like they do at Sobeys or Community Natural Foods. While the Canadian grocers try desperately to match the American’s in their quest to recreate Whole Foods and Trader Joes; after a couple years of fine tuning and new management, Sunterra has successfully done so with its Keynote location!

I attended a day long event today that was catered by Sunterra. They provided breakfast, lunch and a mid afternoon snack for eight, but truly it could have fed a small army. No one needs to eat that much food. However, I made a solid effort and now I feel like I’m going to explode.
The breakfast portions per person were absolutely huge and at least half of the calories I’d eat in one day. We each were given a mini jug of fresh hand-​squeezed orange juice, a sizable fruit cup, choice of a jumbo scone or muffin and a huge yogurt and granola cup. The yogurt cup also included fruit on the bottom and was to die for. It was so rich, delicious and filling that I really didn’t need to eat anything else for the rest of the day. I snacked on the fruit later, which was good and ripe, and I had a bit of my muffin, which I actually wasn’t a fan of. Not sure if it was a bit dry or what the situation was, but the berries inside just couldn’t save it.
Suddenly it’s lunch time and I can barely think about eating until I see the Beef Lasagna. Game on. And hand me the Focaccia toast please. I skipped the Caesar Salad because nobody’s got time for that when there’s desert. The desert tray had at least 8 selections on it including cheesecake and chocolate dipped strawberries. The lasagna is loaded with goodness and a generous helping could compete with the weight of a brick.
Everyone was practically rolling on the floor at 1pm from calorie overload and we were not prepared to look at any more food until the meeting ended at 3:30pm when someone realized that the afternoon snacks hadn’t been served. Oh, please. Baggies for everyone! First I had to sample the Shrimp Salad Roll and spicy peanut sauce to be sure it was worth taking home. By golly, it was. I also loaded up on a few Hyerollers and skipped out on the cheese tray. Oh yeah, and I took home leftover fruit, yogurt, lasagna, toast and a colossal scone.
This is seriously amazing catering (with the exception of the muffin I had) and you definitely get your money’s worth.

I met a friend here for lunch not to long ago and since she was late I was able to wander around through the store checking everything out. A little bit overwhelming for a first timer, but I was in love.
When I first moved to Calgary I lived out near Britannia Plaza in the South. Being a former Vancouverite (and lover of Meinhardt’s & Urban Fare) The Sunterra Market was a place I discovered & frequented on the weekends. Being part of the community I also loved it when they put on their free summer BBQ’s.
When my girlfriend finally arrived she was pressed for time so we both decided on the self serve salad bar. Loved the selection of items. Just as she was leaving my hubs showed up to drop off my son (juggling act). Hubs had not had lunch yet so grabbed some wings to go. His feedback indicated he was quite happy with his meal.
My son and I continued to wander around the store picking up some items (vegetables, desserts, sausage, cheese) and of course a coffee before we left for home.
I love how you can stop in here and grab something to make at home, warm up at work or home, eat in or eat on the go. So many options for a busy family! The food is fresh and the staff helpful and friendly. I was also able to find a parking spot on the street but there is parking underground.

I regularly go to this Sunterra for lunch and to pick up food to eat back at the office. Generally, I am very impressed, with some exceptions. Here are some thoughts:
— the prepared food is fresh BUT check the expiry dates on any pre-​packaged dips, desserts, baked goods, etc. I had a few instances of expired food. The pastries especially have a tendency to be old, to the point of being inedible. I got a free slice of cake on my birthday (by being signed up to the Sunterra points program), and I selected one of the mousse desserts. The mousse had shrunk from being dried out and tasted gummy and disguisting. I could not eat it.
— The upstairs level consists of cafeteria-​style «stations» where you can order items such as pasta, pizza, soup, crepes, and other entrees. There is also a sit-​down restaurant. I like the food upstairs, but the ordering system is chaotic. There are multiple lines leading to the various stations and cash registers, and you are not sure who is waiting to order, pay, and/​or pick up their food. When they first opened, they even had to have employees explaining to customers how the system is supposed to work. I’ve never seen the need for this at any cafeteria, deli, or restaurant. They should have a number system. I avoid this area during the lunch hour.
— My favourite items are the fresh squeezed juices and the bagels, and the yogurt with fruit and granola. The salad bar is nice as well, with lots of unique topping options. It does get messy, with the topping bins getting «cross contaminated» by the time the lunch hour is over.
— I find the prices to be quite good for lunch. Sandwiches are $ 5 (more if you’re getting it on a wrap or baguette), paninis are around $ 6, soups are around $ 4. You can get a decent salad from the salad bar for $ 5 – 6. The entrees upstairs are more pricey ($ 6 – 7 and up), but generally you can eat for under $ 10, comparable to what you would pay for fast food.
— The supermarket prices are higher than your average supermarket, but they carry more upscale and smaller brands that are not commonly found. The produce is great, and they often have heirloom or local fruits and veggies. I would not purchase all my groceries there unless I lived nearby, but it’s great if I need to pick up a couple of ingredients for dinner or to make lunch back at my office.
— There are a lot of samples throughout the store, especially if you are there around lunchtime.

Sunterra is one of Calgary’s gold-​finds. This location in particular, however, is a foodie’s paradise. Not only does it have awesome groceries and prepped meals for the last minute shopper, it’s eat-​in counter has a wonderful loft with large windows that make for a wonderful dining experience on a sunny day.
The food and service are particularly good at this location. I’ve been for both breakfast and lunch, and have enjoyed everything I’ve ordered. For breakfast, I’d recommend the breakfast fajita. And for lunch? Whatever the special happens to be that day. Honestly, you will not regret having ordered the special.