The Coup
924 17th Ave. S.W.,
www.thecoup.ca
Rating: ***
Dinner & drinks for two: $45
As a committed meat lover, I confess the idea of a vegetarian, much less vegan, meal frightened me. I pictured bland and unsatisfying alfalfa sprouts piled on sad cubes of tofu.
But The Coup’s resourceful, local and organic offerings have changed my mind. The Coup, one of Calgary’s few meatless restaurants, is so popular it led to Meet, an adjacent lounge and glorified waiting area. There, we had a delicious rice-less sushi roll ($6.95) made with edamame purée, shredded carrots, cabbage, and cilantro. Once our table was ready, we tucked into some Cajun tempeh sticks ($5.50) with tzatziki. The sticks of fermented soybeans worked well with the seasonings and thick yogurt sauce.
My falafel quesadillas ($12) were a revelation that left me stuffed. Two large sprouted tortillas wrapped around the fried ground chickpeas with hummus and tahini. Delightful textural and flavour bursts came with every bite from sheep feta, cabbage, pickles, olives and banana peppers.
My dining partner had the salad version of that in the Club Med ($11) which came with a lovely tahini lemon garlic dressing.
Portabello mushroom linguine ($16) and the El Taco ($12) with beans, avocado, shredded veggies and quinoa at neighbouring tables looked very promising.
The Coup has an impressive drinks list that rivals any lounge or club on the 17th Avenue S.W. strip.
Dining out
BEST OF BAYOU
Cravings Market Restaurant (7207 Fairmount Dr. S.E.) features a four-course dinners and wine pairings. Enjoy Louisiana trio appetizers, oyster, brie and champagne soup, bayou shrimp étouffée with spicy jambalaya and Bourbon Street bread pudding. Visit cravings www.marketrestaurant.com for details
