Head to the far northeast corner of the city to find an array of stunning Nepalese food at Momo House. Co-owners and co-chefs Gyanendra Sharma and Prakash Magar draw from their family roots to create elevated versions of South Asian comfort food. The goat- and vegetable-filled momos, for instance, are fried and pan-fried before being finished with a house tandoori spice blend. Dumplings and chutneys are the focal point of the menu, but also try the sukuti sandheko; the combination of aged goat meat, roasted soybean, crispy-puffed rice, and slaw is a true textural delight. [$-$$]

It would be a complete oversight not to include the birthplace of ginger beef on this map. Chef-owner George Wong is said to have originated the Canadian-Chinese dish at this popular Chinese institution in 1975. Decades later, the dried beef, sliced onions, and bell peppers are still wok-fried to perfection in a sweet, tangy ginger sauce — though the restaurant has a long list of other offerings, too. [$$]

Owned by the Teatro Group, Vendome boasts an exquisite pastry program alongside a robust food menu. You might not expect either from the humble exterior, which gives off casual coffee shop vibes. Brewed coffee and espresso-based drinks will always hold the baseline at Vendome, but the shop takes a step beyond your everyday cafe with dishes like the brassica and haloumi Caesar and grilled squid with hazelnut romesco. [$-$$]

If you know, you know. Vero Bistro Moderne has maintained a loyal following for over 10 years, quietly humming away in the Kensington neighborhood. Chef and owner Jenny Chan creates food rooted in Italy and her love for the European country. Her radicchio salad with honey thyme vinaigrette and crispy guanciale is a ridiculously delicious way to start dinner, followed promptly by her black truffle arancini. The signature sweet potato gnocchi with gorgonzola sauce, sage butter, and toasted walnuts is (unofficially) dedicated to the blue cheese lovers of the world. [$$$]

Calgary’s longest-running wine bar has been drawing folks into its romantic lower-level space for years. Situated underneath partner concept Eat Crow, the bar offers seating along an open kitchen, providing entertainment along with your drinks. Snag a table by the fireplace for a romantic evening while sharing nicely composed dishes, like the mushrooms on brioche toast, coconut-curried lentil dip, and tagliatelle cacio e pepe. [$$$]

This lively basement speakeasy in Calgary’s Chinatown whisks guests away to Hoi An, Vietnam, with worn window shutters and fabric lanterns. That’s where owners Nhi Tran and Tanner Ennis gathered inspiration before opening for business. The food, prepared by Tran’s mother, includes less common Vietnamese dishes such as banh xeo and bo luc lac (shaken beef). A nice touch to the menu here is an option for diners to have “what the kitchen is having” on any given night, which can lead to plenty of delicious surprises. [$$-$$$]

It should come as no surprise that Alberta is home to many a steakhouse, but few are as iconic as the original Caesar’s. Opened in 1972, the opulent marble-laden interior now feels old school in the most charming of ways. Expect prawn cocktails, tableside Caesar salads, chateaubriand for two, and — well, you get the point. Be prepared to step back in time for an evening, and best look your best. [$$$$]

The Middle Eastern-leaning bakery and cafe Sidewalk Citizen and famed Calgary-based coffee chain Phil & Sebastian have other locations around Calgary, but their buzziest locations are at the Simmons Building in the East Village. The building is also home to the restaurant Charbar, which runs a rooftop bar serving easy-sipping cocktails and New York-style pizza. Together, the three businesses create something greater than the sum of their parts. The whole place bustles during the warmer months of the year (especially the rooftop), so if the crowds are too heavy, take your meal to enjoy along the Bow River. [$-$$$]

This buzzworthy downtown restaurant, on the 40th floor of Stephen Avenue Place, hit pandemic hurdle after hurdle on the way to opening, and even sat completely empty for a full year before the doors finally swung open in 2021. It’s now the hardest reservation to get in town. Phenomenal views and a luxe dining room set the stage for chef Garrett Martin’s incredible food. Start off with the Major Tots (house-made tots topped with whipped smoked sturgeon and pickled onions) and Alberta beef tartare with black pepper sauce before diving into some plates of pasta and, of course, some A5 wagyu. [$$$-$$$$]

Chef Lam Pham keeps Calgarians coming back with his contemporary take on Vietnamese flavors. The top hits from the menu include sate surf and turf (fresh rolls stuffed with beef and shrimp), banh xeo tacos, and his famous char siu sesame doughnut: a tender sesame seed-studded pastry filled with pork, cucumber, pickled carrots, cilantro, and Sriracha aioli. Don’t miss his spin on shaken beef, finished with a red wine and soy butter reduction and served with coconut rice, and the pineapple nuoc cham braised pork cheek. [$-$$]

Con Mi Taco started out as an occasional pop-up before pivoting to takeout taco party kits, and now is a more permanent concept operating inside Meat and Bread after the shop’s daytime hours. Often touted as the best spot in the city for tacos, Con Mi pulls in crowds with its birria short rib tacos. Now that it’s found a home in downtown Calgary, the little taqueria that could also serves fun drinks, like horchata and tamarind margaritas. [$-$$]

There is plenty of charm to this restored turn-of-the-century home on the cusp of the Inglewood neighborhood. Like its older sibling, River Café, Deane House is all about celebrating what it means to be regionally Canadian. Head chef Jason Barton-Browne keeps things very seasonal, but there are a few mainstays among the rotating dishes, like red lentil hummus and grass-fed beef tartare with pickled canola seeds. Like many restaurants, Deane House found much success with dinner kits during the pandemic, and its home dinner program has become a fixture of the business. [$$-$$$]

If there were an award for most consistent Calgary restaurant, it would go to Bridgette Bar. Since opening over five years ago, the restaurant has transitioned seamlessly from one chef to another without disruption, a trend that holds up under current executive chef MacKenzie Pavka. Signatures include the beautiful wagyu beef carpaccio with mushroom vinaigrette, tuna crudo with brown-butter emulsion and buckwheat, and the pretzel-crusted banana pie. The vast menu also caters to picky eaters with pizza and pasta. [$$-$$$$]

This New York-style pizza maker commanded waits of up to two hours back when it was operating out of a kitchen window at Eighty-Eight Brewing Co., though demand remains pretty high at Noble Pie’s brick-and-mortar location in Calgary’s Beltline neighborhood. Owner Mike Lange could impress even a New York native with pies like the Sweet Cheesus (aged and fresh mozzarella, grana padano, pecorino, caciocavallo, and oregano, drizzled with hot honey) and the Roni (made with famed Ezzo pepperoni). If you consider yourself a pizza connoisseur, this place should be a top priority on your to-eat list. [$$]

Previously overlooked due to an unusual location in Calgary’s downtown, this now-fully vegan Southeast Asian restaurant is getting more attention since relocating to the Beltline in 2020. While the name proclaims Vietnamese food, the restaurant also leans into neighboring food cultures, offering up tom yum, vegan pad thai, and laksa. It also makes some of the city’s tastiest tofu in char siu marinade. [$-$$]

Located inside of Hotel Arts, this eclectically designed restaurant (including the statement piece, a gigantic horse statue that stands tall at the front entrance) offers food from morning to night, but is best known for its breakfast and brunch options. The souffle-style pancakes change from month to month, but are always stacked high and fluffy. Then there’s the pastrami-cured ham omelet with sauerkraut and Alberta mustard hollandaise, and, for sweet tooths, a layered French toast made with cinnamon raisin bread, cream cheese custard, and walnut caramel sauce. Expect the luxe weekend brunch buffet to return more lavish than ever as pandemic restrictions allow. [$$-$$$]

Greek-style pizza thrives in Western Canada. Akin to Detroit-style pizza in all but shape (the Greek style is round to Detroit’s square), the deep and doughy pizza comes with crispy edges, and Nikos is especially known for its heavy-handed use of mozzarella. The hearty pies are well-balanced between sauce and toppings, and they make surefire hangover cures. [$$]

Launched by sister duo Nicole Gomes (Top Chef Canada: All Stars champ) and Francine Gomes, Cluck continues to assert itself as the premier fried chicken option in the city, thanks to its great quality chicken meat, Nicole’s top-secret spice blend, buttery biscuits, and indulgent gravy. If you don’t want the full meal deal, go for the Mother Clucker sandwich (fried chicken, honey hot sauce, blue cheese mayo, slaw, and pickles on a homemade bun). [$-$$]

At this popular restaurant tucked just off of the 17th Avenue main strip, co-owners Fay and Pat Bruney serve a range of Jamaican specialties: patties filled with ground goat, beef, or chicken, braised oxtail and beans, roti, curried goat, and, of course, jerk chicken. For dessert, try the gizzada, a pastry shell stuffed with a mix of spiced coconut and sugar. Simply Irie’s patio is a great spot to have a casual bite and enjoy a rum-based cocktail or two in the summer. [$-$$]

Another eatery from Concorde Group — the same folks behind Bridgette Bar and Major Tom, as well as Pigeonhole, which shares a building with Model Milk — this decade-old, award-winning restaurant sits in a pleasant heritage building on the tail end of 17th Avenue. The space had been a wildly popular gay bar and restaurant in the early 2000s, a business that left behind a unique layout spread over two levels with an open kitchen as the focal point. Order one of the elaborate cocktails and dig into the indulgent signature burger topped with mushroom ragout, cheese curds, and creme fraiche. [$$$-$$$$]

Whether or not you’re vegan, this little fast-food spot on 17th Avenue will satiate cravings for cheeseburgers, fried “chicken,” and other meaty entrees. The breakfast sandwiches and burgers appear awfully familiar compared to offerings at mainstay fast-food chains, but nothing close enough to incite a cease and desist. The Lil’ Cheezburger always hits the mark, and the milkshakes — try the root beer swirl or pina colada — are perfect treats on a warm day. [$]

If you need a sandwich fix in Calgary, look no farther than this charming contemporary diner nestled in the heart of bustling 17th Avenue. The ridiculously tasty tuna melt is a must-order, as are the rosemary beef dip and the appropriately spicy hot chicken sandwich. Don’t miss out on the charred onion dip, either. Surprisingly for a diner, Alumni turns out great cocktails, too. [$-$$]

Among Calgary’s prolific East Indian food community, the longstanding Moti Mahal is especially beloved for its generous portions of shahi paneer (house-made cheese and tomatoes in a fenugreek-infused cream sauce), lamb bhoona (braised lamb and caramelized onions in a ginger and turmeric curry sauce), and chicken mumtaz (curried chicken meat slow-cooked with a mix of jaggery, dried chiles, apricots, and lemon). Moti Mahal has some fun on the cocktail side of things, too, spicing up a Caesar with house vindaloo sauce or infusing chai spices into bourbon for an Indian take on an Old Fashioned. [$$-$$$]

This famous truck stop in the Inglewood neighborhood is known for its low prices, bottomless coffee, and 24-hour operation. The interior of the diner offers plenty to look at, from defunct mini jukeboxes to a model train that circles the room on a track suspended from the ceiling. A deliciously lowbrow plate of grilled cheese (made with Kraft Singles, obviously) and onion rings is guaranteed to cure any hangover, no matter how severe. [$]

After closing his famed eatery Anju, Roy Oh took nearly two years to reemerge in the city’s food scene. Now, people flock to his Mission restaurant, Roy’s Korean Kitchen, to eat the chef’s long-standing specialties like oxtail tortellini, crispy tofu with maple sesame kimchi, and pork belly with lemon aioli. Oh serves up Korean barbecue platters, too, as well as plenty of soju. [$$-$$$]

Calgary is the proud home of Canada’s only Vietnamese drive-thru. The blink-and-you’ll-miss-it To Me Vietnamese is a teeny structure on a busy street, but you can spot it by the lineup of cars spilling out of the drive-thru lane during peak times of day. The coconut curry chicken banh mi is a real winner, especially for the money. [$]

You never quite know when and where chef Kaede Hirooka will be in the city, but as soon as Calgarians catch wind on social media of his next pop-up, they flock to him in droves. Though he’s well known for his funky take on ramen (umami-laden broth filled with homemade noodles and topped with delicious fried chicken), the chef is perhaps most famous for his gyoza-stuffed chicken wings. They are absolutely delicious and, unlike many things in life, truly live up to the hype. Hirooka has also found a lot of success in the grocery realm with his red miso-cured bacon, which can be purchased at a variety of stores in Alberta. [$-$$]

Lebanese food is widely available in Calgary, but few restaurants are as enticing as Beirut Street Food. Tucked away in a very unassuming location on the dividing line between an industrial area and residential neighborhood, this wonderful fast-casual eatery woos diners with (mostly) made-to-order pita, which you can watch cooks prepare through the window. It’s rare to find a menu where everything is delicious, but there isn’t a dud among the appropriately messy shawarma wraps stuffed full with coal-roasted chicken or beef (or falafel), pickled cabbage, pickles, hot peppers, and — dear God — that heavenly sweet sauce. The donair (doner) or shawarma-topped poutines are Canadian-Lebanese fusion at its best. [$]