One of my favourite local restaurants, Mario’s, has closed. The food was consistently good, the service was great and the atmosphere was decent.
The options for a good meal are becoming very limited. After Barneys, Vineyard, and now Mario’s closing, where is a person supposed to take there significant other? One can only eat steak and salad at the Beefeater so often.
Where do you recommend? I don’t want to hear kelseys/Moxies, but a good hometown upper scale eatery.
And you can’t suggest bonanza as that has also closed 
where are the blue hairs to go?
I can’t believe that all those restaurants have been closed. The Beefeater does have more than steak and it is consistently good but to only really have one homegrown restaurant in a city of our size is a shame. I’m sure there are other good restaurants out there but sometimes they don’t stick around for very long or no one ever hears about them.
DiCarlo’s will not let you down!
That really is too bad about Mario’s. I thought that was one of the better establishments in The Hat. I dont like to visit the bigger chains, all the food tastes quite bland, and you pay for the pretty pictures in the menus. Wasnt the businesss up for sale at one point? And why did no one stop Bonanza from closing?! I have great childhood memories eating there as a family, but never today would I touch the salad bar knowing what goes on there. What I want to know is why all the fine dining estab. are closing their doors? Is it because no business? Or are the owners tired of being in the restaurant business? I believe that is the case with Mario’s, and Barneys. Too bad, maybe I’ll open shop here in my home, open the door and put a sign on the front lawn welcoming the public to my table;) Reservations recommended.
Oh well, there’s still that place in Calgary….
The Mario’s situation is very sad for me. It was my wife and I’s favourite restaurant in the city. We spent our last two anniversaries there, and we very nearly got married there! It’s frustrating that we can only go have dinner now at “franchise” restaurants that operate by packing the house too tight and noisy to be comfortable, and supplying crappier service. What has happened to a romantic candle-lit dinner with soft music? Gone the corporate way with the coffee-houses I guess…
Tumbleweeds is another great place to eat.
I have never been to DiCarlo’s or Tumbleweeds but have only heard good things about them. I guess I will have to try them soon!
Tumbleweeds is very good. The Zuccini Blossom had a different evening menu every Friday and Saturday for quite a while - if you were on their email list they’d email the menu for that week - usually a different theme each week. I don’t know if it was too much of a well kept secret, or if it was just too much work - it is unfortunate that option is no longer available either.
DiCarlo’s rocks my rocks.
I found myself with the exact same problem last week. Ended up at D’carlos. Although I do like the beefeater, a change once in awhile is nice.
Where is Tumbleweeds? What is the food like?
Rob
We did not know that the Vineyard has closed its doors, and instead ventured to D’Carlos. I’ve only just discovered it and eaten there 2 weeks ago, but I loved it. The pasta was amazing, the appy’s were great (melted cheese fondue, what’s not to love?).
Another that I sometimes forget about, and I haven’t been there for awhile, (and think it qualifies as a Med Hat restaurant) is Antique Country Dining out past Redcliff on the #1 highway. It’s a very quiet little romantic restaurant if you’re looking for something out of the ordinary.
I have to agree about Bonanza, sorry that it closed it’s doors because of fond childhood memories, but the cleanliness was lacking the past 2 times we were there. Sorry to say it.
Anyway, keep up the reviews!
When did Mario’s and Bonanza close. I was at Bonanza (with the family of course) when I was down at the end of Feb. Mario’s was still open too since I ran into a friend who told me he was working there.
I can get over Bonanza quite easily but why did Mario’s close? Hey, is the bar still open downstairs:)
/Melissa
Thanks for the posts! the antique restaurant shut down a couple years ago
/Jayna
good to see you here. Yesterday we went to eat at that Pha Phi(?) noodle house by bonanza, and the sign on the bonanza door said “temporarily closed”. I think it shut down a couple weeks ago. shrug
Mario’s closed because the owner pretty much got burnt out. he was there from opening to closing, made his money, and wanted to get out. He has been trying to sell it for awhile now, and stopped serving lunches a couple months ago.
And yes, the bar is still open.
Wow Antique country closed down too? It has been awhile I guess! Maybe I should have went more often…
I did want mention the Vietnamese retaurant downtown (Thui thien sp???) …I’m PRETTY sure that one is still open, as we go there for the #30 fairly regularly. Try it out!
My favourite restaurant is Zucchini Blossom. They are only open for lunch (until 5pm). They have flavourful soups, salads, sandwiches, and a select quiche and pizza for the day. The coffee is always good. The atmosphere is relaxing and inviting.
I also like the atmosphere at Damon Lanes Tea Room & Gift. They serve a nice light lunch and have an excellent lemon cheese cake. They have a very good tea selection.
Speaking of tea, I went to Bee-Natural just north of the old Bonanza. It has a good tea selection too. They look like they are setup for small meals. But I only bought tea, as I was already full from eating at Pho Dao next door to them.
Pho Dao is an OK Vietnamese restaurant. It’s not as busy as Thuy Tien downtown, but not as good either. Their combination plate is tasty – but it’s too oily for my tastes. I’ve tried their soup too, but I found it bland.
I moved from Calgary two years ago and am surprised that a city of 50,000 supports such a small set of predominately pizza and steak restaurants. I’ve noticed the lack of restaurants for evening dining - particularly ones with interesting food. I’ve watched with dismay when Rasoi, and then Three Amigos, closed. I hope that the Vineyard hasn’t really closed, but I haven’t been there since December. Perhaps medhatblog will get people more interested in eating out? I can only hope.
Hi Simone,
Good point on the pizza restaurants. there must be 20 in medicine hat. I also love the ZB, and have literally been going there since day 1.
Because of the suggestions here, I will be checking out d’carlos soon!
ZB: the best in town…if only based on their consistently creative menu, fresh food, and focus on quality. ZB has good coffee too (in the Italian Style)…at least they can build a Mocha without resorting to Nestle Quik or …dear god…chocolate milk.
The Roastery: chocolate milk…I mean ….come on. Nice ambience though, and a decent latte, though their house roasts seem…er…over done. Though with Starbucks here, they’d better watch their backs.
Earls: ughh..a franchise…but the food is consistent and the staff seem to be…how shall I put it…carefully selected.
Moxies: an Earls wannabe…in every way.
Cafe Caprice: a ZB contender if they focus on the menu.
Vineyard: it was good while it lasted…but only good.
Beefeater: a timewarp restaurant in the mold of the White Spot.
MH Lodge: is this really the best hotel in town…urghh.
Vietnamese (plural): both good, but could be fresher!!! Alas the V. Sub is gone…RIP.
Tumbleweeds at lunchtime: a disappointment to say the least.
Out of desperation, we enlist a caterer for special dinners…excellent, as good as any in Calgary and eager to please. Expensive? not if you find $50 a plate expensive (a bargain by Calgary Standards). We’ve had Duck, Halibut Cheeks, some amazing Italian desserts to name a few.
Until MH realizes the value of good food and good entertainment, it will remain a culturally impoverished retirement community.
Its symptomatic of a problem when streets such as Whyte Avenue, Kensington, and Robson stand out in their respective Cities as the ‘happenin’ part of town…and for MH its ‘the mall’. No MH is not a small town, it is a suburb of CalLethToon, complete with Big Box retailers and conveniently devoid of any local cultural content…with the exception of the Folk Club and Esplanade.
Its pretty bad when Rosebud has a more famous theatre than MH.
I’ve never had a bad meal at Mauro’s up the street from the ZB…. the nacho’s are good… the pasta’s always yummi…. not sure how UP-scale it’d be considered… but the food doesn’t dissappoint… beware the Karaoke!!
tumbleweeds by far…..neveer been disapointed either at lunch or dinner, great atmosphere and they will soon be moving into the old tuscany building
another is the bow island rest in none other than bow island for authentic thai food, atmosphere leaves somthing to be desired but GREAT food, thay are also in the process of coming to medicine hat this summer…watch for it!!!
I heard the Antique Country Dining North of the Cliff has recently reopened. Might want to check that out. Otherwise D’Carlo is the ultimate. Only problem there is that sameday reservations on a Friday usually aren’t possible.
I LOVE Samir’s Donair up in Ross Glenn - delicious!!!
Why hasn’t anyone mentioned Ralph’s. It is awesome. When the family comes down from Saskatoon, they all want to go there. Really…life is too short to go anywhere else!!
Tumbleweeds is the best Restaurant in the city…I can’t believe that people haven’t heard of it. On the other hand, I am glad that it is the best kept secret in town as you already need a reservation on the weekends….a dining experience that you wont forget…mmmmmmmmmmmmm.We don’t antwhere else since we discovered it
I agree that Tumbleweeds is by far the best restaurant in Medicine Hat, unbelievable flavors. We have friends that come down from Calgary to have dinner there once a month.
Tumbleweeds is the only restaurant we go to for dinner, the meals are amazing, once you try it you won’t eat anywhere else in its class. Cant wait for the new location to open in July!(the former Tuscany’s building)
I have recently went to Tumbleweeds for a ncie evening out with some quite a few other people. The service was horrible as the waiter forgot our drink order 3 times. Our reservations were for 6:30pm and we did not get our food till 8:05 and one lady at our table didnt get her food till 8:15.To top it all off people who came in after us got their food paid and left before we even got ours, isnt that what reservations are for? When we had asked the owner (woman) what was going on she threw a fit saying it was her building. I will never go back, what a horrible evening and a waste or hard earned money.
Tumbleweeds is an awesome restaurant. They use nothing but top of the line ingredients which likely accounts for the rich flavour of the meals. We have eaten there for lunch and dinner numerous times and have had excellent experiencs. I know they can get extremely busy at times due to their popularity. It is unfortunate that this might have affected the experiences of others. I have not talked to anyone personally that did not enjoy themselves and leave satisfied that they had received quality for their dollar. Their head chef (and owner) is an asset to Medicine Hat.
Just reading this forum and I too was disappointed that Mario’s had closed. The atmosphere was so intimate, and the food was wonderful. I’ve eaten at tumbleweeds and thought it was pretty good. Can anyone tell me where DiCarlos is? I coming to the hat this weekend 11-03-2007, and I would like to know where to find relaay good food and all that good stuff!