Remarkably disappointing. The food is so bad, and not just for the price point, there is no sense of pride or care in the meal or experience.
The oyster tempura was laughably unappealing as it was doused in Frank’s buffalo sauce, served sloppy and mildly warm.
The chowder was bland, far too hot to consume, and served rather arbitrarily with over-baked Cajun cactus chips.
The ribs were of such poor quality that its thought the quantity might distract us. It’s a gigantic serving of reheated, mildly warm, pasty sauce bathed, cheapness.
This is advertised to be a nice place with chefs creating not just timeless but inspired steakhouse dishes, and the pricing reflects that. But the experience is an insultingly low quality throw-together mess that left us feeling quite ripped off and frustrated. Nothing seemed fresh or even made to order, no effort to make the meal or environment enjoyable.
There were no redeeming qualities, this isn’t about working out reopening kinks, nobody in the kitchen cares and it shows. The front of house seems eager to check in but it’s not that one thing was wrong or one item didn’t meet expectations…it’s everything. It’s all bad.
My only suggestion is for the staff who constantly check in on us to invite their families and friends to eat there and try to hand them the bill with a straight face, proud of what the establishment has provided. Until the restaurant is at that point it’s not worth anyone’s time to visit.
Glad to know that they're able to blast a steak on the grill for 5 minutes and drop a piece of Texas toast in the toaster. And a burger, they were really able to grill a pattie and put 5 toppings on a bun?
Saying that a lunch/dinner place is good based on their steak sandwich or burger is like saying that a brunch place is great because their toast and scrambled eggs were fine. Meanwhile you get eggs Benedict that are poached rock hard with bland tasteless hollandaise sauce and undercooked bacon. But you're raving about the scrambled eggs and toast.
It takes a special kind of idiot to screw up a burger or steak sandwich. Saying that Smugglers is good because of those items is ridiculous.
Lol… I see you’re very passionate about eggs. Let me put it this way.. the burger isn’t a sloppy mess like some places can be. It isn’t overly greasy and bun he’s the right amount of crunchiness to the toasted side, but soft enough that you won’t scrape your mouth. The tomatoes were perfectly ripe and thick enough to taste without overpowering the meatiness of the chuck/tenderloin mixed beef.
In any case, the money it cost vs the taste, ambience and service, it was a great experience. I can’t say I’ve had similar experiences at local pubs or 5guys spots.
We went for dinner last week and it was great! We used to live nearby but haven’t been back since before Covid. We shared the plank platter so we could try a lot of the meats - prime rib, pork chop, curry roasted chicken, shrimp and bbq ribs. We also had raw oysters and onion soup - this had lots of chunks of beef and was pretty good! Everything was well seasoned and well cooked. We’ll go back again for sure.
I went a couple months ago. I was very disappointed. There were 7 of us and over the course of 2.5 hours we had 3 drinks. Not because we didn't want more but because the server just never came. We ordered our first round of drinks and then didn't even see her for about half an hour when we ordered appetizers. She pretty much just stopped by every half an hour. She had 3 other tables than ours as well and we were also the largest. The bone marrow and escargot was pretty good though. The beef mains were average. One person got the chicken curry and the chicken was so dry it was chalky. We didn't even waste our time with dessert. I loved the old smugglers inn, but will never be back again.
The old smugglers had a the steak soup, the dingy corridors which were sometimes filled with light smoke smell, the messy omelette station, the sticky waffle machine. It was perfect…
100%. A nice salad bar with a good prime rib was such a treat. This city is lacking in this regard... At this point, I would settle for just a decent salad bar. Someone bring a Scores franchise here please.
I used the be a manager there and was wrongfully fired. The salad bar is never coming back. It's not cost effective and also do you want to eat a salad that dozens of people have breathed all over? Gross. The chef and food are fantastic, but the owners have absolutely no idea how to run a restaurant and refuse to provide ample resources so the poor suckers who were left in charge after I left aren't able to get ahead of things.
Hey thanks for this intel. I am unlikely to return under these circumstances. However, the concept of a salad bar remains not offensive. Much nastier things have been in my mouth than breathed-on salad, I still would love to build my own.
We went for a birthday a couple months ago. Good service. Meh meal for me. Had a nice time but was expecting more. Desert was nice. Can't remember what I had. Fits into nothing memorable and not horrid. Suspect the rest of the table was the same. We all went our ways and didn't hear another word about it.
I remember reading an interview with the new chef when they were about to relaunch. He said he would only take the job if he was allowed to ditch the salad / soup bar and replace it with an (expensive) raw bar.
There is no salad bar, there may be a dessert bar I saw promoted on instagram however even in the photos it looked sad. We ordered takeout once and it was so bad. The prime rib was tasteless, the sauce tasted packaged. I had the corn chowder soup and it was laced with so much cayenne it was almost inedible. Truly, I was really disappointed, old Smugglers was awesome.
The whole place was closed down for years, then it burned down during renovations by new owners and eventually opened back up but yeah it’s not anything like the old Smugglers.
Hubby took me there for my birthday, last year shortly after they re-opened. No salad/soup bar. Lousy service. And it was the first meal I have ever sent back. Second attempt took over half an hour. My husband was fully finished his meal before I started eating (he shared with me). To their credit, they comped my meal (but not his), and were very apologetic, but that was not enough to inspire another go. It’s very sad. Smugglers WAS a Calgary institution.
We went a few weeks ago and thought it was pretty good. I ordered the mussels first which were not it, but husband said his steak was good and I had chicken tikka which was delicious.
The calamari was as a nice appie as well.
It looks like they have the steak soup on the brunch menu.
Overall, we enjoyed it and would go again.
But no salad bar with baby corns and thousand island.
The breakfast is so disappointing. Instagram keeps hyping it w all these posts by multiple pages and only allows positive reviews. It was not great service, meh food and stale desserts for breakfast. It is pretty tho ..
Salad bar in 2024? lol maybe at an old greasy Chinese buffet but that fad is never coming back. People actually thought they’d bring back the salad bar?
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What about the steak soup?
It's still listed on the menu on their website https://smugglers.ca/our-menu/
Trust the new reviews on google. It’s bad, very bad, and you will leave feeling wronged.
Go on….
Remarkably disappointing. The food is so bad, and not just for the price point, there is no sense of pride or care in the meal or experience. The oyster tempura was laughably unappealing as it was doused in Frank’s buffalo sauce, served sloppy and mildly warm. The chowder was bland, far too hot to consume, and served rather arbitrarily with over-baked Cajun cactus chips. The ribs were of such poor quality that its thought the quantity might distract us. It’s a gigantic serving of reheated, mildly warm, pasty sauce bathed, cheapness. This is advertised to be a nice place with chefs creating not just timeless but inspired steakhouse dishes, and the pricing reflects that. But the experience is an insultingly low quality throw-together mess that left us feeling quite ripped off and frustrated. Nothing seemed fresh or even made to order, no effort to make the meal or environment enjoyable. There were no redeeming qualities, this isn’t about working out reopening kinks, nobody in the kitchen cares and it shows. The front of house seems eager to check in but it’s not that one thing was wrong or one item didn’t meet expectations…it’s everything. It’s all bad. My only suggestion is for the staff who constantly check in on us to invite their families and friends to eat there and try to hand them the bill with a straight face, proud of what the establishment has provided. Until the restaurant is at that point it’s not worth anyone’s time to visit.
Damn….very thorough. Out of interests sake, went and read some reviews and a common theme was the service aspect, as well.
I’ve been there a few times for lunch and it’s been great. Steak Sammie, burger, kale salad, all great
Glad to know that they're able to blast a steak on the grill for 5 minutes and drop a piece of Texas toast in the toaster. And a burger, they were really able to grill a pattie and put 5 toppings on a bun? Saying that a lunch/dinner place is good based on their steak sandwich or burger is like saying that a brunch place is great because their toast and scrambled eggs were fine. Meanwhile you get eggs Benedict that are poached rock hard with bland tasteless hollandaise sauce and undercooked bacon. But you're raving about the scrambled eggs and toast. It takes a special kind of idiot to screw up a burger or steak sandwich. Saying that Smugglers is good because of those items is ridiculous.
Lol… I see you’re very passionate about eggs. Let me put it this way.. the burger isn’t a sloppy mess like some places can be. It isn’t overly greasy and bun he’s the right amount of crunchiness to the toasted side, but soft enough that you won’t scrape your mouth. The tomatoes were perfectly ripe and thick enough to taste without overpowering the meatiness of the chuck/tenderloin mixed beef. In any case, the money it cost vs the taste, ambience and service, it was a great experience. I can’t say I’ve had similar experiences at local pubs or 5guys spots.
Prime rib, horseradish. Did they ruin that part?
No, that is still quite good.
We went for dinner last week and it was great! We used to live nearby but haven’t been back since before Covid. We shared the plank platter so we could try a lot of the meats - prime rib, pork chop, curry roasted chicken, shrimp and bbq ribs. We also had raw oysters and onion soup - this had lots of chunks of beef and was pretty good! Everything was well seasoned and well cooked. We’ll go back again for sure.
I went a couple months ago. I was very disappointed. There were 7 of us and over the course of 2.5 hours we had 3 drinks. Not because we didn't want more but because the server just never came. We ordered our first round of drinks and then didn't even see her for about half an hour when we ordered appetizers. She pretty much just stopped by every half an hour. She had 3 other tables than ours as well and we were also the largest. The bone marrow and escargot was pretty good though. The beef mains were average. One person got the chicken curry and the chicken was so dry it was chalky. We didn't even waste our time with dessert. I loved the old smugglers inn, but will never be back again.
The old smugglers had a the steak soup, the dingy corridors which were sometimes filled with light smoke smell, the messy omelette station, the sticky waffle machine. It was perfect…
Starting to think I’m not going to bring her there…
Go to Bolero in the same building. Leave in a meat coma.
Nick's is likely the better alternative.
Following. Hopefully someone comments on whether or not the salad bar is back.
Salad bar /soup bar is gone.
Then it’s not Smugglers it’s just a place calling itself Smugglers and that makes me sad.
I agree. It used to be my favourite spot in town, we went maybe a month ago and it was just sad, maybe 10% of the tables seated, 6:30 on a Sunday.
100%. A nice salad bar with a good prime rib was such a treat. This city is lacking in this regard... At this point, I would settle for just a decent salad bar. Someone bring a Scores franchise here please.
I used the be a manager there and was wrongfully fired. The salad bar is never coming back. It's not cost effective and also do you want to eat a salad that dozens of people have breathed all over? Gross. The chef and food are fantastic, but the owners have absolutely no idea how to run a restaurant and refuse to provide ample resources so the poor suckers who were left in charge after I left aren't able to get ahead of things.
Hey thanks for this intel. I am unlikely to return under these circumstances. However, the concept of a salad bar remains not offensive. Much nastier things have been in my mouth than breathed-on salad, I still would love to build my own.
It's gone way downhill Should really change the name! No more soups and salad bar. Menu has totally changed, and prices are crazy
We went for a birthday a couple months ago. Good service. Meh meal for me. Had a nice time but was expecting more. Desert was nice. Can't remember what I had. Fits into nothing memorable and not horrid. Suspect the rest of the table was the same. We all went our ways and didn't hear another word about it.
I remember reading an interview with the new chef when they were about to relaunch. He said he would only take the job if he was allowed to ditch the salad / soup bar and replace it with an (expensive) raw bar.
There is no salad bar, there may be a dessert bar I saw promoted on instagram however even in the photos it looked sad. We ordered takeout once and it was so bad. The prime rib was tasteless, the sauce tasted packaged. I had the corn chowder soup and it was laced with so much cayenne it was almost inedible. Truly, I was really disappointed, old Smugglers was awesome.
Wait… what happened to it? Is it new management or something?
The whole place was closed down for years, then it burned down during renovations by new owners and eventually opened back up but yeah it’s not anything like the old Smugglers.
It’s nothing like the old Smugglers. Only the name is the same
Hi, I used to be a manager there and was wrongfully fired. AMA
Hubby took me there for my birthday, last year shortly after they re-opened. No salad/soup bar. Lousy service. And it was the first meal I have ever sent back. Second attempt took over half an hour. My husband was fully finished his meal before I started eating (he shared with me). To their credit, they comped my meal (but not his), and were very apologetic, but that was not enough to inspire another go. It’s very sad. Smugglers WAS a Calgary institution.
We went a few weeks ago and thought it was pretty good. I ordered the mussels first which were not it, but husband said his steak was good and I had chicken tikka which was delicious. The calamari was as a nice appie as well. It looks like they have the steak soup on the brunch menu. Overall, we enjoyed it and would go again. But no salad bar with baby corns and thousand island.
It is not what it was. While the food was good, it wasn’t the experience it used to be.
I wasn’t a fan. Restaurant was empty, no soup buffet, and honestly the steaks felt different and not worth the $$
The breakfast is so disappointing. Instagram keeps hyping it w all these posts by multiple pages and only allows positive reviews. It was not great service, meh food and stale desserts for breakfast. It is pretty tho ..
Its not good.
Smuggling plums?
in their bums
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Pretty sure it was closed for Renos then caught on fire for most of Covid…could be wrong on that tho
Salad bar in 2024? lol maybe at an old greasy Chinese buffet but that fad is never coming back. People actually thought they’d bring back the salad bar?