Sugarbowl - Cinnamon Buns

We know we know, we haven't been quite consistent with the once a week post! We deeply apologize! With summer and all...well, you know how it is! We'll try to make it up to you these coming weeks, so please bear with us!

Where: Sugarbowl
Location: 10922 88 Ave
Phone #: 780-433-8369
Website: http://www.thesugarbowl.org/

I've never been a big fan of desserts, so while cinnamon buns are great (the icing is the best part, right?), they're definately not my favorite. We always go to Cinnabons (is that what it's called?) and buy like a dozen huge ones, end up freezing them, and they never really taste the same. Plus Bryan always end up finishing them before I even get to have 2!

Amanda, Bryan, and I went to the Sugarbowl one day quite by accident. We were supposed to go to the High Level Diner for brunch. We got to the Diner and brunch was over! Grumbling while walking back to the car, we were contemplating where they would serve brunch at 2 in the afternoon on a Sunday. And there it was - the Sugarbowl! Never heard of it, never tried it, so what the heck, we were hungry!

The first thing they told us was that the cinnamon buns were sold out. Amanda eyed the table next to us and said, "they must've gotten the last one! Look at how big it is! We have to come back!"

Not long after that, I read in a local magazine that these cinnamon buns are one of the must haves here in Edmonton. Needless to say, Cheap Chicks needed to go and investigate!

Sugarbowl is in a convenient location - close to Whyte Ave and close to the University. The atmostphere inside is super laid back with more varieties of beer than I could count - but that's for another post!

We went there bright and early one day, incase these cinnamon buns were going to be sold out again. The prices were right up our alley - they were only $3.50 each or $2.50 for half (but why bother? For $1 more, you can just get the whole one and pack half home!). When the cinnamon bun came, it didn't disappoint! It was HUGE! Like two-fist size! Unlike other cinnamon buns we've had, these ones had no icing. I was already a little worried - no icing? Really?

One bite into it, and I knew I could never go back to the way things were. These cinnamon buns were fresh and hot right from the oven! They were crispy on the outside coated with just the right amount of cinnamon and sugar, and super soft and a little bit gooey on the inside. Love butter? It just melts so nicely along the edges and add that extra yummy goodness to what's already perfection.

I have been raving about these cinnamon buns to my friends ever since. Just the other day, someone asked me if I held shares in this restaurant! For the record, I don't. I just really really love them!

With a cup of coffee, the total came to about $6 each with plenty to take home to enjoy later. Don't worry, a few seconds in the microwave or warm up in the oven, it's just as good as fresh! Not bad for a complete breakfast! You also have the option to add a fruit salad for those who feel guilty afterwards. But really, starve afterwards if you must, but set aside a morning to have one! I swear once you try these, you'll say goodbye to the old ones and never look back!

Oh, and we just found out today that they have increased their limit to 3 cinnamon buns per person, so buy one for yourself, one for your spouse, and one for your friends just because you love them that much!

Wecan Food Basket Society

First, I must apologize for not posting last week. It was a crazy week with business ventures, meetings, and conferences. I am sorry! I am going to make it up with this post and some news to watch out for this weekend! Please forgive me!

Location: Various throughout Edmonton
Price: $12 for meat, $8 for produce, or $20 for both
Website: http://www.wecanfood.com/

As much as Cheap Chicks like to go out and eat, sometimes a nice home-cooked meal is just as good if not better than restaurants. With Dan's Paella (best in town!) and Bryan's lasagna and famous Caesar salad (recipe available if requested!), it's a wonder sometimes why we leave home!

The Cheap Chicks, along with 10 others are pushing ourselves for the next 18 weeks with the Transformation Challenge! With that it means more fresh-cooked meals at home and less processed food at restaurants. With the economy the way it is, grocery cost is the only thing not going down. So Cheap Chicks went out and found you Wecan Food!

The Wecan Food Basket Society is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing affordable and fresh food across Edmonton. You can buy fresh meat and produce each month for more than 25% lower than retail price!

The great thing about this program is that it's opened to EVERYONE because they believe that we all have a right to proper nutrition at an affordable price.

For a $5 annual membership fee, it allows you to place as many orders as you want. They have 3 options they provide: a fresh meat order for $12, fresh produce (includes both vegetables and fruit) for $8, or a complete order of both for $20. There is no limit as to how many orders you place! So whether you're a small or big family, we can always use fresh food!

WeCan has locations all through Edmonton, including surrounding areas like Leduc, Spruce Grove, St. Albert, Drayton Valley, and Wetaskiwin. You place your order at the location closest to you by the first Friday of each month, and you get to pick up your order the third Thursday or Friday that month! This is perfect for some of us who may not budget all that great and still get fresh food before end of the month!

We got our first order in June, and I definately think we got our $20 worth! We got one whole pineapple, a bag of green apples, a bag of bananas, a cumcumber, a cauliflower, and a bag of potatoes. We also got 3 chicken thighs, half a kilogram of ground beef, and just over a kilogram of a pork roast. I know if we were to get this at the grocery store, we would be paying over $30! Not to mention this is good quality food!



Without the wonderful volunteers that put in many many hours each month, we would not be able to have affordable fresh food! They're always looking for more help and I encourage you to explore their website!

Don't have a Dan or a Bryan in the house? Have no fear! Check out this cool blog for fresh food recipe ideas! I'm sure you could use one or two!

Have you placed orders with them before? What was your experience like?

Padmanadi's Father's Day Buffet

Location: 10626-97th Street, Edmonton, Alberta
Date/Time: Wednesday June17th, noon-10pm
Price: $15
Website: http://www.padmanadi.com/index.html

When we were in our late teens Carly once decided she was going to be a vegetarian. She wasn't sure why; she just decided. For any of you who know of her love for rare steak (and by rare I mean seared on the outside and practically raw on the inside) this may come as a shock. It certainly did for me! I said "What?! Ok..." I played the supportive friend. Her mother on the other hand did not. "What?! Are you crazy? Well you are going to have feed yourself because I am not going to cook anything special for you. I don't know how to cook vegetarian food!" Carly's vegetarian endeavour lasted about 3 days. Maybe she would have been more successful if she had found a restaurant like Padmanadi to eat at.

Padmanadi is an entirely vegan restaurant located in China town. They offer "a blend of Indonesian, Chinese, Thai, and Indian cuisine". In addition to regular service, every month they have a buffet dinner and Carly and I went for our first Padmanadi buffet experience a few months ago. When we got there the line up was out the door! Buffets work on a first come first served basis and they are extremely popular so be prepared to wait. That night we didn't have to wait too long though. A table was ready for us within 15-20 minutes. The restaurant was not super large and it was packed! At times throughout the night the buffet line up wound from the buffet at the back of the restaurant to the front door. When we first got there though it wasn't too bad so we dropped our stuff at the table and got in line. The buffet looked great. There was steamed rice, a couple noodle dishes, some stir-fried veggies, and 3 or 4 "meat" dishes. We loaded up and went to sit down.

For those of you who have never tried mock meat before be prepared. It's not going to be exactly like chicken or pork or whatever is being imitated, but its close enough that I marvel at it every time I have it. It's something you really have to try for yourself, and it's not everybody's cup of tea. A verbal description though just doesn't do it justice. The point is however, meat or no meat, the food is delicious! My favorites are the ginger beef (I think it's supposed to be beef) and the yellow curry which is ALWAYS way to spicy for me but I have two helpings anyways!

For more information about Padmanadi and its story check out their website above. The restaurant is run by Kasim Kasim, the owner, and his family (if they have time ask them the story about their names), and you can really feel that the restaurant is a family business! The walls are covered with photos of the family and customers and you can really tell that Padmanadi and the owners have touched people beyond just serving them good food.

Padmanadi's next buffet is Wednesday, June 17 in honor of Father's Day. So if you haven't tried vegetarian cuisine come out for the experience, and if you already enjoy vegetarian cuisine just come out for the delicious food! Carly and I plan to be there as usual! We are aiming for three helpings - wish us luck!

Lazia's Tiramisu

Lazia Tiramisu
Location: North, Downtown
Website: http://www.lazia.ca/

I can’t say that I have ever much cared for tiramisu…that was until Carly made me try the tiramisu at Famoso! Ever since then I have been addicted to tiramisu. Completely forgetting my previous distaste for what I considered a foamy dessert and going out in search of other mouth watering versions to delight my palate.

The next stop on our tiramisu hunt took us to Lazia in the north end. First impressions of the restaurant were good. It was trendy but inviting. We decided to sit in the lounge as we were also there to catch the hockey game – our beloved Canucks were playing in the first round of the playoffs against the Blues…ahhh the good old days when they were winning! There’s always next year ‘nucks!

Lazia had lots of dessert options to choose from. Including crème brulé which is always a crowd pleaser. We were having a hard time deciding so the waitress suggested that we head over to the cooler on the restaurant side and take a look at the desserts. This was a nice touch and made the selection process easier. The dessert cooler was a dessert lover’s heaven. Lazia’s desserts, including the tiramisu, are all individually sized so you get an individual little cake instead of a slice from a large cake – delightful! We made our choices and headed back to our table where drinks had already been served.

Strike one against Lazia. The coffee came in glasses which always look nice but unfortunately let out the heat so the coffee gets cold quickly. I didn’t get a single hot sip of coffee all night. Then the main event – the tiramisu – arrived. It was adorable! A miniature version of a large cake; it was almost too cute to eat, but that didn’t hold us back for long. We each took a bite and as usual turned to look at each other. This tiramisu didn’t evoke the same reaction as the Sorrentino’s tiramisu so we were off to a good start. Unfortunately though my first bite was all mascarpone cheese so I couldn’t really tell much. I went back for a second bite and was pleasantly surprised. It was not the foamy whippy tasteless tiramisu of my past but I can’t say that it was comparable to the tiramisu of my dreams from Famoso. It was a solid attempt though. It was light and airy but there was something missing in the combination of coffee and liqueur. The cake was composed of a layer of chocolate cake on the bottom then a layer of mascarpone topped by a layer of ladies fingers all wrapped up in more mascarpone. I personally found the cake layer to be a bit heavy for the lightness that is required for tiramisu but since it was only one layer it was passable. A warning however, I made the mistake of trying the chocolate cake layer by itself and got a nasty surprise. It was drenched in really strong coffee and was not sweet at all. It was obviously not meant to be eaten by itself. If for whatever reason you find yourself with the bottom layer alone to eat do yourself a favour and grab some mascarpone from the side or something. Trust me on this one!

All in all Lazia ranks #2 on tiramisu hunt knocking Sorrentino’s into the third position. Famoso still ranks #1 for us based on both price and flavour.

NB – This is not related to our tiramisu research but a friend of ours ordered some sort of mango mousse concoction that turned out to be one of the worst desserts I have ever tried. Whoever decided to call that dense bit of creaminess mousse has obviously never tried real mousse. If anyone happens to go to Lazia because of this post I don’t want it to be my fault that they end up ordering this unfortunate attempt at dessert. So be warned.

Sobeys Live Music

Location: Sobeys Downtown: 10404 Jasper Ave ; Sobeys College Plaza: 8225 112 St
Price: Free!
Date/Time: Every Friday/Saturday from 5 pm to 9 pm

Amanda wrote last week about how getting older has left us needing to exercise. Unfortunately, metabolism isn't the only thing that age has taken away from us! Back in the day, we could go clubbing every Friday and Saturday, drinking 2 nights in a row just meant sleeping it off on Sunday, and the loud constant rings in our ears normally disappeared after a quick snooze. Late twenties hit and we're left pondering how to spend our weekends so we're home by midnight to avoid further break down of our aging bodies. (Dramatic, I know. I'm not sure how we'll handle the 30's)

I was glancing through the newspaper one day for things to do, and I did a double take when I read "Come to Sobeys for Live Music every Friday and Saturday starting in May". Sobeys? The grocery store?

Since a place like Whyte Ave is no longer our best friend, we strolled over to Sobeys one Friday night to see what this is all about. Bryan and I were running a little late, so Amanda texted me:

7:30 pm from Amanda: U here yet
7:31 pm from Carly: Almost, 5 min away
7:34 pm from Amanda: There's no music
Carly: speechless

Bryan and I found a parking spot not too far away at a meter and when walked in to Sobeys, Amanda was right, there was no music. Were we at the wrong place? Were we misinformed? Were we too late?

Walking to the far end of the store - there it was - a coffee/drinks bar in the corner. Surprisingly, it was bright, warm, and inviting. They had a fireplace in the far wall along with a couple of really nice comfy chairs. There were a few tables - both low and high - along with some modern decoration. It seemed that the band was just taking a break, so we were relieved to know that we didn't miss the show entirely!

We quickly grabbed a spot at the bar. They serve a variety of food like sandwiches, fries, and salads. Along with that, they also serve coffee, tea, and fancy lattes. Price-wise, the food is reasonable. I settled for a glass of house red for $5 (one of their daily specials) while the boys got a bucket of beer (4 in a bucket) for $12. If you didn't want what's on their menu, you can always buy food from the grocery store (they have a fresh sushi bar!) and bring it in. It's super convenient! They also offer a buck a shuck every Thursday and Friday at Sobeys for their raw oysters. I had 10 one night and I must admit, they were so fresh and juicy I thought I was in heaven! It was super laid back, a perfect setting where you can read a magazine or newspaper, settle down and enjoy the music, or chat with your friends without it being too distracting. The audience ranged from kids to people our age to older retirees - they really catered to everyone!

So if you're looking for something a little more laid back to do on the weekend, why not check out the live music at Sobey's? It's always a local band (and at Cheap Chicks, we fully support local businesses!) and it's cheap! For $2 (a coffee), you can literally enjoy 4 hours of entertainment. Go buy a magazine and come sit by the fire, you'll feel right at home!

This week (May.22 and May 23), they're featuring Adurey Ochoa Trio (jazz) at the downtown location, and Dan Davis Trio (jazz) at the College Plaza location. Would love to hear how you feel about live music at a grocery store!

Sorrentino's Tiramisu

Location: Downtown, Little Italy, Sherwood Park, South, St. Albert, West (check website for more information)
Phone: 780-474-6494
Website: http://www.sorrentinos.com/

A couple of weeks ago, we decided to embark on our new adventure to find the city's BEST tiramisu. It's kinda funny, since neither Amanda nor I liked tiramisu at all until we found the one at Famoso. Now everywhere we go, we look at the menu and get all disappointed when there's no tiramisu on the menu. This blog has literally changed us. ;)

It also seems we like to venture out to new places after yoga. I'm not sure if meditating tends to open us up to new things, but probably not. I think the tree pose exhausts us enough to get so hungry we'll settle for anything in sight.

So last Monday after our last yoga class, we were debating between a few restaurants. Then there it was - Sorrentino's right in front of us! It was as if it was just meant to be. We've been talking about going there for tiramisu forever, but just never found the right time to go.
We went to the one on the West end in Callingwood. Parking was a breeze. We scored pretty rock star parking in front of the restaurant. We walked in and were surprised at how busy the restaurant was. We took one look around and knew we didn't quite fit in with our yoga pants and runners.

Amanda was starving, which served her right because she didn't have dinner before yoga. We asked for the dinner menu, which at a glance, we can tell you right now was not Cheap Chicks material. So we won't blog too much about their food...but we can tell you this - their seafood pasta although good in value (for $18, you get tons of seafood), I would only order if you enjoy chewing on rubber and inhaling clams. There were a lot of clams. Clams. Enough said.

After dinner, we were so excited about the tiramisu! Sorrentinos has advertised that they make the best tiramisu in town. I was on the edge of my seat! I couldn't imagine it being better than Famoso. I was dreaming of the creaminess and the fluffiness of it all. I was dying for them to bring it out.

Not before we ordered coffee, of course. Their coffee wasn't horrible, but wasn't the best either. It had an interesting after taste. I don't know about these Italian coffees, they all need a lot of cream. At least for me.

Finally, the tiramisu came! It looked presentable (note the picture below, which took me literally 5 whole minutes to take because of my crappy camera which wouldn't focus for the life of me, and the crappy lighting. Finally, I had to get Amanda to hold it up with her goofy face so you can have a good look at it). Amanda and I dug our forks in and took our first bite....



It was followed by silence.

Then a weird face from both of us.

And then roaring laughter.

Amanda: This is terrible!
Carly: I've never had anything like it!
Amanda: How is it even tiramisu?
Carly: I think this is why we've never enjoyed it.
Amanda: It's dense! Ladyfingers aren't supposed to be dense! I think they used cake!
Carly: Where's the cheese? Oh, there it is (scraping a thin layer off). Wait, I think it's cream cheese.
Amanda: Let me try a strawberry.
Carly: What's wrong?
Amanda: (with a squinty eyes and scrunched up face) It's REALLY sour.
Carly: Argh, I can't eat this. This was the most disappointing outing ever. It's not creamy, it's not light. There's nothing good about it.
Amanda: It's just a cake...and they named it "tiramisu".

It could've just been an off night they had. Who knows? If you've had a different experience, we would love to hear it! The good news is that Sorrentino's tiramisu is ranked #2 on our list! With the dessert and coffee, our bill came to just over $14. Would you rather spend $14 here? Or $12 at Famoso? You decide.

Famoso's Tiramisu

Location: 11750 Jasper Avenue or 14123 23 Ave
Phone: 780-732-0700 or 780-436-8799
Time: Tues to Sat 11am to 11pm, Mon 11am to 9pm, Sun 12pm to 9pm
http://www.famoso.ca/

One of our friends invited Carly out to Famoso about a year ago, and ever since, pizza had a new meaning. Even Amanda, who isn't a big pizza fan loves Famoso because of its authentic Italian taste! Although Famoso is famous for it's wood-oven fresh made pizza with ingredients right from Italy, Cheap Chicks decided to blog about something that tastes good, and fits our budget! Both of us weren't tiramisu fans, but after one bite of it at Famoso, we are now in search of the city's best tiramisu! So here's our first review - stay tuned for more!

There's plenty of parking at the Famoso parking lot. You do share with patrons at On the Rocks and Liquor Depot. But if you can't find parking there, there's also some meter parking on the street. Rest assured that you don't have to park a mile away to work up a bigger appetite!

Famoso is normally "seat yourself" style, but during peak time, you will have to put your name down and wait on the list. We have never had to wait longer than 15 minutes. And it's definately worthwhile!

Famoso isn't a big restaurant, which gives it a cozy feel. The aroma of fresh pizza is enough to make you drool all over. They have menus on the table, and once you choose what you want, you just go up to the register and order. Once the food is ready, they'll bring it to you. Meanwhile, you can help yourself with cutlery, water, and parmesan cheese/chilli on the side table.

We went to the downtown Famoso one night after Yoga to have a coffee and shared a tiramisu. Their coffee comes in a huge mug (and we mean HUGE!). We normally take 2-3 creams in our coffee, but in this mug, we both took at least 6! We recommend that you ask for it 3/4 filled (or even half), then 2-3 creams should be just right. They have vanilla flavored sugar on the side, which makes for a perfect cup of coffee.




One bite into the tiramisu, and you know this one stands out from the rest. The flavor, fluffiness, and creaminess come together in a perfect balance. The whole bite will just melt in your mouth. It was by far the best tiramisu we've had so far, but we've heard that other places claim they carry the best, so our search continues...

If you're looking for a light and yummy treat to complete your meal, then head over to Famoso! For 2 coffees, one tiramisu to share, it's only $10! It's perfect to go with a friend, on a date, or just to go!

Perogy Dinner and Bake Sale

Location: St. John Cultural Centre - 10611 110 Ave, Edmonton, AB
Price: $12 Adults, $10 Seniors/Children under 10 - Cash Only
Phone Number: 780-425-9692
Date/Time: One Friday Per Month from 5 pm to 7 pm
Next Dinner: Friday, April 3, 2009
Website: http://www.uocc-stjohn.ca/

The first time we decided to go to a perogy dinner we were bursting with excitement! Would it be a plated dinner? Would it be a buffet? Would we only get perogies? We were sure in for a treat!

Parking wasn't exactly the easiest to find, but being on residential streets, we were able to find a spot just a block away. The first thing we noticed walking into the cultural centre hall was the age group of the majority of people there. Have you ever walked into a bar and felt like the oldest person there? That was not how we felt! We were surrounded by "babas" and "dids"*!

It wasn't fine dining by any means. There were about 20 round tables in the hall, and it's first come first serve. When we arrived around 5:30, the place was already pretty packed! We found a lady who was nice enough to share the table with us.

There was a bar at the front offering alcoholic beverages, but we were too excited about the food to order any. If you're looking to drink, they range from $4.75 and up.

The mystery was solved. There was a food station at the entrance of the hall. We lined up and picked up our utensils, plates, and napkins. We walked down the line and started piling our plates! We started with a Caesar Salad, Borscht, 2 kinds of perogies - cottage cheese and cheddar, and sausages with sourkraut. At the side table, there was sour cream and fake bacon bits. The best part though, was the giant tub of butter with onions.

Even though it was a buffet, we couldn't help but load our plates as much as we could. And then, the moment came - the first bite of perogy. The mix of sour cream, butter, onions, and bacon bits was just...so good! We could instantly tell the difference between these perogies and store-bought brands. These were definately baba made! Apparently, they have perogy making gatherings! Babas come together and wrap each perogy with lots of baba love. No wonder they tasted so delicious!

The Caesar salad was pretty tasty, especially for a buffet. If you get there early enough, it actually has real bacon bits on it! (Try to get there right at 5) The soup does vary each month, and it's individually packaged for easy serving. The extra dish is normally a meat dish, and can range from sausages to pork loin to fish.

After a dozen perogies, we felt like we were carrying a 5 lb baby. But there was more! You get coffee or tea, and dessert to end your meal. But dessert goes fast! If you want chocolate pudding vs vanilla pudding, make sure you don't wait until the very end.

There's always a bake sale at the back of the hall. Their cinnamon buns come in a package of 6 - again, homemade and fresh, for only $4! You can also get frozen perogies and cabbage rolls. You can pick up a price sheet when you enter the hall.

Amanda's thoughts: Vancouver doesn't seem to have as large a Ukrainian community as Edmonton so, even though I have always loved perogies, I had never really tasted authentic Ukrainian food. These perogies made me wonder how I was able to eat to store bought perogies for so long! The atmosphere is a bit a lacking though so I recommend bringing some friends with you to bump up the fun quotient. The food will more than make up for it!

Carly's thoughts: I'm not a big fan of perogies, but when I tasted these, I was in love! Personally, my favorite was the cottage cheese. I find it really cheesy, and you can actually taste the filling rather than just dough. One hint on the butter and onions - make sure you drain the onions or you're left with a plate with a pool of butter! This dinner is not for the faint of heart, make sure you come with a big appetite and loose pants for comfort!

Overall, $12 is a great deal for getting a salad, soup, entree, dessert, and coffee or tea (a 4-course meal). We have heard of other perogy dinners, but a lot of them are plated rather than buffet, for the same price. If you are looking for a satisfying meal on a Friday night, come check it out!

We'll be there this Friday, so look for us! Trust us, you'll know which table belongs to us!

*babas & dids mean grandmas and grandpas in Ukranian