There is a little old house in Calgary that sits on a quiet cross street between two busy one ways. It has been renovated and retrofitted, making it a romantic little spot for lovers, friends, or colleagues alike to dine. It is where vintage architecture meets modern food. It is the Laurier Lounge.

Somewhat famous for its Fondu, the Laurier Lounge has been creating quite a stir. Young, old, everyone seems to want to claim Laurier as their own favorite restaurant. It is understandable, the food is fantastic. From the Duck Confit Poutine, to the enduring wine list, Laurier has all of the basis covered. The food is tasty, the atmosphere superb, the only thing that even remotely comes into question is the price.

While the food is great, it isn’t as great as what they charge for it. If you travel down the street to District you will get a similar, if not better quality of food because it is local, for half the price. We found the fondue to be disappointing for no other reason than the meat they served seemed to be no better quality than what you would get at Codo in their $7.95 soup. At $45 a person, you would hope that you could differentiate. I would guess that they would argue that the meat is a better cut, but that is irrelevant when the presentation screams “I should have brought my own meat!”

One thing that you wouldn’t want to bring on your own however is the chocolate for the Callebaut chocolate fondue. Now here is something most people don’t know. Just because you are eating Callebaut chocolate, doesn’t mean it is Bernard Callebaut. It is more likely Barry Callebaut Chocolate. Bernard has done an amazing job of tricking Calgarians into thinking that all Callebaut chocolate is his Callebaut chocolate. The truth is not all Callebaut chocolate is Bernard’s, but almost all of Bernard’s is Barry’s? Confusing? Bernard Callebaut orders authentic Callebaut chocolate from the much larger Belgium chocolate company Barry Callebaut, then after he forms it into his confectionery creations it becomes Bernard Callebaut chocolate. Most of the Belgium chocolate makers around the world use Callebaut chocolate to make their creations. So Callebaut fondu, more than likely, has nothing to do with Bernard.

What we liked

• Tasty food
• Amazing Duck Confit Poutine
• Atmosphere

What we didn’t like

• Outrageous prices
• Dissapointing quantity and quality when it came to the fondue meat