| When did driving to Bragg Creek become a thing? There are lots of people – old, young, married with kids, no kids – who jump in the car and make the drive out there, have coffee or pie or whatever, and come right home. No biking, no skiing, no golfing. Maybe it’s the bucolic tranquility of the community, or the opportunity to get nabbed by the RCMP for speeding on Highway 8, but it’s become a popular destination for Calgarians.
Another excellent reason for heading off to Bragg Creek is Infusion Contemporary Cuisine (23 Balsam Ave., phone 949-3898). Chef Air Bouphasiry has a French sensibility and an Asian heart (he’s from Indonesia) and his rich, sumptuous dishes are good. His use of rich cream sauces may be slightly unfashionable, but it’s lovely to have rich food once in a while.
Infusion is located in what appears to be a converted house, which means it’s difficult for the restaurant to maintain a unified atmosphere as diners are seated in different rooms. However, the rooms themselves are warm and inviting. It feels quite rustic inside and, if it were in Banff, Infusion would be the best restaurant there that’s not in a hotel.
I should get this off my chest right away – while the wine list is well-priced, one of our companions, a fabulous wine babe (my wife’s terminology), and I had difficulty finding wines on the list that would complement the food. This was odd, and Infusion could also offer some wines with a little less heft and a little more acid, so as not to appear flabby when matched with the rich cuisine.
We began with a round of appetizers, which proved outstanding. Really. I haven’t had such well-prepared, well-thought-out appetizers in a long time. In the baked portobello mushroom, which was stuffed with crab and fresh breadcrumbs ($11), the crab was ideally prepared and contrasted the meaty mushroom perfectly.
The fried calamari was tender and had one of the most appealing spicy-sweet-hot dipping sauces I’ve ever had ($9) – they should bottle it.
The Coquilles St. Jacques – sautéed sea scallops with mushrooms – were tender, cooked perfectly and, frankly, a hugely guilty pleasure given the rich cream sauce they came with. I’d have preferred a more intense ginger-cognac-soy flavour, as advertised, but oh well. The chef didn’t want to over-blow the subtle taste of the scallops, I’m sure. The escargot vol-au-vent ($9) – snails wrapped in pastry – was served with an intense Beaujolais sauce, which complemented them perfectly.
The entrées were all very good. The highlight was the beef tournedos ($26), fillets with peppercorn and brandy cream sauce that were perfectly cooked, fabulously tender and wonderfully balanced. The deep fried salmon ($18) was like the most upscale fish-and-chips you’ve ever had, and it was finished in a Thai-influenced basil and curry sauce. Yum.
The only dish that wasn’t quite as impressive was the veal Oscar ($23), where the crab was overtaken and muted by the rich, creamy mushroom sauce. The veal, however, was tender and perfectly prepared.
Desserts at Infusion are effectively all chocolate, all the time. Most successful was the chocolate Frangelico torte ($6), a rich affair that just about killed us all. On our way out, we spied what the staff was eating for their meal – pad thai whipped up on the grill. I wonder if the talented chef ever feels tempted to go absolutely crazy with the menu and start blending his French and Asian styles? I’d love to find out. |
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