Cactus Club -- any good? (Calgary)

[dpeacey]

OK, more than several people have talked about the Cactus Club on Macleod Tr. (most recently in my French Fry thread) -- so, is it any good? (particularly value for money).

I usually avoid (1) restaurants on Macleod Tr. (2) anything that sounds franchise-y, but maybe that is just "old school" of me?

[yen]

Actually, I like the Cactus Club on Barlow (and McKnight). I havent been to the one on MacLeod in a very long time, but i guess the CC is more like a guilty pleasure. They follow the Earl's model of hiring, but i find the food to be quite a bit better.

Only downside is the ridiculous price you are paying these days for franchise/chain restaurant meals. Serves are not large, but not tiny either. Good selection of entrees that are a bit overpriced, but not bad in terms of quality and taste.

[Gobstopper]

decent sushi not.

[Shazam]

I don't eat sushi; it's simply what my brother said. I wouldn't spend any money at CC by choice, we were there simply because we were in the area, starving, and it wasn't busy.

And by "decent" I mean average. He's had far worse in town...

[dpeacey]

Hmmm ... Ok, thanks for the feedback. I think I'll give it a pass then.

[Shazam]

It's OK. They have a good selection of appies, including some decent sushi, believe it or not.

Their main courses are a bit boring, however.

[John Manzo]

It doesn't just SOUND franchise-y, it IS a franchise. You can't swing a dead cat in Vancouver without hitting one- of course, they get a ton of them downtown, and typical of Vancouver based chains (White Spot, anyone?), they take a chain that has a lot of urban presence in Vancouver and then open them only in the most uninteresting suburban locations in Calgary. This pisses me off.

Milestones is an exception of course.

I have no idea about their food.