What are good places for a bite to eat in Red Deer?

[sleepycat]

Gasoline alley going north is not as good as it is going southbound. Any recommendations for any kind of places to eat not too far from Gasoline Alley? I'm tired of Montanas and I don't want to go to Kelsey's.

[Gregand]

I recommend Rueon Thai Restaurant. They make awesome food and the service is great. It's a family run business. I've ordered most everything off their menu and have been overly satisfied with everything. I think my favorite is pad Thai but made extra spicy. Tonight while I was waiting for my take out, I had a Chang beer an she brought out a bowl of cashews for me to enjoy with my beer. It's a very clean place and it is across the street from save on foods on the north end. Same building as Kraze 101.3. Their phone number is 403-986-6319. I eat here at least once a week.

[rdch]

I would also like to recomend King Donair.The beef is the pressed loaf/cone
type but it is still good.The chicken is homemade and it is usualy what I
order.It is a mix of white and dark meat and he leaves some skin in.It is as
good as any I have had in Calgary or Edmonton.The sandwiches are excellent
but my favorite is the chicken plate.Rice with chicken on top,humous,salad
and a pita.It is a large portion and usualy cuts my supper intake in half.
Saladwise I always get the tabbouli with my plate.The plates are not as
popular as the sandwiches so there is not always a high volume of rice
turnover so sometimes the rice is a microwave reheat.I don't mind but if
this bothers you stick with the sandwiches.My only complaint is that the
garlic sauce has been dumbed down since he opened.It is still good but I
liked the old strength better.
King Donair & Chicken Schawarma
4942 50th street (Ross street)
across from the Royal bank

[ambur]

I had onyl one very food bad experience at the Rusty Pelican and would not recommend it! The ahi tuna was very old and seemingly sliced days ago (e.g. dry, crackled appearance) with very pungent fishy odor. I'm no food snob but I had to send it- and the portabella mushrooms dish- back. When I did, the manager came over to tell me that that is just "how tuna is". Mmmhmmm....

I've heard Redstone is good as well. Wish I'd read sleepycat and retroville's comments before going to the Pelican.

[The Gut]

That's odd, the Rusty Pelican was excellent when we went.

That was 1998 - 2003. I miss "Mustards" and "Gullivers".

-----
The Rusty Pelican
2079 50 Ave, Red Deer, AB T4R 1Z4, CA

[ChiMom]

I have lived in RD all my life. I'm not a fan of Rusty Pelican, but I will tell you my picks. For Fine Dining, hands down you have to try Restaurant 27 in downtown. A little off the beaten path and away from Gasoline Alley, but it only takes 10-15 mins to get anywhere in RD. Although I am a fan of Redstone and La Casa Pergola, which are also downtown. For pub style comfort food I suggest Toad N Turtle which is not far from Gasoline Alley at all, or Original Joe's which is again downtown. Las Palmeras for Mexican is always a great choice, and right across the street is It's All Greek To Me, again excellent food. I prefer Vietnamese to Chinese and for that we go to The Noodle House. If you have the time to travel, I suggest a trip to Sylvan Lake to Smuggler's Inn for Steak or Prime Rib.

[shdiep]

I don't like The Noodle House. The pho is just bland and doesn't have any flavour.

[Cancuk]

I was just talking to someone and they said that Ashthai (sp?) Indian restaurant was solid. Again, I haven't been.

[ChiMom]

Astha is excellent for Indian cuisine!

[retroville]

I've lived in Red deer for ten years now, and though there is alot of chain restaurants, if you dig into the city a little deeper you can find amazing food. Breakfast is always tasty at Hubies classic diner in Westpark. this place is tiny, but is truly the ultimate greesy spoon, super tasty, and juke boxes at every booth. from there anything is possible, Pho tho duong is right behind superstore and one of the best vietnamese restaurants I have ever eaten at. Moni thai on the north end was my favorite restaurant ever, best thai I had ever had, and has recently closed due to staff shortages, they will be missed. The redstone is amazing food, the risotto is fantastic and the jazz on wednesdays is always tasty. At the same time, If I want a Donair, King donair right downtown accross from the royal bank on ross is amazing. 6.50 and his tzaziki is garlic heaven every time.. I have heard that for italian Casa pergola is great, but have yet to sample it. "its all greek to me" is also super tasty and the service is awesome..

as for pizza, western pizza is amazing, all the food there is great, its a little pricy, but dang good. and fresh ingrediants.. if its late night. the downtown pizza73 for some reason has amazing pizza, the cook has been there for many years and he never disapoints..

I just wish we had good chinese.. we don't.. its all really lousy and dimsum is almost a bad word here.. The best chinese so far to date, ( and this beats out victoria and calgary hotspots) is oriental garden in Brooks alberta.. her name is lily, and she is an amazing cook. its accross from the new canadian tire, and its stunning.. cheers all

[carlitguy]

I am in Red Deer also,
My list would be It's All Greek to Me for Greek, Las Pameras for Mexican, Redstone for fine dining, La Casa Pergola for Italian, Burger Boy for burgers, Jackpot Casino for Chinese at Lucky's in the casino and my house for a great BBQ.
Dean in Canada

[sleepycat]

wow i think i missed the retroville and carlitguy posts to these thread. Thanks for the tips :D

[foodiesnorth]

Rusty Pelican? OMG been ther a few times in the last few years. Each time (there was alwasy some reason we ended up there...god knows why!) it was awful service and food. Service may just be a function of the AB economy, but the food. It was so bad as to be hilarious. Different dishes, same sauce (we travel in a large group!), cold food, sauces from big tubs. Last visit, about a year ago, we asked the server about the food and discovered it is almost all frozen/processed. The server seemed embarassed. We summons the manager/owner who assured us it was all fresh made (not!). We pointed out several things (including what we were told by tthe server) that suggested she was out of her mind and she relented and admitted they "enhanced" the processed food that came in (heated and plated?). She went so far as to tell us she would fire the server and the chef if we were unhappy (!). Really bizarre place, surreal almost. Avoid it like the plague.

[sleepycat]

Wow that sounds terrible. I asked my friend who lives in RD what she thought of the list I compiled and she said she would not go to the Pelican because of wht happened to her friend. She did she like Redstone.

[eastcoastgirl_westcoastlife]

I second the Glenn's reco - great home made pie - best strawberry pie I've ever had aside from my Grandma's!

[Major_9000]

IMHO, there are only three non-fastfood places worth eating at in Red Deer. They are Las Palmeras for surprisingly good Mexican; Glenn's in Gasoline Alley for great comfort food; and the RedStone for one of the very few upscaling dining options but still a very relaxed atmosphere.

[sleepycat]

I'll have to try Pelican and RedStone. How about food at pubs like Original Joe's or Red Deer Buffet? I saw their ads in tourism book at Glenn's

[carlitguy]

My top choices are Red Stone for fine dining, It's All Greek to Me, Las Pameras and for chinese food New Year at Gaetz and 67th.
My least favourite are Kelseys and Red Deer Buffet.
There is a new Burger Baron on northbound Gasoline Alley at Willow Street exit on the north side of the Esso. It used to be a Craigs Way Station about 10 years ago. I have been quite impressed with their burgers if I am in a hurry. Only problem is they make everything fresh which does take time.
Incidently, in my memory I have only walked out of one restaurant and that was Kelseys. It has a bad reputation here in Red Deer.
Dean in Canada (Red Deer).

[sleepycat]

Is that by the same owners who have it's all Greek to me resturant in downtown Edmonton?

[carlitguy]

I am not sure but I don't think so.
They were originally downtown Red Deer and it burned down.
Dean in Canada

[Druthers]

Las Palmeras is fantastic, It's All Greek to Me (which is not affiliated with the one in Edmonton), and the Burger Baron (which is a family owned chain around central Alberta) are all fantastic and well worth the money spent

[sleepycat]

I did like the Las Palmeras and Glen's. I will have to try the Greek and Baron. Thanks to those who made these recommendations.

[sleepycat]

When someone says family owned I just gotta show some support. I'm always interested in what they serve on the kid's menu because I want to know that the eatery is interested in baby CH's budding taste buds. While I don't expect baby CH to do fine dining, I also don't want baby CH to eat just anything. On Glenn's kid menu is a fish and chips dish that is extremely impressive.

I went in to BB to get a small lunch of Onion Rings and children’s burger. It was pretty sad to say the Children’s burger was a flat piece of burger with a bite taken out of it on one side with nothing absolutely nothing on it. It was flat and barren as the prairies. WTF? Where's the Food..or rather Where's the Beef? WTF is more fun but I digress. The rings were thin, crispy, and fresh. However, they don’t stack up to A and W’s hand battered onion rings and at 2.99 I’d rather fork over another .49 to get A & Dubs. I did learn a trick from Red Robin’s and that was to put the onion rings on the burger. It was ok for the first part but then I just had to put it down. I fed it to Dee Oh Gee who liked it but then again Dee Oh Gee will eat anything.

Apparently BB will share space with 3 penguins. Hopefully they have something to offer that is tastier. Word is that they will be offering Donairs and Wraps.

[sleepycat]

So does this look like someone took a bite of the burger patty?

[sleepycat]

Agreed with the Kelsey... They are super bad. We thought every resturant seemed worse in RD. We also tried the Applebee's and it was super duper slow and they still got the order wrong.

[carlitguy]

Our big problem in RD is no labour. Restaurants are usually pretty good at telling you up front if the kitchen is going to be slow.
The Burger Baron that opened on Gasloline Alley is number 66, the one in Lethbridge will be 67 and the newest one in Edmonton will be number 68. The chain has them in SK, BC and AB.
The one on Gasoline Alley is owned by whom I think is the founder's son.
It is doing incredibly well. They are bringing in 23 Phillipinos to staff it.
Dean in Canada (Red Deer)

[sleepycat]

I believe it. I read somewhere that Glenn's of Glenn's Tea Resturant on Gasoline alley advertised for a manager with salary of 45G and zero responses.

[cleopatra999]

not just red deer. pretty much all of alberta. I have given up on expecting good service unless I am at a higher end resto. its sad but that is where we are!

[sleepycat]

Respectfully agree there too. At least we are not debating paper plates in Resturants. Saw thread in US debating the shortage of water supply hence disposable cutlery and plates at resturants.

[cleopatra999]

OMG...that is sick. The green impact of that! when we were in California, they were implementing legislation that all restos have to use compostable take out containers...can you imagine that happening here! I cringe every time I throw out a styrofoam container.

[sleepycat]

So just think they are debating shortage of water now later they will be debating where to put their garbage. Guess who has plenty of land and water and is real close.

[Foodman001]

Funny you should mention that because I went to the BB in Gasoline Alley not too long ago, and the employers working behind the counter told me that the place changed hands recently and haven't come across changing all of the signs on the outside. So, I guess those 23 Phillipinos staffing the place didn't go down so good?

[dalbello72]

Just FYI the BB location in Lethbridge was open about 10 years before the one that recently opened in Red Deer so the timeline is a little off. But yes the original owner (from 1957) is indeed involved in that one as well as the new one in Edmonton. Also the franchise owner.

[cleopatra999]

we have had decent meals at The Rusty Pelican, just off gasoline alley on the East side of that main road off the highway.

[sleepycat]

what kind of food is it? Seafood or family resturant?

[Bob Mac]

cleopatra999:

When I asked a friend of mine who enjoys his food and wine where he would recommend, he too suggested the Rusty Pelican. We have never tried it but had seen it en route to or back from, as it turns out, Earl's.

[cleopatra999]

it is mixture, it has been a while since I have been there, I would equate it to an Earls, although I actually prefer the food at the Pelican. My husband had a really good pecan crusted snapper the first time we went.