Good Folk — Restaurant in Banff

We visited Good Folk for a birthday dinner at the end of May, as well as for drinks at the bar a couple of days later. The dinner was certainly a 5/5 experience but we did take off a point for our second experience at the bar.

Here are the positives:

It is a beautiful restaurant with a really nice ambience. It feels like a modern restaurant in a city versus the outdated, small towns spots that have been in Banff for many years. We really appreciated that we were sat at a nice table by the window, with a view of the street, and that staff had read our notes about us celebrating a birthday ahead of time.

The food is quite good - we had the shrimp and scallops for appetizers, and the boar and trout for mains. The only note is that it would be nice if there were more scallops in the appetizer (there were only two), as compared to the pork belly. For dessert, the Banana Coconut Rum Lamington (yes I looked up the name so you can make sure you get the same thing!) was incredible! I would skip the ganache torte, as it was too rich for our tastes.

Our server (really sorry we didn’t catch his name - he has a french accent and was working on May 31st) was very nice and gave good recommendations. We appreciated his help in choosing after dinner drinks.

Areas of improvement:

When we came back for a drink at the bar, while pulling out a chair, there are staples (?) sticking out at the top of them and one of us cut ourselves on it. Staff should take a look and make sure they are all safe.

The service was really disappointing at the bar, as the main bartender was a little rude to us. He brought us waters and told us he’d be back to take our drink order, even though we were sitting there for about 7-10 minutes and were anxious to order. There was only one other guest at the bar. We had to wait another 5 minutes for him to do various things like wipe down glasses and fill water containers before he came to us again. “The Last of Us” drink (we ordered two of them) was also made a little carelessly by him as one looked different than the other in terms of the garnish. On top of that, he only checked in once we were completely finished our drinks and sitting waiting for a few minutes.

Bar snacks are definitely missing - we would have stayed for another drink, had there been something small (like olives, charcuterie, fries, chips, etc.) that we could have ordered to share. None of the dishes on the main menu fit the category so we went back to our room to have a snack.

Finally, it would be great if the bar was open later on Fridays and Saturdays, for guests of the hotel who would like to stop in for a night cap, rather than closing at 10pm.

Overall, we do love the restaurant and almost wish we didn’t have the second experience because it would have kept the rating at 5 stars! Nevertheless, I would recommend Good Folk to those I know who plan on...

Located conveniently close to our hotel, with five star reviews and a wide ranging menu, Good Folk was the obvious choice for dinner.

We were greeted and seated by a very warm and friendly waitress. She accommodated every one of our requests, and was laid back throughout. She truly embodied the name of restaurant 'Good Folk'.

I did feel that she was too friendly at times though. It's not a performance. Eating as a group I find it intrusive when servers attempt to entertain us with conversation, although I'm aware that with the tipping culture in the US and Canada this has become the norm. I value an understated and humble waiter/waitress who appreciates privacy for the customer.

The restaurant itself is on the ground floor of a hotel, and inevitably as with all hotel-restaurants offers little character. I was a fan of the layout though, and the view into the kitchen is always a bonus.

The food was ambitious and exciting, breaking away from many culinary norms I've seen so far in Canada and the US. The Prosciutto Prawns and Bison Burger were different, and I appreciated the attempts. I felt the prawns lacked flavour though, and the bison was slightly chewy, exacerbated by it being cooked to medium. To put it bluntly, beef would've been better. The rest of the burger was perfect. Now the fries - lumpy inside, soggy on the outside, these were the antichrist of the classic portion of fries. Yet they were delicious. The theme here is ambitious, imaginative cooking with rewarding results.

Sadly though this is not the end of my feedback for the head chef. They considered it acceptable to change into normal clothes and start walking around the floor. This doesn't work for me. Their behaviour must be as impeccable as their cooking, and they shouldn't let their guard down approaching closing time.

I know this is harsh, but everything must be up to standard in a premium establishment. That said, I felt the food was fairly priced in most areas, though I would question why their steak is just so much more expensive than their other dishes, as it actually deterred me from opting for it in a party ordering the more affordable options.

Despite a few gripes, Good Folk was strong throughout, and it was just so refreshing to encounter some true imagination in a restaurant's menu. They took risks and...

This place was wonderful overall tonight. The service started off with a miss. As soon as we sat we got asked for drink orders, without time to browse the drink menu. So we ordered a usual staple-a Manhattan with Bulleit bourbon. Waitress did not know what Bulleit was and had to ask bartender. We were sitting just a few feet from the bar and observed the bartender acting almost offended he was asked that. He said to our waitress "did they read their menus???? If it's not on the menu we don't have it!!!!." He could have helped the waitress by simply saying no we don't and perhaps offering a close alternative to suggest to your guests. But he did not.

It felt awkward overhearing that and we felt a bit shamed. A better reply would have been for the bartender to come to us (we were seated in the bar area and he had zero guests at his bar) and say something like "I see you just sat down. Perhaps you have not had time to read our bourbon list-it's here on page X." At which point we would have selected something in-stock. We did end up doing this on our own once we overhead the admonishment, but it felt awkward. The bartender could definitely use some guidance on how best to address these questions and also some genuine advice on how far his voice carries as many others at dining tables can hear what he is saying.

The food itself was absolutely amazing. Very innovative and creative dishes, particularly on the vegetarian side. Every bite was met with a smile an a delight of flavor. When we looked over to the kitchen, they seemed to be smiling and in sync with each other which clearly translated to the wonderful food.

The front of house and bar in particular could take some lessons from the back of house. they had it together. Front of house had the feeling that we were annoying/bothering them and despite the amazing food, would cause some hesitation...