Around The Bend — Restaurant in Calgary

--Short Review-- Location (first time) : 3 / 5 Location (subsequent) : 3.5 / 5 Price : 5 / 5 Staff : 5 / 5 Menu : 5 / 5 Taste (immediate) : 5 / 5 Taste (after 20mins) : 1 / 5

--Long Review-- Location ( first time) : 3 / 5 After you find the place without a GPS, you'll realize why it's called "Around The Bend". All jokes aside, I was circling for awhile around the area wondering where it might be before I pulled out my GPS.

Location (subsequent) : 3.5 / 5 This one is a little bit biased and will not apply to everyone. I drove from far NW Calgary to come try the food here, because I really like Soft Pretzels, I like sandwiches, so why not try a shop that has both? However, the location is quite far from anywhere I'd need to be.

Price : 5 / 5 The quality and freshness of the food is very good value. I dare say that it's cheaper than I would have expected, so I don't have much to ask about.

Staff : 5 / 5 Now, mind you I did not have the chance to personally get to know the owner too well-- but right away he greeted us with a jolly smile and voice and I knew he was a good guy. Friendly guy, that is all around pleasant to be around. I don't know if there are more staff or any other details, but I had a pleasant experience with this guy.

Menu : 5 / 5 Plenty of options to keep an enthusiast like me amused. They are all delicious sounding and I would've liked to try more.

Taste (immediate) : 5 / 5 I ordered pretzel bites and two of the soft pretzels, and tried a different dip for each one. I wanted a sandwich, but I read from the other reviews that it will get soggy if I don't eat it asap, so I didn't order one. I tried a pretzel bite on my way out (as I ordered to-go), and it tasted amazing. The taste, the texture was all there. I left with a smile thinking that I probably just made the best purchase of my life.

Taste (after 20mins) : 1 / 5 To my dismay, after I drove back to the North to share the food with my sister (about a 22 minute drive away since I went to her workplace and not my house), the food tasted quite... different. The taste was probably more of a 2 / 5, but my disappointment was what made it a 1. I was really sad. The texture was lost with time, and it had the consistency of day-old-room-temperature mantou. (No chewy, just breaks off and almost stale or bleh). The sauces were.. Well, garlic butter was normal-- It reminds me of the stuff in garlic bread. Chocolate glaze was described by my sister as: "it tasted like poison". And I apologize for my negligence in flavours, but Vanilla Cream Cheese tasted like spoiled sour milk. (I expected it to be lightly sweet).

Now, despite all this my overall review is still a 4 / 5, though maybe it's more like a 3.5 / 5.. But because that first bite that I had as I left the shop leaves me thinking that maybe the food here just has no shelf life. (Kind of like how the sandwiches would get soggy-- It's just that fresh!) I honestly believe that if I sat down and had my food there, it would've been a better taste experience. However, the distance is too far away for me to fairly evaluate the food in that manner (nor would anyone I know want to find the time to drive out for a sandwich and then drive back), and the fact that I can't take-out is really unappealing to me.

If I find the time alone, I would definitely dine-in here and try it out again. However, I would not order for...

Ok, let me start off by saying we are not fancy, foodie types. We don't opt for fancy for fancy's sake often.

This is why I immediately loved around the bend. It's located in a business park, kind of out of the way. A white room, black chairs, and a kind "try us and you'll understand" ambiance like a basic looking but great tasting family owned chinese restaurant would have.

When we entered, the owner greeted us like we were the first customers he'd ever had. Great dude, asked if we'd been there before, and asked if we'd like a menu explanation

Your answer should be yes, because literally the only thing i can say negative about this place is their menu is literally just a wall of text. However, it makes more sense when you let him break it down for you.

I won't bother giving a review of "how it tasted" because I made my own sandwich, so mileage may vary here. But make no mistake, it was literally one of the best sandwiches I've EVER HAD.

The man is a chef, through and through. Right down to the self deprecating humor that every back of house guy you ever met has. He's so genuine, and not to be a food reviewer about it... but the food is as honest and wholesome as the guy slinging it. He makes everything in house, right down to all the sauces. Go. Just go. Even if you just go once, go.

Ask yourself this. How good does a sandwich have to be before you're compelled to write a multi paragraph review for a god damn sandwich?

This man has perfected what he does and I hope he sees this review. Great job, dude. I hope you have continued success and I, for one, will be back.

Roast beef, smoked mustard and some other bullshit that fit my taste, 15 dollars.

It was fantastic. I was sick most of the day (absolutely unrelated to the food!) And I still ate the the leftovers i had. This guy is at his apex and everybody should be lining up to go here.

Support small businesses, especially ones who care as much as this guy does. Well done brother. I had nothing to do with you, your restaurant or anything else, but somehow I'm kind of proud of you, if that makes sense. I hope this place is in business...

Rating is solely based on service/wait time. Wanted to try this place again since its been a while. After this experience of a long wait, I recall the last time was also a wait. Things haven't improved from my 2 experiences. Went at lunch time on a Wednesday, understanding lunch time would be busy and there would be a bit of a wait. But I didn't expect a 40+ minute wait for my order- or no order. Very dissappinted it took so long. Asked for my money back with no food in hand because I had to leave to get back to work. Order was 2 items- The Special dog and a California twist. For sandwiches and a so called Special, it shouldn't take that long. There were 2 workers, so maybe they were short staffed, but communication would have been nice to inform people it would be a wait, as there was a full crowd of people all waiting patiently for their lunch. During that 40 minutes, 3 groups of 2 meals each were served and one pick up order. Maybe I should order take away like the lady with kids did. I wish it wasn't just an off day, but going 2 for 2 where wait times have been an issue for a sandwich, I suggest you may have to find another place for a quick meal. Or you have to prep yourself and make sure to allot enough time to wait and hopefully have enough time to eat it in a lunch hour. Once I get through the wait time, then I'll be able to rate this place based on the actual...