Cactus Club Cafe — Restaurant in Calgary

I have had the greatest experience regarding food, service, and atmosphere. I will be coming back.

When I found out that there was a Cactus Club opening in NW, I was excited to try it. I’m glad to say they did not disappoint! The dishes I have tried so far include: Zen Roll (My absolute favourite) (Will order it every time) Salmon Aburi Roll (Boyfriend’s favourite) Prawn Crunch Roll Chili Citrus Calamari Guacamole and Chips Mini Crispy Chicken Sandwich (They were actually crispy) Szechuan Lettuce Wraps (decent portion!) Yam Fries Tuna Poke Bowl (Rice was done the right way!) Spaghetti Portofino (Creative and delicious taste) Steak Frites ( Six Layer Chocolate Slice (Large slice and rich) Chocolate Lava Cake Drinks I have tried so far include: Bellini (favourite) Sunset Soda Hugo Spritz (favourite) Red wine (not sure which one) Mini bottle Champagne (Cava Codorníu Brut Clasico) Big bottle of Champagne (Not sure which one) March 22: My boyfriend took me here on a surprise date. The warm lighting and plant decorations impressed me. Despite a sushi mix-up, the staff corrected it and let us keep the extra sushi, even removing the charges from our bill. Our waitress, Cheryl(?), was professional and polite.

June 3: I decided to walk in to reserve a table for my upcoming celebrate birthday here. Nick, the manager, was friendly and accommodating, even though I booked for 12 people on such a short notice. He wished me a happy early birthday.

June 8: On my birthday, Nick greeted us and accompanied us to our table, which had a complimentary bottle of champagne. Our waitress, Maya, poured us a glass and wished me a happy birthday. Both Maya and Nick checked on us throughout the night. Tait, another manager, even covered my cocktail and wished me a happy birthday. It was the best birthday I’ve ever had.

June 19: For our anniversary dinner, Tait greeted us and wished us a happy anniversary. The table had a fruit plate with a chocolate message, prepared by Anne, the supervisor, who also took time to chat with us. Maddie, our waitress, was friendly and attentive. Another staff member with flower earrings wished us a happy anniversary while lighting candles. Our bill showed they covered a mini bottle of champagne and our dessert.

Thank you to everyone for going above and beyond in every aspect. You all made our special moments even more memorable. Your authenticity and generosity...

We came here last night to grab some dinner before a movie, there was an hour and a half wait time but we were offered the bar. There was 2 of us, and had 2 friends meeting us in about 20 min. I asked the hostess if it would be okay to hold the bar stools (and assured her if not it was totally fine) and we were told it was no problem. Menu's were put down at each chair. My one friend came within 10 minutes, and her fiancee was running late from work, so he was going to be another 15 minutes (so 5 minutes later than I estimated).

Right after my one friend had arrived, the hostess sat a couple in the chairs next to us, one being the chair held for my other friend. My boyfriend had mentioned to them the seat was taken, as the hostess put their menu on top of the one she already placed (for my friend) but I told the couple not to even worry about it and to stay there. The couple insisted they move and it was no problem, while we insisted it was fine, we were going to go somewhere else. It puts us in an awkward position because we were told it was fine to hold the bar stool, but we don't want to take business away from the restaurant.. I wouldn't expect this if we had a table, so if we are told the bar seats are reserved for us, why would this be acceptable?

The hostess then brings a bar stool from across the bar and places it next to my friend, who is sitting next bar entrance and places the chair at the corner of the bar for her fiancee we are waiting on. He would have had 4x4" to eat his dinner? We said no thanks, we will go next door to the Keg. The bartender hears this and moves the couple next to us, comes over and apologizes and tells us to not even worry, that chair was for our friend and they want us to stay. Our friend arrives about 2 minutes after this whole ordeal, and just as he arrives, another couple gets sat at the same 2 chairs, after they just finished moving the other couple. Needless to say, we requested our bills immediately and left. ...

We were here to celebrate our father's 70th birthday recently, and to be honest none of our party will be likely to return nor would we ever recommend this location. My mother's Thai curry was incredibly salty, as was my blackened chicken. My fiancée was excited for her previous experience of Cactus Club's amazing food and generous portions, and she was shocked at what our table had received. What I can recommend is the hot chicken and pickles, the spice and honey worked well together. The asking price for what we ordered and what we ate that night just didn't seem to match up in value.

I notified the restaurant that it was a special occasion upon reserving a table, so it's disappointing to see other reviewers receive something to note a special occasion, when the service we received was less than stellar. It almost seemed like the staff member was disappointed none of our table ordered drinks, and the rest of the evening's service felt cold and uncomfortable. No smiles, no engagement with us, and a far cry from what tables adjacent to us were experiencing.

Overall it was a disappointing experience, the food just wasn't worth it, the service was a miss, and the celebration dinner for a milestone birthday just didn't hit the mark.

edit: Was instructed to provide contact details to further discuss our negative experience, and no contact was attempted by the establishment.

edit2: We were contacted by the manager regarding our experience and it was evident they wanted to make sure our family's experience was improved. We visited again recently and it was a night and day difference! The service was prompt, friendly, and affable. And there wasn't a single comment about the food from us other than talking about how delicious it was! The impression we have changed dramatically and the discussion on the way home became a subject of what we would order on...