Namo Cafe Bistro (Edmonton Trail) — Restaurant in Calgary

This is a very snug little cafe/foodie place. I HIGHLY recommend making a reservation. I didn't like when it was -40 in December 2022 when their main entrance opens it feels like it fills the entire place with cold air really quickly, my only gripe.

I enjoyed how snug the place is with friends. I felt like our table itself had enough room so no one was pushing boundaries into other parties booths.

Service was excellent, the waiters were all very kind, friendly, prompt and came at well spaced intervals. It didn't feel like they were directed to attend to us but that they were professionals in how they attended to us.

Menu is well laid out with great options for most people. I got the Harrisa lamb bowl and the portions was just enough for me to eat without needing a takeaway container, which I liked. The presentation of my food made it seem like there was a lot more in the bowl than initially met the eye which I think goes to show how well the cook(s) are trained, along with making delicious food.

Paying the bill was super easy and my group was having a great time chatting. The gentleman who took our payment let us know the time they were closing and left it at that, I didn't feel pushed out.

For my first time here I enjoyed it. Pricing was 20 for my bowl which was made better by how the entire staff treated us, well worth it. 4 stars in atmosphere and overall for snug fit and air circulation (I know they can't do anything about...

I asked my friend who lives in Calgary to give me one recommendation for a brunch spot to enjoy my last day in town and she recommended Namo. I was so excited to try it out!

Everything on the menu sounded so good, we had trouble deciding! I eventually ordered the cali breakfast bowl and my friend got the lamb shakshuka. We also shared their hazelnut latte and fruit & nut French toast. They have many halal options and were open to cooking the meat in a separate pan so it didn’t cross contaminate with the pork items, which we were grateful for!

The portions were quite generous, everything was cooked well and tasted delicious. I love the tarter tots, though it does get quite heavy eating a mountain of them for breakfast. The shakshuka was well spiced and tasted authentic.

Their hazelnut latte had hints of orange in it, which was nice to try, I personally prefer the traditional style hazelnut lattes.

And finally, their French toast - so flavourful and unique. We were debating getting it since we were quite full by this point, but its a must-try and my personal favourite item on their menu!

I’d recommend arriving earlier in the day, it’s easier to find street parking. Plus it gets quite busy around lunch time, many folks were being turned away because their seats were full. Worth the wait though, if you’re in such a situation.

We’ll definitely be making our way back here on our next...

I was taken here by a group recently for a brunch meeting.

Very friendly group of staff here.

There is a cool mom and pop diner essence to the spot that holds on throughout the dining experience.

Our table had a large selection of dishes that we all shared. Among them are the ones I’ve photographed, and some others that are not pictured.

Speaking in generalities, it’s very much a standard mid size city diner. The dishes have no overtly defining characteristics and the flavour profiles don’t have much depth to them.

Everything is fine. No complaints on quality. For the prices charged, you hope for more than fine but it’s not easily found anymore.

One of the dishes, I believe the truffle bacon mushroom bowl, featured truffle oil. Featured is the wrong word. The truffle oil absolutely dominated the dish. I get that everyone is all excited about the presence of simulated truffle in everything these days but there’s a time and a place. It doesn’t belong on everything and certainly not in a way where it suffocates an entire dish.

Lastly, the photos on the website project some sense of high end plating styles, but this is not really the case in person.

Perhaps I came on an off day.

Next time I’m at either location, I’ll update the review if I feel...