REVIEW: Bobby’s Place, Olde World Tavern – Calgary, AB
Are you looking to bring a bit of the Scottish Olde World into your life? Well I’ve found it at Bobby’s Place. Check out this review of Bobby’s Place, Olde World Tavern!
By Shira Kogut on Aug. 24, 2016
Guinness Stout Cake, Beer Battered Mushrooms and the Lochness are just the tip of the mouth-watering iceberg that awaits you at this fantastic Calgary watering hole.
Bobby’s Place: First Impressions
Walk through the doors of Bobby’s Place and the Celtic music and beautiful decor will have you automatically transported to Scotland. The elegant carved-wood, the amazing hand painted mural (featured photo of this article) and beautiful stained glass all come together to give this place that welcoming, warm old world charm. If you didn’t feel welcome enough already the staff and owners, Mike & Lynn, are just fabulous. Greeting you with huge smiles, you definitely feel the strength of their motto
“Bobby’s Place, Olde World Tavern – Where strangers are friends you have yet to meet.”
You can hang out and watch the game, sit back and listen to music (sometimes live bands) or pick up your beer and head to the back where you can play Darts, Foosball, Crokinole and Crib all for free, just ask the bartender for whatever you need. And a quick heads up the Bobby’s Place Darts League will be starting mid-September, so all you darts enthusiasts check it out here on Just Beer Events.
The pub is a beautiful tribute to Bobby and Freda Cullen (depicted in the mural), Scottish immigrants (she a highland dancer and Scotch distillery worker and he a pub manager and veteran of the hospitality industry) who came to Canada in the 1960s with their 7 children and dreamed of starting a traditional Scottish pub. While sadly, they both passed away very early and did not get to fulfill their dream they would be very proud of their children and grandchildren who are living the dream for them. The newly opened pub here in Calgary as well as two others in Saskatchewan, one in Moose Jaw and the other in Regina are all family owned and operated. They are a wonderful testament to the love and spirit of this remarkable family. When you are at the pubs, you are family (Click on the emblem of the House of Gordon to read more about the Gordon Clan).
Beers Served at Bobby’s Place
Now let’s get down to business, beer and food. On tap beers include Guinness, Kilkenny, Stella, Strongbow Gold Cider, Keith’s, Moosehead, Original 16 Pale, Original 16 Copper and 3 or 4 other regulars. You can also get Innis & Gunn, Big Rock, Wild Rose, Sleemans and the list goes on.
They have some spectacular classic and signature cocktails and a nice Scotch list too, but the best is their tasty and most mouth-watering menu. I literally walked in there and was like “OMG! I can’t even decide everything sounds amazing!”
Homemade, Signature Dishes: Lochness Challenge
Most of the homemade dishes are Freda’s own recipes that you won’t find in other similar places and they are cooked with love and served with pride.
My friends that I was with know how much I love two things: great food and a good challenge, and so I was given the Lochness Challenge as well as being Screeched in (fortunately there was no cod involved, so maybe I’m only half screeched-in).
The Lochness is a full pound patty that requires an appetite. With lettuce, tomato, cheddar, mozzarella and fried onions. Dressed with Bobby’s famous Black Grouse Scotch BBQ sauce. Even Nessie would be intimidated by this brute. FYI it also comes with a pickle and their incredible home-cut fries. The challenge: to eat everything on your plate in 30 mins. If you succeed, you get a Bobby’s Place t-shirt and not to mention the honor of finishing. Well my friends, let’s just say the record to beat is now 15 minutes and 22 seconds.
I have to say finishing it so quickly rather than savouring it almost made me sad because it was absolutely delicious. The meat was such good quality and the BBQ sauce was nothing like anything I’d ever tasted. FYI my gluten-free friends, you can get gluten-free buns as well, so you are not excluded from the challenge.
Some of their other signature dishes include: Fish n Chips (which my husband who is a Fish n Chips fiend had and said was one of the best he’d ever tasted. But don’t take our word for it read this lovely letter written by another Fish n Chips fan), Bobby’s Burger, East Coast Poppers & Salt-n-Malts, and Deep Fried Mars Bar (we had this dessert as well and it was deep fried scrumptiousness).
Bobby’s Place is definitely one of those special places that you need to check out for yourself and as they say:
Here’s to the heath, the hill and the heather, the bonnet, the plaid, the kilt and the feather! Sláinte!
Check out more reviews of Calgary breweries, restaurants, and beers:
Review of National Beer Hall
Brewery Tour of Red Bison Brewery
YYC Beer Week: To Promote Calgarian Beers & Breweries
Sneak Peak Into Calgary’s Newest Brewery: Trolley 5 Brewpub