Smugglers, Calgary

I have been there 2 to 3 times, and each time enjoy my food and services. If you want a good steak house, this is the place, parking is tight, but this is just Calgary for you, but all in all a good restaurant.

After moving to the northwest part of Calgary 20 years ago, I had not made it to Smugglers for over 10 years. I was so impressed with the quality of a lunch there 3 weeks ago, I returned with friends for another lunch & a supper in the following weeks. The ambience (cosy fireplaces scattered among the many intimate separate rooms with rich wood & stained glass & nicely spaced semiprivate booths) was wonderful & sadly missing in many 'modern/in' restaurants. Service was prompt, pleasant & professional. The food was excellent with the free all you can eat soup & salad bar included with most menu items. Prices for lunch were very reasonable while the supper prices were average. Desserts were impressive in both size & flavour. My only complaint is that there is not a Smugglers Inn in my end of town.

Have been a customer of Smugglers for many years now; but after my last visit, I won't be in a hurry to go back. The food is becoming mediocre, with the best 'deals' to be had at either lunch (Soup and Salad), or Sunday brunch buffet. Steak is usually very good (I haven't tried it in a while), but I agree with the consensus on the issue of extra charge for sides - very strange for a meal to come with 'nothing' but the meat!! I do love the Steak Soup though - comfort food at it's best! One of the major issues for me is cleanliness, it seems to be quite poor of late where dishes and cutlery are concerned. Maybe this is why they like to keep it so dark in there? Surely it's time to get that new roof and take all those buckets down. They've been up there for as long as I can remember - and it surely HAS to be a safety issue when water is dripping through light fixtures?!

when I lived in Calgary 20 years ago, Smugglers was my place to go for the wonderful "steak soup" and the char broiled steaks. I trust the food is as good today.

We went at 8 pm on Sunday, the place was bustling, and we sat right next to a window, not some dark corner. First of all, I agree the place IS dark, but not too dark to have plants! I love the atmoshpere, it is very old fashioned, . This is a great spot for a romantic dinner because it is not too trendy or unwelcoming, and there are several fireplaces to keep you warm. You only get what is written on the menu, no sides, but I do not understand people who say it is too expensive. You can eat all the veggies, rice, coleslaw, salad, soups, bread, and fresh fruit you want for a price that is the same at any chain restaurant that serves great steak. The salad bar costs $8 on its own, so when you factor that in, your meal turns out to be pretty cheap. Plus it is not gonna break you to pay extra for your potato or mushrooms. The beef ribs were enormous. The meat was very tender and the sauce smokey. Unlike the steaks or prime rib, my meal did include a scoop of mashed potato (with skin) and a side of beans. The gravy is good too. But if you are too cheap to order extra gravy, just use the steak 'soup' from the salad bar! LOL The dessert was perfect. I would go back just for the coconut creme brulee. They also have cheesecake, apple cobbler and mudpie. I noticed desserts were priced at $3-$5 and was amazed by the taste and generous portions. This place is great value considering quality of food and service. The bill was $75 before tip. We had four glasses of wine, free salad bar, two meals, two desserts and tea. Everything was fabulous

We went to Smugglers for my husband's birthday and sat in the lounge area. Our waitress was not the least bit attentive and treated us as if we were some kind of nuisance to her. The salad bar was okay but the soups were very disappointing. The Beef Barley soup was gummy and flavourless, the Sausage and Bean soup had precious little sausage in it and the Steak soup was like gravy. We ordered Calamari for an appetizer and it was rubbery and over-cooked though the dip was tasty. For the price of the prime rib (which was excellent as per my husband) were astronomical considering all you received was a slab of beef. We ordered the side dish of mushrooms whish were very good but the veggies we ordered were atrocious. The peppers and onions in it were good but the cauliflower, broccoli and carrots were mush and the cheese sauce was very bland. When this was pointed out to the waitress, at the end of the meal becausae she never once came by our table to enquire as to our satisfaction, nothing came of it.The desserts were good and huge. We spent $265 for 6 meals and, had the service and food been better, this would have been a fair price but as it was, it was hardly worth 1/2 that much. I hope the owners/managers read these reviews because there is no way to contact them via e-mail to tell them this.

I have been to Smuggler's now at least 3 times in the past 2 months. It was good a couple years back, but now everything just tastes the same. The prime-rib tastes exactly like the salmon, and everything is very dry. The salads bar is also not very fresh. I ate some of the mandarin oranges, and it felt like i was eating 6 mol/L hydrochloric acid!

Have been there for dinner quite a few times, and every time, the service is terrible. The last time, the service was terrible, the server kept forgetting us, and when we asked where our food was after an hour, they made some excuse that the kitchen was really busy...well, it wasn't busy in the restaurant. We left and went to another restaurant without eating at Smugglers. Terrible experience, we will never go back.

um, where are the lights? My parents did nothing but complain about the lighting, and this is NOT a place for kids, young kids or babies. The menus on the slabs of wood have to go. Service is good though. Tried many things on the menu, veggie burger is good, chicken is alright, roast beeef is good, salad bar is well, needs to be filled up more... prices are high... but it is popular for some reason.... steak is good too... just leave the kids at home please.... dessert is good too!!!

If you are looking for a feed of Prime Alberta Beef, Smugglers is the place. The smallest cut of prime rib is almost as big as the largest cut you get in most restaurants, one of our party got the Owner's Friends cut which was ridiculously large but melt in your mouth and worth the cost. The sides are extra but you do get salad bar/soup with the meal and if you are getting a large cut of meat sides are not necessary, you can customize your meal without wasting something you can't eat anyway.