We went out last Friday (Sept 18/09) to Henotic. Henotic is a restaurant that is located in downtown Lethbridge in a building that was formerly a firehall decades ago. If you are looking for a night out in Lethbridge, you might want to check it out. Since we are very social people and dine out at least a few times each week, I consider myself a pretty fair judge of what makes a good restaurant and will give you my honest opinion of the place.

We had been meaning to go try the Henotic restaurant for some time and just never seemed to have time or always ended up going someplace else that was prearranged by one of our friends, etc. However, after joining the Henotic Restaurant facebook group and receiving several emails about live entertainment they were hosting, we decided we would give it a try.

The entertainment that attracted me that evening was a burlesque dance troupe from Calgary called the "Kabuki Guns Burlesque", or the KGB for short. I have seen these ladies perform several years ago as an opening act to a late night full participation screening of 'The Rocky Horror Picture Show' and so I knew what to expect. These girls are phenomenal. They give a brief history of burlesque, put on a show, and entertain the crowd. (For those who dont know what Burlesque is, it is dance and Tease part of 'Striptease')

There was also an opening act, whom were a Calgary based rock band by the name of 'Dirty Girl Social Club'. They put on a decent show, although they were a little overpowered for the venue and the crowd lacked enthusiasm for all songs except a Micheal Jackson medley.

Restuarant Review

The location of the restaurant not great for Lethbridge. It is downtown in an area that has seen many businesses leave and buildings get knocked down or burned down. It is the oldest and original downtown area of the City of Lethbridge. Despite that, the building that the restaurant is in is actually a cool old building and has a great history for those who are interested.

The interior of the building has not changed much through its last 5 or 6 incarnations as a couple of bars and a few different failed restaurant ventures. If you look around you will still be able to find renovations that I helped do to the space about 10 years ago, lol. Still, the space is wide open, easy to navigate, and a mix of historic charm and modern art.

We sat in a both in an area which was actually the original DJ booth back when the space was first renovated into a modern commercial building. I have to mention that the bankette seating was a bit of a do-it-yourself piece of construction, and in this rare case I wasnt the one who made it.

The service was prompt, friendly, and attractive. The young lady who served us was right on top of things, made notes, and never messed up all night. The menu offered a decent selection of items, including a few unique dishes that you don't find at a ton of restaurants (eg. Buffalo steak). Prices were great with a meal ranging from $12 to $14, which is comparable to Moxies, Earls, Cheesecake type restaurants. Alcoholic Beverages seemed to round out to about $5 a piece.

A couple of personal pet peeves of mine when it comes to dining out, and things which this restaurant completely scored big points on were: heavy cutlery, cloth napkins, free pop refills. Those are my 3 big ones and any restaurant that doesnt have those 3 is of suspect reputation in my book, lol. Henotic scored perfect on all 3.

We did have a bit of a wait for our food due to us coming in right behind a very large group and it did not bother us as we were staying all evening. What was nice though, is that our server and the manager on duty both came over to us and explained that there was a bit of a delay. Nice touch. I don't ever mind waiting if I am not left wondering. Great service on this point.

When the food did come, it was beyond my expectations. The presentation on the plates was far above average for a Lethbridge restaurant. It actually appeared to be put onto the plate by someone who cared and not by a guy in a paper hat. Further to that, the quality of the food and the taste was exceptional. I kept having to second guess myself and make sure that I wasn't drunk on either the Whiskey or the fact that I had heavy cutlery and cloth napkins, but it was absolutely delicious.

Grand total: $32 ridiculously low for the meal we had, so we had to tip it up to $40.

Summary

Henotic exceeded my expectations in every way. The service was perfect. The food presentation, quality, and selection was fantastic. And even the little details were spot on excellent. Nowhere else in Lethbridge can a couple get a $100 meal for $40. In addition, the live entertainment was wonderful and did a great job.

Lethbridge does have some nightlife, you just have to get off the couch and come find it.

*I hope to return to Henotic very soon for another meal and to catch some more of their nightly entertainment. If you read this article and find yourself going there for a meal or a show, feel free to let them know that you read my review on the internet. I think many people would be suprized at just how much we rely on this sort of info these days.

If you are lucky enough to be moving to Lethbridge, here is some links to some great information to help make your move smoother. Of course, if you do not find the info you need here, feel free to contact me. Often is helps to have someone who is local providing you with some insight and guidance so that you make smart choices and your move goes well. While my business is Lethbridge real estate and Lethbridge mortgage financing, I do have substantial experience with many other aspects which may be of benefit to you.

I have lived in and around Lethbridge my entire life. I attended school in Lethbridge, graduated from the University of Lethbridge, served on the Board of Governors of the University, hosted several cultural exchanges to Lethbridge, been a member of the Lethbridge Real Estate board since 1993, and have helped hundreds of families and investors with their real estate and mortgage needs.

Feel free to call me and also take a look at some of these Lethbridge resources provided by Economic Development Lethbridge:

Moving Checklist Housing, Taxation & Utilities Education Immigration Registries & Licensing Emergency Phone Numbers

Jobs Family & Health Leisure & Recreation Transportation Business Cost of Living

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Southern Alberta has recently gifted the world with Candian Idol Theo Tams, and not another local seems set to reach a level of reality talent television fame. Tara-Jean Popowich is having amazing success at the Canadian television show So You Think You Can Dance.

Here is a recent article with a bit more info on her. Watch the show and vote for her!

So You Think You Can Dance Canada finalist: Tara-Jean Popowich

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Lethbridge Airport to receive some marketing and promotional help!

The Lethbridge Airport used to be a busy little place. Back in the 80's there were several airlines who used to offer service in and out of the city, but in recent decades the airport has seemingly been in declining use. The number of carriers has dropped and the on site services have disappeared.

Now however, there is finally some progress in regaining the economic and social stimulus of having a functional and profitable commercial airport. This seems like something which is obvious, but apparently not. The city of Lethbirdge and the County of Lethbridge are going to be working jointly to promote and improve the airport, which can only serve to benefit local Lethbridge residents and businesses.

The following aritcle appeared in the Sunny South News

Written by Gerald Gauthier

Thursday, 17 September 2009

City and county councils have jointly committed $750,000 over the next three years to market the local airport as an attractive connection and stopover point for cross-country air travellers. Under an memorandum of understanding approved Tuesday, the City of Lethbridge is putting up $200,000 per year, and the County of Lethbridge is chipping in $50,000 annually in a joint effort to enhance air service and promote associated land development at the Lethbridge County Airport. Since the late 1980s, air passenger traffic at the airport has plummeted from more than 120,000 a year to roughly 55,000 a year. “This is clearly one instance where we have a shared vision,” said Lethbridge Mayor Bob Tarleck. “It’s important for the County of Lethbridge to turn around the decline in ridership out of the airport, but the city has the same sort of vested interest. With 85,000 people, there’s no doubt that we’re the major regional beneficiary,” he said. One of the objectives, he said, will be to investigate the potential of developing routes between major centres such as Vancouver, Winnipeg and Toronto with smaller or intermediate-sized carriers who would make connections in Lethbridge. Under the agreement a joint, six-member steering committee with three elected officials from each council, is to be established to oversee the initiative. “To make the airport more viable, we need these things to happen,” said county Reeve Lorne Hickey. “Together, we can accomplish a lot more.” The committee is to meet quarterly — and probably more often at the outset — and its first priority will be to hire an airport enhancement director by January to lead the initiative. For the past three years, the county has been working with Economic Development Lethbridge — the city’s marketing arm — to evaluate the airport and identify potential ways to enhance and expand the air services it provides. In a presentation at city hall to both councils, Cheryl Dyck noted a marketing study which indicated 85 per cent of passengers flying into Calgary are travelling east or west and are stopping only to catch connecting flights. One key opportunity, she said, may be developing a similar market niche by targeting intermediate-sized carriers who are introducing smaller, 90-seat passenger jets about offering similar east-west flights and connections through Lethbridge. “To have somebody focused on telling that story and finding out how we could make it work will be a lot easier than just trying to one-off it here and there,” she said afterward. “We have to define what the right thing is for our airport and then we have to go for it and not be sitting back waiting for it to come to us.” Other potential opportunities include establishing a local training facility for commercial pilots who are required by airlines to receive ongoing training, attracting smaller air cargo carriers, and exploring the possibility of attracting American travellers flying to and from Alaska to use Lethbridge as a stopover point. Brent Gateman, owner of Lethbridge-based Integra Air, said the initiative is crucial and long overdue. “I’ve been after both the county and EDL for a long time to get this going, and it’s great to finally see it actually taking shape and getting moving,” he said. “In 1988, we saw the (air) traffic out here at 122,000 people a year. In 2006, it was down to 56,000,” he said, noting marketing plans should target not only airlines but also the local market which under utilizes air travel from Lethbridge. “That 122,000 we saw 30 years ago should now be a quarter million.” “It is a worthwhile investment, but it is a long, long-term investment. This three-year initiative is going to be a start, but it’s not going to be the whole thing. It’s going to take 20 years to see some true movement, some true results out of the investment,” he said. “It’s not going to happen overnight.” In recent years, city officials and Gateman have waged a losing battle to have continued access the downtown airport in Edmonton. Failure to invest in this marketing initiative could prove very costly to the city and region in lost opportunities to have industries and business sectors set up operations in southern Alberta, Tarleck said. “The cost of doing nothing is frightening. We don’t have an alternative,” he said. “If we can make a small dent with this, we’ll more than pay our way back.”

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With the first day of autumn still less than a week way, scorching hot temperatures in Alberta have sparked fire bans in rural areas including Lethbridge.

Fire bans are currently in effect in all of Cochrane, the M. D. of Rocky View and the Lethbridge area due to dry, windy conditions.

In Calgary, residents were blasted Wednesday by hotweather with a high temperature of 30 C. The warm weather and sunshine were welcomed, but fell short of our record of 33.3 set in 1988.

Medicine Hat and Lethbridge endured highs of 34.

So please, if you are having a fire in the backyard, or heading to the hills for one last summer campout, remember there is a fire ban in effect.

Have a great weekend.