Major Tom is a restaurant and bar on the 40th floor of Stephen Avenue Place in downtown Calgary.  It is the only restaurant in Alberta to be ranked in the top 20 of Canada’s 100 Best Restaurants for 2023, claiming #13.  Opening in the summer of 2021 it offers spectacular views of downtown (and further depending on the weather) with a menu that is heavy on steakhouse fare.  While they offer other dining options, the menu highlights their beef selections which are all broiled at 1800º and brushed with Major Tom butter.  It’s a large place and very popular, judging by the crowd and reservation options.  The attractive interior is nicely lit by the walls of windows on the perimeter.  Music is in the background, as well as much conversational noise and a full bar is available.  Service is excellent and very friendly, with our great server Raven willing to pace out our meal and offer guidance on how much to order.  Fortunately, the food matched the wonderful views and it was a fantastic evening.  I recommend you include this one when you visit Calgary.

Set- Up

 

Food

They offer several popular appetizers but the Garlic Shrimp caught our eye and we decided to have it as a first rather than a side for the main plate.  It came 5 jumbo shrimp to an order with a fantastic garlicky sauce with hints of ginger and tarragon.  The perfectly cooked shrimp were so good we ordered a second plate.  They were plate-licking good.

 

For a main plate we ordered the Butcher’s Cut, which that night was a 32-ounce strip loin.  It came cut off the bone and sliced and was cooked just as ordered, a nice rare.  The beef was tender and full of beefy richness.  I admit I missed the charcoal seasoning of a grilled steak but this broiler did a fine job.  It was lovely.

 

As a side with the steak, we ordered broccoli and cheddar which was a white cheddar.  The broccoli was chopped and mixed in with the cheddar sauce.  It was good but not great.

 

The French fries came with a dip of garlic aioli.  They were a wide-cut and nicely seasoned.  The cut had some waves to it that added a good crispness to the exterior while the width was enough to contain a nice creamy potato interior.  The sauce was good but I liked them best by themselves.

 

For dessert, we tried their “Old Fashioned Baked Alaska” made with bourbon semifreddo, angostura caramel and pecans.   It was enough for 4 and properly lit at the table.  It was not a classic version as they had made adaptations to make it less heavy.  It was presented as a work of art with browned swirls of meringue on the exterior.  Inside were creamy layers with caramel in between and no cake.  The bourbon is lit and lends little flavor, mostly effect but a fun one at that.  It was very sweet and rich and I enjoyed it tremendously.  It was a nice version of an old classic and a fine way to end a superb evening.