Extreme Coffee Freak

As soon as we arrived in Saskatoon we decided to find a coffee shop that was actually open on August 3 and there was one location. We went on the hunt to find Venn Coffee Roasters. They are located behind a building in an alley so if you were just driving by, you wouldn’t even know it was there unless you were looking. 

The Interior

It is a really small location with a little seating on the inside and a couple benches outside for seating. They have some coffee for sale as well, so I decided to purchase a bag of their Grasslands Blend and I am excited to try it.

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The Drinks

After looking over their limited menu, we decided on a couple beverages.

I ordered an Iced Latte for $5.00 and it was using their Guatemalan blend that I ended up buying. It was really good with good flavour and smoothness. 

My daughter ordered an Iced Berry Blue Tea for $5.00 and it had good flavour. It wasn’t watered down like other iced teas that you sometimes get.

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The Service

When we arrived it seemed like the barista took a few minutes to realize that we were even in the shop. We also realized that people in Saskatoon were not as friendly as they were in Regina. It was really hot outside, so as soon as we got our drinks, we decided to leave. 

The Hours

They are open Monday to Saturday from 9:00am to 3:00pm.

Parking

There is a bunch of parking located all around the shop on the road and in the alley as well.

Last Words

This coffee shop was located in an interesting location which we thought was cool, also a little hard to find. I wish the barista would have noticed us a little sooner and we were not just standing there, but if you are in Saskatoon, make sure you check this location out. 

On our way to Saskatoon we decided to stop in a little town called Lumsden to check out a Mom and Pop shop that we seen a sign for on the road. 

The Interior

When you walk in there is a small counter that has a bunch of food items that you could order, then you to the right there is a door to the other side of the cafe where there is a bunch of seating. To the left there is access to the kitchen where you could watch the chef bake some of their goods. We decided to sit outside on their patio where they had three tables surrounded by cement boulevards protecting its guests.

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The Drinks

They didn’t have a menu up, so we had to ask the girl what they had. To our unexpected surprise the barista was the same barista that helped us the day before at 13 Ave Coffee House.

I ordered a Vanilla Latte for $4.99 which was good. I had originally ordered a latte but got a Vanilla Latte which was alright, but it did have really good flavour. They too also used Calibre Coffee. 

My daughter ordered a Caramel Macchiato for $4.99 which was alright. She said she didn’t get much caramel and the flavour was a little off. 

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The Food

We decided to try a couple of their food items as well since they looked really good.

I ordered a Butter Tart for $2.75 and it was excellent with really great flavour.

My wife had a Ginger Cookie for $2.95 and it was a soft cookie with really great flavour. The amazing part was there was a chunk of dried ginger in the middle of the cookie which was great.

My daughter had a Cranberry Oat Cookie which we don’t think we were charged for. She said it had great flavour and big chunks of cranberry and small chunks of walnuts throughout the cookie as well. 

We also got a Cherry Scone for $3.95 which is a Lumsden favourite, we can see why this is Lunsden favorite, the scone was delicious and had some terrific flavours. 

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The Service

The barista was very friendly and everyone that we came in contact with were very friendly and great personalities.

The Hours

Monday to Friday – 6:00 AM – 6:30 PM

Saturday to Sunday – 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM

Parking

There is a bunch of parking on the street as well on the side of the building.

Last Words

Since this small hamlet of Lumsden is a little far away from Calgary, if we were back through again in the future, we would stop by since it had an amazing small town feel with really great tasting coffee and treats.  

For our last stop in Regina we decided to check out a brand new cafe that just opened back in June called Utopia. It is located in a building with a couple other businesses and it was busy when we first arrived. 

The Interior

It has very clean lines and is very bright inside even though it is lacking windows. When you enter there is a bunch of seating with the counter at the back to the right and in the very back there is a giant window that allows you to see what is happening in the kitchen. It is very well designed, light, and very welcoming.

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The Drinks

After looking over their menu we decided on a couple drinks.

I ordered an Iced Caramel Macchiato for $6.49 and it was really good. A little messy since the whip was falling over the side of the cup and the whip tasted really good as well.

My wife ordered a Japanese Green Tea for $2.95 and she said it was good just really really hot so it was difficult to enjoy right away.

My daughter ordered the Marshmallow Hot Chocolate for $6.25 and it was good. She was a little disappointed to hear that they make it with the Monin Dark Chocolate syrup. The marshmallow was really good though. 

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The Service

The staff were friendly but didn’t seem very knowledgable about the coffee when we asked a couple questions about it. Other than that they seemed very nice.

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The Hours

Monday, Wednesday to Friday – 9:00 AM – 9:00 PM

Tuesday – Closed

Saturday to Sunday – 10:00 AM – 10:00 PM

Parking

There is a bunch of parking located out front of the cafe.

Last Words

We would possibly visit this cafe again in the future to try some of their food items that looked really amazing.

While we were down on 13th Ave we decided to check out this little cafe located in an old historic house. It reminded us of Cafe Cittadella in Vancouver because it has a bunch of rooms that you would normally be able to sit in, but because of COVID we could only sit outside.

The Interior

Since it is a historic house it had all original decor which was really nice. You enter in the house and head left to get to the menu boards and where you order. If you were to head right up the stairs that is where they have their bathrooms located. It would have been cool to sit inside and enjoy the historic home, but sitting outside was just as nice.

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The Drinks

After reading through all the different items on their menu, there is quite a few, we decided to try a couple different things.  

I ordered an Iced Latte for $4.95 and it was a little stronger than the other ones I have had on this trip. They use Caliber Coffee dark roast for their espresso which gave it good flavour. It was a great blend with the milk and ice. 

My wife ordered an Iced Chai for $4.10 and it didn’t really taste like a chai. She said she could taste a little cinnamon, but nothing that resembled a chai. 

My daughter ordered a #1 Smoothie for $5.75 and it was delicious. She said the first sip was a little tart because of the pineapple, but other than that she said it was really good.

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The Service

The two girls working there were very friendly and let us know that everything is made in house, which we thought was absolutely amazing. 

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The Hours

Monday to Friday – 7:30 AM – 8:00 PM

Saturday – 8:30 AM – 8:00 PM

Sunday – 10:00 AM – 7:00 PM

Parking

There is parking on the street, although if it was busy you would have to park a little away and walk over.

Last Words

It is a pretty great little cafe and we would probably go back and visit again so that we could try their food, since everything we seen looked really amazing.

While we were in Regina we received a message to check out this little cafe called Happy Hi. When we arrived we realized that the location used to be an old convenience store before turning into this little cafe. They have been open since December and then when COVID happened they shut down and now they just re-opened. 

The Interior

Inside they have concrete floors and white walls, it is very industrial looking which is really nice. They have a long bar in the centre of the location with the kitchen located behind the bar. They bake everything in house and their menu is small on the wall to the left. 

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The Drinks

After looking at the menu we decided on a couple different items. 

I ordered an iced latte for $5.00 and it was delicious. It was made with coffee from Transcend which was really good. 

My wife and daughter both ordered the Iced Lemon Ginger Tea for $4.00 and it was absolutely delicious. It was really refreshing and it is made in house everyday which is amazing.

The Food

We seen the cart with all their baked goods on it and after looking at that we really wanted to get something.

I ordered a Buttered Toast Donut for $4.00 and it was delicious. There was buttered toast crumble on the top which was a nice added crunch.

My wife ordered a Cinnamon Bun for $4.00 and it was really light, but it was really hard to eat. She said it was really good and would like to have them again.

My daughter ordered a Boston Cream Donut for $5.00 and we were told that they made the custard with whipped cream which was delicious. As a personal preference my daughter said she wished they used a milk chocolate on top instead of the dark.

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The Service

The owner, Lindsay, was super friendly and very personable. It was really nice to talk with her and the gentleman that was working about everything that they are doing now and what they would like to do in the future for the business.

The Hours

Monday to Tuesday – Closed

Wednesday to Sunday – 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM

Parking

They have a little lot out front that you can park in when visiting.

Last Words

We will definitely be stopping by again in the future when we come back through since there are other donuts that we would like to try.

We visiting Thirteen Pies for dinner on our last night in Saskatoon because a young barista in Swift Current had said it was the best pizza that she had tried. Also that it would be cool to visit since everything is movie related and that made my daughter really excited to check it out.

The Interior

It is not an overly big location, when you walk up the stairs the bar is on the right and all the seating is on the left with the kitchen at the very back. The bar had a great selection of liquor and seating options. On the wall above a couple tables they had Indian Jones playing which we thought was very cool. We didn’t stay to eat this time, but next time we would definitely eat in.

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The Food

After looking over their very cool menu we decided to do one large pizza and divide it in half to have two different kinds. 

We ordered half the Bridge City Butcher which was beef, bacon, sherry onions, provolone, mozzarella, diced onion and a tomato sauce. It was delicious with the topping of fresh onions and that all the flavours worked really well with each other.

The other half we got I know What You Ate Last Summer without the Fresno Chilis, but it did have prosciutto, pineapple, provolone, mozzarella, arugula and tomato sauce. They put the arugula in a separate container so it wouldn’t wilt on the drive back to the hotel.

The pizza was $29 and it was absolutely delicious, it was light and had amazing flavour. The crust was also really delicious. We love when you can get a pizza and eat the whole thing without feeling like you ate a whole pizza. 

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The Service

The two people my daughter talked to were very nice and friendly. They explained how to eat the pizza and how much arugula to add to the slices which was very nice. 

The Hours

They are open Tuesday to Sunday from 4:00pm to 12:00am.

Parking

Since it is located on a busy street in downtown Saskatoon, you will have some difficulty finding parking if it is really busy.

Last Words

We would for sure go back and check this place out again and try some of their other pizzas, my daughter had her eyes on the Midnight Meat Train or the Killer Cheese from Outer Space. If you are in Saskatoon, make sure you check this place out.  

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First thing in the morning we decided to check out a cafe that is located in the iconic Hotel Saskachewan in downtown Regina. When we arrived it was busy, but to our surprise it is super small. We were excited to walk around this historic hotel.

The Interior

It is a very small location with only enough tables for eight people and it has a large bar on the right hand side of the shop. They have a limited selection of food options and drinks which is really nice, it wasn’t hard to decide what to have.

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The Drinks

Once we took a look at their limited menu we decided on a couple drinks.

I ordered a Flat White for $4.50 and it was really good and flavourful. Which was really nice since sometimes it is a harder drink to make. They were serving Phil & Seb coffee. 

My wife ordered the Very Berry Smoothie for $6.75 and it was delicious. They made it with apple juice instead of orange which didn’t change anything. It was nice to see that the barista selected each strawberry individually for the drink. Such great care in making the drink.

My daughter ordered a Domo London Fog for $4.50 and it was really good with great flavour. It is made with a powder mixed with milk instead of a tea bag. She said she got all the same flavours as you would if you made it with a tea bag.

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The Service

The barista was very friendly and inviting. My wife talked to the front desk person in the hotel about the ghost stories in the hotel, he said that you never hear the same story twice which is a strong belief that the hotel is haunted to some extent. 

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The Hours

Monday to Friday – 7:00 AM – 3:00 PM

Saturday to Sunday – 8:00 AM – 2:00 PM

Parking

There is parking across the street in front of Victoria Park and today it was free but during the week you do have to pay for parking.

Last Words

This is a really cool location and would recommend anyone to check it out and have a drink at this independent cafe. 

When we got to Regina we were looking for a place to eat and this place popped up in our searches. The food looked really good and the location was really nice, it is located in downtown Regina across from Victoria Park.

The Interior

We decided to sit outside since it was such a nice evening so we really didn’t get a chance to look inside, but my daughter took a quick look and a couple photos. The patio was nice with five tables and three of them including us were taken. It was nice to sit across from the park and be able to people watch, the only downfall was that there were a bunch of flies and wasps due to the flowers that they had around the patio. As I was trying to keep the wasps away from my wife as she is allergic to them, I managed to get stung twice. 

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The Food

There was quite a few menu options that they had so it was very difficult to choose what to eat. They have a great selection of vegetarian options as well as regular options too. After we had given our order to our server she brought a plate of hummus and cut pita to the table, they give it as a complimentary snack while you wait for your food.

I ordered the Bonanza Burger for $20 and it was really good but really messy. Unfortunately it came with mushrooms even though it didn’t have any on the menu and I don’t like mushrooms. The fries were really good and the meat was seasoned really well. 

My wife ordered the Linguine Pollo Mondo for $20 and it was delicious. She said it had really good flavour and it was super saucy which was a huge bonus. Overall it was really good.

My daughter ordered the Shrimp and Scallops Linguine for $20 and it was creamy and good. She said she wished the tails were off the shrimp and that the scallops had more flavour. It was also a little too saucy for her liking.

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The Service

It wasn’t very busy and after we got our food our waiter disappeared completely. My daughter had to go and find someone to be able to get a take home package and the bill. When the waiter came with the take home package they didn’t bring the bill and we had to wait an additional ten minutes for the bill. The service was super disappointing.

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The Hours

They are open everyday from 10:00 AM until Close. It seems like close can be at any time.

Parking

There is parking all along the street on the one side. On the weekends there is two hour free parking and during the week you will have to pay.

Last Words

Unfortunately due to the service we would not be willing to visit this business again. If they would have told us our waiter was new and was unsure of the procedures we would have had a different discussion, thankfully the food saved this review. 

While we were driving through Moose Jaw we decided to check out a place located in downtown. It was a really great location with a bunch of windows that let in a ton of natural light.

The Interior

With all the windows the didn’t need any additional lighting which was nice. There was a bunch of tables for seating and on the left side of the shop there was their counter and bar and at the back of the cafe is where they had their kitchen where they made a bunch of their food options.

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The Drinks

After looking at their menu they have both coffee and non-coffee options that are really good prices. When we looked over everything we decided on a couple options.

I ordered a Pour Over made with their single origin Peru beans for $3.10 and it was a little more acidic than I would have liked. Overall it was pretty good for a pour over. They had a selection of 12 different beans to choose from.  

My wife ordered a Raspberry Italian Soda for $3.15 and it was refreshing and delicious. She only wished that it was a little stronger with the raspberry flavour.

My daughter ordered a Mint Oreo Frappe for $4.75 and it was delicious. She only wished it was blended a little more since there were chunks of ice that kept getting stuck in the straw.

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The Service

Everyone was very friendly, they did mention to us that they were closing shortly when we arrived which was great. We didn’t stay too long, just long enough to take some notes before heading back on our way.

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The Hours

Sunday to Monday : Closed

Tuesday to Saturday : 9:30 AM – 3:30 PM

Parking

There was some parking on the side of the building but otherwise we couldn’t see any other parking that was available.

Last Words

Since Moose Jaw is so small, there is a limited number of coffee shops to visit and I feel like if we would have shown up early in the day there would be more options of everything. Unfortunately when we arrived everything was being put away and it was hard to get a feel for the place.