A Walk Down 17th Avenue with Shaista

Oh heyhey Calgary, happy Monday to everyone! Tonight's blog comes from mega babe blogger Shaista. In the blog Shaista takes on a walk down 17th Avenue and highlights her fave places to visit, plus a little bit of history you might not now about our beloved red mile. Continue to read, enjoy and give Shaista a follow on Insta! Hereeee we go!  

Sung to the tune of the Fresh Prince of Bel-Aire Theme song…

And… end…that there was my short-lived rap writing career, I should probably keep my day job. But tangent aside, if you haven't guessed, this post is about 17th avenue. A bit of history when Calgary became a town in 1884, 17th avenue was the southern town limit border up to 14 street SW, making it one of Calgary’s oldest streets. It still has many historic buildings, such as the Devenish Apartments, Western Canada High School, and the St. Mary's Cathedral. 17th avenue gone through many changes over the decades; and now it is one of the most popular commercial streets in Calgary. There is an abundance of restaurants, bars, shops, cafes and so much more. I’ll talk about some of the spots I love to hit up on 17th.

Expresso Yourself!

There is definitely an abundance of choice here, but one of my favourites is Analog. This place is always packed so I would suggest it if you need to grab a coffee and go for a stroll because coming across a table is hard.

Another is great place is Philosafy, which has an amazing iced chai latte. There’s generally space here if you want to study or meet up with a friend.

But lastly, my favourite place to study or work is Waves near 10th street. You can usually find somewhere to sit and they have a patio for those warmer days (or lets be serious for Calgary patio weather is anything better than 10°C).

Ice Cream Everyday! (yes, it has it’s own category)

Made my Marcus! Do not miss, you will seriously regret it. They have an ever changing menu of flavours and sundaes. The “happy camper sundae" is my favourite.

If you are more of a frozen yogurt person though, there is also a Tutti Frutti at 8th street. I generally head here each time I’m out for a run, what’s the point of burning calories if you don’t get to eat more right? And yogurt is healthy….

Late night Drinks

There are so many choices along 17th that you can easily bar hop all night and not run out of places. So I’ll just talk about a few of my favourites.

Number one, Betty Lou's library, is a great place for a date, this intimate bar is a bit of a secret to most of Calgary. You need a secret password to enter, but don’t let this turn you away as I was able to get it simply by calling to make a reservation. This place has a 1920’s prohibition era theme, it’s so glamorous inside, you feel like you have been transported to Europe.

Another place I’d suggest for a drink is XVIII, it's a new Hooka bar, a little more upbeat than Betty Lou. This would be a great place to come hang out with all of your friends.

Lastly, for a great girls night, Mabou is amazing. It’s a wine and cheese bar, need I say more. You can get amazing cheese boards with a selection of cheeses from Europe. They also have mac and cheese, grilled cheese sandwiches, cheese toasts, cheese crips. you get the idea… so much cheese…. mmm.

No list is complete without shopping!

West elm; serious home inspiration. I can spend forever in this store just getting ideas for my dream home. And for the ladies, 27 Boutique is a great little boutique store that I almost didn’t want to share just to keep this secret to myself! But they are always stocked with some of the newest and trendiest clothing, and if you are looking for some outfit inspiration the ladies at the store are always willing to help.

Of course this is nowhere near a complete list of all great places to visit on 17th! But it's a good starting point. You can spend hours strolling up and down the streets! Comment to let us know some of your favourite places!

Back to Kathleen here! If you are someone you know would like to be a guest blogger on our blog drop us a line! Chat at chaaa next week Calgary - stay local! 

PSST, I have a brand new blog up on my personal blog ‘That Awkward Dating Moment’ and if you’re already lurkin’ on social media follow me on Instagram @kathleensmiles_