River Café

Specialties

An extraordinary dining experience is to embark on a journey. We have created a beautiful place in an extraordinary setting and have tended to the details that make you feel at home: staff who care, chefs who are passionate about quality and the regional seasonal ingredients that bring to your palate a taste of place.

History

Established in 1992.

In the summer of 1991, we set about transforming an aging park concession on Calgary’s Prince’s Island. River Café began as a small full service café, operating summer only, with just a roof sheltering the tables from the elements. In 1995, we transformed the open space, enclosing it with windows and walls to expanded the seating and operate year-​round. We repurposed found materials and worked with local artists. Our vision was to create a unique restaurant that would feel as though it had always existed and that belonged in this remarkable setting along the Bow River.

At the table we wanted to serve a cuisine from ingredients indigenous to the region, a romantic notion of ‘just caught’ from the river. But at that time, very few local ingredients were readily accessible locally through the established restaurant distribution. We had to try harder and we dedicated our efforts to sourcing local ingredients from farmers & producer who were responsible stewards of the land, rivers, & sea.

Meet the Business Owner

Sal H.

Business Owner

Sal Howell is the proprietor and founder of River Café and Boxwood. Sal is a passionate advocate for cooking with and eating local, seasonal and sustainable ingredients and has fostered the culinary and hospitality philosophy at River Café since its inception.

Born in Wales, well traveled and educated on both sides of the Atlantic, Sal studied Fine Arts at Mount Allison University in New Brunswick and arrived in Calgary in 1989.

«I have many mentors within the food growing, food service and hospitality community. We all learn from our mentors, we become mentors. We learn from our peers, and then there is the never-​ending flow of fresh young enthusiasm with new ideas and innovation. We invite our entire staff to share their ideas and their creativity, and to engage and contribute daily to the vision and philosophy.

Growing food and connecting with others who do, has been one of the most rewarding aspects of my journey at River Café and now also at our new restaurant Boxwood.