Panorama Dining Room at the top of the Calgary Tower . Food is fine, but it's expensive for what you get. On top of that, you have to pay C$12 per person to ride the elevator up the tower. It's true that the view is attractive. Okay if you have deep pockets or if you're doing it on someone else's dime.
River Cafe - Located in the park on Prince's Island at the north end of downtown. The building has a rustic appearance, but it's a gourmet restaurant. This restaurant also is pricy. There are some who would say it's too expensive for what you get. There are others who would say that the ambience and the quality of the food are worth the splurge. Certainly the location amidst the trees next to the river does allow you to forget that you are in a city.
La Caille - Situated on the banks of the Bow River at the west end of downtown. Elegant yet relaxed ambience. Pleasant view overlooking the river. Fine cuisine. Expensive. As of August 2006, the restaurant is under new management, operating as Q Haute Cuisine. At this point it is not known what effect this has had on quality and service, but it has received some early positive reviews.
Newport Grill - Formerly The Inn on Lake Bonavista. As the previous name suggested, it overlooks Lake Bonavista in a southeastern suburb of Calgary. Pleasant, upscale restaurant.
Raw Bar at Hotel Arts - While the view isn't of cityscapes or the river, poolside dining at Hotel Arts in the summer months is certainly scenic and a place to be seen. On weekends, they have DJs spinning poolside in the afternoons. Nothing quite like a Queen Charlotte Halibut Salad paired with a nice Sauvignon Blanc and then a dip for dessert. Bring your sunscreen, some shades and be prepared to experience a little bit of L.A. in Calgary.
Other Calgary restaurants which have a good view are The Ranche (in Fish Creek Provincial Park), Reader's Garden Cafe (on the hill in the Reader Rock Garden, overlooking the Stampede grounds and downtown Calgary), and the Deane House (a heritage house on the banks of the Elbow River, with a view of downtown Calgary).
Town of Banff - As crazy as this may sound, it is possible to drive to Banff for dinner. It would take you a maximum of two hours to drive to Banff and a maximum of two hours to drive back to Calgary. Say you spent an hour and a half having dinner and half an hour taking a short stroll through the centre of Banff. You could accomplish the whole exercise in six hours. This would not be a cheap undertaking, as you most likely would need to rent a car and pay the national park entry fee. However, if you were in Calgary on business and if that was your only chance to see the mountains, you might consider it worthwhile -- especially if your trip took place in summer when there were many hours of daylight. For Banff restaurants with a view, see Inside Banff: Dining with a View here at TripAdvisor.
The Eden Dining Room at the Rimrock is exquisite. Another gem is the Three Ravens Dining Room at the Banff Centre. The Banff Springs is simply a wonder to behold and enjoying a drink in the Bow Valley Lounge is a MUST!!! Take your own picnic up the Gondola at Sulphur Mountain and enjoy the most amazing vistas.
