Dig out your finest plaid shirt, dust off your cowboy hat and loosen your belt a few notches – it’s Stampede breakfast season! With so many breakfasts being held in the city within such a short period of time, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. To help streamline your calendar, we’ve compiled a list of locations hosting Stampede breakfasts you won’t want to miss at the 2017 Stampede. [Photo credit: Calgary Stampede]
If you think you’ve seen it all when it comes to Stampede breakfasts, think again. Airdrie’s 1st Annual Kingsview Market Street Stampede Breakfast breaks the mould by coupling a traditional, family-friendly breakfast and a kids’ play area with innovative twists including free massages, henna tattoos, a yoga class and a kitten kissing booth. Head on down to this free event on July 6 between 7 and 10 a.m. to join the fun.
When it comes to Stampede breakfasts, you can go big or go home. Luckily, with the 57th Annual CF Chinook Centre Stampede Breakfast, the decision is easily made for you with the largest free breakfast in the city. Held in the mall's east parking lot on July 8 from 7 to 11 a.m., this event offers four hours of classic food and live country music by the likes of Leaving Thomas, Bobby Wills and Trevor Panczak, and all-ages entertainment in the form of a by-donation game of PLINKO that benefits the Alberta Children's Hospital Foundation.
Celiacs of Calgary, rejoice! Wheat-free pancakes and other morning-time staples will be served up at Wendy T’s Gluten-free Stampede Pancake Breakfast on July 8 from 9 to 11 a.m. so you can nosh on traditional Stampede breakfast fare without fear of cross-contamination. With a list of local and national sponsors that includes gluten-free favourites such as Spolumbo’s, Kinnikinnick Foods and Community Natural Foods, this event is sure to be a tasty and filling surprise for all wheat-free devotees.
For Calgary’s vegan and vegetarian crowd, Stampede breakfasts can seem like a tempting but exclusionary blast from their meat-eating past. In an effort to make the season of free pancakes more inclusive to the plant-based crowd, the organizers of VegFest Calgary will be hosting Get Stacked!!!, their inaugural free vegan breakfast on July 8 from 9 to 11 a.m. where delicious stacks of dairy- and egg-free pancakes will be served up for all.
A literal dog's breakfast, the 5th Annual Puppy Pancake Day at Bowness' Bon A-Pet-Treat! Store & Bakery will provide your precious pooch with a hearty and free canine-approved pancake brunch on July 9. While there will be no human food served up at this event, there will be a plethora of fun entertainment options that dog owners can participate in from 12 to 5 p.m., including raffles that benefit local animal rescues, an adopt-a-thon, a sidewalk sale and door prizes galore.
If you enjoy having your pancakes with a side of good deeds – and the increased potential of seeing hunky firefighters while you chow down – you'll love the Scotiabank Stampede Breakfast. Hosted on the morning of July 11 from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the bank's main location in bustling downtown Calgary, all proceeds from the charitable event will go towards the Calgary Firefighters Burn Treatment Unit.
Whether you’re a bona fide health nut or you’re finding that your pants are fitting a bit too snugly after all those pancake breakfasts, the Fourth Annual Amber Approved Stampede Breakfast on July 12 is the event for you. With a smorgasbord of healthy options that are free of sugar, dairy, and wheat, as well as organic juice shots, free-range eggs and nitrite-free sausages, this definitely isn’t your typical Stampede breakfast – rather, it’s a meal that you can walk away from feeling light and energized. Tickets for this event are $50 and can be purchased on AmberApproved.ca.
True Calgarians know that nothing cures a hangover quite like a Caesar. If you’re feeling a little worse for wear as Stampede comes to a close, the folks at Rodney’s Oyster House have got you covered. The New England-style restaurant’s Stampede Caesar brunch on July 15 affords thirsty thrill-seekers access to three customized versions of Calgary’s signature cocktail as well as an unconventional breakfast spread hosted in its beautiful downtown space. Tickets for this event are $30 and can be purchased ahead of time on EventBrite.ca.