Dave Goes Evil at Evil Dave's Grill in Jasper

Off to Jasper for the weekend to go skiing! If I was much of a skier, I would have been pretty excited. Knowing that being on the hill all day would take its toll on me, I did a bit of research to find a place for dinner that would make me forget my aching backside. Evil Dave’s Grill certainly looked like it would fit the bill. It seemed perfect. I could get in a good meal and at the same time poke a little fun at Dave. I had a feeling that by the end of my ski day I’d be calling him evil for taking this poor out of shape girl up to the hill for a day of torture. I was pleasantly surprised by both the day of skiing and my dinner that night. I managed to make it through the day only falling twice and had enough energy to get through a great meal at the end of it all.

I was a bit worried when we arrived for our 7:00 pm reservation and had to wait at the door for quite awhile before we were greeted. Thankfully, that was the low point of the evening and the service was excellent after that. Although most of the decor was on the Zen side of things, with Buddhas and bamboo very prevalent, we loved the Live Nudes neon sign by the bar and the flames being shown on their TVs. Once we were settled, Dave and I both had a good laugh at the menu that featured mains like Mad Cow Lasagne (with meat) and Glad Cow Lasagne (vegetarian). Everything had great names from the Sinful Starters to the Malicious Mains.

They offer a good mix of entrees, with selections featuring beef, chicken, fish, shrimp and a couple of interesting vegetarian entrées. Dave chose the Diabolical Tenderloin and I had the Malicious Salmon. We shared a bottle of Fuzion, a Malbec Shiraz blend from Australia. It was a nice wine, not too heavy.

Our meals looked like pieces of art when they came out, with Dave’s being the more impressive of the two. His tenderloin was stacked on top of a bed of cheddar mashed potatoes, surrounded by a mixture of fresh steamed vegetables and gloriously topped by a crown of fried potato strips. The peppercorn demi-glace pooled off to one side just waiting to have the beef dunked in to it. I started to suffer from a bit of dinner envy when I sampled the demi-glace, which was rich and peppery with hints of curry. The tenderloin itself was so tender there was no need to use the steak knife provided. You could almost cut it with a fork.

Thankfully, my salmon, while not as impressive looking, was just as tasty. OK, almost as tasty. The perfectly cooked filet sat nestled on top of a mound of jasmine rice with the same fresh steamed vegetables that were on the tenderloin. I had expected that the salmon would be spicier than it was. It didn’t seem to have any of the spices that I usually associate with blackened fish but I didn’t miss them. The fresh flavour of the salmon shone through the dish and was highlighted by the creamy sweet curry yogurt sauce served on top of it. Next time I’m sure I’ll choose the tenderloin but I was not all that disappointed with the salmon.

We didn’t stay for any dessert or after dinner coffees. Instead, we moved on to the next stop down the road to sample some beer. We’ll definitely be going back to Evil Dave’s Grill next time we’re in Jasper. Now, if I can just get Dave to stop telling me how fantastic the tenderloin was...Yes, sometimes he is evil.

Evil Dave’s Grill

Patricia St & Hazel Ave, Jasper, AB

Open 4 pm – 11 pm 7 days a week,

(Open at 5 pm M-F October – May)