Ironwood Stage & Grill

The ambience is not bad… Even when is not the kind of places I would frequently go… I think it was cool that they have live music all day… I went there on a Saturday at noon and a band was presenting. Which was nice. The food was ok… Not better than most bars. This is not a place I would recommend to eat, but is good for a drink and live music. the service was friendly.

Great venue, excellent service.
There is a cover charge for when there is live music (fair enough).
It’s big enough to seat larger groups and they take reservations, which is nice!
I really enjoyed our visit. Definitely going back.
Tip: check their performance schedule ahead of time to see who is playing!

I want to like you — but I don’t.
The food is overpriced and not very good… Calamari was soggy, spinach and artichoke dip was cold — jambalaya bland.
The service is mediocre at best.
The music however is great and is what will continue to bring people back.

This place showcases some really fantastic musicians but don’t go there if you like to dance. Heaven forbid you stand in front of the stage to shake that lil groove thang of yours because you’ll be BOOED outta there. It happened to me! Even the musician was like… «REALLY, guys?» and invited me on stage to dance.
And honestly, what’s a gal gotta do to get a drink ’round here? I know it may not be the server’s fault but you’re missing out on sales. Hire more staff. My whole table would have gotten a few more rounds if we had the opportunity to. and we weren’t the only ones.
Also, our server looked a little annoyed when my 15% tip was less than three dollars. Girl, it would have been more if there was more then two drinks on that bill. Welcome to the game of serving!
What a drag… this place is so close to home. I want to like it there– I really do. I’ll give it a second chance when you get a musician in there that is NOT so groovy, where I’ll enjoy sitting down and not drinking.

As an update and upgrade to my earlier review, the front of house staff seem to have really shaped up recently. They have been very accommodating and attentive, and the food seems to come out much less haphazardly than before. Finally, the service quality matches the music quality!

Great old former theatre from the 50’s turned into a cosy bar and grill with very good performers.
This is a well established and popular venue so reservations are strongly advised when live performances are on.
Staff: very good attentive and accommodating people including the owner Paul who mingles with the crowd and acts like one of the staff than the owner.
Food: I ordered the margherita flat bread, it was good but slightly bland, nothing that a few capers and a dash of oregano wouldn’t have fixed, I expressed my thoughts and was graciously noted.
Price: very reasonable compared to Calgary watering hole pricing

What a great venue. Not too big, not too small, the music was loud enough to hear over the chatty crowd but not so loud that I lost any high frequencies from my hearing. Decent beer tap list for a music joint; glad they haven’t signed some kind of exclusive with MolsonCoorsDuff.
Didn’t get a chance to try the food menu since we rolled in just as the music was starting; the kitchen looked like it had been worked over, so it must be in demandl.
Crowd for a Tim Hus show was decked out in hockey jerseys, cowboy hats, checkered shirts, and non-​ironic trucker hats. (Irony and cowboys né’er shall meet).
Service was outstanding from our server; the chance run-​in with another server was more mixed, but I’m not going to judge since we weren’t her table.
Recommended.

One of the things I love most about the Ironwood is the caliber of performers. Patrick, the owner, and man responsbile for booking never fails. I’ve taken a chance a few times and have gone to see musicians I didn’t know but was invariably delighted.

Here’s one for your ears: A foodie style audio review.
Think of everything you look for in the best meal you’ve ever had. Textures. Colours. The way flavours within a single bite can both blend together and contrast each other. The way the tastes evolve in a timed sequence from initial smell to final swallow.
The Ironwood hits every key point… Except with sound.
There have been many musicians that I didn’t realize just how good they were until I saw them at the Ironwood. They bring in some very high caliber performers, and this room does an incredible job showing them off.
The theatre is very open and live sounding, and it pairs brilliantly with folk, roots, and any kind of accoustic music. Instruments both fill the venue and blend together seamlessly, while keeping each individual timbre in tact. This warm sounding room lets colours blend together where need be, while still allowing individual voices to cut through.
Incredible.
and on that. I think the food is pretty alright too.
Cheers to you, Ironwood sound guy. You do great work.

Entertainment: excellent. ALL NEIL ALL NIGHT. Food: awesome. LAMB CASSEROLE. Service: perfect. Waitress with blonde curly hair was a total pro. So far, three stars. But this is where it ends for me. Décor is awful. What’s up with the seven deadly sin paintings. And the place is filthy. Bathrooms are unacceptable. Eveything above eye level is coated in dust and grease. Too bad. A little pride of ownership and this place could be an unforgetable gem.

Oh Ironwood. I wanted to like you, I really did.
I’ve heard great things about you, know you have terrific acts playing, and even you even host a big band brunch on Sundays. I thought we’d be best friends right off the bat.
But it’s no good — you’re just not the right type of restaurant/​venue to play a major role in my life.
To begin with, if you’re a show venue, then you need more small tables, versus massive group ones. I understand you want to cater for groups, and that you’re also a restaurant, but having to share a table with complete strangers, that then talk all the way through a Flamenco performance? While it’s not your fault they did, you could of prevented this if you’d just have more small tables. You’d work well for a band, but for a dance performance? Your setup just isn’t right. You might also want to stock your bathrooms better — being out of paper towel and soap an hour before the show even starts is pretty sad.
And then there was your staff, which made me think you might be very temperamental. Everyone was covering off for each other, which was great. And one of the women serving our table was wonderful — friendly, engaging, and made a point of trying to stay out of people’s line of sight when checking in with a table. But the other server was surly, rude, ignored patrons, and took the other half of my table’s orders before mine and Chuck B’s… despite the fact we had been sitting there waiting to order for 10 minutes before the other group even arrived. So every time I needed to ask for something, I got concerned — I didn’t know who I’d be dealing with, Dr Jenkyll or Ms. Hyde.
Finally, there was the food. This was where you really didn’t live up to your promise Ironwood. I ordered the chicken pizza, Chuck B got the bison burger. I was excited to see what you were like when it comes to food Ironwood, so excited to try to make our friendship work. Instead, you pretty much broke my heart.
My pizza should have been wonderful — pesto, apples, cheese, chicken — some of my very favorite things. And yet, everything was so thinly sliced I couldn’t differentiate between any textures or tastes. And then the burger — well, apparently the patty was dry, and the bun was soggy.
How can I be friends with somewhere that doesn’t seem to appreciate or serve good food? Somewhere where I can’t depend on the service or room set up to work properly with the event it’s hosting?
I might be willing to give you another chance, especially if it was for a music event, and I can see how you’d be a great venue if you wanted a party or show venue with a ‘raw’ edge to it it. So, because of this, and the one awesome waitress, you deserve a 2.5. But I can’t praise you any more highly than that, and we’ll only be acquaintances, not friends :(

I’ll only comment on the physical characteristics of the space, since I went here to photograph an event. It was dark and challenging for available-​light work, but fast prime lenses and modern digital sensors can handle it even without flash. A bit of a gritty feel, lots of character. I can think of several scenarios that would make good use of this location for richly textured visuals.

I don’t even know what to say.
I will start by saying that my «Roasted Veggie Sandwich» was acceptable. It had a good amount of roasted vegetables, unfortunately the bun had been cut so that the bottom half was about five millimetres thick, and the liquid from the vegetables had already soaked through by the time it arrived at my table. I tried to flip the sandwich over but the bottom (now the top) was still too mushy to hold any of the ingredients in place. I had to eat the sandwich open-​face with a knife and fork. The yam fries were excellent. The girl who served me was nice.
But this place is DIRTY. Dirty, dirty, dirty. I understand that it’s a live music venue in the evening and might serve as something more like a bar, but if you can’t get your venue clean in time for lunch the next day then DO NOT OPEN. I initially sat at the bar in the front window but was distracted by the dozens of fruit flies– and other bugs– crawling all over the glass and the bar. There were cobwebs in all the corners where the wood frame met the glass window, and these were also full of dead flies. When I moved myself to a table I looked back at the glass from a distance and noticed HUNDREDS of flies crawling all over the bottom of the window frame. Not only did I have to pick flies out of my water glass, when I went to the bathroom each and every toilet bowl also had flies floating in the water. I’ve never squatted so high before! The Ironwood needs to close for a day or two and bring in a professional cleaning crew to get their front of house up to par. I hope and pray that the front area is not representative of the kitchen.

Updated:
Came to see Rudy Moody. Excellent show. Okay food but inconsistent portions. We got the charcuterie platter twice. The first time it came it was small so we ordered a second one. The second one was more than twice the size of the first one and we could not finish it. They seem to always have issues with the kitchen.
Cheap drinks — $ 6 Manhattans (very simple ones; but for $ 6 for a double its more than reasonable for Calgary). Good service this time despite being really busy.
They lost my reservation but at least was able to get us a good table.
Great concert venue.

Okay, The Ironwood is my favourite place to see great Alberta musicians. I’ve seen Ben Sures perform there, Jori Kinjo and a few other memorable but not famous folks that just love to sing, play and are great to listen to.
First time out the food was not spectuacular and in my opinion over priced. That was when the Ironwood was in the Blues Can location. And then, when we went to see Jori, okay, it was an appetizer but for what we had on the plate, it was … okay.
Then there was the charity event. We were out to support a Give a Kid a Lift charity event at the Ironwood and my husband treated us to lunch. And it was good.
I love that the Ironwood supports charities and local and all sorts of music. It is live performing of live and often original music.
Yes, in the evening you can dance. It’s fun to watch the tables clear out by the stage and see people doing what they do best, making merry to some great music.
I’m looking forward to a little Sunday afternoon Blue Grass coming up in the near future, but several words to the wise.
1. There is a cover, and it can be added to your bill, but it covers the enterainment, so you don’t have to spend a lot of money on drinks or food if you don’t want to.
2. The appetizers range form $ 12.00 — $ 14.00 and they feed maybe 2 small appetite people or one me.
3. The beer is the best deal. There is a full bar but really, as Alison Brock says: «It’s the music.»
I want to go to the Bluegrass afternoon on May 19 and … oh wow there is SO much good music there this spring! Take a peek at their website and find the offerings. The pick a day and just go!

This place was so great! Got to see Amy Thiessen and Belle Plaine. The Steamwhistle was cold and the appies were tasty. 3 hours of excellent entertainment in a warm fun atmosphere. Will definitely be going again!

I like the Ironwood. It’s definitely a great location for devout music fans, for sure. We were there last night listening to two bands play and it was a lot of fun. The crowd was significantly older than my friends and I — I’m not sure if that’s typical or just because of the particular band that was playing but everyone enjoyed the atmosphere and our servers were cheerful, helpful and on the ball.
I don’t know that I love the cover-​charge aspect but I know that bands have to get paid right?
One suggestion, I’d like to see them add some gluten-​free options.
Anyway, I’ll definitely go back.

I suppose, you, the reader of this will have to confirm or deny for youself the truth about Ironwood.
People on here are saying things like «its cheap booze» and «been loving it for years» and «the sound was perfect» etc.
Well… in my «opinion» then, The Ironwood is expensive. $ 12 cover and $ 6+ beers. I guess its cheap if youre a lawyer hahah.
The Ironwood has only been there for a couple years, max. Sorry dude, you didnt haunt it when you were in college ok because it wasnt there. It was still the old runned down garry theatre up until recently.
I found the service to be average. The music, while subjective, I thought wasnt any good at all. We paid this cover charge to see a BAND, and it was just 3 guys with like a banjo, and 2 acoustic guitars. It went on and on and on. I periodically check to see whos playing at the Ironwood, and its ALWAYS an unremarkable no-​name «blue-​grass fusion» group, or a folk trio from saskatoon, with alleged lyrics and esoteric meanings that are so intense you MUST be sophisticated if you are a fan. LOL whata joke.
Its a shame really, that the Ironwood is so aweful. Its in a neat historic building, the stage is located well, and the bar and seating all make sense and are laid out well. Also its on the fringe of downtown.
Whatever image or genre they are trying to appeal to is not working, for this reviewer at least.

Certainly, one of the best salads I’ve ever had.
Freshly made apple cider vinaigrette, which was more apple cider purée than anything, drizzled over avocado, fire-​grilled chicken breast, strawberries and other veggies on a mound of lettuce.
The service, and thus the experience, was crap.
There’s an obvious greeting area when you enter the Ironwood. Except there’s no one staffing the desk. It’s Friday night, so all the tables in the bar area are reserved.
The front section, all with low tables and a lovely view of the Inglewood denizen walking past on Ninth Avenue, was empty.
But for one couple, who left because they weren’t getting served.
We eventually were approached for a drink order and another couple came in. They left because they weren’t getting served.
Our drinks and then our meals came in an adequate amount of time.
The server came ’round for one last time about 45 minutes later to ask if there would be anything else. We said no.
We figured she would be back with our bill, but she disappeared. Nowhere to be found, lost among the artsy, more cultured folk who folded into the bowels of the Ironwood.
She finally came back about 15 minutes later, whereupon we showed her the broken wine glass and shiraz all over the floor. Sigh … me and my Maritime talky hands …
She registered an ‘oh’ and then disappeared again.
I asked my companion ‘what should we do.‘
She replied ‘we should just leave.‘
The thought crossed my mind but it just isn’t something I can do. We struck a deal. We would hang out at the host desk for up to 10 minutes and if she didn’t reappear with the bill, we would leave.
She reappeared and exclaimed ‘oh, did you want your bill?‘
It isn’t often I don’t tip. I normally will leave at least a couple of bucks but there was no way in hell this server or establishment was making
any more off me than they absolutely could.
The broken wine glass? It was still there when we left.

I went to the CD Release Party for Scott Cook at hte Ironwood Stage and Grill. Admittedly, I have not been in this establishment since it was Loose Moose, so it was a real treat to see what they have done with the place since then.
The sound of the band in this space was unbelievable. They are a good band to begin with, but the acoustics were fantastic.
This is definately a bit more of a rough-​and-​tumble atmosphere compared to what I am use to. Usually when I go to a pub type atmosphere, it is usually more of an upscale place. However, the ruggedness of the Ironwood Stage and Grill was not a turn-​off for me at all. It had a real small-​town feel.
What really created my 4 out of 5 rating was the experience of hearing Scott Cook play. He had never sounded better, mostly because of the acoustics in that space, compared to other venues I have heard him perform in. I will not hesitate to go to Ironwood for live music again.
I did not order any food, but we did order drinks and the service was good. No complaints! If I was ever booking a music venue, I would definately consider the Ironwood!