YYC Food & Drink Experience at Masa Mama

Every year, the YYC Food & Drink Experience gives Calgary diners a friendly nudge to branch out a little. It’s a two-week stretch where restaurants across the city roll out special menus designed to showcase what they do best, often with a few playful surprises along the way. For those looking for something lively, flavour-packed, and just slightly indulgent, Masa Mama Taqueria has entered the conversation with a three-course menu that feels both generous and a little mischievous.

At $40 per person, the experience is structured simply: three courses, a handful of choices, and plenty of opportunity to explore the bolder side of the kitchen. The opening course sets the tone. Guests might begin with the Gobernador taco, a particularly satisfying combination of shrimp, stewed peppers, and fried cheese tucked into a duck fat tortilla that manages to feel both rich and balanced at once. If tacos feel too predictable (unlikely, but still), there’s a bright tostada layered with guacamole, roasted tomato, cucumber, cotija, and a sesame salsa that brings a pleasant crunch to the table. Or, for those leaning toward something golden and crispy, panko-fried calamari with garlic aioli offers a familiar pleasure done very well.

The second course leans into comfort, though never quietly. Crispy pork belly chicharrón arrives with rice, beans, charred onion, and salsa, a combination that feels hearty in the way good tacos often do. A bowl of tortilla soup offers another classic, complete with fried chicken leg, tomato broth, and the traditional garnishes that make the dish both warming and lively. The vegetarian option, a mushroom quesadilla with salsa verde and black pepper sambal, proves that a tortilla filled with the right things can hold its own in almost any culinary company.

Dessert, as it often should, keeps things cheerful. Freshly fried churros come with passionfruit pastry cream for dipping, a pairing that leans just enough toward bright acidity to balance the sweetness. Alternatively, the flan delivers a silky egg custard finished with panela cheese and sponge toffee, the sort of dessert that politely suggests you stay for one more drink.

In many ways, that’s the spirit of the YYC Food & Drink Experience itself. It’s about wandering into places you might already love, discovering a few new dishes along the way, and leaving pleasantly full. At Masa Mama, the atmosphere does its part too. The room hums with colour and energy, the cocktails arrive quickly, and the tacos rarely linger on the table for long.

For anyone looking to spend an evening exploring Calgary’s dining scene with a little extra personality, this is a particularly good place to start. Just come hungry, and perhaps with a friend or two willing to share. Three courses leave plenty of room for debate over which dish deserves a second visit.