Calgary’s SoCal Bouldering Gym is changing the traditional gym experience by merging fitness and fine dining at Approach Cafe & Bar.
Josh Carvelli, a climber for eight months and a chef for eight years, opened Approach Café and Bar, a sit-down restaurant, in March, offering an array of dishes for anyone passing through.
“In a way, it’s a very European way of thinking. In Europe, almost all the gyms have restaurants or cafes inside of them,” said Carvelli
“The idea is people [could] spend a day at the climbing gym, so they could work for a few hours, climb for a few hours, or they could just like, meet friends and then go all out for beers after and create this like, community network.”
Although the restaurant is located inside the gym, there is no need to climb to get some grub. Anyone, whether they are climbing or just there for dinner and a show, can enjoy the food at Approach.
Carvelli is not only the head chef but also the creative and administrative driving force behind the restaurant, creating the menu and assembling an impressive team of cooks and servers.
Having a restaurant inside of the gym has proved to have its challenges. The use of chalk is essential to the sport of climbing, but due to its fine, powdered nature, it can easily become airborne.
“It’s just like constant cleaning; we have standards that are almost different from your regular restaurant,” Carvelli said. “We’ve just installed like a bunch of chalk eaters, [they] are like super powerful and above what would be regularly needed for the kitchen so that we can suck up all the chalk.”
Carvelli works closely with Alberta Health Services to ensure standards and cleaning are achieved.
“It’s almost like we’re best friends,” he joked. “It’s just like more inspections, and [AHS] is a lot stricter.”
Over the past eight months, Carvelli has put together a rotating, seasonal menu which currently boasts 17 dishes focused on sustainability that still provides a wide range of food anyone can feast on.
“[The dishes] aren’t necessarily the healthiest dishes on the planet but dishes that are made with high-quality ingredients,” said Carvel.
Even someone looking for a less formal meal can get a fix.
“Climbers love beer and chicken wings, so there’s like everything from chicken wings to what you would see in like a casual fine dining restaurant,” said Carvelli.
Additionally, there are daily specials on the menu, a classic being wing night on Fridays.
“I’m launching a wine and pasta night on Wednesdays … we’ve experimented with some like, fresh pasta and added gluten-free gnocchi to the menu,” Carvelli said.
