"Connie DeSousa and John Jackson's roast house, an enRoute Top 10 winner for spit-roasted prime rib. Book it for a team dinner."
CHARCUT Roast House opened in 2010 on the ground floor of Hotel Le Germain at 899 Centre Street SW, and quickly became one of the rooms that pushed Calgary's dining onto the national map. Chefs Connie DeSousa and John Jackson, Prairie-raised and European-trained, named it for the charcuterie and the rotisserie that anchor the menu. Within a year it landed on enRoute's Top 10 best new restaurants in Canada. For the wider picture, see our Calgary dining guide.
DeSousa, a Top Chef Canada finalist, and Jackson built the menu on house-made sausage, cured meats and fresh cheeses, with a rotisserie at the centre. The dish to order is the prime rib: locally raised, range-fed Alberta beef, smoked, spit-roasted and carved with a rosemary jus, sold by the ounce from C$4.50 and worth topping with the beer-battered onion rings and bone marrow. Start with the bone marrow au gratin and the house charcuterie board. Most mains land between C$30 and C$55. Read our guide to the best steakhouses worldwide, or compare the dry-aged program at Modern Steak nearby.
The room is loud in the good way: a two-level space with an open kitchen, a busy bar and a crowd that runs from suits at lunch to a late-night set, with the full menu served until 1am Wednesday to Saturday. The sound is lively, the lighting low and amber, and the tables are close enough to feel the energy. Dress is smart-casual, and service is quick and warm. It is a room built for sharing plates and ordering one more board.
Book CHARCUT for a team dinner because the format is made for a table that wants to share: charcuterie boards, a prime rib carved to size, and a bar that keeps the night moving. The two-level room absorbs a noisy group without anyone feeling watched, the late kitchen means no one is rushed, and the by-the-ounce prime rib lets a big table eat well without a runaway bill. Order boards for the middle and the prime rib for the table. See more team-dinner restaurants.
Not for a quiet, hushed dinner — CHARCUT is a loud, high-energy roast house and bar, better for a lively group than a private conversation.
Yes, for serious meat and charcuterie in a high-energy downtown room. Opened in 2010 by chefs Connie DeSousa and John Jackson, CHARCUT earned a place on enRoute's Top 10 best new restaurants in Canada and built its name on spit-roasted Alberta prime rib and house-cured meats. Most mains run C$30–55, with prime rib by the ounce. See our Calgary dining guide for more.
Order the prime rib — range-fed Alberta beef, smoked, spit-roasted and carved with rosemary jus, sold from C$4.50 an ounce and best topped with beer-battered onion rings and bone marrow. Start with the bone marrow au gratin and a board of the house charcuterie and sausage. It is a sharing menu, so build a spread across the snacks, the boards and the rotisserie for the table.
CHARCUT is run by Connie DeSousa and John Jackson, Prairie-raised and European-trained chefs who opened it together in 2010. DeSousa competed as a finalist on Top Chef Canada, and the pair have since grown a small Calgary group. Their cooking centres on house charcuterie and a rotisserie, drawing on DeSousa's Italian and Portuguese heritage and a commitment to Alberta sourcing.
Yes. The two-level room and busy bar absorb a lively group easily, and the late kitchen Wednesday to Saturday means no one is hurried out. Shared charcuterie boards and prime rib carved to size keep a big table fed without a runaway bill, which also makes it a confident choice to close a deal. See our team-dinner guide for more.
Reserve via OpenTable. The prime rib is cut until it sells out, so an earlier sitting is the safe play.
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CHARCUT earns its place for spit-roasted Alberta prime rib and the house charcuterie that put Calgary on the national map.
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