231 Best Restaurants in Canada

Located in a former firehouse at the east end of Duckworth Street, this trendy beer and coffee bar makes an ideal place to chill at the end of your downtown explorations. The architecture features industrial elements like exposed beams and massive glass garage doors that open to an outdoor space in summer. The atmosphere is friendly and calming, a choice spot for work or for fun.

With its ever-changing menu and nearly flawless execution, this contemporary Canadian restaurant consistently ranks among Ottawa's top dining spots. It's little wonder it draws everyone from the Rolling Stones to Diana Krall. Begin with sweet-butter poached shrimp on corn cake or tender foie gras topped with black plum caviar and served on cornmeal pancakes. Entrées might include succulent chicken breast on corn risotto, grilled lamb with roasted organic carrots and turnips, and seared scallops with summer succotash, tomato confit, and Serrano ham. Despite its lofty reputation, Beckta has formal but friendly service.

It's a restaurant, it's an oyster bar, and it's a fish market, where the fresh fish selection is impressive and everything is cooked to perfection, making for delicious meals (there are choices for nonfish fans, too). You can also enjoy divine desserts for the finale. Billy's sophisticated vibe is enhanced by soft, jazzy background music.

This culinary diamond shines with innovative yet hearty food, whether you're dining in the sit-down restaurant or grabbing something from the take-out deli. With so much perfect meat, seafood, and vegetables tucked into one tiny building, this is more than just a hidden gem. If the pork theme seems heavy, be assured the handling of flavors is light and responsive. With a small enough group, you can sit at the bar downstairs and enjoy delicious tapas.

Take a good look at the surroundings when you arrive—exposed brick walls, artworks, hardwood floors—because once the food appears, it will have your full attention. Artfully plated dishes, like local goat cheese terrine and house-smoked salmon, lead into main courses that might include yogurt-and-coriander-roasted chicken breast or pan-seared sustainable blue trout with chorizo, caramelized onion rösti, and sautéed greens.

Ultraluxe decor and magnificent mountain views provide the interior and exterior backdrops for prix fixe, three- to eight-course dinners of regionally influenced French cuisine. The presentation is awe-inspiring, and the food is prepared à-la-minute, so entrées change frequently but have included British Columbia sablefish with tomato, watermelon, and onion; rabbit with nuts, wild berries, and foraged mushrooms; and cinnamon-smoked short ribs. The sommeliers offer two astute wine-pairing options, or you can make your own choices from the impressive list. Dining in this Eden is an experience to be savored. Plan to spend at least three hours.

Chef/owner Konan Mar's passion for cultural diversity and his talent for fusing Canadian and Asian cuisine with a distinctly European flair shape this restaurant's regularly changing menu (think pork and kimchi potstickers and stout-braised duck shepherd's pie). Based in one of Golden's oldest houses and decorated with local art, the space is cozy.

Well known among local foodies as one of Calgary’s best chefs, it's unsurprising that Chef Duncan Ly has created one of the city’s best restaurants, which serves up some of the best pan-Asian food you will ever eat. Try the Mama Ly’s Pork & Shrimp Imperial Rolls and the Steelhead Trout Cha Ca La Vong (Steelhead trout with scallion rice noodles, dill, turmeric, and chili shrimp paste), though it’s hard to go wrong with anything on the menu.

At this authentic Austrian cuisine restaurant, house specialties like schnitzel, rack of lamb, and venison cutlets are served by a welcoming, friendly staff. The decor is reminiscent of an Austrian schnitzel house---cozy, with warm wood accents and walls, plus a feature fireplace for cold winter nights.

This small, on-trend restaurant and bar serves a seafood-heavy Spanish-inspired menu and delicious cocktails. There's a selection of oysters on ice, as well as other chilled and cured seafood and meats, classic Spanish tapas, and bar snacks that make for a perfect evening of grazing, but also a menu of hearty pasta and meat dishes should you require something more robust. Reservations are highly recommended.

Started as a pop-up restaurant by some of the city's most creative chefs, Hop Scotch has evolved into one of the city's most sophisticated dining rooms where incredible food and inventive cocktails are to be eagerly anticipated on each visit. The small menu changes often in order to showcase the best in seasonal, local ingredients, and brunch is always amazing. 

Open for breakfast and lunch, this café makes the perfect spot to take a break from touring and enjoy a variety of options like shrimp pad thai, roast cauliflower soup, or any number of daily changing specials crafted by one of the most versatile chefs in Newfoundland. Under the umbrella of the nonprofit Stella's Circle, all revenue from the restaurant goes back into helping the most vulnerable in the community.

Wild-game dishes such as elk and bison are the Klondike's specialty, but it's also known for halibut, salmon, arctic char, and killer ribs. The restaurant meets vegetarians' needs with pasta and other meatless dishes. There's almost always a line at this wildly popular place, but it's worth the wait for some of the best food in town and for the chance to dine in the oldest operating building in Whitehorse.

Roaring fires, an open kitchen, and jars of homemade pickles lining the rafters set the scene in this renovated historic building in Quidi Vidi Village. The menu changes daily based on the best ingredients available from local sources and might include spit-roasted pork shoulder or tuna tartare, always accompanied by novel and succulent vegetable dishes. With an on-site sommelier, the wines and cocktails keep up with the food. On Sunday the restaurant has live music.

Victor and Cathy Caracciolo opened Mercato 15 years ago and it has been a local favorite ever since. Mamma Cathy is still in the kitchen every day, whipping up delicious contemporary Italian fare for a constant stream of regular customers; try the family-style mixed grill or Mamma’s handmade gnocchi using the same recipe she learned from her own mama. There’s also a spacious market that sells cheese, meats, fresh-baked bread, handmade pasta, and ready-cooked meals to take home. Either way, you can’t go wrong.

One of the hippest coffee shops you'll ever set foot in—but completely devoid of snobbery—shares space with a bicycle shop, cleverly named Icycle Sport. The service is superfriendly, and the coffee is, quite simply, stellar, as are the baked goods. Several members of the same family run different angles of the operation.

You won't find a warmer welcome or a more tender and delicious beef tenderloin anywhere in town, and chef Brian Foster offers an interesting menu that presents the finest local ingredients in very generous portions. In an inviting interior of bare brick, barn boards, and pale walls dotted with trendy accoutrements, you can feast on dishes such as a wonderful chicken fettuccine Alfredo, the rich Sunday pasta with three-beast meatballs, or rack of lamb, and all the tasty little extras.

Following standards set by the Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana (VPN), Piatto’s pizza chefs (pizzaiolos) have been trained to prepare authentic Neapolitan pizza. The midtown location offers a contemporary setting that makes a popular lunch stop. Using choice ingredients, including a low-gluten flour, their classic and updated pizza treatments are delicious when enjoyed in-house, but you can also buy their make-at-home kits to enjoy the same fabulous pizza in the comfort of home.

One of the true epicurean experiences in the Canadian Rockies, the Post delivers daring, regionally inspired cuisine accompanied by excellent wines (it's one of only four restaurants in Canada to receive the Wine Spectator's Grand Award). A low, exposed-beam ceiling and a stone fireplace aglow in winter create an in-from-the-cold aura; white napery provides a touch of elegance; and a changing menu keeps things interesting, with dishes that might include Alaskan king crab drizzled with lemongrass-ginger butter, sautéed wild British Columbia halibut in lemongrass-thyme sauce, or Alberta beef tenderloin in bordelaise. With more than 26,000 bottles, the restaurant may well have Canada's best wine collection. For a unique experience with a group of six or more, inquire about the private cellar dining room.

There's a large window with lovely mountain views at this intimate Italian restaurant on a quiet side street in the Waterton Townsite. The menu changes regularly, but classic starters like caprese salad and calamari are always popular, and you can't go wrong with pasta for the main course—it's all made from scratch, with sauces that are prepared à la minute. For something truly local, order the bison lasagna. The ricotta gnocci with sundried tomatoes is a good vegetarian choice. Desserts are classic, too, including tiramisu, cannoli, and house-made gelato.

This gastropub is one of the best places to eat in the city—proven by its slew of awards and two appearances on the "You Gotta Eat Here" TV show—and it couldn't have a better location, with a great patio overlooking the downtown waterfront. Drawing on supplies from local farmers, fishermen, and food producers, the menu presents "progressive pub food," and the beer menu includes 35 varieties on tap and 56 bottled options.

Just outside the Jasper National Park gates, this gourmet farm-to-table restaurant is a hidden gem with wonderful mountain views. The menu changes often, but the food is always made from locally sourced, seasonal ingredients (try the bison burger) and everything, including the desserts, is prepared fresh on-site; there's also about two dozen beer choices including an extensive locally made craft beer list and a fun cocktail and martini menu. The restaurant received the Wine Spectator Award of Excellence several years running and the carefully curated wine list features over 300 well-priced wines---some served by the glass and some by the bottle. There are two seatings for dinner---one between 5 and 6 pm and a second after 7:30 pm.

This easygoing diner does a bustling lunch service in large part due to the personality and creativity of its owner, locally known as an innovative and improvisational chef. Enjoy casual fare with surprising ingredients in a space decorated with an eclectic mix of family photos, bottled preserves, and tabletops repurposed from old furniture and signage. Vegan, gluten-free, and meat-based options are available in generous portions.

Easily one of the city's hippest upscale establishments, the Press Gang prepares fish and meat with equal panache, with wines from the well-stocked cellar. A four-course tasting menu (C$160 for two) is also offered. Thick, cold stone walls testify to the building's era (1759), but comfy seating and intimate lighting soften the effect. Local musicians play on Friday and Saturday night.

The cozy main-floor lounge serves casual comfort food. The top-level restaurant serves more elaborate dishes—perhaps, maple-rosemary braised short rib with Saskatoon berry sauce or grilled Arctic char with beetroot risotto—in a modern dining room with floor-to-ceiling windows, wood-plank walls, and dark-wood tables. The nightly, three-course, "trust me" menu is a good value for adventurous eaters who don't mind letting the chef decide what's for dinner. There's a nice selection of reasonably priced wines (by the glass or bottle), cocktails, and craft and draft beers.

With an eclectic assortment of knick-knacks, most with a "pig" theme, this cute, bright bistro grabs your attention as soon as you walk through the door. Fiercely local, the wine/beer menu is totally BC-centric and dishes use fresh, local ingredients with menu selections ranging from burgers or crispy duck to ethnic fusion dishes like a Moroccan lamb shank. A kids' menu is also available, as well as lunch kits for hikers. Reservations are available only through the winter months. Summertime is first-come-first-serve, and note that people will drive from as far away as Calgary just to eat here, so there can be line-ups during the busy dinner hours.

Alberta is world-famous for its beef, and this restaurant is a great place to sample it, along with pork, lamb, and sustainable wild game and seafood. All steaks are hand-cut on-site and grilled on cherrywood, and everything, from the butter to the garnishes, is made in-house. Try the Brant Lake Wagyu beef tenderloin or share the dry-aged Tomahawk rib eye, which is carved tableside. Seafood choices include Arctic char, East Coast lobster, and scallops with zucchini puree and pork belly. There is one vegetarian option on the menu.