161 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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Well-chosen antiques and original artwork create a vibrantly chic atmosphere for what has always been one of Whistler's top fine-dining restaurants. Local farmers grow produce exclusively for Araxi's chef, who also makes good use of regional cheeses, game, and fish. The food is fresh and innovative, best described as Pacific Northwest cuisine. Seafood is a specialty, so while you can certainly order a superbly prepared beef tenderloin, it's dishes like alder-smoked Arctic char or handmade pasta with wild prawns, scallops, and mussels that steal the show. The two-tier seafood tower is a must-try for seafoodies who love to graze and share. Wine aficionados take note: the wine list is 43 pages long. A heated patio is open in summer, and the lounge is a popular afternoon and après-ski spot, especially for its oyster bar.

Sit back and relax in the cozy dining rooms of this converted old house and sample updated traditional fare. Bacalao, pronounced "back-allow," is Portuguese for "salted cod," a historic staple of Newfoundlanders and the Mediterraneans who came here to fish; a variation of it is featured every night. Other nouvelle-Newfoundland options include moose and caribou dishes, and mussels in Quidi Vidi Iceberg beer. Off-street parking keeps this spot attractive to its more suburban customer base.

The name belies the menu at this cozy spot on Duckworth Street where you can get excellent food for any meal of the day. Generous breakfast offerings bring local ingredients to traditional dishes. The with eclectic decor and soft lighting, the atmosphere is both relaxed and intimate. 

In business since 1991, the restaurant is regionally known for seafood, which is processed on the premises; steamed snow crab is a highlight. Some dishes swing Italian—there’s a seafood pizza, crab calzone, seafood risotto, and penne with mussels and clams. The dining room is grand but nothing fancy. Natural wood trim barely lightens the mostly olive green color scheme.

This cozy downtown bakery is a great stop for a breakfast of tasty muffins and other confections or a lunch of sandwiches and wraps. Freshly baked cookies, cakes, and artisanal breads are also available, along with a wide variety of coffees and teas. Popular with locals and visitors, this place with just a few tables for dining inside can be packed during peak times. The owners also run the Other Paw, two blocks away.

So much more than a specialty coffee shop, Radium's only café offers a full selection of grab-and-go soup and sandwiches, breakfast burritos, quiche, and baked goods for breakfast and lunch. A bright, spacious room with high, open-duct industrial-style ceilings contrasts nicely with the warmth of the custom-made Douglas fir tabletops, plants throughout, and a wall filled with locally made BC products. Free Wi-Fi is available, as well as charging stations if you need to catch up on work or research. The outdoor patio (with umbrellas) is the perfect place to enjoy a beverage and people-watch.

Offering everything from curry ramen and poke bowls to mushroom risotto and smoked bison flatbread, this small eclectic downtown tapas bar mixes Asian influences with local flavors. Both large and small plates are served in an intimate space with rough-hewn wooden tables, colorful artwork, and bare-bulb lighting. The drinks menu is equally varied, featuring wines, sakes, craft beers, and creative "blocktails."

This cozy café serves a variety of hot beverages, breakfast, and lunch options. Windows all-round provide light and an airy interior seating, while outside tables provide a sunny alternative during the summer months.

Another Calgary icon, Bottlescrew Bills is a second-generation family establishment that has been serving high-quality versions of classic pub food and an enormous selection of beer for more than 40 years. Daily specials and a generous happy hour only add to the fun; if you're feeling adventurous, try their unique riff on the traditional Caesar (a Canadian cocktail invented in Calgary) that includes a “prairie oyster”. If you’re in town long enough, you can try to fill your Around the World in 80 Beers passport. 

An authentic cowboy restaurant with great Alberta steaks and terrific burgers, Buzzard's serves up good western food amid rustic country-style decor and cowboy artifacts. If you're feeling brave, this is one of the few places in Calgary where you can sample prairie oysters, otherwise known as bull testicles. The place is renowned for its annual "testicle festival." There's a sunny outdoor patio, and Bottlescrew Bill's Old English Pub next door serves Calgary's largest beer selection, including Buzzard's Breath Ale house brew.

Come hungry—really hungry—to this foodie destination, where the full-service, family butcher shop dating back to 1943 also hosts a café and gourmet food market featuring locally made artisanal products. Tuck into a thick rib steak with a local saison beer, select from the hot and cold buffets, or go for the “menu of the day” and watch butchers in action as you dine. Vintage meat market tools are on display. Don’t worry about saving room for dessert, because you can purchase a selection of fine chocolates and other sweets for later. Not very hungry? Come anyway and nibble top-quality cheeses with a glass of wine. Come early for dinner, though—the shop closes at 5:30 pm, or 6 on Thursday and Friday.

Popular with the business community and with a loyal local following, this upscale lunch and dinner spot above the King Street Ale House has a cool urban interior and a rooftop garden patio. The menu includes pasta and flatbreads, seafood and vegetarian choices, and dishes such as house-brined chicken breast with arborio rice, raita, and naan bread; Wagyu rib eye; and pork tenderloin with Parmesan-whipped potatoes and vegetables.

Entrées are as colorful as this complex’s buildings, and the deck is the best place to sit on a sunny day. Dishes are all over the map: French onion soup, pepperoni pizza, grilled merguez sausage, barbecue ribs, fish-and-chips, New York–style cheesecake. Poutines are just as varied—one is made with shrimp, another with lobster, yet another with spaghetti sauce; special poutines might feature smoked salmon sausage or General Tso’s chicken. Stick around for live music. Emerging talents, some of whom have gone on to fame, take the stage year-round, usually on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights.