As a former academy member of Pellegrino World’s 50 Best Restaurants I’ve had a chance to eat at many great dining rooms around the world, but, for me at least, the most renowned restaurants don’t always equate to the most memorable dining experiences. This was especially front-of-mind when my wife and I recently dined at the Longview Steakhouse, southwest of Calgary. A nondescript building on a hill overlooking the Canadian Rockies foothills, the restaurant is already fully booked for 2025. And its popularity comes without social media, a fancy menu, or upscale setting. As we found out (after waiting almost a year for our reservation to come up), the accolades it receives are well deserved, with perfectly prepared food at reasonable prices, professional yet friendly service, and the charm of being one of the “lucky” ones who secured a reservation (although no favours are done for celebrities or food critics, of which we are neither).
In addition to the Longview Steakhouse, here are my most memorable dining experiences over the last few years when on writing assignments across Canada:
Outdoor dining at the Smoke Shack, Twin Butte
Smoke Shack, Twin Butte, Southern Alberta: Behind Twin Butte General Store, Smilin’ Phil tends his smoker and serves up perfectly smoked dishes at picnic tables spread through an open forest of aspen trees. Options are as simple as smoked brisket on a bun with a side of Mexican-inspired coleslaw, or go for the Meat Sweats Burger, which includes a bit of everything. As a bonus, there’s often live music on the outdoor stage.
94 Take the Cake, Okotoks, Alberta: This place is all about getting attention on your social media feed. While the mesmerizing black and white design takes most of the glory, the cinnamon buns are as good as I’ve tasted anywhere in Canada.
Wolf in the Fog, Tofino, Vancouver Island: Lots of locally sourced ingredients (think mushrooms from the surrounding forest and salmon from local waters), creative cooking and presentation. and a funky-casual setting make Wolf in the Fog my favourite Vancouver Island restaurant.
Modest Butcher, Mount Boucherie Winery, Okanagan Valley: Good winery restaurants generally follow a similar formula – light, healthy food, outdoor seating with vineyard views, and of course a good selection of wines. As a newer place, Modest Butcher hit all these parameters on a recent writing assignment out in the Okanagan Valley.
Osteria Elio Volpe, Vancouver, British Columbia: Recommended by a fellow travel writer, this is a newer dining room south of downtown Vancouver that I visited last year. Not much has changed on the outside since the building’s days as a mechanics’ shop, but the inside wowed me with its bright and appealing minimalistic design. The perfect place to enjoy well-priced (for Vancouver) traditional Italian food.
Mud Slide Cafe, Maitland, Nova Scotia. Going through notes from readers, I had marked up this place for consideration in the next edition of Moon Atlantic Canada guidebook. And as decent places to eat between Halifax and the Fundy Coast are few and far between, was hoping it lived up to expectations. And it did! Housed along Maitland’s Main Street in Canada’s oldest general store (1839), I was served up perfectly battered fish and chips with a smile.
The Chowder House, Neil’s Harbour, Nova Scotia: This popular summer-only restaurant has been around for decades, and I don’t think I’ve ever missed stopping by for a bowl of clam chowder when driving around the Cabot Trail.
Norseman Restaurant, L’Anse aux Meadows, Newfoundland and Labrador: If you’re driving up the Northern Peninsula, dining options are limited, but this is one place seafood lovers won’t want to miss. The lobster is so fresh that you will be invited across the road to the lobster pound to pick and choose which one you’d like to see on your plate.
Moon Over Naikoon, Haida Gwaii: Now closed, but I love the memory of coming across this converted school bus along a gravel road on Haida Gwaii (Queen Charlotte Islands). Sitting in a clearing surrounded by temperate rainforest setting was outside on picnic tables, where the busy owners cooked up muffins and pizza for the locals-and anyone else who stumbled upon them.
Here in my home town of Banff, I’m often asked what are my favourite places to eat and drink and I always have the same answer: It depends – on the budget, personal tastes, the occasion, and the season. My general recommendations are: Goodearth for coffee and muffins on a sunny patio, Zyka for an inexpensive lunch, Bluebird for brunch or a dinner splurge, and Storm Mountain Lodge for a romantic dinner.