What to eat in Winnipeg

Voyage through Winnipegger and Manitoban specialties

Winnipeg has the most storied history of all the cities in the Canadian Prairies. Indigenous groups converged at The Forks, the confluence of two rivers. Winnipeg still has the largest number of indigenous residents among Canadian cities. Then, came the voyageurs: French-Canadians that used canoes to transport fur goods. Those who stayed spawned the Métis: people of mixed indigenous and French-Canadian heritage. Their food legacy survives as a derivative of Quebec’s.

The British moved in, followed in the early 20th-century by Greek, Polish, Ukrainian, and even Icelandic settlers. Mennonites from Germany and Russia also formed a sizable minority. Unsurprisingly, foods from all these groups can be found in Winnipeg today.

Winnipeg
Winnipeg

With a rich history and opportunities for multicultural adaptation, it’s odd that Winnipeg has few unique dishes. The most unique dish, fatboy, was only created in the 1950s. And it’s not a particularly interesting dish either.

For the foodie tourist, the city’s culinary makeup is of modest interest. Skim the list below, skip the cuisines you’ve tried before and focus on Modern Canadian fare. I’ve listed the unique foods first.

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Deer + Almond (Winnipeg)

Modern flavours of Manitoba

In a sea of pierogies and diner food, Deer + Almond is a clear standout in Winnipeg. It’s one of a handful in the province that does Modern Canadian food: innovative creations with regional produce. It’s not held back by culinary traditions but still respects them. There’s a high chance that each dish will be a unique experience for diners.

Exterior of Deer + Almond
Deer + Almond

Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic, Deer + Almond has switched from à la carte to a tasting menu format. It’s a stupendous deal at $72.80 for 6 courses. Diners still have some choice: they can pick the heaviest course. There are also additional dishes that can be tacked on (priced separately).

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The fatboys of Winnipeg

Where to get the best chili-topped burgers in Winnipeg

Winnipeg has a couple of minor, obscure food specialties. But the number one has got to be fatboys. It’s the only specialty that is thriving in Winnipeg, so it can be rightfully considered to be Winnipeg’s representative dish.

Winnipeg skyline
Winnipeg skyline

What is a fatboy?

A fatboy (sometimes spelled as fat boy) is simply a hamburger with chili. Not Texas-style chili because that will just become a sloppy mess. Coney Island-style chili is used because it’s more viscous. And because the creator used to work in a Coney Island-style restaurant. Fun fact: both Coney chili and fatboys were invented by Greek immigrants.

It’s dubious to treat a regular hamburger with a particular topping as a local specialty, but it’s woven into the food fabric of Winnipeg and found nowhere else.

The name isn’t standard either. Perhaps to avoid litigation, some restaurants call it by other names. But it’s still a burger with thin, well-done beef patties, lettuce, tomatoes, white onions, pickles, mayo, and of course, chili. The “fat” part comes from the copious amount of mayo and large size. Well, at least larger than regular hamburgers from fast food chains.

The most important component for me in a fatboy is obviously the chili. Otherwise, I would just order a regular burger.

The fatboy restaurants in Winnipeg are old-school. They look like they haven’t changed since the 1960s and 1970s. Most are cash-only. Some close during the brutal winter season, so check ahead if you are visiting between December and March.

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Casual lunches in Saskatoon

Where to get a piece of Saskatoon for lunch

For the past few years, travel and food guides have proclaimed Saskatoon as an up and coming culinary destination. Well, the truth is that the city still lacks a distinct culinary identity (I guess the same can be said about all Canadian cities outside Quebec). There are less than 20 noteworthy restaurants. There are no signature dishes that the city can lay claim on.

For sure, Saskatoon is a culinary oasis in the vast prairie. It’s not destination-worthy yet, but it’s certainly a pleasant surprise on a cross- Canadian trip.

Saskatoon
Saskatoon

Stopping for lunch? Then the pickings are even slimmer because most of the distinctive restaurants only have dinner service, like Ayden Kitchen, Hearth, Odla, Primal, and The Granary.

As a food tourist, I’ve tried to find lunch places for a uniquely Saskatoonian flavour. So, no Italian, Korean, and Jamaican restaurants. No generic pub food. There’s a strong Ukrainian presence in the prairies but I’m not including those restaurants either because the cuisine isn’t limited to Saskatoon. Here’s what I came up with.

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The stacked pizzas of Regina

A minor twist in pizza assembly

Pop quiz: how many Saskatchewan food specialties can you name? There are only two.

Saskatoon berry pie and Regina-style pizza. Other foods like perogies and cabbage rolls can be found outside Saskatchewan. Foods like spudnuts (potato doughnuts) and Doukhobor bread are only available during summer fairs. Sure, these invoke loving memories for Saskatchewan residents but the casual tourist might be interested in something more unique.

The answer is found in Regina.

Regina
Regina

Pizza as deli sandwich

Regina-style pizza has a small but dedicated following. It’s a minor variation of pizza that is unknown in other parts of Saskatchewan, let alone Canada. Heck, even some Regina residents don’t know that their pizza is a style on its own.

The defining characteristic of Regina-style pizza is its stack of toppings. It’s like a deli sandwich or lasagna. Different ingredients are spread on the dough in tiers and finished off with cheese as the top layer. When one cuts into the pizza, one should clearly see all the layers. Other than the distribution of toppings, it’s pretty much a normal North American pizza. Thick, doughy crust, smothered with mozzarella and non-gourmet ingredients.

Typical toppings are cheap and the same as national restaurant chains: ham, salami, pepperoni, bacon, green peppers, onions, mushroom, olives, pineapple, and more. The signature combination is “all dressed”, which includes all the deli meats and some token vegetables.

A good Regina-style pizza shouldn’t be overstuffed. A tendency is for the bread to become soggy and weighed down by all the ingredients. Connoisseurs talk about meat quality, but frankly there isn’t a big difference in cured meats at that price point. Don’t expect charcuterie. It’s mass-market processed meat.

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The ginger beef of Calgary

Where Canadian ginger beef was born

In this series of iconic Canadian foods, we travel to Calgary, the birthplace of ginger beef, Caesar cocktail, and mostly meh Canadian chains like Hy’s, Joey, Moxies, and OPA! of Greece.

Calgary
Calgary

Elements of Canadian comfort food

Southern USA has fried chicken and hush puppies. Canada has ginger beef and poutine. They are unhealthy, easy to make but difficult to master. There is no set recipe for ginger beef but it’s generally deep-fried beef strips with a ginger sauce. The most apt description I can think of is “beef candy”.

When done well, the exterior is crispy and the meat has a jerky-like quality. The beef is on the lean side, on the verge of dry. But the meat should flake easily. It’s a tricky texture to accomplish. Ginger pieces are incorporated into the batter or during frying. Sweetness, lots of it, comes from the gooey sauce.

Ginger beef is a Western Canadian thing. It rarely appears in Toronto or anywhere east of Winnipeg for that matter. Not sure why because the cooking style is similar to General Tso’s chicken, sweet and sour pork, and other Westernized Chinese dishes.

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