princessjudy14

My husband and I will be spending a few days in Niagara next week, and the majority of the time will be spent touring the Niagara wineries to check out the newest wineries to open in the region. Over the years, we have eaten at many (but not all) of the popular winery restaurants in the region.

This trip, we want to eat at least two Niagara winery restaurants, and will make reservations in advance. Our all-time favourite is Vineland Estates restaurant and we hope, weather permitting, to eat outdoors on their deck.

I would appreciate suggestions for a second winery restaurant in the area. I am looking for great food, service and ambiance.

keldar

Hi Judy:
Vinelands is lovely but if you are looking for others to try here are some suggestions.

We live in the area and some of our favourites include Peller's which has a lovely restaurant and winery with good food and service. The prices are not cheap but for the most part everything about the food and service made us not mind paying the prices.
Hillebrands is also another favourite in the NOTL area.
We also love Eastdell Estates Winery for their Sunday brunch. This winery is on the Bench, i.e. on the Escarpment. If you are coming in via the QEW get off at Barlett Road and left onto King St in Beamsville. Follow King to Mountainview Rd turn right and go up the escarpment. You will pass a few wineries, all interesting and fun. (e.g Thirty Bench, Angels Gate then Eastdell). The view of Lake Ontario from the escarpment is lovely on a clear day.
If you go back down to King St and follow it all the way to St Catharines you will pass lots! of wineries both on King and along side roads up the escarpment. We love the architecture of the different wineries such as Flat Rock and Angels Gate.
It's all such fun experimenting and tasting different wines and talking with the staff at each place.
Enjoy

princessjudy14

Thank you keldar for your reply. A couple of years ago, we ate at Peller and Hillebrand and were very impressed by both. We are going midweek because we got a good deal on the hotel rates (and the hotels are not as busy), so Sunday brunch is not an option for us this time. We have never eaten at Pensinsula Ridge, and I am tending towards going back to Peller as our second selection because we had such a wonderful time there. On the Twenty is not something we would consider, as there is no vineyard view from the restaurant. It's good to know that Peller and Hillebrand are as good as I remember.

We enjoyed our visit to Flat Rock last year. I think our two current favourite Niagara wineries are Angels Gate and Fielding Estate.

We are also hoping to check out some of the newer wineries like Ridgepoint, Stratus and Coyote's Run.

We come from Durham region, and always get off the highway at Stoney Creek so we can enjoy the drive along the wine route from the beginning.

TobieT

Although you mentioned winery restaurants specifically, it seems as if a view or patio is of as much importance as the dining experience.

We too love Vineland Estates Winery restaurant and I can also recommend the dining room at the Riverbend Inn, which overlooks vineyards and is located next to Peller. It is an intimate dining room, and the service and meals we've had there on previous visits were wonderful.

http://www.riverbendinn.ca/

hsbhandbags

I'd throw in another vote for Peller. It really can't be missed. It's just beautiful. Also Iniskillin doesn't have a restaurant, but the wine (and winery tour) is wonderful!

Here are some recommednations from the Toronto Star: The latest gourmet mecca is Treadwell in Port Dalhousie. Opened in May by chef Stephen Treadwell, who honed his skills at Auberge du Pommier and Queen's Landing Inn, the restaurant specializes in farm-to-table cuisine, using the freshest local, seasonal ingredients. His son James, a certified sommelier, handles the wine list, with a focus on <Ontario>'s best.

Impressive as well is Zest in the hamlet of Fonthill. Chef Michael Pasto recently awed me with his culinary skills.

We had requested in advance a special foie gras dish to accompany a 1986 Moulin Touchais white I was bringing from my cellar. He rose to the occasion with a superb foie plate that flawlessly matched this sweet, two-decade-old white, then went on to seamlessly sculpt dishes to accompany the complex <Ontario> reserve pinot noir we brought as well that night.

If you want to pull out all the stops, Restaurant Tony de Luca at the recently renovated Oban Inn in Niagara-on-the-Lake offers a superb chef's table.

Chef de Luca, a pioneer in sourcing fresh regional ingredients, has a stellar regular menu. But if you book the chef's table, he can step outside the confines of usual dishes and unleash his awesome culinary creativity on a series of innovative courses.

princessjudy14

Thanks again. We just returned from four very hot days in the Niagara Wine Route. We made note of the location of Riverbend Inn and will try it for next time. Thanks also hsbhandbags for your suggestions, they were also noted for next time. Agreed, Peller has an outstanding restaurant.

We ended up eating lunch at EastDell, Vineland Estates and Niagara College's Culinary Institute Dining Room. Vineland was serving inside only due to the extreme heat. Niagara College's restaurant and winery are run by students, and we were very impressed. All three restaurants we tried were wonderful, but Vineland was to die for.

Unfortunately we did not do as much wine touring as we had planned due to the extreme heat. Of the wines we tried and purchased, we were most impressed with Vineland Estates's Pinot Gris, Palatine Hills' Riesling Traminer (which is Riesling blended with icewine), and Niagara College Teaching Winery's Warren Classic 2004 barrel aged Chardonnay.

That's two years in a row for us doing Niagara wine touring in the extreme heat. I think next year we will go in the early spring or late fall....