1031 Best Restaurants in Canada

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."

A relatively new addition (opened in late 2019) to the plant-based sushi zeitgeist, Bloom on rue St-Paul aims to prove that it's possible to enjoy sushi without harming our oceans and the fish that live in them. With its white-painted brick and stone walls, blond wood surfaces, and low-hanging cloth lamps, this gorgeous resto is like a cross between a spa and a traditional Japanese restaurant. Choose between a wide array of artfully plated makis, futomakis, nigiris, gyozas, salads, and soups, each dish a captivating fusion of flavors. Complement your meal with a kombucha or a bottle of organic Pinot Noir or Tsukinokatsura Junmai Iwai sake. 

Is it possible to eat sushi without harming our oceans and the fish that live in them? The owners of Bloom think so. At this pretty plant-based eatery in the Quartier des Spectacles, you can choose between artfully plated maki, futomaki, gyoza, crispy rice treats, and specialty rolls, each dish a captivating fusion of flavors. Complement your meal with a kombucha or a kaeru margarita flavored with matcha, pineapple juice, lime juice, and agave syrup.

Located on the pier next to Fisherman's Wharf in Steveston Village, this popular eatery's "canoe-sized" fresh local seafood platters, featuring snow crab legs, smoked salmon, and Salt Spring Island mussels, are designed for sharing. In summer, grab a seat on the deck overlooking the busy boardwalk, and watch the marina and river traffic sail by.

Fresh-daily seafood and expansive harbor views make this airy James Bay hotel restaurant a popular lunch and dinner spot. Signature dishes include a crab cake starter, cedar plank salmon, and the variety contained in the steamer pot, but check the tempting daily specials on the blackboard as well. Desserts made in-house and a wine list highlighting British Columbia and Pacific Northwest labels round out the menu. Reservations for dinner are highly recommended. The lounge area and patio, serving until 11 pm nightly, has equally impressive views and a more casual menu.

This is where the culinary students of the adjoining Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts strut their stuff.  Standards are high and the artisanal breads, soups, wraps, and gourmet desserts are outstanding.

Executive Chef Frank Pabst focuses his menu on both popular and lesser-known local seafood at his fashionable fish restaurant. You can dine in the warmly lit interior or outside on the former loading dock that's now a terrace. You might start with scallops with a parmesan crust; Dungeness crab salad with shrimp, mango, and pumpkin seed; or a seafood tower (ideal for sharing). Main dishes are seafood-centric, too—perhaps sablefish with a miso sake glaze, or Arctic char with braised leeks and fennel. Ask the staff to recommend wine pairings from the BC-focused list. The sushi chef turns out both classic and new creations. They're pricey but among the city's best.

With an ever-changing menu that is influenced by the owner's travels, one year might be Asian-themed, another Spanish, but always with a menu of small and large plates in a casual setting with seating both inside and out. Food is paired with a small, curated wine list and great cocktails. Recent showstoppers included hot cheesy Parmesan-topped oysters served on black lentils, beef cheek Stroganoff with porcini mushroomss in a brandy sauce, and an addictive syrupy fried banana dessert over coconut milk and toothsome tapioca pudding, paired with Viet coffee ice cream.

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

There's a harbor view from every table in this converted boatbuilder's workshop—which explains not only its waterfront location but its oversized windows and soaring ceiling—and the seafood doesn't come any fresher. The traditional fish-and-chips is outstanding here, with succulent fish encased in a flavorsome and crispy beer-batter. Time your visit right and you may be able to see fishermen unloading the catch of the day and graceful blue herons angling for their own dinner. Patio seating is available on fine days.

Consistent with the aesthetics of Taboo Resort, the Boathouse offers luxurious and contemporary international cuisine in a subdued dining room with sleek furnishings, hardwood floors, and a wall of lakefront windows. The kitchen has oriented the menu to appeal to a health-conscious crowd.

Known for making Pinterest-perfect cakes for some of the city's splashiest fetes, this charming bakery also offers bite-sized baked goods for a spot of on-the-go luxury.

This Vancouver institution is about 1 kilometer (½ mile) east of the main Commercial strip but is well worth the trek. Their famous breakfast—served with two eggs, toast, hash browns and meat—is just C$3. (And the price hasn't changed in years.) This place really showcases the East Side's gritty character: from the graffiti-covered walls to the no-frills, serve-yourself coffee bar. Weekend lines are long; get there as early as you can.

This casual fine-dining restaurant serves a variety of dishes, all with fresh ingredients (some grown right on the front patio) along with a small but balanced selection of wine and craft beers. Salads are excellent, and they serve some of the best pies and baked goods in the area. Boreal not only sources from local farms but from local individuals to support backyard farming.

Nobody questions the authenticity of the Neapolitan-style pizza here, seeing as there's a nearly four-ton wood-burning pizza oven made from Vesuvian rock in the kitchen which cooks pizza in 90 seconds flat at 500°C (932°F). There are just a few toppings available, but all are fabulously flavorsome, like fresh tomatoes, vegetables, and top-quality salumi.

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, or 6 Thursday and Friday.

Lots of windows and crisp white-linen tablecloths make this restaurant as bright as a French café, and the menu offers an array of classics. Signature dishes include a mouthwatering bouillabaisse containing everything from fresh rockfish and cod, to scallops, shrimp, and mussels; and a hearty cassoulet that includes duck confit, smoked pork belly, and Toulouse sausage over a navy bean ragout.

Two months after being destroyed by a fire in 2024, Boullion Bilk was resurrected at a new location, now even closer to Place des Arts. The new décor recalls the sleek, minimalist design of the former location, a style which continues to reflect the restaurant's philosophy: fresh, thoughtful, and simplified (yet not simple). The market-based menu changes often and includes dishes that are just as beautiful to look at as they are delicious. House specialties feature local and seasonal products such as juniper, fiddleheads, asparagus, pears, and maple syrup; game like deer and duck; seafood such as oysters, yellowtail, and scallops; and an assortment of Québec cheeses. The wine selection includes private-import wines.

Just outside Mahone Bay this bakery serves delicious, French-style cakes and pastries, as well as incredible breads. There is some seating, and pantry items from local vendors to take home. 

This beautiful French bakery serves beautiful cakes, pastries, and breads made fresh every day. Their sandwiches are excellent, as is their coffee.

Settle into a deep cream-toned banquette or nab a sidewalk table for a seafood-centric meal at this stylish spot in the Sutton Place Hotel. Start with fresh local oysters or indulge in Canadian caviar from the nearby Sunshine Coast. Mains swim through the sea, too—perhaps lobster and local rock fish bouillabaisse; linguine with clams and tiger prawns; or roasted sablefish—but heartier appetites can dig into a steak or a heritage pork shoulder. Sharing dishes are also imaginative and include (market-price) caviar and seafood towers. For a special treat, reserve ahead to have select items cooked tableside. The wine list is strong on British Columbia labels.

The original location of the artisan coffee shop/wine-and-spirit bar mini-chain that now has eclectic locations throughout the city, this Summerhill spot is a relaxed but lively spot from morning to evening. Located in a two-story Victorian home (and former dry cleaner), Boxcar Social has a bustling bar, a quiet and sophisticated upstairs lounge, a nice back patio, and a next-door bottle shop for those who prefer takeout.

The menu isn't huge at this funky taproom, but the charcuterie boards, sandwiches, and pizza—all of which showcase local produce—do go perfectly with this craft brewery's tasty beers. You can sit out on the spacious patio or inside, and there's even an axe-throwing studio on-site to make your evening a little more entertaining. You can pick up beers to go at the attached retail store.

Inspired by Paris’s golden-age brasseries, Brasserie 701's spectacular setting features high ceilings, neoclassical architecture, giant arched windows, and lovely chandeliers. The menu incudes the usual suspects expected at a brasserie, from tartares to filet mignon, ratatouille, escargot, and foie gras.

If you’re in the mood for a taste of Europe, take a trip to this pub-style bistro for French-inspired cuisine. Situated in a remodeled building from the 1920s, this restaurant serves modern riffs on classic French dishes like Baked Brie, a great French onion soup, and Lobster Provencal. There's also a lengthy list of European wines and beer to pair with your meal.

With its cavernous corner spot on Outremont's trendy avenue Bernard, sophisticated yet playful décor, and artfully prepared comfort food, this brasserie is always a good bet for quality food and excellent people-watching. The menu at Les Enfants Terribles is a mix of high-end cuisine and comfort-food favorites, from oysters and salmon tartare to duck poutine, fish-and-chips, and mac and cheese. The kitchen stays open to serve after-theater customers on show nights at nearby Théâtre Outremont. 

You can't always please everyone but Brch & Wyn does a solid job of catering to both the strong-coffee-and-brunch crowd and the theatergoers looking to prolong an intimate evening. The mood of the converted industrial space is airy with exposed brick and beam, contrasted by tropical garden wall coverings and plush couches and bar tables.