Winnipeg

Winnipeg’s culinary scene is a lot more than just perogies and honey dill – although, we are particularly proud of our potatoes, dough, butter and signature chicken finger-accompanying condiment. 

More than 100 languages are spoken in Winnipeg, and this worldly ensemble has helped create neighbourhoods like The West End which is celebrated for its pho, injera, curries, jerk and tacos. Surrounded by farmland as far as the eye can see, the city’s top bakers (many of whom moved here from France) continue to embrace (and mill onsite) all manner of wheat, making for some of the best sourdoughs and pastries in Canada. You’ll also find plenty of local grains being used at our distilleries when it comes to vodka, gin and whiskies. 

Having Canada’s largest urban Indigenous population, Winnipeg now has a burgeoning Cree, Ojibway and Métis culinary scene, while Saint-Boniface is home to western Canada’s largest francophone community and plenty of café culture. Many of our wine bars have been nationally noted by lists like Canada’s 100 Best, including deer + almond whose co-owner – celebrity chef Mandel Hitzer – annually brings in some of the continent’s best chefs to create multi-course meals on the frozen Assiniboine River as part of RAW:almond.    

There’s more than 20 taprooms in the city, covering everything from IPAs, to Kölsch and sours, and even locally fermented wines and ciders from backyard “orphaned fruits” at hip joints like Low Life Barrel House. Being home to one of the world’s largest Filipino populations, Winnipeg always brings the pancit, lechon and lumpia, plus our fleet of 50+ food trucks brings a world of flavours on wheels. Each season also brings its fair share of food festivals – from the maple taffy and tourtière of Festival du Voyageur in winter, to Folklorama in summer where culinary delights are paired with music and dance during the world’s largest and longest-running multicultural festival. So, if you want to see it plated, we’re serving it up here at the centre of the continent. Here’s a guide to some of Winnipeg’s best to get you started, while you can find countless culinary stories and guides at PegCityGrub.com.