Winnipeg Restaurants

[bomberjet]

^ Yup, Manitoba is a coastal province. Once the road makes it to the coast at Churchill, won't that be something. Go on a 16 hour drive in the same province! I've driven up to the end of the road at Conawapa. Really not far from the coast. Only another 100km or so.

[CoryB]

Originally Posted by h0twired

I hate to be pedantic but Manitoba isn't landlocked.

I never said Manitoba was landlocked but that Winnipeg is landlocked. It is a pretty long drive from the north Perimeter to Churchill.

[BubberMiley]

Has there been an update on Brown's Social Club at Centrepoint? Is it still a go?

[CoryB]

Does Brown's @ CentrePoint even have a local operator lined up or is it another Milestones deal pending finding a suitable local operator?

[Intrepid-Poster]

Originally Posted by CoryB

It is the third name on that location and the previous two were highly regarded locally. The name and concept is a fairly recently change so haven't heard much locally yet. That said, seafood in a landlocked area like Winnipeg can be a different experience than if you are used to a costal area. I would still expect good things relative to other experiences in Winnipeg.

Originally it was the Lobby and then was taken over by WOW Hospitality and became 295 York. I thought it was good when it was the Lobby and then the quality declined at 295 York. It was reopened last week by WOW as the Urban Downtown Kitchen and Oyster Bar. There are a few cosmetic changes to the inside of the restaurant, but the staff remain the same. It is somewhat pricey. I didn't try the seafood or anything from the Raw bar. They really hype a burger called the Juiceman, but it is $22. I just can't justify paying $22 for a hamburger in this city. I tried the pulled chicken that is prepared with a hot sauce made with southern comfort. It is served on a cornbread base. It was pretty average. They have made a number of changes to the menu, so I might give it another try and get something else.

[Stormer]

Originally Posted by The Unknown Poster

Looks like the Canadian Brewhouse is just about ready to open at the old Los Chicos location near Mongos on Kenaston.

Anyone familiar with this chain? Their menu looks good.

I was at Staples on Pembina HWY and saw the Pizza Hut signs up at their new location next door (in the same strip mall). I assume they are open or opening shortly...

We have a CB in Regina and I hear there are more locations planned. Great place all around. They have like 55 TV's and 80 beers on tap. Great bar food, awesome servers. The atmosphere is good even on weeknights. They have great daily specials on beer and food. $5 pizza, $5 wings, $1.49 tacos, $7.49 tankards including craft and imports.

[buzzg]

Originally Posted by The Unknown Poster

Looks like the Canadian Brewhouse is just about ready to open at the old Los Chicos location near Mongos on Kenaston.

Anyone familiar with this chain? Their menu looks good.

I was at Staples on Pembina HWY and saw the Pizza Hut signs up at their new location next door (in the same strip mall). I assume they are open or opening shortly...

It's essentially The Pint but they don't focus on partying as much. Meh.

Originally Posted by Cyro

Any one familiar with Urban Kitchen & Oyster Bar on York? emphasis on the Oysters.

Wanna drop by when I hit the RBCC later this week...

I've heard great things about the oyster bar, and you can only get what they make behind there if you sit at the bar. Plating looks amazing, and they have TVs that show what the chef is doing like on the food network hahahha.

Originally Posted by BubberMiley

Has there been an update on Brown's Social Club at Centrepoint? Is it still a go?

Construction is still going on I'm in there everyday. Laying in plumbing, electrical, etc. They're aiming for May. Apparently the reason it took so long is the franchisor is the same one as the Ridgecrest location, and they were banking on using the profits from that one to pay for this one, but that one isn't doing nearly the numbers they expected, so it took them quite a while to secure financing.

Browns usually only goes into new/underdeveloped areas where they have little to no competition (hence Kildonan Green and Ridgecrest), this is a massive undertaking for them, over double their normal footprint.

[Cyro]

Originally Posted by The Unknown Poster

I've heard great things about the oyster bar, and you can only get what they make behind there if you sit at the bar. Plating looks amazing, and they have TVs that show what the chef is doing like on the food network hahahha.

Sounds interesting, haven't tried something like this since I went to Ichiban across from the RBCC, a live dining experience..I like it..hehe

[cllew]

Originally Posted by CoryB

Does Brown's @ CentrePoint even have a local operator lined up or is it another Milestones deal pending finding a suitable local operator?

It's suppose to be the same operator as the other two in Winnipeg. He has the rights to around 6 or 8 stores to be developed in Winnipeg from what I recall reading when the Transcona one opened.

[BuildUpWpg]

Originally Posted by buzzg

Browns usually only goes into new/underdeveloped areas where they have little to no competition (hence Kildonan Green and Ridgecrest), this is a massive undertaking for them, over double their normal footprint.

They have 20 locations in the metro Vancouver area, so they are no stranger to oversaturation.

[BuildUpWpg]

From the article below, does anyone agree with Scott Jocelyn that there is already "so much stuff going on around MTS Centre"? Can you consider the multitude of For Lease signs, surface parking lots, and Dollar stores in the area as "a lot going on"? I've been to downtown arenas in other cities and the areas around them are absolutely packed with restaurants and pubs. I think we could use a few more of those in the area. The Pint, The Merchant, Moxies, and Tavern are okay but I'm thinking maybe another King's Head type of pub would work. I don't think Red Sea Bar and Planit aren't going to attract the arena going crowd. Suburbanites seem to love chains and pubs.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/bus...310006121.html

[esquire]

^ There are places, but they just aren't laid out in a convenient strip that makes it seem like the area is swarming with food and nightlife options. For better or for worse there just aren't any contiguous strips of CRUs downtown apart from the enclosed malls and a couple of blocks directly south of Portage Place... the net result is everything is scattered around with little critical mass.

If you took Boston Pizza, Tavern U., The Pint, Shark Club, E & C, Brown's, Moxie's, The Met and some of the other joints close to the MTS Centre and put them on a two block strip it would look impressive, but when you spread them out you barely know they're all there.

[BuildUpWpg]

Originally Posted by esquire

^ There are places, but they just aren't laid out in a convenient strip that makes it seem like the area is swarming with food and nightlife options. For better or for worse there just aren't any contiguous strips of CRUs downtown apart from the enclosed malls and a couple of blocks directly south of Portage Place... the net result is everything is scattered around with little critical mass.

If you took Boston Pizza, Tavern U., The Pint, Shark Club, E & C, Brown's, Moxie's, The Met and some of the other joints close to the MTS Centre and put them on a two block strip it would look impressive, but when you spread them out you barely know they're all there.

Agreed. Especially when they are housed inside a mall or a hotel.

[Kris22]

^^^I also agree. Every restaurant esquire mentioned, plus many more I can think of, are on entirely different blocks from one another, or have entrances at the opposite side of the block. If they were on a strip it would be a much different vibe. Unfortunately modern developments don't often have the "strip" mentality in mind, whereas areas with many heritage buildings like Osborne Village or the Exchange were designed under a different vision.

It's actually beneficial to the businesses to be clustered together. It gives more exposure and the overflow from one can go on to the next. Not to mention patio hopping in the summer. I've never been drawn to places like the Lobby on York because of the location; it's a drab corner with nothing else around.

[esquire]

Originally Posted by Kris22

It's actually beneficial to the businesses to be clustered together. It gives more exposure and the overflow from one can go on to the next. Not to mention patio hopping in the summer. I've never been drawn to places like the Lobby on York because of the location; it's a drab corner with nothing else around.

In some respects everything in downtown Winnipeg is isolated in that way. The interconnectedness between different things is terrible... there really aren't any strips of anything downtown besides offices.

There are lots of individual units downtown, but there are few complete blocks that include any kind of dense, fine grained uses. The only places where you really see that are perhaps along a couple of small examples at Graham near Vaughn, and in the West Exchange. Otherwise, it's just standalone apartment next to surface parking next to standalone office next to a parkade next to a standalone store. That's why downtown feels like less than the sum of its parts... it is a failure on Winnipeg's part.

[Kris22]

Ya I really can't see a bustling strip emerging anywhere downtown. I expect Broadway, graham, and portage to see small improvements over the years but realistically the exchange district is our best bet.

[buzzg]

Originally Posted by Kris22

Ya I really can't see a bustling strip emerging anywhere downtown. I expect Broadway, graham, and portage to see small improvements over the years but realistically the exchange district is our best bet.

I actually think Garry is has a lot of potential. Definitely the most of all the N/S streets. Apparently the company that owns The Pint is starting to look at options for their next concept now, and still want to do it on Garry like they had mentioned last year.

[CoryB]

Originally Posted by BuildUpWpg

I think we could use a few more of those in the area. The Pint, The Merchant, Moxies, and Tavern are okay but I'm thinking maybe another King's Head type of pub would work. I don't think Red Sea Bar and Planit aren't going to attract the arena going crowd. Suburbanites seem to love chains and pubs.

I think the SHED area could be at a saturation point for the "beer and burgers" type of place of every street corner. Some diversity would be nice. For example in Glendale there is a southern bbq style place near the arena. I think something like that could work here as it plays to a similar audience without completely retreading the entire menu. Another idea I think could work near the arena is copy the Chipman run Ye's Buffet near Polo. It would likely also do well with the office crowd in the day. It would be amazing if East India Company and a quality sushi place setup in TNS.

[esquire]

^ Perhaps not the greatest variety but there are some different types of options... as you said, East India Co. and Dhoom for Indian food, Ming Court is excellent for Chinese, Carbone puts a different spin on pizza, E&C and Tavern for pub grub, Moxie's for "typical" casual dining. There are also some good lesser-known options nearby like The Met, the restaurant in the Radisson (Bistro 12?), Rib Room at the Charterhouse, Ichiban...

If you're a season ticket holder who eats out before every game, you could easily build a rotation of 10-12 restaurants close to the rink so you won't get bored eating perogy pizzas at BP all the time.

[Authentic_City]

Also near the MTS Centre is Ghion (Kennedy, between Portage and Graham). It's billed as Ethiopian, Greek and Burgers. What a great a place. The owner is super eager to please and extremely nice. I didn't see any Ethiopian items on the menu, but I hear it's available if you call ahead. Portions are generous and the place is fully licensed. It still looks like an old Sals from the early postwar era.