Food & Drink

Food & Drink

(Mikaela MacKenzie / Free Press) Franchisees Kristina Bighill (left) and Paulina Coombs run Crumbl’s first Winnipeg location.

The sweet spot

Gabrielle Piché 4 minute read Friday, Oct. 23, 2026

The early birds got their cookies.

Klaudia and Jayson Ballantyne were the first in line for the grand opening of Winnipeg’s first Crumbl location at 1570 Regent Ave. West, arriving at 2 a.m. Friday — six hours before the cookie chain was set to open.

The brother and sister brought their lawn chairs and blankets and hunkered down.

Roughly 90 minutes later, by their count, the next customers arrived.

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Renovation & Design

AAFC photo Samir Debnath with one of the lingonberry varieties he studies in the Research and Development Centre greenhouse in St. John’s, N.L.

Getting a boost from berries: Canadian scientists on the cutting edge of food crop research

Colleen Zacharias 7 minute read Preview

Getting a boost from berries: Canadian scientists on the cutting edge of food crop research

Colleen Zacharias 7 minute read Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026

As we gather around the table this Thanksgiving, many of us will enjoy and share the local seasonal harvest. Whether the food we serve comes from our backyard garden, a farmer’s market or the grocery store, often a direct line can be traced to the work of research scientists at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC).

AAFC scientists and researchers play a vital role in developing nutritious food crops, testing methods to protect soil health and finding ways to boost crop resilience in extreme weather. Canadian research and innovation in fruits and vegetables is at the forefront of strengthening food security and self-reliance. In addition to enhancing biodiversity, AAFC scientists and researchers are also contributing significantly to the development of nutrient-dense foods.

Let’s start with the research by Samir Debnath, who has been working with northern berry crops, including blueberry, lingonberry, cranberry, huckleberry, raspberry and strawberry. In the interest of space, I will focus on lingonberry.

Wild lingonberry grows in abundance in northern Manitoba. It is also native to British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Atlantic Canada.

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Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026

Food & Drink

MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS Malvin Soh is excited to introduce Winnipeggers to the spicy, complex flavours of Singapore.

Taste of home

AV Kitching 6 minute read Preview

Taste of home

AV Kitching 6 minute read Friday, Oct. 9, 2026

Anyone who lives far away from the place they consider home will tell you that while you can adapt to life in a new country, a new work culture and a completely unfamiliar climate, there’s one thing that will remain stubbornly non-negotiable: the appetite.

For Malvin Soh, 49, like so many whose lives straddle two worlds, food is a gateway to childhood memories, culture and heritage.

Originally from Singapore, Soh and his family moved to Canada in 2014 and settled in Winnipeg.

The urban designer began cooking familiar favourites to combat his own cravings when studying and working in Australia, where he lived for nearly 10 years.

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Friday, Oct. 9, 2026

Opinion

Spier Signature Collection Albariño

Four-star wine options from around the world

Ben Sigurdson 5 minute read Preview

Four-star wine options from around the world

Ben Sigurdson 5 minute read Friday, Oct. 9, 2026

Between the Winnipeg Wine Festival and other recent tastings, I’ve been lucky enough to try some pretty darn good new/new-to-me wines over the past couple of months.

Here are six four-star wines that made an impression when tasted. And while I offered a half-dozen Thanksgiving wine options in last week’s Uncorked, all the following wines except for the big, bold Phantom Creek Petite Cuvée red blend would also be a hit at the big fall feast this weekend.

The Albariño grape is most commonly grown in Spain and Portugal; it’s rare to find one from South Africa, but if the Spier 2024 Signature Collection Albariño (Stellenbosch, South Africa — $18, The Winehouse) is any indication of what can be done with the grape there, producers should think about growing more of it. Medium gold in appearance, the wine brings fleshy red apple, lemon zest, pear and subtle floral and nutty notes. It’s medium-bodied and dry, with a hint of viscosity from time aging on the lees (spent yeast cells); flavour-wise this unoaked white brings bright peach, nectarine, red apple and pear, plus a hint of spice and a medium-length finish (at 13 per cent alcohol). 4/5

New in our market is the Aubert & Mathieu 2024 Hautes Pistes Chardonnay (Pays D’Oc, France — $24.99, Liquor Marts and beyond), a southern French Chardonnay that’s medium straw in appearance and offers fresh pear, apricot, floral, ripe red apple and subtle tropical fruit and spice notes on the nose, with a dab of marmalade aromas in there as well. It’s light-plus-bodied and dry, with a touch of vanilla and spice (from barrel fermentation and then six months in 500-litre barrels) coming alongside pear, apricot, red apple and mango notes, with a modest lemon component coming with modest acidity and a medium-length finish (it’s 13 per cent alcohol). 4/5

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Friday, Oct. 9, 2026

Opinion

Prost! Raise a glass to Oktoberfest

Prost! Raise a glass to Oktoberfest

Ben Sigurdson 4 minute read Preview

Prost! Raise a glass to Oktoberfest

Ben Sigurdson 4 minute read Saturday, Sep. 26, 2026

As September comes to a close, a pair of local breweries are bringing some serious gemütlichkeit.

For the uninitiated, gemütlichkeit’s a word that doesn’t translate neatly from German to English, but which roughly means friendliness and good cheer.

Both Devil May Care Brewing Co. (155 Fort St.) and Kilter Brewing Co. (450 Rue Deschambault) are hosting Oktoberfest parties this weekend featuring food, music, games and, of course, plenty of beer.

Both breweries are rolling out special releases to coincide with their respective Oktoberfests — expect malty festbiers, marzens, rauchbiers and other German-inspired brews, served up in hefty steins alongside Bavarian-inspired fare. Devil May Care’s festivities run through to Sunday and feature eats by Freebird Kitchen, while Kilter keeps the party going through to Saturday, Oct. 3, and is offering pretzels and Oktoberfest-themed hot dogs. Lederhosen is encouraged.

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Saturday, Sep. 26, 2026

Food & Drink

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS Streat Feast vendor Marilyn Magtoto prepares the sinigang for her sinigang birria tacos.

Fusion pop-up coming to street food festival

Tiago Resko 4 minute read Preview

Fusion pop-up coming to street food festival

Tiago Resko 4 minute read Friday, Aug. 14, 2026

After surviving breast cancer and watching her husband live through a brain tumour, Marilyn Magtoto decided it was time to take a chance.

Magtoto left her corporate job as a mortgage specialist in July to start M3 Cravings, a pop-up restaurant that blends the traditional Filipino cuisine she grew up on with Mexican street food.

“To me it was like, how much longer do I want to put on hold this thing I’ve been wanting to do for a while now?” Magtoto says. “People may think I’m crazy for leaving behind a corporate professional career I’ve been doing for 22 years, but you know what — it’s worth it.”

Magtoto will now have the chance to share her food at the Streat Feast Festival at The Forks to Sunday; the event brings together people from a variety of backgrounds to share their culture through food, art and performances.

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Friday, Aug. 14, 2026

Food & Drink

Chef Emily Butcher

Nola chef earns national award

Eva Wasney 2 minute read Preview

Nola chef earns national award

Eva Wasney 2 minute read Friday, Aug. 14, 2026

Celebrated Winnipeg chef Emily Butcher has another feather to add to her toque.

The executive chef and owner of Nola and Bar Accanto in St. Boniface has received the Culinary Award of Excellence from Restaurants Canada, a national foodservice advocacy organization.

The award recognizes culinary professionals with notable creativity, skill and dedication in the kitchen. The winners were nominated by industry peers and selected by a panel of judges.

“I am so proud of the culture and creativity we have built at Nola and Bar Accanto — and it’s an honour to have this passion and hard work acknowledged,” Butcher said via email.

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Friday, Aug. 14, 2026

Food & Drink

RUTH BONNEVILLE / FREE PRESS Glen Simard, Minister of Municipal and Northern Relations (left) and Robert Holmberg, Executive Vice President, Liquor and Cannabis, Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries, at the newest Liquor Mart at Northgate Shopping Centre on Thursday.

New Liquor Mart lets you window shop

Gabrielle Piché 4 minute read Preview

New Liquor Mart lets you window shop

Gabrielle Piché 4 minute read Thursday, Aug. 6, 2026

Larry Baker’s grocery run almost got sidetracked by wine.

He was wheeling his cart Thursday morning, conducting his usual Save-On-Foods trip, when he noticed a line by a glassy store-within-the-store.

Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries has built a windowed, 580-sq.-ft. shop within the Save-On-Foods in the Northgate Shopping Centre on McPhillips Street.

The catch: customers can’t go inside. They can window shop or scan a digital menu for alcohol before buying at a takeout window.

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Thursday, Aug. 6, 2026

Food & Drink

Ruth Bonneville / Free Press From left: Kemashalini Kirusnaruban, Maria de Los Angeles Garofalo and Sherwin Santiano came up with Rooties chocolate bars, which contain more protein and fibre than other bars.

U of M students add malt barley roots to chocolate for nutritious treat

Tiago Resko 4 minute read Preview

U of M students add malt barley roots to chocolate for nutritious treat

Tiago Resko 4 minute read Wednesday, Jul. 15, 2026

The brewing industry isn’t known for being health conscious but, for a team of University of Manitoba students, it was the key to creating a chocolate bar that combines nutrition and indulgence.

Rooties is a proposed product by food sciences students at U of M that upcycles leftover malt barley roots used to brew beer. The malt increases the chocolate bar’s protein and fibre content, making it a more nutritious option for consumers, said Sherwin Santiano, one of four team members who worked on the product.

“It has a chewy sweet layer, and it has malt barley rootlets infused into the chocolate, similar to a Mars Bar,” he said.

Rooties is a finalist in an international food development competition run by Mars Snacking in partnership with the Institute of Food and Technologies Student Association. The annual event, called IFT First, selects groups of students from around the world to develop a product and present it to a panel of judges in Chicago.

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Wednesday, Jul. 15, 2026

Food & Drink

Charleswood eatery ownership change

Free Press staff 2 minute read Friday, Jun. 19, 2026

One of the three founding partners at Bluestone Cottage and Alena Rustic Italian, a double restaurant in Winnipeg’s Charleswood neighbourhood, has taken complete ownership of the business.

Kelly Cattani bought out Michael Dacquisto and Doug Stephen of Wow Hospitality. The transition of ownership took effect June 12. Terms were not disclosed.

The 5,200-square-foot space opened in 2020, with Cattani operating the breakfast and lunch bakery/café Bluestone Cottage and Dacquisto handling dinner duties with Alena Rustic Italian.

In a release, Dacquisto and Stephen expressed their appreciation for employees, guests and suppliers.

Food & Drink

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS From left: Samra Solomon, Tammy Fekadu and Hanan Salim at Baro restaurant, named for the river that rolls through the Ethiopian highlands.

Restaurant bridges divide at the dinner table

Ben Waldman 5 minute read Preview

Restaurant bridges divide at the dinner table

Ben Waldman 5 minute read Wednesday, Jun. 10, 2026

Riverine origins matter at Baro, an eatery just west of the Health Sciences Centre on Notre Dame Avenue, but don’t overlook the connective power of the hyphen on the street-facing sign at chef Tammy Fekadu’s Ethiopian-Eritrean cuisine.

A waterway that rolls for more than 300 kilometres in the Ethiopian highlands, serving as a major cultural and economic thoroughfare for the nearby Gambella region as well as the South Sudanese state to the west, the Baro River is a reminder of communal reliance on precious natural resources, says Fekadu’s eldest daughter, Samra Solomon.

The hyphen is a bridge spanning political divides for Winnipeggers whose homelands have been engaged in decades of ongoing territorial tensions and civil war.

“My mom almost hesitated to call it ‘Baro Ethiopian-Eritrean Cuisine,’ just because some people might not be happy with that politically and maybe even morally,” says the 26-year-old Solomon, who manages the restaurant on top of a full-time job in the insurance business.

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Wednesday, Jun. 10, 2026

The Arts

Charles Sykes/Invision Joshua Henry accepts the award for best performance by an actor in a leading role in a musical for Ragtime during the 79th Tony Awards on Sunday.

Winnipegger earns Tony for leading role in Broadway production of Ragtime

Ben Waldman 4 minute read Preview

Winnipegger earns Tony for leading role in Broadway production of Ragtime

Ben Waldman 4 minute read Tuesday, Jun. 9, 2026

Winnipeg’s Joshua Henry was on top of the musical theatre world Sunday at Radio City Music Hall, winning the Tony Award for best performance by an actor in a leading role for his performance in the Broadway revival of Ragtime.

Henry, whose family moved from Manitoba to Florida when he was a toddler, had previously been nominated for three of the top theatrical honours, given out annually in New York City since 1947.

“It is an honour to play this role — Coalhouse Walker, Jr. — a Black musician whose art led him to his love, and to his dream,” Henry said during his acceptance speech.

“And even in the face of pain and tragedy, he found a way to be heard. Every artist in this room, every artist at home, fight-fight-fight to be heard.”

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Tuesday, Jun. 9, 2026

Food & Drink

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS Bagelsmith owner Phil Klein at his Taylor Avenue location on Wednesday. A bag of bagels is already PST exempt, but a Bagelsmith sandwich — a prepared food — is not.

Restaurant industry advocate says it was denied meeting with premier in lobbying for takeout meals to be included in Manitoba plan

Gabrielle Piché 5 minute read Preview

Restaurant industry advocate says it was denied meeting with premier in lobbying for takeout meals to be included in Manitoba plan

Gabrielle Piché 5 minute read Wednesday, May. 27, 2026

Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew is being put on blast by a national organization aiming to get restaurants included in a proposed PST cut.

Restaurants Canada alleges it has repeatedly contacted the NDP government for a meeting with the premier.

It said it was told on Tuesday that Kinew was unable to meet due to “heavy scheduling demands,” but another minister would take his place. Restaurants Canada declined to share the email in question, citing a need to protect a junior government staffer’s identity.

“I’m shocked that a sector of our size … that (Kinew) is not meeting with us, that we were not consulted early on, that there wasn’t more thought put into this entire policy,” said Kelly Higginson, Restaurants Canada’s president. “This is not a neutral affordability measure.”

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Wednesday, May. 27, 2026

The Arts

JOHN WOODS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS files Nola owner Emily Butcher

Three local restaurants among best

AV Kitching 3 minute read Preview

Three local restaurants among best

AV Kitching 3 minute read Thursday, May. 7, 2026

Three Winnipeg restaurants have made it into the annual Canada’s 100 Best Restaurants list.

Mandel Hitzer’s Deer + Almond and Emily Butcher’s Nola, both which appeared last year, retained their spots but dropped down in placing.

Hitzer’s restaurant at 85 Princess St. held the rear of the top 50, down 16 places from last year’s 34 ranking.

Nola (300 Taché Ave.) came in at 88, after making its debut on last years’ list at 86.

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Thursday, May. 7, 2026

Food & Drink

Riley and Juliana Bernier are launching a new restaurant, Hermanos Firehall, in the old firehall on Princess Avenue in Brandon. (Tim Smith / The Brandon Sun)

Hermanos steakhouse expands brand to Brandon

Abiola Odutola 2 minute read Preview

Hermanos steakhouse expands brand to Brandon

Abiola Odutola 2 minute read Tuesday, May. 5, 2026

BRANDON — Hermanos South American Steakhouse is preparing to open its first location outside Winnipeg — in the historic Brandon central fire station — next month.

Plans include a full steakhouse and lounge, a cigar lounge in the building’s hayloft and a 50-seat comedy club in the basement.

The expansion marks a significant milestone for the nearly two-decade-old restaurant brand, known for its South American-inspired cuisine and roots in the Exchange District.

Hermanos co-founder Noel Bernier said the move into Brandon reflects both growth ambitions and a careful search for the right fit.

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Tuesday, May. 5, 2026

Opinion

thequadfather03/TikTok Boy Kibble is trending on TikTok.

Boy Kibble craze a soul-destroying approach to maxxing meal plans

Jen Zoratti 5 minute read Preview

Boy Kibble craze a soul-destroying approach to maxxing meal plans

Jen Zoratti 5 minute read Saturday, Mar. 28, 2026

Sometimes, when I am filling my dog’s bowl with tiny brown triangles, I have the (depressing) thought: I wish there was such a thing as human kibble, so I didn’t have to work out what to feed myself all the time. Pre-portioned, perfectly macro-balanced sustenance, so I can just eat my People Chow and move on with my day.

Well, it turns out this dream is alive on TikTok, where health-conscious young men are snarfing down Boy Kibble.

Boy Kibble is essentially a slop concoction consisting of ground beef, rice and (maybe) veggies that looks, well, like dog food. The theory is it’s an easy, cost-effective way to help support gains made in the gym.

You might think that Boy Kibble is analogous to that other viral trend, Girl Dinner, but it’s not, not really.

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Saturday, Mar. 28, 2026

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