showing 11 to 20 of 75
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Best Brunch
on November 1, 2018 at 1:00AM
Gold Winner Mic Mac Bar & Grill
Silver Winner EDNA
Bronze Winner The Coastal
Joël Chiasson estimates that on any given Saturday upwards of 1,500 people have a bite to eat at Waverley’s Mic Mac Bar & Grill—a huge chunk of whom are stopping by for its classic breakfast-lunch hybrid menu, where filet mignon and eggs and fishcakes, eggs and beans standout. “Like they say, we make most of our mistakes when we’re quiet…and luckily we don’t have that opportunity,” Chiasson says of uber-busy restaurant, where a weekend lineup’s a common occurrence. “Everyone is always on their game and go go go. They’re all extremely hard workers.”
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Best Burger
on November 1, 2018 at 1:00AM
Gold Winner Darrell's Restaurant
Silver Winner Ace Burger Co. at Battery Park Beer Bar
Bronze Winner Cheese Curds Gourmet Burgers and Poutinerie
This year, Dan Joseph and his staff at Darrell’s conducted a sort of experiment: They didn’t ask their customers and loved ones to vote for them. “Normally, we really put a push on, send out mass emails to our friends, then they send emails to their friends. This year I said, let’s just leave it and see what happens,” says Joseph, with a laugh. And wouldn’t you know, the institution—which has been doing its thing since 1992 still won Best Burger and Best Milkshake. “The biggest thing it tells me is that we’re still doing a good job, period. Despite all the competition we’re still making our customers happy and that’s the bottom line.”
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Best Burrito
on November 1, 2018 at 1:00AM
Gold Winner Burrito Jax, downtown
Silver Winner Habaneros Modern Taco Bar, Pleasant Street
Bronze Winner Dee Dee's Ice Cream
Since this category was born, back in 2011, this burrito heavyweight (literally, these stuffed-full wraps don’t skimp) has been holding down the top spot. The original location of the now franchised, spreading like wildfire, Burrito Jax gives late-night Pizza Corner scavengers—and any-time grab-and-go diners—a healthy, flavour-packed option in wrap or bowl form. Choose from veggie, cod, beef, pork, chicken or steak and pile it high with extras at any of the 10 locations—but head to Blowers Street if you want to know what winning feels like.
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Best Butcher Shop
on November 1, 2018 at 1:00AM
Gold Winner Gateway Meat Market
Silver Winner Getaway Farm, Halifax Seaport Farmers' Market
Bronze Winner Getaway Farm, Hydrostone
Tamara Selig cannot say enough about her staff at Gateway Meat Market. According to the co-owner of the beloved, no-frills grocery and butcher all 40 of them get just as pumped for the shop’s sales as the customers do. (And the customers get real pumped, voting it to the gold spot for the third consecutive time for its cheap meats, cheeses and produce.) “We would most definitely love to thank our loyal customers, local suppliers and most of all—our amazing staff!” says Selig. “We couldn’t be any more proud of them.”
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Best Caesar
on November 1, 2018 at 1:00AM
Gold Winner Stubborn Goat Gastropub
Silver Winner The Black Sheep
Bronze Winner Durty Nelly's Authentic Irish Pub
The Goat keeps it simple when it comes to this clammy cure all because when the ingredients are solid gold, bells and whistles aren’t necessary. For this winning cocktail, head bartender David Casey says Nova Scotia Blue Lobster vodka is the liquor of choice, with garnishes like a house-made spicy bean, olives, cucumber lime and a little pepper bringing the Clamato and hot sauces to life. (The Stubborn Goat also serves a bacon Caesar, with chipotle Tabasco, steak spice and bacon in the mix.) Casey thanks the thirsty folks for helping him sell lots of brunchy booze: “Halifax loves their Caesars and we take pride in lining them up—you just keep knocking ’em down.”
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Best Cafe
on November 1, 2018 at 1:00AM
Gold Winner Two If By Sea
Silver Winner Dilly Dally
Bronze Winner The Nook on Gottingen
“This has been a year of growth and reflection for the TIBS crew,” says Tara MacDonald upon hearing of the downtown Dartmouth institution’s repeat gold win for Best Cafe. After allegations of sexual misconduct, Two If By Sea (and its neighbouring roastery, Anchored Coffee) made the decision to cut ties with co-founder Zane Kelsall back in March. “The support and love from community is humbling. We are so grateful for all the kindness shown this year and for everyone who voted us best cafe. We love you!”
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Best Campus Eats
on November 1, 2018 at 1:00AM
Gold Winner Coburg Coffee
Silver Winner The Gorsebrook Lounge
Bronze Winner Tart & Soul
Formerly called Coburg Coffee, Coburg Social has since taken a step up from coffeehouse status. It still has all the factors that have made it a go-to spot for years: Open mic nights, great caffeinated bevs, study space and avocado toast. Now, though, it has a happy hour and a new evening menu. All this, combined with its proximity to Dalhousie University and University of King’s College, make it the prime choice for campus-adjacent grub. It’s somewhere to catch up with friends or bring your laptop to get that essay done (no, they won’t kick you out for using the wifi).
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Best Chef
on November 1, 2018 at 1:00AM
Gold Winner Reneé Lavallée, The Canteen
Silver Winner Annie Brace-Lavoie, Bar Kismet
Bronze Winner Andy Hay, Andy's East Coast Kitchen
It was a pretty incredible nominees list for this year’s Best Chef category, with six of seven standouts being women—an unfortunate rarity in this readers’ survey—and five first-time noms. It’s a repeat win for Reneé Lavallée though, who is quick to give credit to the folks she surrounds herself with. “I work hard but at the end of the day, like I said last year, it’s my amazing team. I was just gone for three weeks and they were able to run the restaurant without me,” says the chef, who owns your Best Dartmouth Restaurant—The Canteen—with her husband Doug Townsend. On top of this award, Lavallée just won Taste of Nova Scotia’s Culinary Ambassador of The Year award and was shouted out in the Globe and Mail as one of the country’s culinary stars. Townsend says for her, it’s still all about the people she’s feeding: “Reneé’s a very competitive person, she wouldn’t be where she is if she wasn’t, but we cant do this for the critics or to get on lists. We have to do this for customers. We have to make them happy first.”
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Best Chicken Wings
on November 1, 2018 at 1:00AM
Gold Winner Bubba Ray's Sports Bar Too
Silver Winner Your Fathers Moustache
Bronze Winner Boneheads BBQ
Nick Vadeboncoeur evokes Bubba Rays’ plethora of sauces with his sugary response to the news about winning Best Chicken Wings in Halifax. “Sweet!” exclaims the managing bartender. “That’s awesome.” The secret to award-winning wings? Well, those sauces help. Bubba Rays has nearly 60, with an additional dozen dry rub options (Vadeboncoeur’s favourite is Lip Licking, a blend of honey garlic and BBQ). But in truth, the recipe for success comes down to the cooks in the kitchen. “It’s definitely the way the boys in the back, they know how to find, I say, it’s the timing,” Vadeboncoeur offers. “It’s all about the team, really.”
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Best Chinese Restaurant
on November 1, 2018 at 1:00AM
Gold Winner Jean's Chinese Restaurant
Silver Winner Fan's
Bronze Winner Look Ho Ho
Hall of fameGreat Wall Restaurant
Another year and another win for Jean’s Chinese Restaurant as Halifax’s Best Chinese food. Cue the trolls. No other category seems to provoke more heated debate online. Everyone has their favourite location, it seems—where the portions are huge, the sauce is sticky and the menu unfathomably large. Everyone says their Chinese restaurant is the tastiest. Live and let live, we say. Maybe it’s the late-night delivery (or accepting Dal meal plan cards for payment) but whatever Jean’s has been doing all these years, it’s clearly working.
