Trio of Winnipeg restaurants among top 100 in Canada

Winnipeg’s Deer + Almond restaurant is seen on May 6, 2025. (Jamie Dowsett/CTV News Winnipeg)

Three Winnipeg restaurants have cracked a top 100 list of the top restaurants in Canada.

Canada’s 100 Best Restaurants was released on Monday with Winnipeg restaurants Deer + Almond, Yujiro and Nola all making the list. The list is released each year by the online magazine publication Canda’s 100 Best.

Deer + Almond, located in the Exchange District since 2012, made its third consecutive appearance on the list. It has been consistently climbing the list since its first appearance in 2023 when it snagged the 59th spot. This year, it was number 34, making it the highest-ranked Winnipeg restaurant.

Head chef Mandel Hitzer was also the recipient of the Community Leadership award from the same organization.

“His passion for creating world-class, one-of-a-kind food experiences just for Winnipeg is genuine and palpable,” Canada’s 100 Best wrote on its website.

Yujiro, a sushi and Japanese restaurant on Grant Avenue, was ranked 65th on the list. It was also on last year’s list, where it was ranked 92nd.

Nola in St. Boniface is a newcomer to the list, sitting at 86th place.

Judging of the list

According to Canada’s 100 Best, 160 judges made up of culinary enthusiasts, food writers, food critics, chefs and other food-service professionals helped create the list.

Each judge was asked to submit their top 10 restaurant experiences of the previous year. Food quality, service, décor and the depths of the wine cellar.

The number of judges in each province and region is proportional to its population.