Here are your Best of Halifax 2024 winners for Food + Drink

It’s an historic year in The Coast’s annual Best of Halifax Awards: Six Food + Drink winners are joining the rarefied air of the BOH Hall of Fame after some truly impressive runs of dominance. Longtime food truck favourite Bud the Spud (Best Fries), Pizza Corner staple Willy’s Fresh Cut Fries & Burgers (Best Poutine, Best Late-night Food), South end landmark Darrell’s (Best Burger) and Dartmouth favourite Two If By Sea (Best Cafe) are all getting their metaphorical stars on the pavement, alongside World Tea House (Best Tea) and Cha Baa Thai’s downtown location (Best Thai Restaurant). What a run they’ve had. Stay tuned for more on their BOH inductions in 2025.

This year’s crop of Best of Halifax Awards includes a return of the Best Restaurant title to The Bicycle Thief—its fourth in the category—along with a seventh-straight Best Chef nod for The Canteen’s Renée Lavallée. Plus, Quinpool’s Palm Tree Kitchen claims its first BOH Gold for Best Caribbean Restaurant and Dear Friend Bar’s Enemona Agada wins his first Gold for Best Bartender.

Check out all the Food + Drink winners below. With that, there’s only thing left to look forward to: All of the Best of Halifax winners going live at The Coast on Thursday, December 19, with selected photos, interviews and, new this year, honourable mentions in every category. As we did in 2024, we’ll be releasing next year’s Best of Halifax winners early to our Coast Insider members, so if you want to get ahead of the game, become a Coast Insider today and you’ll be the first in the city to know next year.

BEST BAKERY
🥇 LF Bakery
🥈 Luke’s Small Goods
🥉 Pane e Circo

BEST BAR
🥇 Durty Nelly’s Authentic Irish Pub
🥈 Dear Friend Bar
🥉 Bar Stillwell

BEST BARISTA
🥇 Federico Pasquinelli at Espresso 46
🥈 Katelyn Gallant at Two If By Sea Cafe
🥉 Sarah Jupp at Dilly Dally Coffee Cafe

BEST BARTENDER
🥇 Enemona Agada at Dear Friend Bar
🥈 Josh Hanusiak at Stillwell Beer Bar
🥉 Lindsay Jones at The Ostrich Club

BEST BBQ
🥇 CHKN CHOP
🥈 Boneheads BBQ
🥉 Parkside Pub & Smokehouse

BEST BEDFORD RESTAURANT
🥇 il Mercato Trattoria
🥈 Finbar’s Irish Pub
🥉 True North Diner

BEST BEER GARDEN
🥇 Stillwell Beer Garden
🥈 Good Robot Brewing Co. Commons
🥉 Battery Park Beerbar & Eatery

BEST BREAKFAST
🥇 Ardmore Tea Room
🥈 The Cheeky Neighbour Diner
🥉 Armview Restaurant & Lounge

BEST BREAKFAST SANDWICH
🥇 Dilly Dally Coffee Cafe
🥈 Ramblers Coffee
🥉 The Osney

BEST BRUNCH
🥇 The Cheeky Neighbour Diner
🥈 The Canteen
🥉 Ardmore Tea Room

BEST BURGER
🥇 Darrell’s Restaurant
🥈 Battery Park Beerbar & Eatery
🥉 Side Hustle Snack Bar

BEST BURRITO
🥇 Antojo Tacos + Tequila
🥈 Dee Dee’s Ice Cream
🥉 Habaneros Modern Taco Bar

BEST BUTCHER SHOP
🥇 Gateway Meat Market
🥈 Osprey’s Roost Butchery & Provisions
🥉 Brothers Meats and Delicatessen

BEST CAESAR
🥇 The Bicycle Thief
🥈 Stubborn Goat Gastropub
🥉 The Brown Hound Public House

BEST CAFE
🥇 Two If By Sea Cafe
🥈 Dilly Dally Coffee Cafe
🥉 Café Goodluck

BEST CARIBBEAN RESTAURANT
🥇 Palm Tree Kitchen & Bar
🥈 R&B Kitchen
🥉 Caribbean Bliss & Breakfast Cafe

BEST CHEF
🥇 Renée Lavallée at The Canteen
🥈 Natalie Rosen at Fawn Restaurant
🥉 Andreas Preuss at Oxalis Restaurant

BEST CHICKEN WINGS
🥇 Jacob’s Lounge
🥈 Freeman’s Little New York
🥉 Battery Park Beerbar & Eatery

BEST CHINESE RESTAURANT
🥇 Look Ho Ho Restaurant
🥈 May Garden Chinese Restaurant
🥉 Fan’s Chinese Restaurant

BEST CHOCOLATIER
🥇 Peace By Chocolate
🥈 Rousseau Chocolatier
🥉 Pane e Circo

BEST CHOWDER
🥇 The Canteen
🥈 The Bicycle Thief
🥉 Esquire Restaurant

BEST CIDERY
🥇 Lake City Cider
🥈 Annapolis Cider Company
🥉 Chain Yard Cider

BEST CLAYTON PARK AREA RESTAURANT
🥇 Easy Street Diner
🥈 Tako Sushi & Ramen
🥉 Le Rouge

BEST COCKTAILS
🥇 Dear Friend Bar
🥈 Bar Kismet
🥉 Bar Sofia

BEST COFFEE
🥇 Espresso 46
🥈 Dilly Dally Coffee Cafe
🥉 Café Goodluck

BEST COOKIE/CUPCAKE/DOUGHNUT
🥇 Vandal Doughnuts
🥈 LF Bakery
🥉 Aroma Maya Coffee & Donuts

BEST CRAFT BREWERY
🥇 Good Robot Brewing Co.
🥈 Propeller Brewing Company
🥉 Garrison Brewery

BEST DARTMOUTH RESTAURANT
🥇 Mc Mac Bar & Grill
🥈 The Canteen
🥉 Battery Park Beerbar & Eatery

BEST DESSERTS
🥇 Antoinette’s Cheesecakes
🥈 Pane e Circo
🥉 Sweet Hereafter Cheesecakery

BEST DINER
🥇 The Armview Restaurant & Lounge
🥈 Ardmore Tea Room
🥉 Pleasant St. Diner

BEST DONAIR
🥇 Tony’s Famous Donairs & Pizza
🥈 Randy’s Pizza & Donair
🥉 Mezza Lebanese Kitchen

BEST FINE DINING
🥇 The Bicycle Thief
🥈 Bar Kismet
🥉 Oxalis Restaurant

BEST FISH & CHIPS
🥇 Evan’s Fresh Seafoods
🥈 The Narrows Public House
🥉 Rudy and Olive’s Fish & Chips

BEST FISH CAKES
🥇 Mic Mac Bar & Grill
🥈 Evan’s Fresh Seafoods
🥉 Black Sheep Restaurant

BEST FRIES
🥇 Bud the Spud
🥈 Willy’s Fresh Cut Fries & Burgers
🥉 The Brown Hound Public House

BEST GLUTEN-FREE OPTIONS
🥇 The Wooden Monkey
🥈 Easy Street Diner
🥉 Schoolhouse Gluten-Free Gourmet

BEST HOTEL RESTAURANT
🥇 Gio
🥈 CUT Steakhouse
🥉 Drift

BEST ICE CREAM/GELATO/FROZEN YOGURT
🥇 Dee Dee’s Ice Cream
🥈 Cows
🥉 Dairy Bar

BEST INDIAN RESTAURANT
🥇 Naan n Curry
🥈 Rasa—Flavours of India
🥉 Besharam Bar & Grill

BEST INTERNATIONAL GROCER
🥇 The Italian Market
🥈 Pete’s Frootique & Fine Foods
🥉 E-Joy Foodmart

BEST ITALIAN RESTAURANT
🥇 Ristorante a Mano
🥈 The Bicycle Thief
🥉 il Mercato Trattoria

BEST KOREAN RESTAURANT
🥇 Busan Korean BBQ
🥈 Gangnam Korean BBQ
🥉 Song’s Korean Restaurant

BEST LATE-NIGHT FOOD
🥇 Willy’s Fresh Cut Fries & Burgers
🥈 Freeman’s Little New York
🥉 Tony’s Famous Donairs & Pizza

BEST LOBSTER ROLL
🥇 The Canteen
🥈 Evan’s Fresh Seafoods
🥉 Tom’s Lobster Shack

BEST MIDDLE EASTERN/PERSIAN FOOD
🥇 Tarek’s Cafe
🥈 Mezza Lebanese Kitchen
🥉 Darya

BEST MILKSHAKE
🥇 The Chickenburger
🥈 Flynn’s Dairy Bar & Convenience
🥉 Dee Dee’s Ice Cream

BEST NACHOS
🥇 Antojo Tacos + Tequila
🥈 Battery Park Beerbar & Eatery
🥉 Finbar’s Irish Pub

BEST NEW BAR
🥇 Stardust Bar + Kitchen
🥈 Magnolia
🥉 2 Crows Oxford Taproom

BEST NEW RESTAURANT
🥇 Sketti & Ball Co
🥈 Water Polo
🥉 Larry’s Sandwiches and Sides

BEST NOVA SCOTIAN DISTILLERY
🥇 Coldstream Clear Distillery
🥈 Compass Distillers
🥉 Ironworks Distillery

BEST NOVA SCOTIAN WINERY
🥇 Benjamin Bridge
🥈 Lightfoot & Wolfville
🥉 Luckett Vineyards

BEST OYSTER BAR
🥇 Dear Friend Bar
🥈 The Press Gang Restaurant & Oyster Bar
🥉 Highwayman Restaurant & Bar

BEST PASTRY
🥇 Two If By Sea Cafe
🥈 LF Bakery
🥉 Pane e Circo

BEST PATIO
🥇 The Bicycle Thief
🥈 Good Robot Brewing Co.
🥉 Battery Park Beerbar & Eatery

BEST PIZZA PIE
🥇 Yeah Yeahs Pizza
🥈 Morris East Pizzeria
🥉 Rinaldo’s Italian American Specialties

BEST PIZZA SLICE
🥇 Yeah Yeahs Pizza
🥈 Salvatore’s Pizzaiolo Trattoria
🥉 On The Wedge Gourmet Pizza

BEST POUTINE
🥇 Willy’s Fresh Cut Fries & Burgers
🥈 CHKN CHOP
🥉 Cheese Curds Gourmet Burgers & Poutinerie

BEST PUB FOOD
🥇 The Narrows Public House
🥈 Mic Mac Bar & Grill
🥉 The Millstone Public House

BEST RAMEN
🥇 Buta Ramen
🥈 Truly Tasty
🥉 Tako Sushi & Ramen

BEST RESTAURANT
🥇 The Bicycle Thief
🥈 The Canteen
🥉 Bar Kismet

BEST SACKVILLE RESTAURANT
🥇 Kaiser’s Sub & Sandwich Shoppes
🥈 Tom’s Family Restaurant
🥉 Freeman’s Little New York

BEST SALAD
🥇 HARVEST Clean Eats
🥈 The Canteen
🥉 The Wooden Monkey

BEST SANDWICH
🥇 Luke’s Small Goods
🥈 Kaiser’s Sub & Sandwich Shoppes
🥉 Salvatore’s Pizzaiolo Trattoria

BEST SUSHI RESTAURANT
🥇 Doraku
🥈 Sushi Nami Royale
🥉 JUKAI Japanese & Thai

BEST TAPROOM
🥇 Battery Park Beerbar & Eatery
🥈 Stillwell Beer Bar
🥉 Good Robot Brewing Co.

BEST TEA
🥇 World Tea House
🥈 Pane e Circo
🥉 Fawn Restaurant

BEST THAI RESTAURANT
🥇 Cha Baa Thai Restaurant
🥈 Talay Thai
🥉 Blue Elephant Thai

BEST USE OF LOCAL INGREDIENTS
🥇 The Canteen
🥈 The Wooden Monkey
🥉 Bar Kismet

BEST VEGETARIAN/VEGAN
🥇 The Wooden Monkey
🥈 Wild Leek
🥉 Real Fake Meats

BEST WINE LIST
🥇 Obladee — A Wine Bar
🥈 Bar Kismet
🥉 Peacock Wine Bar

This article appears in Aug 1-31, 2023.