Winnipeg fine dining for a special lunch or an unforgettable evening!

Looking for Winnipeg fine dining - places for a memorable dinner that are elegant, but not full of themselves and where you can relax and enjoy a wonderful meal?

Winnipeg has so many good places to mark special occasions with superb meals that you couldn't possibly get to them all on one visit.

Retaurants open (and, sadly, some close) and I do update this page (and every page on this site) from time to time.

That said, you may have heard of a wonderful Winnipeg fine dining restaurant that isn't included here (if so, and you try it and love it, please tell me about it.

Here are the tried-and-true for birthdays, anniversaries and other special occasions. I’ve included places we love and friends particularly recommend:

Winnipeg fine dining Downtown

Segovia

Smoked sweetbreads glazed with lime aioli over slices of Serrano ham, lobster risotto, grilled octopus with chorizo, rabbit with polenta and for dessert, dates stuffed with mascarpone.

584 Stradbrook Ave., 477-6500.

Amici

Another top Winnipeg fine dining choice for their specialty, Northern Italian with superb desserts.

This is the restaurant Mick Jagger said he particularly liked last time he visited Winnipeg.

Open for lunch Mondays to Fridays and dinner Mondays to Saturdays.

For equally wonderful food, but a smaller bill, head downstairs to Bombolini Wine Bar and ask for today’s specials.

Open Monday to Friday for lunch and dinner, Saturdays for dinner only until 10 p.m. 326 Broadway. Reservations: 943-4997.

Deseo Bistro

Notable: roast duck, potatas bravas, and the flourless chocolate and chili cake.

696 Osborne St., 452-2561.

Brooklynn’s Bistro

Try the Forbidden pasta – house-made black squid pasta or the fire-roasted veal rib chop or the pan-roasted sablefish or the wood-fired pizza. Also special, the zabaglione.

Ciao! Magazine called Brooklynn’s one of the top 5 restaurants in Winnipeg in 2011.

In the Exchange District at 177 Lombard, 415-4112.

Deadfish Café

Wonderful jerk chicken, soy-glazed Arctic Char, prime rib Panini; incredibly good banana bread pudding with chocolate.

167 Osborne St., 477-6609.

Elements the Restaurant

Locally-grown and using organic ingredients whenever possible, where the recommendations are: savoury grilled chicken tacos on corn tortillas, miso-chili glazed pork ribs with wild rice, chicken in juniper brine, and their house-made cheesecake or the blueberry compote.

599 Portage Ave., 786-9237.

Peasant Cookery

Rustic charm in a heritage building in the Exchange District. Try: the house-cured charcuterie board.

Open for lunch and dinner Tuesday to Friday and dinner Saturday.

283 Bannatyne Ave., 989-7700.

Segovia Tapas Bar and Restaurant

484 Stradbrook Ave., 477-6500.

The Velvet Glove

Elegant dining at a CAA/AAA four-diamond restaurant in The Fairmont Hotel with rather formal service but superb food.

2 Lombard Place, steps from Portage & Main. Reservations: 985-6255.

529 Wellington Steakhouse

The most upscale steakhouse in Winnipeg, in a Wellington Crescent mansion with an extensive wine list.

Elegant mansion evocative of an earlier, gentler era that probably didn’t actually exist, but it is such a pleasure to imagine it.

This is a ‘special night out’ kind of place, both for the ambiance and the steaks, tenderloin brochettes or the mini Yorkshire Puddings.

Have the blueberry bread pudding for dessert – easily enough for two to share.

529 Wellington Crescent, 487-8325.

The Lobby on York

In the lobby of a former hotel that has recently been converted to upscale apartments, this is Winnipeg’s newest downtown white table cloth restaurant with contemporary continental cuisine specializing in fresh fish, steak and racks of lamb.

Also has a lounge and sushi bar.

Donald at York, Winnipeg. 896-7275.

Paddlewheel Queen

Sunset dinner/dance cruises on-board Canada’s largest stern-wheeler.

On the menu: steak, prime rib, lobster, crab, followed by dancing to live music, daily May to October.

Leaves from Alexander Dock on Waterfront Drive.

Reservations: 942-4500.

Wasabi

Upscale Japanese with beautiful décor, artfully delicious food, sushi bar.

There's a Wasabi on Osborne, but for something special head to the urban hip version at 588 Broadway, which also has a sunny screened verandah. 774-4328.

The Current

The restaurant at Inn at the Forks and one of my favourites for delicious food and attentive, but relaxed service.

Nice contemporary décor with blond wood, stone and other natural materials, interesting menu emphasizing local produce, and not expensive (entrees are mainly $16 to $25).

Also has decadent desserts. Open daily. Forks Market Road, Winnipeg. 944-2445.

Bistro Dansk

Intimate and comforting, offering traditional Danish fare, wonderful schnitzel and hazelnut pie and a good selection of European wines and beers.

Open for lunch and dinner Tuesdays to Saturdays, reservations recommended for dinner. 63 Sherbrook Street, Winnipeg. 775-5662.

Oui Bistro & Wine Bar

At this Winnipeg fine dining option you'll find a fresh take on traditional French fare in one of the Exchange District heritage buildings that oozes character and charm, now beautifully renovated.

283 Bannatyne Avenue, Winnipeg. 989-7700.

One Night in Bangkok

Distinctive in both décor and cuisine with excellent curries.

St. Mary Ave. at Edmonton Street, Winnipeg. 777-0888.

The Melting Pot

Cast your mind back to those balmy youthful evenings sitting cross-legged around the coffee table, you and your date (or your pals) each with one of those tiny long-handle forks, dipping morsels of food into a bubbling pot of something. Pork in sweet-and-sour sauce. Lobster in lemon butter. Strawberries in white chocolate sauce.

Whatever it was, it was good, but not as good as the classic fondue you get at The Melting Pot.

218 Sherbrook at Broadway, Winnipeg. 783-1317.

FUDE Inspired Cuisine & Wine Bar

The host at this second storey Osborne Village restaurant is also the owner and chef, known for his fresh and creative take on local produce including Manitoba pork tenderloin, locally-caught pickerel and bison ribs.

Small balcony/patio with a view of Osborne and the passing throng, very cozy inside.

FUDE offers 19 wines by the glass, light jazz in the background, and everything is made in-house.

Not accessible -- there are stairs to get to the door. Closed Sunday and Monday.

303-99 Osborne Street, Osborne Village, Winnipeg. 284-3833.

Mise Restaurant

Classy and intimate Winnipeg fine dining in Corydon Village, known for Manitoba cuisine. A signature dish is the roasted quail stuffed with bison. Mushroom bison, pork tenderloin with maple bourbon sauce and decadent desserts – don’t miss the Russian mint cheesecake. Or, also superb, the chocolate cake (made without flour) toped with honey ice cream.

Small but inviting patio in summer.

Open Tuesdays to Fridays for lunch and dinner, Saturdays and Sundays for dinner until late.

842 Corydon (at Lilac), Winnipeg. 284-7916.

Bistro 7 ¼

Another great little bistro, south of Osborne Village in the up-and-coming South Osborne/Riverview stretch of Osborne Street.

A small place with French ambience and French- and Italian - inspired cuisine.

Seasonal menu, but they always have little plates (small portions of specialties with delicious sauces -- order several to share), excellent burgers and sandwiches, lamb kebabs, and for dinner grilled octopus, duck, or short beef ribs, followed by lemon tart.

Great value, reasonable prices for what you get, another truly memorable meal.

Open Tuesdays to Saturdays for lunch until 10 p.m.

725 Osborne Street, Winnipeg. 777-2525.

Winnipeg fine dining west of downtown

Fusion Grill

Another good choice for Manitoba fusion cuisine, either for lunch (which tends to be busy) or dinner.

Don’t miss: Cornmeal crusted Lake Winnipeg pickerel with saffron apple cider vinaigrette or the white truffle perogies. Open Tuesdays to Saturdays.

Reservations taken, but not always necessary.

550 Academy, 489-6963.

Terrace Fifty-Five

Winnipeg fine dining with a view. Terrace Fifty-Five is an elegant restaurant in the Pavillion at Assiniboine Park overlooking a beautiful garden terrace, popular for smaller wedding receptions in summer.

Also a short stroll to the Leo Mol Sculpture Garden.

55 Pavillion Crescent, Winnipeg. Reservations: 938-7275.

Rae & Jerry’s Steak House

This is your Dad’s (or maybe your Grand-Dad’s) steakhouse. A blast from the ’50s, the kind of place where you expect to see the actors from the TV drama Mad Men talking shop at the next table.

While the décor is Rat Pack, it’s the prime rib people go here for, not to mention their incredible martinis.

1405 Portage Ave., Winnipeg. 783-6155.

Clay Oven

East Indian tandoor dishes including the best tandoori chicken I have ever eaten, wonderful samosas and good vegetarian specials and everything can be adjusted from as mild to as ultra-spicy as you like.

There are two locations. Both are popular for casual fine dining so phone for reservations.

The Kenaston Crossing Clay Oven isn’t really visible from the street (which is more like a highway at this point). If coming from downtown, look to the right for the signs for Rona and Indigo Books and turn right for the plaza. Pass through the 4-way stop, and you will see Clay Oven on the right.

Gates on Roblin

Open daily for lunch (on Sunday it’s brunch) and dinner.

6945 Roblin Blvd., 224-2837.

Winnipeg fine dining east of Downtown

Step ’N Out

So named for a collection of vintage shoes that itself is worth a visit, Step ’N Out is a friendly, smallish place on St. Boniface’s main street known for delicious crab cakes and pumpkin ravioli.

Menu changes daily. In summer there is a small but leafy patio, and it is a pleasant stroll from The Forks.

Open for lunch Mondays to Fridays, dinner Mondays to Saturdays.

157 Provencher, Winnipeg. Reservations recommended at 956-7837.

La P’tite France

The draw at this Winnipeg fine dining suggestion is Chef and owner Justin Bohemier's inspired Franco-Manitoban take on classic French dishes.

Open Tuesday to Friday for lunch and Tuesday to Saturday for dinner until 9 p.m. Entrees are about $20 to $45. There is a six-course, set menu dinner for $36.

241 St. Mary’s Road, Winnipeg. 237-5468.

Inferno’s Bistro

Bistro fare in a blending of French-Canadian and Mediterranean styles well prepared and very busy at lunch, though upstairs is usually a bit quieter.

Open Mondays to Saturdays for lunch and dinner.

Has an inviting patio open June to September.

312 Rue des Meurons in St. Boniface, Winnipeg. 262-7400.