116 Best Restaurants in Alberta, Canada

Opened in November 2020, änkôr showcases the passion and skill of chef--owner Danny Beaulieu, a Québécoise who moved to Alberta in 2005 and takes pride in the richness of Canadian contemporary cuisine. Each dish is meticulously prepared and presented with detail and flare—warm sourdough bread is served with smoked cultured butter, honey, juniper, and pink peppercorn salt, while the duck, a regular feature, is dry aged for 10–12 days to enrich the flavor. Guests can choose from a 6-course tasting menu or order à la carte. A small selection of wines by the glass are featured on the wine list which is designed to pair with the food. There's also a nice selection of local craft beers and cocktails made with Canadian spirits.

It's safe to say that the beef in Alberta is some of the best around, so if you're looking for the quintessential steak house experience while in town, this Calgary institution (started in 1972) is the place to dine for exceptional Alberta beef. While you're here, try the iconic Ceasar cocktail (like a Bloody Mary but with clamato juice), and perhaps that other iconic Ceasar, the salad which is made table-side.

Ultraluxe decor and magnificent mountain views provide the interior and exterior backdrops for prix fixe, three- to eight-course dinners of regionally influenced French cuisine. The presentation is awe-inspiring, and the food is prepared à-la-minute, so entrées change frequently but have included British Columbia sablefish with tomato, watermelon, and onion; rabbit with nuts, wild berries, and foraged mushrooms; and cinnamon-smoked short ribs. The sommeliers offer two astute wine-pairing options, or you can make your own choices from the impressive list. Dining in this Eden is an experience to be savored. Plan to spend at least three hours.

Chef Sean Walker and his culinary team showcase regional farms and suppliers at this family-owned and operated restaurant. It's a favorite brunch spot in Jasper with options like the short-rib poutine breakfast bowl or the loaded avocado toast, there's a fun afternoon social menu with sharing plates and Happy Hour drink specials, and the dinner menu features entrées like elk loin with Saskatoon berry jus or Arctic char with lemon caper butter. A nice selection of wines and cocktails accompany the menus.

Victor and Cathy Caracciolo opened Mercato 20 years ago and it has been a local favorite ever since. Mamma Cathy is still in the kitchen every day, whipping up delicious contemporary Italian fare for a constant stream of regular customers; try the family-style mixed grill or Mamma’s handmade gnocchi using the same recipe she learned from her own mama. There’s also a spacious market that sells cheese, meats, fresh-baked bread, handmade pasta, and ready-cooked meals to take home. Either way, you can’t go wrong.

One of the true epicurean experiences in the Canadian Rockies, the Post delivers daring, regionally inspired cuisine accompanied by excellent wines (it's one of only four restaurants in Canada to receive the Wine Spectator's Grand Award). A low, exposed-beam ceiling and a stone fireplace aglow in winter create an in-from-the-cold aura; white napery provides a touch of elegance; and a changing menu keeps things interesting, with dishes that might include Alaskan king crab drizzled with lemongrass-ginger butter, sautéed wild British Columbia halibut in lemongrass-thyme sauce, or Alberta beef tenderloin in Bordelaise. With more than 26,000 bottles, the restaurant may well have Canada's best wine collection. For a unique experience with a group of six or more, inquire about the private cellar dining room.

An annual recipient of Calgary’s best restaurant award, River Cafe focuses on creating top-tier Canadian food, even going so far as to shun imported kitchen staples like pepper and olive oil. The stroll through Prince’s Island Park will whet your appetite and the beautifully woodsy dining room will get you in the mood for dining. Favorites include the wild boar, buttermilk pancakes with hazelnut whipped cream and dark chocolate, and picnic lunch you can enjoy along the bank of the Bow River.

One of the best restaurants in town, Uccellino’s prepares traditional Italian fare with a modern flair like buckwheat pappardelle and ricotta- and mascarpone-filled ravioli, but try the Chef’s Tasting Menu to get the most out of your visit. Innovative cocktails and an excellent wine list only enhance the dining experience.

Alberta is world-famous for its beef, and this restaurant is a great place to sample it, along with pork, lamb, and sustainable wild game and seafood. All steaks are hand-cut on-site and grilled on cherrywood, and everything, from the butter to the garnishes, is made in-house. Try the Brant Lake Wagyu beef tenderloin or the dry-aged Brome Lake duck. Seafood choices include Pacific halibut and Atlantic lobster. There is one vegetarian option on the menu.

Just off Main Street in a quiet alley, this restaurant gets its name from the elevation of Canmore, and Chef Blake Flann focused on creating an elevated dining experience when he opened the place in 2020. Flann describes his contemporary Asian-influenced cuisine as "pop culture cuisine" because it is inspired by the ever-changing global food scene. The innovative menu features a regular, vegetarian, or vegan chef's choice menu or guests can order shared plates like hand crab rolls and pork belly candy. Bar Déjà Vu, the speakeasy lounge within the restaurant, puts great emphasis on its cocktail list and a partnership with Wild Life Distillery led to the creation of Elevation 4296 Vodka, a black-colored vodka that is a nod to Canmore's history as a coal mining town. This restaurant is not recommended for children under 12.

Beautiful views of Pyramid Lake and Pyramid Mountain are complemented by a menu of gourmet comfort food with a Canadian twist. Breakfast options include brioche French Toast with a haskap berry compote and maple syrup, while dinner offers a five-course carnivore tasting menu or a five-course vegetarian tasting menu; you can also order à la carte. Other dinner specialties include duck breast with sweet potato fondant or Rocky Mountain Trout with roasted fennel.

This second-floor restaurant in downtown Jasper has an open kitchen, a terrace, and plenty of windows with lovely mountain views. The decor isn't fancy, but the food is excellent, featuring crispy calamari, beef carpaccio, baked meatballs, and house-made pasta dishes served alongside beef, salmon, lamb, and duck entrées. There's a nice selection of wines by the glass or bottle, cocktails, and domestic and imported beers on the drinks menu.

Named for the now defunct 27th letter of the alphabet, this Whyte Avenue restaurant is a local favorite. The creative menu is varied and contains lots of vegetarian and vegan options that even meat lovers will enjoy. Great for a date night or special occasion, ask to sit on the charming and private patio, and don't miss half-price bottles of house wine and 2-for-1 appetizers on Thursdays.

Like its counterpart in Calgary, Anejo Edmonton serves up delicious Mexican food and outstanding margaritas in a hip and gorgeous setting. Happy hour is even better, when your tequila and tacos are half-price.

This tried-and-true Mexican restaurant is the place to go in Banff for great margaritas and inexpensive tacos that run the gamut from pork carnitas or chicken to crispy fish and mushroom tacos; the premium taco menu features duck carnitas, shrimp tacos, and grilled mahi mahi tacos. The tableside guacamole and house salsa are delicious, and the extensive tequila menu creates a variety of margaritas and other mixed drinks. The churros are a great choice for dessert. There are two locations in Toronto and new locations in Calgary and Edmonton.

This relatively new eatery on Whyte Avenue has quickly become a local favorite with its creative shared-plate menu that includes flavors from all around the world. Excellent cocktails and a quiet patio out back only enhance the dining experience.

This cozy downtown bakery is a great stop for a breakfast of tasty muffins and other confections or a lunch of sandwiches and wraps. Freshly baked cookies, cakes, and artisanal breads are also available, along with a wide variety of coffees and teas. Popular with locals and visitors, this place with just a few tables for dining inside can be packed during peak times. The owners also run the Other Paw, two blocks away. And, at night, the place turns into Ursidae Lair, a scotch-tasting lounge.

Centrally located in the Design District and within walking distance of the Calgary Stampede, this diner-inspired eatery is a great place for a hearty breakfast or lunch. You can't go wrong with any of the traditional breakfast options including the numerous bennies, but classics like chicken and waffles or breakfast poutine are a good idea.

Opened in 2024 and named for Chef Scott Iserhoff's grandmother, this small Indigenous restaurant in downtown Edmonton offers delicious Indigenous cuisine made with fresh seasonal ingredients. For Iserhoff and his guests, the restaurant evokes memories of home and comfort---what it's like to sit in grandma's kitchen and enjoy a hot meal with bannock bread and berry jam. The lunch menu includes salads and sandwiches along with brunch options, while the dinner menu has sharing plates with menu items like bison cheeks, elk carpaccio, and scallops with burnt dandelion. The signature barbeque brisket, which is slow roasted for 12 hours and served with Saskatoon berry–infused barbeque sauce, is on both the lunch and dinner menu. There is a good selection of Indigenous wines, cocktails, and non-alcoholic beverages on the menu.

Not only is the "Rocky Mountain comfort food" served here made with organic local ingredients, but there's also an emphasis on slow cooking, with almost everything prepared from scratch. As the name suggests, it's a great place to try bison dishes—bison tartar and slow-cooked braised bison short rib are signature dishes—but there's also Wild British Columbia halibut, wood-fired duck, and Alberta beef striploin along with a limited number of vegetarian options. The contemporary decor, with hardwood floors and vaulted ceilings, focuses attention on the open kitchen, where you can watch the chefs at work.

A locals’ favorite, Block 1912 Cafe has the same ambience as the infamous coffee shop, Central Perk, in the TV show Friends, which makes it a great place to hang out with friends or work on your laptop. There’s even a nook where you can read a book and munch on cakes and pastries as well as tasty sandwiches, soups, and salads.

Offering everything from curry ramen and poke bowls to mushroom risotto and smoked bison flatbread, this small eclectic downtown tapas bar mixes Asian influences with local flavors. Both large and small plates are served in an intimate space with rough-hewn wooden tables, colorful artwork, and bare-bulb lighting. The drinks menu is equally varied, featuring wines, sakes, craft beers, and creative "blocktails."

Another Calgary icon, Bottlescrew Bills is a second-generation family establishment that has been serving high-quality versions of classic pub food and an enormous selection of beer for more than 40 years. Daily specials and a generous happy hour only add to the fun; if you're feeling adventurous, try their unique riff on the traditional Caesar (a Canadian cocktail invented in Calgary) that includes a “prairie oyster.” If you’re in town long enough, you can try to fill your Around the World in 80 Beers passport.

An authentic cowboy restaurant with great Alberta steaks and terrific burgers, Buzzard's serves up good western food amid rustic country-style decor and cowboy artifacts. If you're feeling brave, this is one of the few places in Calgary where you can sample prairie oysters, otherwise known as bull testicles. The place is renowned for its annual "testicle festival." There's a sunny outdoor patio, and Bottlescrew Bill's Old English Pub next door serves Calgary's largest beer selection, including Buzzard's Breath Ale house brew.

If you’re in the mood for a taste of Europe, take a trip to this pub-style bistro for French-inspired cuisine. Situated in a remodeled building from the 1920s, this restaurant serves modern riffs on classic French dishes like Baked Brie, a great French onion soup, and Lobster Provencal. There's also a lengthy list of European wines and beer to pair with your meal.

The Edmonton emigrant of a successful Vancouver chain, Browns is a widely popular place with consistently good food, good service, and good vibes. The combination keeps the locals in the neighborhood coming back again and again, and that is high praise, though a generous happy hour doesn’t hurt either.

This café is a great place to enjoy coffee, tea, or ice cream, grab-and-go breakfasts, fine chocolates, or baked goods before or after a hike. There's also a variety of hot and cold sandwiches, pizza, hamburgers, stew, burgers, fries, and poutine. They even micro-roast organic fairly traded coffee beans in small batches, and you can have local beer or BC wine with your meal if you dine inside. There are picnic tables if you wish to dine outside and enjoy the magnificent scenery.

It’s hard to say whether the Cask & Barrel is a pub or a restaurant, but it’s definitely the best of both worlds. Recently refurbished, this cozy and comfortable place serves upscale food and a wonderful selection of beer, wine, and Scotch. Just make sure you say hello to Susan, the owner, when you get there.

What do you get when you blend a Top Chef finalist (Connie DeSousa) with aged Alberta beef and a custom-made Argentinian wood-fired grill? You get the excellent charbar, located in the East Village’s historic Simmons Building, which has quickly become one of Canada's best restaurants. The beef tenderloin is a favorite, as are the fugazza pizzas, which are also available on the roof-top patio with expansive views over the city.

This second-floor restaurant has great views of Banff Avenue and incredible steaks—namely Angus and Wagyu prime beef—that are sourced from ranches along the Cowboy Trail—the heart of Alberta's ranch country—dry aged in-house, started on a mesquite-wood grill, and finished in a copper pan with herbs and butter. Servers are well-versed in the various cuts of beef, but if steak isn't your thing, alternatives include pistachio pesto gnocchi, bourbon barbecue beef ribs, and wild British Columbia salmon. Appetizers and side dishes are served family-style. An extensive wine list and an in-house sommelier ensure perfect pairings. Mud pie is the signature dessert, and it's exceptional. This restaurant also has a roof-top patio open in summer.