Canmore Restaurants

Nice place for lunch with good home cooked food & attentive service. Nice interior featuring mountain climbing memorabilia.
Lovely views of the mountain scenery.

Favorite Dish: The steaks are prime Albertan beef very succulant & tasty with great choice of salads.
Extensive menu with vegetarian options available

Smitty's is a Canadian family restaurant chain, the first opened in Calgary in 1960. It's a family favorite where you can take the kids, and it won't break the bank. The food here is inexpensive, with huge portions. The breakfast is served here all day; which I love, as I'm a breakfast food lover. There's something comforting about eggs and toast on a cold, rainy, evening.

This Smitty's in Canmore is always extremely busy -- many locals come here, and it is just located off the Trans Canada. The service is extremely pleasant, although a little slow, perhaps as it just gets so busy.

Favorite Dish: The portions, as I said are HUGE. If you are starving, order one of the breakfast skillets -- I had the Country Skillet, which is eggs, sausage, tomato, green pepper and cheese over hash browns crisped up and served in a little cast-iron skillet with toast. I could only eat half of it. A belly-buster for sure!!!

The waffles and pancakes are sure to please -- they also have different flavored syrups such as blueberry and strawberry.

This place is viewed by locals as the best breakfast in Canmore. For price, service, serving size, and choice, I totally agree.

The restaurant is also well-regarded as a place for dinner, but we have not tried it for dinner, we've only had the breakfast.

The room is decorated with local flora and fauna; and I did notice the room was slightly grimy, though our table was clean (the most important thing). Perhaps they had had a late-night party, as from the service and quality of food, this seemed out of place. Table cloths would have been nice, as the wooden tables were banged up and very scratched -- I almost was expecting to see a heart with an arrow through it with initials carved on our table.

Favorite Dish: There is a huge selection of different dishes, but I must say the Eggs Benny with Smoked Salmon is my favorite, and they cooked the eggs to my specification -- firm enough to be not runny.

The service was also extremely good, and I must give them kudos as well, as it was 7:00 a.m., and our server was alert, smiling and pleasant, much more than I can say for myself at that hour!

Patrino's is popular with the locals -- it's a nice restaurant that isn't too expensive and serves decent food. And sometimes, that's all you want, right?

The restaurant is family-run, which is entirely evident, when the hostess seats you, and in the meanwhile, the waiter/waitresses are calling her "mom".

The decor is also pleasant, with linen tablecloths, and the room painted in quiet colors; it's evident that many people come back as the owner and his wife are often graciously greeting return customers.

Favorite Dish: The food here is good, but I would not describe it as great. Most dishes tend to run along the italian vein. We generally view it as a no-brainer place to get something to eat.

I've had prime rib on a few occasions, and it's always very tender; and to split hairs, they do seem to have a heavier hand with the seasoning salt. My husband enjoys the pastas, and his favorite is the lasagna, though I find it tends to be a little more oilier than I care for.

Zona's is probably one of the first restaurants to revitalize the dining scene in Canmore. Situated in an old house away from Main Street, Zona's offers a rustic, homey atmosphere and their prices are very reasonable. Zona's is run by the owner of The Copper Door, another well-respected restaurant in Canmore.

Make sure you go to Zona's when you are really hungry, as we found the portions huge, and entrees often include a salad or soup as well. The food here is eclectic, with the chef using spices and flavorings from around the world. There is also live music at Zona's.

Favorite Dish: We have only eaten here once, but wouldn't hesitate to return. The time I was there, I enjoyed sake-steamed artic char; the delicate char was complemented by the flavors of soy sauce and sesame oil, and accompanied by wild rice and baby bok choy. My husband and I luckily shared a delicious roasted brie and cranberry appetizer, as it was very big and would have easily fed four people.

Murrieta's has come to Canmore, most likely because of their huge success in Calgary. And, they are most welcome! It's the type of place you can go to get good food, no suprises, and the dishes have just enough of a "tweak" so as not to be boring.

The room is decorated in the rustic elegance that is so often used in the area, with a large wine cellar being the focal point of the room. The restaurant is located up a large flight of stairs, so I'm not too sure how they would handle someone who could not climb them. Service is prompt and friendly, and the quality of food is consistently good.

Favorite Dish: We have tried many items on the menu and have never been disappointed. For sure, try the Baked Alaska with Bananas Foster for dessert -- you'll have to share as it's huge.

Portions are suprisingly large as well. So, just try anything! You will be happy you did. I would be extremely surprised if you had a bad experience here, as I cannot say enough good things about Murrieta's.

This restaurant is so unassuming, that if you weren't careful, you'd actually walk by it. Unless it is about 5:30 pm; then there is a long line of hopefuls who are praying that there was a cancellation that evening or it's slow and they aren't booked up for the night.

The food is THAT good. The chef seems to work magic with whatever fresh ingredients she can get that day. There is a basic menu that is handed to you when you enter, then a handwritten xeroxed one with the offerings for the day, sometimes with words scribbled out or whited out. Who cares about the penmanship? When you sink your teeth into the slow-cooked ribs with polenta and roasted vegetables, your mind is transported elsewhere.

Crazyweed has a stellar reputation in Canmore -- from the friendly, helpful staff to the owner who gives you a friendly wave when you come in. Any errors in your order are handled most graciously -- they actually care that you have an excellent experience in their restaurant.

Favorite Dish: Everything we have had here is excellent, excellent, excellent. There are no other words to describe the quality of food and service. Try any fish dish -- I had the wild BC halibut with mushroom risotto and I was fabulous. The slow cooked beef ribs with garlic mashed potatoes are so good they would make angels weep.

For lunch, try a pizza -- Das Sausage quickly won our hearts or one of their hearty sandwiches. For dessert, try the vanilla bean creme brulee, or the chocolate cake with sun dried cherry sauce, with handwhipped cream -- not stuff from an aerosal can.

Sylvie & Jean François Gouin provide a little bit of France in the Canadian Rockies...this is an award winning restaurant that you must not miss...2 - 3 hours of a dining experience.

Favorite Dish: As soon as you walk in the door, you can close your eyes and instantly you are in France...your first course for the evening is freshly made French Bread accompanied with your choice of creamy butter or duck pâté.

For your next course, you can either select the table d’hôte (a 2 or 4 course meal where you can choose a soup, entrée, dessert, and coffee) or order off the menu. If you order from the menu, I would highly recommend the Salade du Berer (excellent!!!). For your dinner entrée, you can't go wrong with the Melange de Grillad with potatoes and other fresh vegetables. And to finish the evening, why not try the Terrine Chocolat...heaven!!!