Culinary Agritourism

When the menu includes frozen tundra, dancing Auroras, a Tundra Buggy® journey across the Churchill River and a seven course tasting menu, it can only be Dan’s Diner. The least pretentious name on Canada’s culinary scene is a pop-up experience that could only happen in wonderful, Churchill. Providing the region with a class culinary experience that’s a fitting pairing for polar bear-based tourism, Dan’s Diner serves regional and locally inspired ingredients like Arctic char, wild berries and greens sourced from Churchill’s own “Rocket Greens” in a setting you have to see to believe. With an all glass roof for Aurora watching, curated local craft beverages, and Northern storytelling also on the table, this experience from Frontiers North has put Northern Manitoba’s culinary story on the map, enticing diners from around the world.

Manitoba’s major tourist draws have never looked this delicious. Sherbrook Street’s Decadence Chocolates has made a name for itself with signature chocolates used throughout the tourism sector as client gifts celebrating the Manitoba experience. Having clawed into the market by producing hundreds of thousands of chocolate polar bears, this delightful shop has recently expanded to include Northern Lights and Prairie Sky bars (with each hand-painted bar being unique). It was also the first local shop to join the Dubai chocolate craze (giving it a unique local spin) and is a go-to in our industry for chocolate-making classes. Whether it’s partnering with Manitoban companies for unique gifts, or regularly being featured by local media, Decadence Chocolates is a household name in edible creations that pay homage to tourism in Manitoba.

While Selkirk was already known for getting souped up in November during its annual, award-winning Holiday Alley, 2025 was particularly stocked. This vibrant street festival marking the start of holiday season brought out 8,000 people to the streets of this town of 10,000, enticing them with everything from Indigenous dancing and drumming to a storytelling cafe led by new immigrants to games, lights and all the vibrancy only hundreds of people who truly love their town can bring. Adding to these offerings was the Soup Cook Off –– a first of its kind in the province for its 250 participants. After buying a ticket, participants became “soup tourists” and culinary judges who were given four hours and the addresses of 10 local downtown stops where guest cooks were slinging their best soups. This soupy scavenger hunt ended up bowling over everyone’s expectations, with 62 per cent of the participating soup tourists coming from outside the community. With locally produced and purchased ingredients, and ticket sales that go directly to urban development, the Soup Cook Off looks set to become a main course during Holiday Alley for years to come.

A Manitoban Métis pizza party celebrating terroir, Moon Gate Guest House’s Pizza Nights are so much more than a slice of agritourism. On their beautiful riverside prairie property, dine on locally grown, raised and crafted ingredients from producers including Zinn Farms, Archie’s Meats, Creek Meadows, Bothwell Cheese, Sweet Earth Gardens & Greenhouse, Danny’s Market Garden and Wild Song Acres. As the wood-fired oven burns, stories about the region are told and Métis culture is shared, all by chef-host Michel Dupas.

Indigenous foodways, artistic presentation and locally sourced ingredients are all on board at Sharecuterie, a unique cafe and business on Winnipeg’s Stafford Street, with a Forks location that opened in March. Owned and operated by Cassandra Carreiro, an Indigenous food artist who previously worked as a psychiatric nurse, Sharecuterie made its name with customizable charcuterie boxes, and has since expanded to include its stylish sit down cafe and take out counter at The Forks. By using small-scale local producers on her boards and cocktails, highlighting local makers –– particularly local Indigenous makers –– throughout her storefront, and hosting super fun and informative workshops, Carreiro’s Sharecuterie is the jam when it comes to culinary tourism.

On the menu during Thermea Spa Village Winnipeg’s Chef’s Table is a private Aufguss sauna ritual, an amuse-bouche overlooking the beach and a seven-course tasting menu served under the trees. In other words, it’s alfresco turned up to 11. The spa started the experience four years ago, with attendance at the regularly sold-out evenings – now guided by award-winning chef Darnell Banman – having doubled year-over-year. While seated at a giant table made from reclaimed Winnipeg trees, the dishes provide a showcase for local produce and producers selected by chef Banman, with wine pairings by Jones & Co. It’s wellness and luxury personified, and an ideal example of culinary tourism in Winnipeg.