ciao! reviews
Global Plate Play
Winnipeg’ s culinary identity has always reflected the people who call it home. Today’ s fast-casual restaurants push that story forward, pairing heritage recipes with local ingredients, contemporary techniques and influences that travel easily across cultures. These four kitchens push familiar cuisines in fresh directions, serving some of the city’ s most exciting food from behind the counter.
Taste of Sri Lanka
new season, new style
918 Grosvenor Ave. 204-975-4605 Tues- Fri 10-6, Sat 10-5
Burrito Del Rio keeps the menu intentionally focused, giving the kitchen time to do the work that matters. Beef braised in ancho-chipotle adobo, citrus-achiote chicken and slow-cooked pulled pork reflect recipes built on time, not shortcuts, all prepared with Manitoba-raised ingredients. The chile-lime camarones are the surprise standout, bringing a bright taste of the coast that might just transport you back to your last Mayan Riviera vacation. It’ s proof that a streamlined menu, executed with care, can still deliver a memorable escape. At Naan Culture, the bread stays rooted in tradition while the fillings travel widely. Fresh naan wraps flavours drawn from India, Korea, Italy and beyond, creating combinations that feel both intuitive and genuinely exciting. Earthy mushrooms, truffle, mozzarella and Parmesan share the menu with bulgogi, kimchi and gochujang cream, each combination held together by excellent bread fresh from the tandoor. Cultural fusion can become a gimmick, but here, every pairing earns its place. For nearly 40 years, Chef Peter Bastian has introduced Winnipeg diners to the layered flavours of Sri Lankan cooking. Taste of Sri Lanka showcases a cuisine shaped by Portuguese, Dutch and British influence, then grounded in the spices and traditions of South Asia. Devilled chicken is coated in the restaurant’ s signature hot sauce for those who like heat. Eggplant moju takes a sweeter path, layering coconut milk, brown sugar and spice into one of the kitchen’ s defining dishes. One spoonful is all it takes to understand why this cuisine has built such a devoted following and continues to broaden palates, one bowl at a time. The turquoise-tiled oven is the centrepiece at Winnibakes, turning out blistered flatbreads, manakeesh and crisp savoury pies throughout the day. Lebanese baking traditions anchor the menu. Shawarma crowns fresh flatbreads, while flaky phyllo wraps seasoned beef, herbs and sweet grape tomatoes into a Levantine riff on the Italian pizza pie. It’ s the kind of thoughtful reinterpretation that evolves cultural fusion into something deliciously inevitable.
28 ciao! / aug / sep / two thousand twenty-six