On Thursday, November 12, Air Canada‘s enRoute Magazine held a gala at The Ritz Carlton hotel in Toronto to celebrate this year’s top 10 best new restaurants in Canada. Guests met the chefs and sample some of their dishes, giving them a taste of why they made this year’s list.

The top 10 restaurants in order are:
1. Pigeonhole (Calgary, AB)
2. Port City Royal (Saint John, NB)
3. Pilgrimme (Galiano Island, BC)
4. DaiLo (Toronto, ON)
5. Bar Raval (Toronto, ON)
6. AnnaLena (Vancouver, BC)
7. Adelaide Oyster House (St. John’s, NL)
8. Yasu (Toronto, ON)
9. Enoteca (Winnipeg, MB)
10. Soif (Gatineau, QC)

Three Toronto restaurants made the top 10, with Dailo, Bar Raval, and Yasu taking the 4th, 5th, and 8th spots, respectively. We were there when DaiLo first opened and I was there just this past summer to sample their tasting menu. We congratulate Chef Nick Liu and his team for their well-deserved recognition. While unfortunately Bar Raval and Yasu could not attend, Toronto foodies know that these are two of the hottest restaurants in the city right now.

This year, the top new restaurant honour went to Pigeonhole from Calgary. On this evening, Chef Justin Leboe and his team prepared a delicious rabbit mortadella and doughnut dish. And while all of the bites were amazing, my favourites of the night were the playfully named Newfoundland “BLT” from Adelaide Oyster House, consisting of pork belly, lingonberry compote, and torched tuna, and the sturgeon mousse and caviar on buckwheat toast from Port City Royal. The people’s choice award went to Vancouver’s AnnaLena, and tonight they served oysters with foie gras.

Congratulations to all of the restaurants who made this year’s top 10! To learn more about these restaurants, read about them on enRoute’s website:
enRoute Magazine
Twitter: @enroutemag #enroutetop10
Instagram: @enroutemag #enroutetop10

Also checkout our coverage of enRoute’s best new restaurants for 2014 and 2013.

Photos by John Tan

In Photos: Design Exchange KISMET
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John Tan

John is an avid traveller, but equally loves being a tourist in his own city. With camera in hand, he enjoys discovering the sights, sounds, tastes, and everything else that Toronto has to offer. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram (@iam_johntan) to see what he's been up to lately.