This rural restaurant in Niagara, Ont., tops list of best 100 places to eat in Canada

Samantha Beattie · CBC News

· Posted: May 07, 2025 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 11 minutes ago

A "little, tiny corner" of the Niagara region is present location to the champion edifice successful Canada.

Restaurant Pearl Morissette in the Lincoln, Ont., neighbourhood of Jordan Station has won the apical spot connected Canada's Best 100 Restaurants List for 2025.

It's the archetypal clip a agrarian fine-dining constitution has made it to the apical of the yearly ranking, said Eric Robertson, 39, who opened the edifice with chap cook Daniel Hadida, 37, in 2017 out of the winery with the aforesaid name. 

"We are truthful precise excited and blessed we're capable to showcase the small tiny country of Niagara," Robertson said. 

The ranking is decided by 160 judges from crossed the country, according to the organization.

Pearl Morissette's French-inspired paper features section ingredients that alteration with the seasons. 

It was already a sought-after spot with its 40 seats reserved months successful advance. Then past autumn it was awarded a prestigious Michelin prima and present is astatine the apical of the coveted rankings, indicating engaged and breathtaking months ahead, said Robertson. 

"It comes with the work of showcasing incredible Canadian ingredients, the farmers that we person astir this country and the prime of unit we person successful Canada," helium said. 

"This is simply a state that tin beryllium taken earnestly connected the planetary signifier for cooking and restaurants and hospitality."

European eating successful Canada

Before Pearl Morissette, Robertson and Hadida some near Canada to get acquisition moving in Michelin-star winning restaurants successful Europe, arsenic galore young cooks do, Robertson said. The archetypal Michelin stars weren't awarded to immoderate Canadian restaurants until years aboriginal successful 2022.

Robertson, primitively from Brantford, Ont., lived in Belgium, Sweden and France earlier moving to the Niagara region.

He soon realized the European thought of "destination dining," surrounded by farmland, was imaginable successful Canada, too. 

"We person those large ingredients here, too," Robertson said. "Niagara is 1 of the warmest parts of Canada. We are capable to get figs and persimmons and beauteous water food and chaotic ingredients similar mushrooms, which are going to beryllium coming up aft today with the prima out." 

The 2025 database was revealed Monday night. 

"We judge the 2025 database is an close measurement of which restaurants excelled successful 2024, which makes them our eating choices for today," Canada's Best 100 says connected its website. 

The different restaurants connected the database are successful the large cities of Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Calgary and Ottawa. Canada's Best also ranks caller restaurants and the apical 50 bars.

The apical 10 restaurants successful 2025 are: 

1. Restaurant Pearl Morissette, Jordan Station
2. Mon Lapin, Montreal
3. Alo, Toronto
4. Edulis, Toronto
5. 20 Victoria, Toronto
6. Eight, Calgary
7. Beba, Montreal
8. Quetzal, Toronto
9. Published connected Main, Vancouver
10. AnnaLena, Vancouver

Pearl Morissette posted connected Instragram after its triumph was announced.

"This task has ever been astir community, astir gathering relationships with tiny artisans, millers, farmers and fisherfolk sharing the aforesaid doctrine arsenic we bash - uplifting Canadian nutrient with minimal intervention, showcasing it successful a good eating version, to marque our guests admit what our fields, forests, lakes, rivers and seas person to offer,"  the edifice said.