Banff Restaurants and Dining

(Banff, Alberta - AB, Canada)



As you would expect at a thriving resort townsite, Banff offers plenty of dining venues and restaurants, which range from fast-food outlets to five-star restaurants in the heart of downtown Banff. There are more than 100 restaurants in Banff, which is the highest number per head than anywhere else in the whole of Canada.

Cuisines are varied at restaurants in Banff and include many ethnic dishes, together with fancy nouvelle-frontier food. Chinese, Greek, Japanese, Italian, Mexican and South American eateries are all well represented in Banff, with French restaurants and coffee shops being particularly popular in the central Banff area.


Opening Hours

Although Banff is fairly small, restaurants usually conform to typical Canadian opening hours, although some dining venues may vary. Breakfast venues in Banff start to open from 06:00 and many of the cafés in the downtown area are filled up from 08:00 to 09:00. Banff's lunchtime restaurants are generally open by 12:00, closing at 15:00, although a number of restaurants do open earlier to serve brunch and late breakfasts.

Ottawa's evening dining scene usually begins at 18:00, with restaurants remaining open until 22:30 or later, particularly at the end of the week. Some restaurants in central Banff offer early-bird discounts, to encourage dining outside of their peak hours.

Where to Eat in Banff

The cheapest places to eat in Banff are without doubt the hostel cafés, where you will find a reasonable selection of food. A popular choice for breakfast, hostel cafés are particularly inexpensive, although the many coffee shops and cafés that line Banff Avenue are equally popular. Often featuring outdoor seating areas, cafés along Banff Avenue offer tasty snacks, pastries and coffee, and provide a useful place to stop and relax when exploring the town. Banff Avenue is also home to a large selection of excellent restaurants, steakhouses and pizzerias, serving top-notch food at a fairly modest price. Some of Canada's best gourmet restaurants stand along Banff Avenue and may require advance reservations.

Most hotels in Banff contain a least one restaurant, which is usually open to non-residents, and these are amongst some of the best places to eat, although the menus are often fairly limited. Central pubs and bars are also extremely popular, serving glorified bar snacks in dining areas. Many pubs and bars in Banff also feature live entertainment at times and are always popular with skiers and snow boarders visiting during the winter months.

Banff contains fewer fast-food restaurants than you would expect and most of the area is free from the notable chain outlets. This gives Banff a homely feel and snack food is more varied, with many central pizza restaurants, sandwich shops and bakeries.