OpenTable recently unveiled its Top 100 Restaurants in Canada for 2024 and two Vancouver Island restaurants made the cut.
The Dining Room at Butchart Gardens and Ugly Duckling in Victoria join 10 Vancouver establishments on the iconic list. Other locations in BC with restaurants on the list include Kelowna and Whistler.
“This year’s Top 100 list celebrates the incredible culinary diversity throughout the country. Our goal is to provide the perfect restaurant for any occasion,” says Matt Davis, Canada country director at OpenTable.
“From local treasures like Dovetail in Vancouver, to buzzworthy spots like Matty Matheson’s Prime Seafood Palace in Toronto, the list for diners, by diners, has everyone covered, from coast to coast.”
The list is compiled from analysing more than one million diner reviews, along with diner ratings, reservation demand and percentage of five-star reviews among other factors.
Trends on the Dining Scene
According to OpenTable, dining out is up 11 percent year-over year, and new consumer research shows over half (51 percent) of Canadians plan to dine out more in 2025 than in 2024.
“The Canadian dining scene is continuing to evolve,” says Davis.
“Canadians are breaking away from traditional patterns by embracing mid-week dining, which is good news for restaurants as these times can be typically quieter, as well as craving unique culinary experiences and group dining. The even better news—these trends are set to continue in 2025, according to new research.”
Non-traditional dining times are on the rise, with OpenTable data showing an increase in late lunches at 3pm and early dinners from 4 to 6pm.
When it comes to choosing a day of the week to dine, Wednesdays saw the largest increase in seated diners year-over-year compared to any other day. Diners are also planning to continue this trend into 2025, with 49 percent of Canadians planning to dine out on Wednesdays if they were to dine out mid-week.
Diners Are Saying ‘In with the New’
OpenTable reported a 64 percent increase year-over-year in “experience dining.” The OpenTable website defines “experience dining” as “restaurants showing you the best they have to offer … from tasting menus to wine pairings and more.”
Consumer research showed that 39 percent of Canadians said they would be more interested in experiential dining in 2025 than they were in 2024. The most popular kinds of experiences they were interested in trying were tasting menus (36 percent), special deals/promotional offers (35 percent) and dinner and a show (34 percent).
Desire to Share Moments & Meals
This year saw an 18 percent increase in group dining (six or more people) year-over-year—the largest increase out of any party size, with the most popular days for group dining being Mother’s Day and Father’s Day.
This trend is set to continue in 2025, with nearly half (45 percent) saying they expect to dine out with big groups more than they did in 2024, and 72 percent of Canadians tend to choose a restaurant as the venue for celebrating special occasions.
The list spotlights a range of restaurants, from neighbourhood gems to award-winning venues, including 53 in Ontario, 16 in Alberta, 15 in British Columbia, 13 in Quebec, two in Saskatchewan and one in Newfoundland. View the full list at opentable.ca.
