Real food for thought around the holidays

‘Last chance’ clearance U.S. booze punted from Liquor Marts

American alcohol that returned to Manitoba Liquor Mart shelves in May as part of a “last chance” sale is headed back to storage or will be destroyed.

“We are removing U.S. liquor products from Liquor Mart shelves,” a spokesperson for Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries said Thursday. The Crown corporation had been pushing to off-load its stockpile of U.S. booze.

Premier Wab Kinew launched a provincewide boycott of American alcohol in March 2025 to fight back against tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump. Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries has not placed new orders since the boycott began, but it still had inventory.

As of early May, the U.S. inventory had a value of roughly $3.4 million, which is roughly one-third of what was removed from shelves and placed in storage, Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries has said. It was unable to provide an inventory update on Thursday.

‘Not his best work,’ Kinew says of Trump’s order to rename Lake Ontario

An executive order by U.S. President Donald Trump to rename Lake Ontario as Lake America is “sad,” Premier Wab Kinew says.

Winnipeg-based Probe Research acquired by Abacus Data

The results are in: Winnipeg-based market research firm Probe Research has been acquired.

One-hundred per cent of leadership reported being happy with the deal, which sees Probe joining Abacus Data as it seeks to expand nationally.

“This is … the best of both worlds,” said Mary Agnes Welch, a Probe Research partner. “We at Probe get to stay doing the things we’ve always loved to do for Manitobans, but we now get to take those perspectives to the national level.”

Probe Research counts government entities, non-profits and credit unions among its clients. It’s published thousands of surveys during its 32-year tenure, Welch said.

New Skyline: revolving restaurant to reopen atop Fort Garry Place

Come fall, people will once again have the chance to dine more than two dozen storeys above Winnipeg’s downtown.

Alfonso Maury, former owner of Corrientes Argentine Pizzeria, is preparing to reopen the revolving restaurant on the 30th floor of Fort Garry Place. The venue, which has sat empty for the past six years, offers a panoramic view of the city.

Maury is aiming to open Dos Pampas Skyline Restaurant at the beginning of October. He plans to hire around 20 employees, who will prepare and serve an Argentinian-inspired menu he is currently putting together with head chef Norm Pastorin.

Dos Pampas will include seating for 120 customers, Maury said. Additionally, the restaurant will feature a lounge with couches and short tables where guests who have finished their meal but who aren’t ready to leave can enjoy dessert or another drink.

Bisons begin reshaping herd

The Manitoba Bisons turned the page on a storied chapter of the football program on the sidelines last season. This year, another new era dawns on the field.

With quarterback Jackson Tachinski graduated, third-year pivot Cole Anseeuw will take the reins of a younger Bisons offence as it figures out who its core group of playmakers are for the foreseeable future.

“It’s not just (Tachinski),” said head coach Stan Pierre, who enters his second year at the program’s helm. “I think he’s probably the face of this era, but we’re also losing essentially all our offensive backfield production from last year. So that’s really where the challenge lies for us.”

Besides the quarterback, the Bisons also graduated their centre, top two running backs and three of their top receivers. There’s fewer turnovers on defence, but young players will need to step up in the first and third level, as two starting linemen and three defensive backs have left the program.

Owners, agents reviewing bids to purchase Fort Garry Hotel

Downtown Winnipeg’s Fort Garry Hotel is a step closer to a potential sale.

The four-star, 113-year-old hotel’s owners and their agents have been reviewing bids from potential buyers, including the Manitoba Métis Federation, which has confirmed it submitted an offer.

“We are in the process of selecting a buyer for the hotel, as this premier hospitality opportunity has been well received by the investment community,” Curtis Gallagher, principal and Canadian hospitality lead with Avison Young said in a statement to the Free Press.

Multiple bids were received from prospective domestic and international buyers.