New Skyline Revolving restaurant to reopen atop Fort Garry Place By: Aaron Epp Posted: 5:37 PM CDT Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2026

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.

The restaurant will be open for supper each week from Tuesday through Saturday, with occasional brunch and lunch events. Customers will receive two hours of free parking, Maury said.

The restaurateur declined to share how much he’s investing in the new venture, and acknowledged the industry has changed significantly since the COVID-19 pandemic. Staff are more interested in work-life balance, food costs have cut into profits and customers are more discerning when it comes to eating out.

“(We wanted) to bring back this spot to the city and with a concept of food that we like.”

Maury said money was not a motivating factor when he and Roxana, his wife of 42 years, were talking about starting Dos Pampas.

“(We wanted) to bring back this spot to the city and with a concept of food that we like,” he said. “We are here to enjoy this project and make it nice for everyone — for the customers and for us, because the employees are such a big part of any project.”

Born and raised in Buenos Aires, Maury spent nearly a decade living in Israel before moving to Manitoba in 2011 with Roxana and their three children.

Dos Pampas won’t be his first experience with the revolving restaurant. The 60-year-old was the executive chef at Prairie 360, which occupied the venue from 2013 until 2020.

Maury contacted Edison Properties, which owns Fort Garry Place, in February as part of his search for an industrial parsley chopper that had stood in Prairie 360’s kitchen. He wanted it for La Pampa Empanadas, a specialty food shop he owns that has two locations in the city.

A representative from Edison Properties told Maury the company was looking for a new tenant to take over the revolving restaurant, and asked if he might be interested. Soon, he was drafting a business plan.

“We need to have a restaurant up there. It’s been a gaping hole in the hospitality environment ever since (Prairie 360) closed.”

It’s the sixth venture Maury’s been involved with since arriving in Winnipeg 15 years ago.

He was on staff at Nicolino’s, Hermanos Steakhouse and Prairie 360 before working at Corrientes Argentine Pizzeria in the East Exchange District. He purchased Corrientes in 2015 (and sold it last year) and started La Pampa Empanadas in 2017.

When asked how he’s feeling about starting Dos Pampas, Maury said “excited” is not the first word that comes to mind.

“There’s a lot of work to do, but it’s still what I love to do in my life,” he said. “I’m happy and with a lot of hope. I think that is the feeling. It’s a challenge, but challenges make us live longer and have a reason to be, especially if you love what you do.”

The arrival of Dos Pampas is exciting for downtown Winnipeg and the city as a whole, says Shaun Jeffrey, chief executive of the Manitoba Restaurant & Foodservices Association.

“To have the courage to reopen the revolving restaurant really lifts the spirits of the industry,” Jeffrey said. “We need to have a restaurant up there. It’s been a gaping hole in the hospitality environment ever since (Prairie 360) closed.”

Situated at 83 Garry St., Fort Garry Place stands south of the Fort Garry Hotel. Edison Properties began building it in October 1986.

The revolving restaurant opened as the Royal Crown in 1988, and was operated by the Gill Family Trust until 2008. The space rotated a full 360 degrees every 70 minutes. After a four-year hiatus, the iconic landmark was given new life when restaurateur Noel Bernier opened Prairie 360 in November 2013.

The apparatus that spins the restaurant hasn’t been used in six years, so staff from Edison Properties are working to get it up and running in time for opening day.

“Hopefully, it will,” Maury said. “It should be.”

aaron.epp@freepress.mb.ca