Rae’s Bistro + Lounge a welcome addition

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This article was published 16/12/2016 (3418 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

North Kildonan’s newest restaurant, Rae’s Bistro + Lounge, is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Zack Clarke, one of the co-owners,  told me about Rae’s mission and menu as we sat amidst the wonderful seasonal decor in one of the comfy corner booths.

“The general concept of the restaurant is a dining room; there is a bar but the community is more geared around going for a nice dinner,” said Clarke.

“One of our big plans is to cover the feature wall in a chalk board motif for our rotating menu. We always want to have something new for you to try,” Clarke explained.

“If you are here three or four times a week, month or year, you are going to get that same, new-menu feel. This community seems to be really responsive to that, they want to experiment that way and hopefully we can grow together.”

Zack’s passion for locally produced food, beer and talent is evident throughout the establishment.

“One of the focuses for our menu is to source local suppliers. We have some of the best vegetables and fish here. We always have five fixed items for lunch and dinner that are local and fresh. We will play around with seasonal fruit flavours on our meats and in sauces,” he said.

The beer taps will have a constant rotation of brews, as well.

“We partnered with Winnipeg’s Torque Brewery, and North Kildonan’s own Sean Dolenuck, who is a Canadian Top 10 sommelier, built the wine menu,” Clarke said. 

Chef Mike Ozero is becoming famous for his variety of mussel dishes, steaks, pickerel, incredible, fall-off-the-bone ribs, authentic pastas and soon he’ll be adding gourmet pizzas.

The superior chicken wings and delicious pork belly appetizers are signs that quality is paramount at Rae’s. Ozero uses an in-house smoker, so if you like bacon and ribs with real flavour, this is the place to be.

“It’s unbelievable as a restaurateur or anyone who works here as a chef, server, bartender, it’s such a great opportunity to invite someone into a building like this and have them fall in love with our food and stay tuned to what it is we are doing in the kitchen and behind the bar, taking care of people,” Clarke said.

“When you hear people tell you how happy they are that we are here and they are just as pleased with what we did for them, there isn’t a better feeling.”

Breakfast at Rae’s is served from 8 until 11 a.m. and until 1 p.m. on Sundays; lunch runs until 4 p.m.; dinner starts around 4:30 p.m. and the bar closes at 1 a.m. 

Look for Rae’s Bistro + Lounge on Facebook and Instagram for more information.

Evan Comstock is a community correspondent for North Kildonan.