5 Best Wine Bars near Waterloo

“We dined here with kids on a Tuesday night, and the restaurant was full! There’s parking available behind the restaurant, which was convenient. We enjoyed the lively atmosphere and the warm, attentive service. The food was tasty overall. I gave 4 stars because the escargot was much smaller than I remember from dining elsewhere. At the end of our meal, we were given a survey card, which showed the management’s commitment to ensuring excellent service. - Xiang“

“A high end restaurant around here used to be a business casual dress code, featured a lightly seasoned steak, a prime rib dinner, a dynamite caesar salad, a pasta dish, a seafood dish a few other signatures with an extensive wine list. All the food was made from quality ingredients, expertly prepared and the service was professional and caring. All of this is still expected in high end dining but one thing I felt was absent for a while was originality. I still fancy the local favourites but it was hard to find something unfamiliar. In the last decade, Waterloo has been invaded with delightfully unique higher end dining ventures. Steaks served with aggressive and colourful sauces. First course flavour explosions served out of a micro spoon. Exotic treasures from the sea like octopus or blow torched fish instead of grilled. The palate of the Kitchener-Waterloo region is expanding and in my opinion, for the better. The latest addition to our fine dining core is Babylon Sisters, a wine bar where simplicity done well is taken seriously, like a tuxedo. A black and white colour scheme, accented by silver, button bound leather bar stools softly lit by candle light. The Art Deco ambience is quietly stated above the sight lines. The long narrow venue is subtly divided into a bar, to a high top seated dining room and then into a retro 70’s high back vinyl booth seating area. The patio is vibrant, connected to adjacent venues. It’s very southern U.S. or Caribbean in it’s street social vibe. The two menus consist of two things: One is Wine. One is food to compliment the wine. It’s a bold statement to start your wine menu off in Canada with Ontario wines if you want to be recognized as a wine bar. Too often Ontario wine is poo pooed but to me, it just tells me whoever does the menu here has taste because Ontario has world wide award winning wines. Beyond the local selections, lots of old world wines, not the usual's you see on menus in town and offered in three ounce portions. A great concept to anyone who desires the variety of different wine flavours but doesn’t want to spend a fortune on higher end wine. Not to mention doesn’t want to drink two bottles worth of wine just to get variety. I went with the classic accompaniments with my wines, olives and cheese. A great mix of pitted olives. Queens, kalamata and cocktails, oiled up with a garlic clove. They were salty, fresh and firm. The cheese was a mix of brie, camembert and blue. I thought it was going to be mild, mild and explosive blue cheese but alas, the camembert and brie were far from mild. Normally I find those cheeses bland but they were carefully selected and well prepared. The camembert was woody and earthy. The Brie was almost whipped. The texture of the cheeses when topped on the bread turned the chewy bread into a supple ball of joy. When mixed with either the honey preserve or onion butter it was out of this world. The combination of the olives, cheese, pastes, wine and ambience was nothing like anything else in town. Oddly, across the street I could see Streetlights, another newer venue in town. A fruity coloured place that lives where Chainsaw used to be and it’s something, again, unfamiliar. All of this felt like an escape. I went in and out of Babylon Sisters expecting a nice drink but instead felt like I had a vacation. This is what I always want from a venue. Something unique. Something to take the rest of my day away so I can just enjoy the moment. Hats off to this brilliant new place.“

“Whether it is sitting and writing in my journal, or if I need to focus and work on my laptop, or simply having a chat over coffee with a friend, i find Cafe22 to be one of the most special cafes in the Kitchener-Waterloo area! I am so grateful I found this special spot, which I consider a hidden gem! An absolutely charming, cozy, and relaxing atmosphere and decoration; delicious food and beverages; and most importantly an extremely kind and welcoming staff! I have to say that Daniela’s friendliness and genuine care and warmth add a lot to the whole experience as well! Highly recommended!“

“What a wonderful establishment. For the last couple of years my wife and I have chosen to celebrate our wedding anniversary there. The service, food and wine is fantastic. This year, they had a live musical act that provided a great soundtrack to fit the evening.“

“I stopped here for lunch with two other people while they had their Día de los Muertos special menu and really enjoyed the food. We shared some guacamole and yuca fries for starters and both were delicious. We all got pork tamales for the main course and absolutely loved it. It was so flavourful and cooked to perfection. I wish it was part of their regular menu because it was so good! I'll definitely be back to try other items from their menu.“