The Prince and The Hawker

The last time I was in Banff, we were looking for a breakfast joint on our last day. We wanted something quick since we were driving to Calgary for the Calgary Stampede that day. A look on Google Maps brought us to Bare Bistro. Situated on the outskirts of town in an industrial area, it was on the way to Hwy 1 for us. The customer reviews were also stellar, so we thought, why not?

Walking in, we were greeted by the enthusiastic owner. Though the cafe is fairly small, we saw a steady stream of regular customers throughout our stay. As we settled in, the owner struck up a conversation with us. It turns out she and her husband have over 20 years of professional culinary experience and have worked in Dubai and Bermuda before finally settling in Banff.

They opened their cafe after working in numerous luxury hotel restaurants. She baked delicious treats and her husband cooked savoury meals. I got into a discussion with the owner about her baked goods, in which she utilises mostly sourdough starters. She said that her goal was to increase the popularity of sourdough as a starter in North America.

This resonated with me since in my opinion, most of us North Americans think of sourdough only in terms of a loaf of sourdough bread. However, living in Europe, sourdough as a starter for diverse bakes is common. For example, when used in sweet goods and desserts, it creates a wonderful depth of flavour and tender texture.

All this talk got us even hungrier, so we ordered some food.

Time to Eat at Bare Bistro

We started with smoked salmon eggs royale. Though it’s a typical brunch dish, Bare Bistro’s rendition stood out from the pack. In particular, the hollandaise on top was wonderfully tart with a bit of spiciness. The owner was very proud of their homemade sauce.

As we saw multiple people come in to get them to go, we of course had to have one of the huge sticky buns too. The aforementioned sourdough base brought intense flavour to the buns, helped by the glaze and toasted hazelnuts on top. I can see why these are so popular with the locals.

I was so excited, I just gobbled mine up before I took a photo. But I snapped a photo of the ones in the display case.

Final Thoughts

Bare Bistro is a hidden gem just outside the centre of the resort town of Banff. While it’s on the outskirts, it’s really only a 5-minute drive and well worth the detour.

Locally owned and super friendly, Bare Bistro offers up tasty meals and irresistible sourdough-based baked goods. Whether you want to sit in or get something quick to go, Bare Bistro is worth a visit.