Whether at our home base in the Halifax area or abroad, my wife and I enjoy relaxing over a coffee,…read moreadult beverage or tasty food, and it was in Bannerman that we were hoping to find all three.
We swung by in the early afternoon, just after the lunch crowd at most places would be easing off, but Bannerman was impressively going strong from when we arrived through to our departure!
We were seated at one of their picnic-esque tables near the back of the room, taking in the high ceilings and the lovely work done to reuse this historic fire hall.
I snagged a half pint of one of their light and refreshing lagers, while my wife partook in their caffeinated offerings. It's nice to be able to get both, and the warm, communal feeling of the space was a nice contrast to the cold and clinical vibe that can sometimes come with Third Wave places.
Wanting to refuel after a dizzying hike on the North Head Trail, we ordered the mushroom flatbread, steamed buns, and pierogis.
My wife's mushroom flatbread arrived first, with the not-pizza leaning heavily into savoury, earthy flavours with sauteed, locally harvested mushrooms, shaved truffles, and smoked gouda. While I fundamentally disagree with arugula being on pizzas and their brethren, its peppery bite helped cut through the otherwise rich flatbread.
While I certainly shared my two apps, I was glad to have them mostly to myself!
The food in general isn't inexpensive at Bannerman and $17 for two steamed buns was a bit of a pill to swallow, but the quality was thankfully there to back its price tag. Succulent, shredded pork was jam-packed into the pleasantly-chewy, folded buns, and topped with the contrasting tastes and textures of slices of white onion, crispy onions, and micro greens.
The pierogi of the day had a lentil filling, and the savoury legumes lent themselves well to these deep-fried dumplings. The ultra-crispy exterior easily gave way to the doughy interior and the lentils within. Almost stealing the show was the onion confit sour cream, whose velvety smooth airiness had the perfect amount of caramelized onion flavour. Bannerman could/should sell this stuff on its own!
Even after just one visit, it's easy to see how Bannerman's combination of craft beer,top-notch coffee, creative bites, and a beautiful space in an award-winning adaptive reuse has made for a place that's more than the sum of its parts, and has become a destination for locals and tourists alike.
