A Toast to Winter - WinterDine 2019

“We wanted to create an event in January which would encourage people to come out into the cold, support local restaurants and socialize with friends, while enjoying a great meal at an excellent prix fix price.”

- Dawn Alan, executive director Downtown Charlottetown

A celebration of fine dining in downtown Charlottetown, Winterdine features prixfixe menus designed to showcase the best of our city’s dining. Participating chefs create unique three-course, dinner menus consisting of an appetizer, entrée, and dessert offered at two price points, $28 or $38 per person (plus taxes and gratuities).

Winterdine, introduced in 2006, is your chance to experience some of Charlottetown’s best dining experiences, explore new restaurants or revisit old favourites.

Dawn Alan, executive director of Downtown Charlottetown explains, “We wanted to create an event in January which would encourage people to come out into the cold, support local restaurants and socialize with friends, while enjoying a great meal at an excellent prix fix price.”

Because Winterdine is price-driven they’ve taken the guess out of “how much will it cost." If you’re on a budget or a young couple with not much disposable cash eating out can be scary. The great price point also means that rather than going out to eat once a month, you can take in all three weekends. Running for three weekends (Thursday to Saturday), Winterdine begins January 24 and finishes off on February 2.

“People have made a 'gathering tradition' of Winterdine,” said Alan, “The same group of friends start in January to plan their Winterdine agenda. Because people choose where to go based on the menu of their choice rather than their favourite restaurant, they’ll try new restaurants which might become their new favourite.”

This event provides an opportunity for chefs to shine - but, reservations are a must as most restaurants are fully booked for this event – book reservations for all three weekends in advance to ensure you are able to sample each restaurant's Winterdine menu. Each participating chef creates special menu items for the event, some include vegetarian, vegan or gluten-free options as well as wine parings.

“We don’t want them to present something from their regular menu at a Winterdine price, they must produce an exceptionally creative and delicious Winterdine menu to stand out in this crowd.” said Alan.

Winterdine has become a winter-must in downtown Charlottetown. It's win-win for diners or restaurant owners, it's a toast to winter.

Visit www.downtowncharlottetown.com for a list of participating restaurants and their menu offerings for Winterdine 2019.

Words by Jacqui Chaisson Photos: Kenny Vail | www.prevailcreative.com