There's no question about it: Canada is widely known around the world for its poutine. While this country's poutine is second to none, there's so much more to love about Canada's cuisine. It's not always fries, gravy, and cheese curds!
From a unique take on pizza (sorry, New York City) to a twist on sweets, Canada is full of surprises when it comes to comfort food. Plenty of French influences helped to shape many of this country's traditional dishes and we're totally here for it. Take a seat, settle in, and get ready to seek out these Canadian faves next time you're in town.
Canadian Pizza
In all honesty, there's nowhere that does pizza like NYC, which is home to some of the best places for this cheesy, greasy delight. However, Canada has its own take on the dish and it looks quite different from what the rest of the world knows.
This thin-crust pizza is more like a flatbread or a thick tortilla chip than a regular crust and comes with toppings that don't necessarily fit the typical "pizza" idea. That's what makes it so great, though - the fact that combinations are endless, the crispy crunch of the crust, and the flavor profiles that are constantly being mixed and matched. It's a unique experience, to say the least.
Butter Tarts
These just sound good. Anything with butter is automatically far better than other sweets, and butter tarts are an essential part of Canada's sweet snack routine. With a slightly flaky crust, the interior of this tart is made entirely of butter, sugar, and egg, similar to a custard.
Just like crumb cake or muffin would be found in a coffee shop in the US, butter tarts are commonly found in Canadian cafes and are served alongside a steamy cup of hot coffee. The biggest challenge isn't finding one of these... it's being able to just eat one!
Nanaimo Bars
Speaking of sweets, Nanaimo bars are an absolutely necessity when eating in Canada. These tiny chocolate dessert bars are famous for their roots, which go back as far as 1952 when the first recipe for them was found.
The base of this dessert bar consists of a crumb mixture and is then topped with melted chocolate and, finally, a vanilla-flavored icing. While it's incredibly sweet, it's also delicious and definitely one of the most popular after-dinner guilty pleasures in the country. It's also fairly easy to make at home, and some might argue that's the only true way to eat one.
Tourtière
This is one of the oldest-known Canadian foods. The tourtière is a meat pie, but it's so much better than the typical meat pie that most people think of.
Stuffed to the crust with a savory, mix of ground beef, including pork, veal, and beef - or occasionally gamey meat - herbs and spices, this dish is popular around the holidays.
However, it's pretty easy to find this dish on the menu year-round in Quebec, and it's so popular that you can even find it in Canadian grocery stores. Similar to Nanaimo bars, this dish can easily be made at home as well (even if you don't live in Canada!) and really should be, especially if you've never had the pleasure of trying this wintery comfort dish before.