Winnipeg: Fun Flaneur Finds & Hidden Gems For Tourists
Wherever I go I am always on the lookout for fun things to see and do, especially those in off-the-beaten path places. In cities like Winnipeg where I lived for 14 months and have visited frequently over the past 50 years you would think it would be hard to find new fun places. But not so.
Here are some recent fun finds (from cookies to blue jeans, art to violins) that I think would interest many visiting (or even living in) Winnipeg.
Winnipeg is becoming known for its fun winter outdoor activities like this ice climbing tower that is 20-meter high in St. Boniface, the city’s French Quarter next to Red River, just across from downtown.
Imperial Cookies
Who knew Winnipeggers have a sweet tooth for “Imperial Cookies,” (or what the rest of the world calls “Empire Cookies”)? I didn’t know this, despite having a huge, sweet tooth and eaten them many times before.
Dropping into San Vito Coffee House on Portage Avenue for a quick lunch shortly after landing, I was surprised when my wife said “lets also get a couple of Imperial cookies.” Usually, it is me who is lobbying for a cookie or something sweet for lunch.
Turns out Imperial Cookies are the “unofficial official” cookie of Winnipeg - and are available in coffee shops around the city. Supposedly the best Imperial cookies come from two bakeries - High Tea Bakery and Goodies Bake Shop. Our San Vito’s were from Goodies. Perhaps my next visit will include a visit to both bakeries for a taste test.
Even Wikipedia’s Imperial Cookie page has a special mention of Winnipeg:
“An Empire biscuit (Imperial biscuit, Imperial cookie, double biscuit, German biscuit, Belgian biscuit, double shortbread, Empire cookie or biscuit bun) is a sweet biscuit eaten in Scotland, and other Commonwealth countries. It is popular in Northern Ireland, and it is an iconic dish in Winnipeg, Canada.”
Nobody is quite sure why this Scottish delight is so popular in Winnipeg but here are some blogs with some of the theories.
Link: Empire Cookie or as they call it in Winnipeg Imperial Cookie
Link: Winnipeg’s best Imperial Cookies
Link: Imperial Delight
FYI: I highly recommend San Vito’s Hillary’s Honey Dill Chicken & Bacon Wrap, with Hillary’s secret mustard.
Sargent Jeans
I’m embarrassed to admit I had never heard of Sargent Jeans until my wife came back from her last visit to Winnipeg raving about how great they were in helping find the right fit for her “tricky to fit” brother.
Located in a non-descript building on Sargent Avenue, just outside the City Centre, one might easily dismiss it. That would be a BIG mistake.
They have 10,000+ jeans at any given time, including top brands like Lois, Roughrider, Silver, Buffalo, Elyse and my favourite - “Judge & Jury” with a label that says, “DISTURBING THE PEACE.”
Owner Sam Tassi, told me they sell more Silver Jeans than any other retailer in Manitoba and have the largest selection of Dickies apparel in Central Canada. They also do a booming business shipping jeans to small communities in dozens of remote northern Canadian communities.
But what really distinguishes Sargent Jeans from other retailers is their friendly and knowledgeable service. They offer on-the-spot hemming and alterations. They immediately recognized my wife (who has only been there twice; the last time a few months ago) and were more than willing to let us look around.
Sargent Jeans is a unique hidden gem, and definitely worth a visit if you are looking for jeans - 1136 Sargent Avenue.
Underground Circus
Hidden below Winnipeg’s infamous Portage and Main intersection are pedestrian tunnels that allow you to “cross the street.” Originally called the “nucleus,” it eventually became known as the “circus.” In the middle is a huge circular concrete mural by the late Winnipeg artist, Bruce Head (who is represented in hundreds of private and public collections including the National Gallery of Canada.)
At 400 feet in circumference, it is the largest concrete artwork in Canada. It functions much like a merry-go-round, but with the animals being replaced by hundreds of cut-outs that remind me of Herri Matisse’s famous cut-outs, as well as the blocks of flat colours used by many indigenous artists including Norval Morriseau. And instead, of the merry-go-round turning, you have to walk around it, which I did and it was quite fun. Kids would love it.
It took me 4 minutes to walk around the mural. Below is an excerpt from that video.
It functions much like a merry-go-round, but with the animals being replaced by hundreds of cut-outs that remind me of Herri Matisse’s famous cut-outs (right), as well as the blocks of flat colours used by many indigenous artists including Norval Morriseau.
Arctic Block
Whether it was by design or by chance, the block of Colony Street between St. Mary’s an Portage Avenue has five white buildings that make me think of the Canada’s arctic. A very brave choice for a city often ridiculed for its cold winters. FYI: I lived on Colony Street two blocks south of the Arctic Block in 1976/77.
WAG
The Winnipeg Art Gallery (WAG) which opened 1971, was perhaps one of the first Canadian cultural buildings with an iconic contemporary design. The gallery sits on a triangular site, which served as inspiration for the building’s triangular shape with a razor edge facing Portage Avenue. The smooth, off-white Manitoba Tyndall stone façade and dramatic shape has always reminded me of an iceberg or perhaps an icebreaker ship. WAG was designed by Canadian architect Gustavo da Roza.
The Inuk Style exhibition presents the diversity of clothing produced in Canada’s Arctic.
Cliff Eyland: Library of Babel - A Retrospective celebrates the life and work of the late Winnipeg artist, curator, writer and educator. The video is definitely work watching. I loved the thousands of small index card size artworks that range from romantic landscapes to playful surreal figures. There are wonderful permanent installations of Eyland’s work in the lobbies of the the Halifax and Winnipeg Central Libraries.
Its was fun to find an exhibition of Calgary artist Greg Payce at WAG. An installation of similar contemporary vessels can be found at the Calgary International Airport.
At first these objects look like playful chessmen, but look closer at the interplay of positive and negative space and you will see many human forms.
Loved this hallway exhibition profiling WAG’s permanent collection off European and Canadian art.
The juxtaposition of Bertram Brooker’s “Sounds of Assembling” 1928 (left), with Lawren Harris’s “Clouds, Lake Superior” 1923 (right), was a stroke of genius.
I hope there are plans in place to enhance the WAG’s old entrance that is dark and drab.
Buhler Centre
Just north north of the Winnipeg Art Gallery sits the Buhler Centre, is a stark white box with strange tiny protruding rectangles, that create an ever-changing façade as the shadows expand and contract. Designed by Winnipeg’s David Penner Architects, in many ways the building looks like a modern take on the WAG.
Downtown Commons
Downtown Commons, a 14-storey apartment building which is part of the University of Winnipeg campus, was designed by LM Architectural Group. The building has a strange street presence as it is raised 30-feet above grade to allow for the future expansion of the Plug-In Gallery next door. It too is dominated by its cold white façade.
Muse Flats
Muse Flats is also a 14-storey white residential tower. Designed by Michael Maltzan Archtiects, its unique shape is the result of fusing five towers / blocks of different heights together to maximize the number of corner units. There is a playful element to the building as the windows are different sizes and their placement is randomized. It has the feeling of a modern urban igloo.
Qaumajuq Inuit Art Centre
Most recently the Qaumajuq Inuit Art Centre (the world’s first purpose-built Inuit arts centre) opened as part of the Winnipeg Art Gallery. Its façade is the polar opposite to that of WAG with several wavy curves and rounded edges that contrast nicely with the angularity of the original building. It too looks like an iceberg.
At night, the façade can also be used as a screen on which to project images of Inuit artwork or northern lights.
In the lobby of Qaumajuq is a four-storey glass vault packed with 5,000 carvings. While it can be hard to see some of the works due to reflections, it is much better than having them stored where nobody can see them.
This oculus skylight immediately reminded me of the oculus in Calgary’s Central Library and the canoe hanging in the roof, reminded me of the canoe embedded in the Hyatt Regency hotel lobby’s roof in Downtown Calgary.
Cecil Clarence Richards Gallery
If you find yourself near the RBC Winnipeg Convention Centre (the corner of Edmonton St and York St), wander up to the second floor to the Cecil Clarence Richards Gallery. You will find a dozen or so of his sculptures including “The Gathering” a dark stone sculpture that contrasts dramatically with the huge chalk-white wavy wall. Richards opened the Department of Sculpture at the University of Manitoba in 1951 and served as its department head until 1966.
Orest’s Violin Barbershop
While thrifting at the little Goodwill, in the tiny Point West Shopping Centre (3441 Portage Ave), I noticed the sign on Orest’s Barber Shop indicated they also sold violins. I couldn’t resist going in and asking what this was all about. I know it is trendy these days to combine a barber shop with another businesses but a violin shop!
Turns out Mr. Orest has been selling violins for 25+ years while cutting hair. I don’t think the violins are anything special, but the shop is a bit like a kitchy violin museum with paraphernalia everywhere.
So, if you are heading out of town on Portage Avenue and need to stretch your legs, drop into the Pointe West Shopping Centre for some thrifting, maybe a haircut, and maybe even pick up that violin you have always been meaning to get.
Fun Flaneur Finds
And of course, whenever I visit a city, I have to check out their thrift stores. Here is a little photo essay of some of the thrift store finds, as well as a few street photography shots taken from a bus ride and flaneur finds while wandering the streets.
If you are Portage Place on the upper floor is the Upbeat Artworks Gallery and Studio where you will find some very interesting and affordable art. Each work is the creation of someone’s personal journey of mental health recovery through creative expression. Would love to see something like this in one of Calgary’s empty downtown retail spaces.
I had to add this to my vinyl collection.
I resisted adding this to my library.
I can’t believe someone hasn’t snatched these two gems up.
Anyone know what this is used for?
I am a sucker for weird things on the side of buildings.
Wander along Waterfront Avenue to discover contemporary architecture, like the Mere Hotel.
Winnipeg has many heritage fire stations like this one on Sargent Avenue.
Last Word
I have a strong hunch – based on my most recent trip – there are more Winnipeg fun flaneur finds in my future! My biggest disappointment on this trip was I didn’t get to skate on the Nestaweya River Trail at the Forks and test out the warming huts - it was just too cold to be outside for more than 5 minutes.
If you like this blog there is a good chance these links will interest you:
Salisbury House: Restaurant & Museum!