Nova Scotia Restaurants

Rocco Scarola left his hometown of Bari, Italy in 1967 and spent the next quarter century honing his culinary expertise in some of the best restaurants in Halifax. By 1992, he was ready to share his knowledge of Southern Italian cuisine––as well as his mother's treasured oven-baked pasta recipe––with the Nova Scotian masses. Together with his wife Gail and head chef Tracey Cromwell, Rocco finally realized his dream of creating a refined, yet relaxed atmosphere where people could come together to enjoy a good meal, hearty conversation, and an opera-singing wait staff. In 2008, he passed his enterprise to his partners of eight years, Hanna and Robert Gibson, who continue to honor the Italian traditions and excellent service that has made Rocco's a success for almost two decades.

Today, diners can still find Rocco's mother's pasta on the brunch menu, featured alongside Rocco's own coveted pizza recipe, built upon his signature handmade crust. Local seafood and meats from nearby Martock Glan Farms put a modern, sustainable spin on classics such as veal limone and zuppa di pesce dell'aragosta (lobster and fiddlehead bisque), and salads are tossed tableside to prove both the freshness of the ingredients and the existence of gravity. Signature pastas include a spaghetti carbonara topped with garlic and scallops and meat lasagna layered with béchamel and a secret ingredient, though servers make no secret of the fact that all pastas are available in whole grain or gluten-free versions for guests with sensitivities.

Owner Todd Abbass founded Stayner's Wharf with the idea of uniting craft beer and cocktails with live entertainment and upscale seafood, steak, and pub fare. So there's plenty of drafts and European wine to be had while dining on top sirloin, pan-fried haddock, granola-crusted French toast, charbroiled burgers, and seafood chowder. The tavern's rows of cozy booths, dark-stained wood, and marble bar top add old-fashioned touches, like a ghost that says "Boo, sir!" and "Boo, ma'am!" Live music mingles with the laughter and conversation, enlivening the surroundings with musical styles ranging from Celtic folk to funk to mambo.

The media pros at Hourglass Media transform old recordings and photographs into high-quality digital files with their advanced, onsite equipment. During film transfers, a technician converts 8-milimetre and Super 8 film to uncompressed files on DVD, ensuring picture fidelity with 700 lines of resolution. Analog media such as audio cassettes, VHS tapes, and vinyl LPs metamorphose into any digital file format, allowing patrons to load old songs onto iPods, share home movies over the internet, and replace every sound on the family computer with an old recording of grandpa snoring. Slide and photo transfers pull the same trick with old pictures and custom video editing further polishes heirloom moving pictures or important present-day footage.

The scent of seared meats and seafood graces the air at E-Pin Grill House. Diners take charge of their meals here, selecting and seasoning foods from the array on their tables before cooking them on the tabletop grill—instead of asking them pointed questions on the tabletop grill. Alternatively, guests can defer to sushi chefs, who slice bright pink cuts of tuna for sashimi platters and maki rolls. They can also pack crimson bento boxes with steaming arrangements of bibimbap and tempura.

After spending 12 years in the corporate world, Chris Smith decided to relinquish his daily suit and tie to pursue a long-time dream of opening a neighbourhood pub. The Dartmouth native elicited the help of friends, family, and a background in carpentry to design and construct the dining room and secret passageways of Jamieson’s Irish-House & Grill, which opened in September 1999. The menu offers traditional Irish seafood, beef, and chicken dishes culled from world-renowned recipes, including Smithwicks beer-battered fish 'n' chips. A lengthy wooden bar houses more than 50 varieties of Scotch, Irish, or blended whiskey as well as several imported beers, both bottled and on draft.

Wyse Photography's shot-snappers attribute their success in capturing memorable family and pet portraits to an abundance of patience and a willingness to embarrass themselves. Goofy sounds and wacky contortions are a few of the key weapons in their arsenal for commanding the attention of infants, toddlers, cats, and dogs. No sitting fee is assessed for studio sessions, and print orders are cheaper by the sheet when ordered in bulk. In addition to specialty portrait services, the image-capturing experts occasionally offer basic photography classes at the studio, on the Internet, or in the Phantom Zone.