Restaurants in Waterloo

After scouring markets for fresh produce, the chefs at La Bella Vita return to the kitchen to knead dough for pizzas and press it into sheets for pasta. Tender gnocchi softens quickly in pans with grilled chicken and roasted mushrooms, and the cooks spoon dollops of lemon-dill yogurt sauce onto cuts of salmon. From an oven emerge pizzas seasoned by imported flames and topped with grilled eggplant, goat cheese, roasted tomatoes, and brie. The metallic chorus of pots and busy knives drifts out into La Bella Vita’s dining room, past leather chairs, and out onto a sunny patio.

Dick's Wings & Grill's spice-emphasizing franchise gathers diners around menus featuring eclectic salads, burgers, sandwiches, and wings. Chicken wings waltz across plates in batches up to 100 pieces dressed in 365 variations of 30 changing sweet and savoury sauces, six dry rub blends, and six levels of heat ranging from none to the restaurant’s secret sauce. Chefs fortify certified Angus-beef burgers with toppings more varied than Charlie Chaplin's bowtie collection, and they cook all dishes using trans fat-free oils. While red walls and bright neon signs surround diners, plates pair with an array of domestic and premium beers ranging from Labatt to Alexander Keith's. The dining area's sports bar atmosphere is filled with paraphernalia such as hockey team photos, and karaoke and trivia nights allow patrons to settle disputes over the best death-metal Beethoven tribute album.