Where to Eat Near the Halifax Citadel
Visiting the Halifax Citadel? Where to eat on the walk down, when to sit down to miss the lunch rush, what to order, and what to do after.
Barrios Restaurant & Bar
9/28/20264 min read
After the Citadel: Where to Eat in Downtown Halifax
A morning up on Citadel Hill usually ends the same way. You come back down the hill hungry. Downtown is close enough that lunch can be the next stop on the same walk instead of a separate trip.
Here is a simple plan for the rest of the day: the walk down, when to sit, what to order and where to go after. Barrios Kitchen & Bar is a Filipino restaurant at 1571 Barrington Street, about 10 minutes on foot from the Halifax Citadel.
Check the day before you plan around lunch
We are open Tuesday to Saturday from 11:30 AM, until 9 PM Tuesday to Thursday and 11 PM on Friday and Saturday. We are closed on Mondays, so if your Citadel day is a Monday, plan lunch somewhere else. On Sunday we serve Filipino brunch only, from 10:30 AM to 4 PM: a self-serve spread at $29 for adults, $15 for children 12 and under, and free for children 5 and under. Reservations are recommended.
The Citadel keeps its own seasonal hours, so check the Parks Canada page for the day you are going.
The walk down from the Citadel
The noon gun is fired from the Citadel every day at noon. If you are still on the hill when it goes, take it as your cue to start down.
From the Citadel, walk down George Street past the Town Clock. It is a good place to stop for a photo. Keep going down to Barrington Street, turn right, and head south past Prince Street and Sackville Street. We are at 1571, just past Sackville on the right-hand side. It takes about 10 minutes.
When to eat
We open at 11:30 AM, so lunch fits wherever your Citadel visit ends. Start down when the noon gun fires and you can be at our door by about a quarter past twelve. On a Saturday, book ahead.
For a group of eight or more, call ahead so the table is ready.
What to order
For one or two people, a rice plate is the easiest way into Filipino food, because it is a whole meal on one plate.
Beef tapa, $18. Thinly sliced beef marinated in soy sauce and spices, pan-fried until the edges caramelise, with garlic rice and two eggs. This is our tapsilog.
Bangsilog, $17. Pan-fried milkfish with crispy skin, garlic fried rice, a sunny side egg and pickled daikon and carrots.
Chicken inasal, $22. Grilled chicken marinated in citrus, garlic and spices, with garlic rice and a soy vinegar dip. There is no pork in it.
For a family or a group, share a few plates in the middle of the table.
Pork sisig, $20. Chopped roasted pork with soy sauce and chili, sizzling on a cast iron plate with a raw egg on top and steamed rice. Mix the egg through while the plate is still hot, then squeeze the lemon that comes with it over the top. You hear it before it reaches the table.
Spring rolls, $9 for four. Our lumpiang shanghai, thin and crisp, filled with seasoned ground pork and vegetables, with sweet chili sauce.
Pancit bihon, $17. Thin rice noodles with vegetables, with your choice of grilled chicken, crispy pork belly or shrimp at the same price.
For dessert, ask if the chef has halo-halo, the Filipino shaved ice dessert, on as a special. It is not on the regular menu, so some days there is none.
If someone in your group is vegetarian, the pinakbet at $14 is made without shrimp paste or fish sauce, the torta at $12 is an eggplant omelette, and pancit bihon or guisado can be made with vegetables and tofu if you ask.
Prices shown are from our current menu and may change.
Good to know for visitors
We take US cash at par, one US dollar for one Canadian dollar, with change given in Canadian dollars. There is one step at the entrance, and the washroom is downstairs.
What to do after lunch
From Barrington Street, the rest of downtown is a short walk. Carry on toward the waterfront and the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, browse the shops on Barrington and Spring Garden Road, or take the boardwalk.
The Maritime Museum covers the Titanic and the Halifax Explosion if history is what brought you here. If you would rather slow down, the boardwalk gives you room to walk, sit and watch the harbour.
A simple day plan
Morning: the Citadel and the view from the hill.
Noon: the noon gun, then the walk down George Street past the Town Clock.
About 12:15: lunch on Barrington Street.
Mid afternoon: the museum, the shops or the boardwalk.
Evening: finish by the water as the harbour changes light.
Every stop is close to the next one, so you can cut the plan short if the weather turns and still feel like you saw the city.
Quick answers
Where should we eat near the Halifax Citadel?
Barrios Kitchen & Bar, 1571 Barrington Street, about 10 minutes on foot. Walk down George Street past the Town Clock, turn right on Barrington, and we are just past Sackville Street.
Is Barrios open after a Citadel visit on a Monday?
No. We are closed on Mondays. Tuesday to Saturday we open at 11:30 AM, and Sunday is Filipino brunch from 10:30 AM to 4 PM.
When is a good time for lunch?
Any time from 11:30 AM. If you start down when the noon gun fires, you can be at our door by about a quarter past twelve.
What should visitors order?
A rice plate for one or two people, like the beef tapa at $18. For a group, share sisig, spring rolls and pancit bihon.
What can we do after lunch?
The Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, the shops on Barrington and Spring Garden Road, or the waterfront boardwalk.
Planning your Citadel day around a table? Book online or call 902-444-2515.