Restaurants Near Scotiabank Centre, Halifax
Where to eat before a Mooseheads game, a concert or a show at Scotiabank Centre. Walking directions from Barrington Street, when to sit down, and which nights we are open after.
Barrios Restaurant & Bar
9/30/20264 min read
Restaurants Near Scotiabank Centre: Where to Eat Before the Game
Scotiabank Centre holds 10,595 people for hockey. When a Mooseheads game or a concert lets out, all of them hit the same few downtown blocks at once.
That is the whole argument for eating first.
Barrios Kitchen & Bar is at 1571 Barrington Street, a short walk from the arena at 1800 Argyle Street. Here is how to time the evening.
Getting from Barrios to Scotiabank Centre
Walk north on Barrington. You pass the Grand Parade and City Hall on your left. Turn left up Duke Street and the arena is in front of you, at Duke and Brunswick. The box office entrance is on the Carmichael Street side.
It is about a seven-minute walk, a little further than Neptune Theatre. Give yourself fifteen minutes on a sold-out night and you will not be hurrying, because the sidewalks around Argyle fill up well before the doors do.
That is the other thing worth knowing. Argyle right beside the arena is the busy block on an event night. Barrington is one street over, which is often the difference between sitting down and standing in a lineup.
The arena points people at the street parking nearby and at Halifax Transit, and there are bus stops close to both of us. If you do drive, the simplest plan is to park once, eat, walk up and walk back.
When to sit down
For a 7 PM puck drop, book a table for 5:15 or 5:30. That is dinner at a normal pace, plus the walk, plus the line at the doors.
6 PM works if your table already knows what it wants. Later than that and you are rushing, which is a poor way to eat anything that arrives sizzling.
Book ahead, or call 902-444-2515, and pick a table time that leaves room for the walk. When you sit down, tell your server what time you need to leave. That is easier for everyone than trying to catch a server's eye at a quarter to seven.
What to order before a game
Order things that come out to share. Pork barbecue skewers or lumpia to start, and they go fast, so order more than you think.
Then a rice bowl each, the beef tapa or the bangsilog, or sisig in the middle of the table, sizzling on cast iron with an egg cracked on top, with rice alongside. Mix the egg through while the plate is still going.
Crispy pata is a whole-table dish and a two-hand dish. Save it for a night with nowhere to be. Same for halo-halo, if the chef has it on as a special. It is worth sitting still for.
Eat properly here and the only thing you will want in the concourse is something to drink.
Eating after the game
Friday and Saturday, last seating is 10 PM and the kitchen takes its last order around 10:30. An event that finishes around ten is tight but it works if you call 902-444-2515 on your way out so we can hold the table.
Tuesday to Thursday we close at 9 PM. An evening game or show will not be over in time, so on those nights eat before, not after.
Sunday is Filipino brunch, 10:30 AM to 4 PM, and that is our whole Sunday. Before an afternoon game it is the plan. Before a Sunday evening event it is still the plan, because we do not reopen for dinner.
Mondays we are closed. If your event is on a Monday we are not your answer, and it is better you know that now than at our door.
Mooseheads, Thunderbirds and everything else at the arena
The Halifax Mooseheads have played at Scotiabank Centre since 1994, in the QMJHL. The Halifax Thunderbirds have played National Lacrosse League games there since 2019. The rest of the calendar is concerts, comedy and touring shows.
Check the Scotiabank Centre schedule for your start time. Doors usually open earlier than the event does, and puck drop and curtain are not the same thing.
Going to Neptune Theatre instead?
Neptune is at 1593 Argyle Street, about a five-minute walk from us. Same plan, shorter walk, and you can sit down a little later than you would before a game.
Quick answers
Where should we eat before a Mooseheads game?
Barrios Kitchen & Bar, 1571 Barrington Street, one street over from the Argyle crowd. Book for 5:15 or 5:30 before a 7 PM puck drop and tell us the start time.
How far is Barrios from Scotiabank Centre?
About a seven-minute walk. North on Barrington past the Grand Parade, then left up Duke Street. Allow fifteen minutes on a sold-out night.
Can we eat after the game?
Friday and Saturday, yes. We are open until 11 PM. Tuesday to Thursday we close at 9 PM, so eat before. Closed Mondays.
What about a Sunday game?
Come for Filipino brunch first. It runs 10:30 AM to 4 PM and that is our full Sunday service, afternoon or evening event.
Do we need to book?
On an event night, yes. Book a table or call 902-444-2515, and say what time you need to leave.
Where is Barrios?
1571 Barrington Street, downtown Halifax, Nova Scotia. Tuesday to Saturday from 11:30 AM, until 9 PM Tuesday to Thursday and 11 PM Friday and Saturday. Sunday brunch 10:30 AM to 4 PM. Closed Mondays. Call 902-444-2515 or see the menu.