Food Worth a Drive in Northern Ontario: A Guide

Food worth a drive in Northern Ontario is spread across a region the size of a small country, and the drives between meals are long. Thunder Bay's Persian, Great Lakes whitefish, Sudbury restaurants and North Bay diners make good stops on the Trans-Canada Highway. Check hours and plan for weather as well as distance.

Prices and menus change, and small places close without notice, so check before you drive.

What is food worth a drive in Northern Ontario?

The answer is local. Each city has a specialty. In Thunder Bay it is the Persian, a sweet pastry. In Sault Ste. Marie it is fish from the lake. In North Bay it is the classic diner burger. In Sudbury it is a mix of immigrant cooking.

A road trip along the Trans-Canada Highway touches all of these. Plan a stop in each, and keep time for scenery.

What is the Thunder Bay Persian?

The Thunder Bay Persian is a pink-iced cinnamon bun, and it is hands down the city's most famous food. It looks like a cinnamon roll with a pink strawberry-flavoured topping. You can find Persians at bakeries all over Thunder Bay, and at least one café serves it as a savoury breakfast sandwich in place of an English muffin.

Buy one fresh from a bakery and eat it with a coffee. It is sweet and soft, and best on the day it is baked.

What is Sault Ste. Marie food like?

Sault Ste. Marie food includes fish and burgers. Look for fish shops serving freshly caught whitefish and burger counters with build-your-own burgers or a triple-stack cheeseburger, plus a smokehouse grill. Immigrant-run kitchens add Syrian food, so the city eats better than its size suggests. Check hours before you go.

Whitefish is a Great Lakes staple, mild and flaky. Order it fried or pan-seared with lemon.

Where are the best Sudbury restaurants?

Sudbury restaurants include Persian kitchens in the downtown food court, Greek and Italian rooms and diners with a loyal following.

Sudbury is a mining city with a mix of Finnish, Italian, French and newer communities, which shows in its restaurants. Ask locals for their favourite diner.

What about North Bay restaurants?

North Bay restaurants include classic diners serving a locally sourced beef burger and vegetarian-friendly rooms. North Bay sits on Lake Nipissing, and the lake's fish appear on menus too.

A diner meal is a good break on a long drive. Expect friendly service and generous portions.

What about burgers and food trucks?

In summer, trucks appear at parks, beaches and festivals, serving everything from tacos to poutine.

If you see a truck with a short line and a good smell, stop. Small kitchens often make the best food.

A sample route helps. Begin in Thunder Bay for a Persian and a lakeside walk, drive east along the north shore of Lake Superior with a stop for fresh fish, and spend a night in Sault Ste. Marie. Continue to Sudbury and North Bay, with a diner lunch in each. The whole trip can take a week with time for sightseeing, or a long weekend if you pick two cities and fly into one. Leave room for detours: small roadside stands and bakeries often pop up where you do not expect them.

How to plan a Northern Ontario food drive

Distances are long. Thunder Bay to Sault Ste. Marie is about seven hours by road, and Sault Ste. Marie to Sudbury is about four. Plan overnight stops. Gas stations can be far apart, so fill up in towns. Winter driving can be hard, with snow and early dark.

Check hours. Small restaurants may close on Sundays or Mondays, and summer-only places close in autumn.

Plan for weather as well as distance. Lake Superior can bring fog and storms, and winter highways can close after heavy snow, so check conditions before you leave and carry an emergency kit. In summer, daylight lasts late, which makes evening drives pleasant, but moose and deer cross roads at dusk, so slow down. Cell service fades between towns, so download maps before you set out. A cooler with ice packs keeps pastries and fish fresh for a few hours, and a thermos of coffee is useful on long stretches.

How do you keep track of a Northern Ontario drive?

Long distances make every stop count. In the Mosey app, rate the Persian, the whitefish plate or the diner burger by the dish, tag the stop Bakery or Good Portions and add it to a list named for the route. An invite link lets a travelling friend add their own find between Thunder Bay and North Bay, and the Friends' picks layer on the map shows what people you follow have rated along the way.

What else is worth knowing?

Bring a cooler for takeout treats such as pastries and fish, and check hours for small places before you go.

What else should you read around Canada?

The Northwest Territories food worth a trip page continues the journey north, and the Newfoundland and Labrador food worth a drive guide goes east. The Canada guides page lists more cities.

This is one of many Ontario guides, and the Food in Ontario page lists them all by town.

A long drive leaves a trail of good meals. Get the Mosey app, rate each pastry, burger and fish plate you try, and build a Northern Ontario list that points the next traveller to the right exit.