Winkler, MB
Manitoba is a province of many cultures and German is one that takes its fair share of the cake. Anyone who has attended the German pavilion at the annual Folklarama festival in Winnipeg can attest to that. If you ask these Germans where to go to get a true taste of German cuisine, they will overwhelmingly point you (after their own Oma’s house, of course!) to the southern town of Winkler, Manitoba, where you can enjoy the fare of Ralph’s German Restaurant & Café.
Originally from Germany, Ralf and Andrea Dargusch immigrated to Canada with the hopes of opening a restaurant. After having a son and daughter, Alexander and Monique, they moved the Spain where dabbled in the food industry by running a food cart in the Teguise Market in Lanzarote on their weekends. After a number of years, the pair moved to Canada with their son, while Monique remained in Spain to pursue accounting.
The family worked hard to obtain permanent residency and eventually found a restaurant in the town of Winkler, Manitoba. Ralph’s German Restaurant & Café was born and has since become well-known across the province for its hearty and authentic German cuisine.
Monique has since joined her family in Canada and works alongside her parents in the restaurant. The community environment is palpable as many of the customers laugh and chat with her, and regulars are a large part of their customer base. The family places a strong importance on instilling a sense of family and community in their business and are always open to suggestions and ideas, happily adapting to the requests of their customers.
The menu is quite extensive with a focus on German cuisine, but includes other European dishes as well as North American-style cooking. The lunch special changes from day-to-day and has even included several Oriental dishes to keep things fresh and exciting for their regulars.
The Zuricher Art, dish featured on the menu, originates from the Hessen region of Germany. It is a rich and filling stir-fry style of food complete from fresh, homemade noodles known as Spätzle. Spätzle literally translates to “little sparrows” and are egg noodles made by pressing or slicing dough into boiling water, and cannot come close to comparing with the packaged, dried pasta that many of us stock our cupboards with.
These soft noodles are smothered in a rich, creamy sauce accompanied by onions and flavoured with white wine and textured with sautéed mushrooms and bacon. Everything is seasoned with salt, pepper, and garlic. The dish is served so hot you can barely eat it and retains its heat long after it is set down before you. The ultimate comfort food that will soothe you into a state of complete satiety, this meal provides a feeling of satisfaction that is equalled only by the quality of service provided
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