Their updated menu is cleverly designed to make vegetarian cuisine very approachable. A quick glance at the menu reveals familiar dishes like poutine, pizza, and nachos. Those nachos have a reputation of being “the best in Banff” according to the locals. Nourish Bistro definitely wants to impress the carnivore with their new Jacked Up Ribs. The dish resembles a full rib dinner with pulled jackfruit, garlic mashed potatoes, beans and gravy. The ribs are “phenomenal,”remarks Alex, “I’ve never had jackfruit before and I was blown away.” I will have to try them for myself one day because they were completely sold out from the night before.

Nourish is also proud of its cocktails, and like their food, they have a very unique approach to them as well. At Nourish, they let their bartenders design their own cocktails which “allows them to be creative and make their mark on the place,” says Alex. Another interesting practice they employ is barrel aging cocktails. Essentially, they put a particular cocktail in a small barrel which they let sit for weeks. This process infuses the alcohol with concentrated flavours. The cocktail menu rotates seasonally so there is always something new to try.

After the interview, a beautifully arranged patter of gyoza, cauliflower bites, jalapeño poppers, and erupting orbs arrived.

The erupting orbs are the most intriguing new menu item I tried. Known as panipuri in India, they are a popular street snack. They are a crispy semolina puff with pomegranate, potato, socca noodles and tamarind chutney stuffed inside. These have a real diversity of textures and flavours. Crunchy puffs and noodles. Soft and smooth potatoes. Sweet and sour pomegranate. Wonderful. The poppers were also great. The vegan cream cheese had a nice cinnamon kick with a smoky pepper flavour from the jalapeños. The seasoning blend of cumin, chili and paprika on the cauliflower bites was spectacular. They also had a meaty texture that reminded me of a boneless chicken wing. Last was the gyoza. The stuffing mixture of mushrooms, cabbage, carrot and bean sprouts was delightful.

The platter also came with a selection of dips, alfalfa, bean sprouts and slaw to try. The red pepper aioli was tangy and sweet with a distinct pepper taste. The chili sesame dip that came with the gyoza was nice and spicy with a good soya flavour. The veggies were crisp and fresh and tasted great mixed together.

After I finished, I said my thank you’s and headed back to my car. I noticed that I felt rather euphoric. The food had this amazing quality of tasting wonderful while being fresh and healthy. I felt that I did my body some good by eating at Nourish Bistro. When you’re in Banff do your body a favour and Nourish yourself.