In less than 2 weeks from now, I will be moving away from the Kitchener-Waterloo region and heading to the big city many of us love to hate known as Toronto. I’ve spent 10 years living, working, or both within Cambridge, Kitchener and Waterloo. In that time, I’ve come to love many things, get annoyed at others, and generally get a good vibe of how I feel about the city.

With that in mind, I want to give my farewell to the area by posting my favourite spots that I’ve discovered over the course of my stay within the region. I spent my first 5 years living in Cambridge while going to high school and college. I then moved to Kitchener to work at WeSellit.ca within Waterloo. I didn’t spend much time around the University plazas, which are fairly popular, so I hope I can bring another perspective of neat spots within the region.

The Best Cafe’s in Kitchener-Waterloo

The area has shown some good growth for great cafes, but is still dominated by large chains that don’t really provide the best coffee or cafe experience. However, most of them still make great spots for working away and getting together with friends.

• Matter of Taste located in downtown Kitchener and Waterloo Town Square, MoT has the best coffee in town. Highlights include staffing the best baristas available, even ones that know what a Long Black is. Along with great coffee, the Kitchener location offers a great space to work with a large communal table that makes it great to do some co-working.

• Cafe 1842 in the Huether Hotel in Uptown Waterloo. Although the coffee from the Huether leaves a lot to be desired, they have a great room, segregated from the main cashier area that I’ve found is great for sitting down with a cup and working away. Additionally, most of the baked goods in the Huether are made on the spot and they are pretty delicious.

• Symposium Cafe in Uptown Waterloo. This is a chain so it’s not exclusive to the area, but it provides a great place to lounge. My girlfriend would kill for the fresh fruit smoothies and the atmosphere is perfect for a quick get together with a friend.

• The Duke Street Muse in downtown Kitchener is a great vegetarian spot that offers great prices, along with quick and delicious food. With soups starting at $2.50 it’s the perfect companion after a run to the market.

The Best Restaurants in Cambridge, Kitchener-Waterloo

This is always a touchy subject because coming from my blog, it will cater to my tastes. I’m a huge fan of simple, authentic food from all culturues, so I hope you can find something interesting here. I’ve limited the list to 5 for the sake of keeping it slim.

• Charcoal Group Restaurants. Ok, this is kind of cheating since the Charcoal group actually owns 6 restaurants. However, they are all awesome. Leaning on the pricier side of things, these are the go-to places for that special night out in the area. The Bauer Kitchener just opened up with rave reviews and I’ve heavily enjoyed del Dente and Wildcraft when I went.

• Ben Thanh Viet Thai Restaurant located in Cambridge, Kitchener, and Waterloo this is the place to go for Viet Thai food in the region. You can pick nearly anything on their menu and you will get a great, authentic dish. I’m a huge fan of their Pad Thai which probably has the best tofu chunks I’ve ever had.

• Niko Niko Roll & Sushi located in downtown Kitchener is a slightly higher-priced sushi place, compared to the popular Ye’s Sushi but it’s worth it. The atmosphere is great and the sushi rolls are so finely hand crafted it’s just nice to take a good look at them before you begin to take it apart.

• Blackshop! located in Cambridge (Hespeler) took over what used to be a strip club to provide the area with a much-needed classy restaurant. The Blackshop is in the higher price bracket, but is a great place for a special event. When we went there for my Mother’s Birthday she was able to have ostrich, which was very cool, and their prime rib still lingers within my taste memories.

• Old Marina Grill located just outside of Cambridge in Puslinch is the perfect place to go for a day of fishing and relaxation. The restaurant faces the water and provides a great classic burger and fries.

The Best Fast Food in Cambridge, Kitchener-Waterloo

Let’s stay away from the big chains here, because the area provides some decent options for a quick bite. Note that I don’t ever visit the University area, so I’m sure I will miss something great, but here’s mine.

• Johnny Fresco’s has amazing pitas, lamb burgers, and onion rings. I’ve found it a great place to meet with people over lunch as it’s kind of located in the middle of everything, so driving to it is equal distance for everyone. Their Lamb Pita is one of my favourites and the atmosphere is bright with ample seating for a quick bite.

• Caz’s Fish & Chips located in Cambridge (Hespeler) is technically a restaurant, but with quick turn around on their take out this is the place to go for that greasy and delicious fish and chips dinner. My good friend Corey took me here once and it now sits at the top for fish & chips in the area.

• Monaco Pizza is a small family owned pizza shop in south Kitchener. Their primary business is serving the hordes of high school students from across the street who keep coming back. Why? Because their pizza is not greasy, crispy, and with the perfect mix of cheese, sauce, and meat. You won’t find authentic italian here, but it beats any chain pizza place.

• Vincenzo’s is not quite fast food, but they do provide great take-out sandwiches and some of the best sushi you’ll find. What I really love them for is their great selection of Italian meats and cheeses from around the world. They just moved to the Bauer Lofts and have really expanded their store with new fresh meat and seafood sections as well as a quiet place to sit down with coffee and gelato.

The Best of the Kitchener Market

The Downtown Kitchener Market is my Saturday morning staple ever since I moved to downtown Kitchener. The Upper level is full of food from a variety of cultures and the down stairs is packed with great vendors from the region and nearby.

• For meat, check out Glogowski Supreme Sauage. They have the best priced meat and deli within the market. It’s my go-to place for great pork chops (that aren’t filled with water like everywhere else!) and good european deli. My mother works here, so say hi! Nearly all of the workers speak Polish as well.

• If you’re feeling like fish, Caudle’s Catch is the place to go. They have an actual store in Kitchener but come to the market as well. High quality, well priced, and friendly people.

• For eggs, there is no substitute from the OK Egg Farm. Great prices and a variety of options. Their Flax-fed eggs are amazingly orange with a great flavour. Whenever we have eggs from a large super market, they just don’t compare now.

• Got a sweet tooth? Pretty much any place in the market offers something great. My favourite place, I don’t even know the name but they are located right across Glogowski’s. Best donuts ever. Enough said.

• For vegetables and fruit, stick to the Ontario-grown vendors. Honestly, I’m not a huge fan of several vendors taking over and constantly selling produce from U.S.A and other southern climates. I understand we can’t grow most of that up here but if you’re going to get carrots and other root vegetables, stick to the Ontario folks. They are all friendly and have a great product.

The Best Nights out in Kitchener-Waterloo

The area has a growing night life, which is most likely induced by all the students but there’s still many options for older couples and friends. Of course, restaurants are always an option but here’s some other choices. Cambridge still struggles for night life, with most pubs and clubs located in Preston, the Hespeler area in which I’ve lived in isn’t much to speak of.

• If you’re into the tech crowd, which you probably are by reading this blog, there’s many great nights to meetup with like-minded locals over to dicuss technology over some beer. Instead of listing them all, I will point you to this great blog post from cutegecko detailing over 50 things to do in Kitchener-Waterloo. That should cover nearly everything ;)

• Princess Cinema’s in uptown Waterloo provides locals with a great assortment of indie and major motion pictures. With the two cinemas you have plenty of choice and near tons of great restaurants and cafes. It’s a perfect, more relaxing night out.

• Far Out Flicks isn’t really a night out. It’s a night in, but you will never go to Blockbuster ever again after visiting this great rental stop. The location is tiny, but they have their walls stacked with movies. Everything you can think of, they have. The staff here are some of the nicest people you’ll meet and know their movies. We’ve discovered many great films by just asking for recommendations. Highly recommended if your night out is going to be tucked in.

• If you’re still up for some clubbing, Club Renaissance is technically a gay club, but provides ample fun if you’re a female who doesn’t want guys giving you looks from across the room all night. My girlfriend swears by this place, and I’m still under the assumption that she isn’t a closet-Lesbian. If you’re not too comfortable with that idea, Club Abstract on Saturday nights is great fun for some hard rock clubbing. A lot of heavy, but a lot of fun with a group of equally drunk friends. Finally, Revolution Nightclub is tucked away in north Waterloo. It provides the largest dance floor of all the clubs, with two separate rooms and a great bar. Slightly more expensive, but great for club parties.

• For beer, you have many, many options. The Hueuther Hotel makes their own beer in the adjacent building and has a large area to sit with friends and watch the game. Bobby O’Briens in downtown Kitchener is a well located irish pub that has decent beer and food, but a nice patio that explodes in the summer (They also have a volleyball court there). McMullans was recently renovated and is placed in uptown Waterloo. There’s also probably four hundred more pubs near the University area, but I never strayed there unfortunately.

I could keep listing places, but I should stop.

I think I covered a great deal of what I enjoyed within the region. The area is growing fast, there’s about 10 cranes in the city right now building new structures. It’s a great time to be in Kitchener-Waterloo and I’m a bit sad to go, but I look forward to the new challenges and fun times I should have in Toronto.

I may end up back in the region, after my girlfriend completes her schooling within Toronto, maybe not. If I do, I have some hopes for the city:

• More bike lanes. My biggest peeve was that there is no North/South bike lane in central Kitchener heading up towards Waterloo. Every bike commute to work I would bike along side cars on the tiny streets of King Street. It’s not horrible, but it’s something I can wish for.

• Better public transit, mostly in Cambridge. As an example, it takes just under an hour to go a grand total of 6km from my parents house to the Smart Centres located in Cambridge. This is due to the odd setup of buses going through masses of suburbia. I understand the issues the GRT faces in accomodating everyone, but it doesn’t seem right. Also, GRT drivers need to smile more. I’ve said Good Morning everytime I go on the bus and have never received a good morning back. Cheer up, people!

• A better downtown Kitchener. They are trying, oh boy they are trying! Tearing up the sidewalks yet again in an attempt to revitalize the downtown area. It’s coming, especially with the addition of some great cafes in recent years, but it has a long way to go.

• The Light Rail Transit System. Enough said. I hope they figure out a way to do it correctly and within budget. I also hope they connect it to Cambridge so we can finally have these cities serving each other.

• More specialty shops. With growth, these will come and we’re already seeing some. However, I’d love to see more cheese shops, more independent cafes, more delis that are actually open past 5pm. There’s been great progress and I think it will only continue to grow.

It’s a small list, but I think we’ll see this change in the next 3-5 years as it’s already beginning to process. Waterloo is a very forward-thinking city due to all the talent up there and Kitchener is filled with great history and culture and is simply riding along the pig tails of Waterloo’s success.

I look forward to the future of these great cities and I’ll always have a place in my heart for the region. A big hearty thumbs up to everyone I’ve been able to meet and have a great time in the area.