Belle's Kitchen + Music Hall — Restaurant in Winnipeg

UPDATE: I have left my previous review below for comparison.

I went back a second time as a guest of management. Based on my review they responded to me very kindly and invited me to return and we're very generous with a gift card to allow me to do so.

I've added a few new photos from that second visit and then I went to visit a third time so that I could be more anonymous again.

In their response to me they had mentioned that they had altered the portion sizes based on feedback such as mine. And I found this to be true on all platters except for the chicken platter I received and took as a take-home meal.

We did brisket ribs and chicken in subsequent visits and found the portion sizes of the brisket and the ribs and found the portion sizes to be significantly improved and actually very hearty for the price definitely giving any other barbecue place especially the chain that's nearby a run for their money.

I for one thoroughly enjoy the fact that here they do naked barbecue with just their rubs and they let the smoke and the meat speak for itself and offer you sauces if you want to add them.

When the place is full, the music is a perfect volume!

I admit they probably would have gotten a perfect score for me except for a couple of things. The first is that when you get a chicken platter you're still only getting a quarter chicken. And the same goes for the banana pudding it's still too small a portion for $9 other than not see my review below and definitely give this place a try

PREVIOUS REVIEW. This was our first meal at Belle's and we found the food good but there were certainly some disappointments.

We ordered 3 - 1 meat platters for 3 people with one being brisket, one was pork ribs and one was the smoked chicken. Our fourth, which was me, got the half chicken. For sides 2 got the baked beans and pickle potato salad, then another got creamy cole slaw and vinegar slaw and I got a mac and cheese.

By looking, you would assume $15 for a half chicken and $4 for a side that if you got a 1 meat platter for $20 it would be a deal. But you would be wrong, you get a 1/4 chicken and 2 sides so $7.50 plus $8 for sides means you lose $4.50 by getting a platter.

So let's talk about the mains. The chciken tatsed good, a bit of heat for me perosnally but well within the mild range. It was tender and juicy, especially the breast, but my half chicken seemd to be missing some of the thigh - no thigh bones at all. The other persons chciken platter was a proper thigh and drum which they found delicious but light for the price compared to my half chicken. The pictures show the huge difference in portion size

The brisket was a bit fattier than a normal brisket in my experience and was missing a healthy smoke ring but had wonderful flavour and the portion size was good. The same was for the pork ribs 3 good size pork ribs with a lot of jucy meat but they did come off the bone well and took a bit too much work to eat because they were fatty.

Now for sides. The mac and cheese was as creamy and cheesy as you would expect and a worthy side.

The pickle potato salad was missing pickle flavour but was well made.

The vinegar slaw was what was expected neither great nor bad.

The baked beans were very well made and probably their best side.

Now for the desserts, we got one banana pudding and one pecan pie.

The banana pudding tasted great with pieces of banana that had been caremlized well, nilla wafers and good pudding and whipped cream with crushed graham crumbs but at $9 for that tiny serving, don't bother.

The pecan pie was also made well but a fairly small piece but closer to what one would expect for the cost.

It's important to remember this is a no tip restaurant that pays servers and staff a living wage so you will pay a bit more here and that was factored into this review.

Overall its an average experience. The music was a bit loud but then it was pretty empty due to the weather and would balance well with a...

Well you know me who loves life to the fullest 🎵🎶a friend of mine Justin Seguin Calibos Tiamat was playing at Bell’s Kitchen & Music Hall (Old Tony Roma’s) set at 5 - 7:45 pm. He played variety of songs, songs we all know ‘n sing to. Well done Justin. I quite enjoyed the evening, was nice to get out ‘n not working. I will watch for your next gig.

Belle’s Kitchen & Music Hall opened November 28 it’s hopping even on a Wednesday night. Their busiest nights are Friday/Saturday let’s get this place hopping every day into the evening. Please come down to enjoy their live entertainment, food & some drinks with your friends/family. You’re greeted at the door where he explains ordering, seating work. The menu is made easy and straightforward not over whelm you what to order. The servers at the bar are fantastic greet you with a smile & able to assist with the menu. Some of the amazing staff Avery, Chantel, Ava, Vanessa, Amelie, Aryana, Taleah & Natalie. I do have to say your taste buds are dancing on your tongue while your mind is deciding what to order. Psssssst their brisk is a fine choice. Their chef knows exactly what do to get your mouth watering trying to decide what to order. Trust me no knife is required the meat is so tender. The Mac & Cheese and Buttermilk potato salad were creamy and delicious! Don’t forget to try all four sauces. I need to return to more of their delicious food. Oh oh love dessert as I do, you need to have the banana pudding, to die for mmmmm good. This place nails it.

You can see when you look around while enjoying the music & your meal. The owners took their time and attention to detail. Did you know the boards came from an old barn. You can see the wood has character, rustic, hard to find wood like this in a store with a story. Take sometime to look around on the shelves where you will find a foto of a horse loves his foto taken, this sweet horse in the photo is from a rescue ranch in Manitoba, a cow enjoying running & living it’s it life on the farm, foto of the old barn, yes there is a story of the loaf of bread. Just ask they will all to happy to share. Napkins vs bread. The old grandfather clock & old fridges adds to the place brings back memories. Oh you need to sit on the saddle to have a picture taken. Washrooms are very clean & the staff are always cleaning/wiping the tables for the next guest to arrive.

Winnipeg needed a place like this and I wish all the success. Thank you to the owners for taking a chance.

I will definitely be back on my birthday on the 26th after the Jets game with friends to celebrate, enjoy music & food. If you are in the area you should go!!!! You not be disappointed.

April 11, I was pleasantly entertained by a song bird names Tannis Tyler. She beautiful inside and out and very talented lady. If you ever have a chance to drop by while she is playing you not be disappointed. She brings sparkles to the...

I was very excited to try this place with my husband - who is a true BBQ aficionado. We regularly travel to Memphis to visit a friend, so we’ve eaten a lot of BBQ. We also used to really enjoy Lovey’s BBQ on Marion, which changed owners and / or closed about 8 years ago? Anyway - we went on a Saturday evening, arriving around 6:45pm. We actually found a table fairly easily, and the music was great! My hubby ordered the ribs and a large order of beans, I ordered the one meat platter with pulled pork, beans, and Mac and cheese. The food was all right - I enjoyed the pulled pork, as it was cooked properly and barely had any fat or gristle in it. It was also flavoured nicely, and I enjoyed trying some different bbq sauces on it. I liked the bread and pickles / onions with it, as I made some of it into a type of sandwich - and I normally enjoy coleslaw on a pulled pork sandwich. Both of us really enjoyed the beans. The Mac and cheese had a lots of creamy sauce, which was great, but the flavour wasn’t amazing. I’d like to try other sides next time - the pickle potato salad sounds intriguing. My husbands ribs were okay - nicely meaty, but not super tender, or pink. Kind of a grayish colour - looks like they maybe aren’t strictly smoked. I got sweet tea to drink, which I enjoyed very much! It was real tea, like you get in the southern US, but not quite as sweet, which I also liked a lot! Sometimes it seems like you’re drinking tea-flavoured syrup lol My personal biggest disappointment was the banana pudding 😩 It was more like a thick soup consistency, and the ‘nilla wafers were super crunchy like they had just thrown them into the cup with the ‘pudding’ - not made it ahead of time and given time for the wafers to soak up the pudding goodness. Also, there were only four wafers and four small lonely slices of banana. And a big dollop of whipped cream on top. I ended up eating only half, as the texture of the bananas and wafers were gone, and it was just a little bowl of pudding soup. So sad. Also, the portion size was definitely not worth the $10 (with tax) price tag. Wish I would’ve read other reviews before I’d bought it.

Anyway, I hope to be back to try other menu items - the staff were all super friendly and helpful, and I really liked the atmosphere in the restaurant. I just wouldn’t order...