If Dartmouth is the new Brooklyn, Dear Friend, while not quite a Clover Club, was one of the first proper cocktail bars in the hipster burg across Halifax Harbour. Opened during the pandemic, this downtown snug, with its bentwood bar stools and European café vibe, has become a buzzy destination for cocktail innovation. Whet your curiosity with a clarified Almond Croissant Old Fashioned or the Suman Collins, which combines coconut rum, banana leaf and sticky rice cordial into a tropical thirst quencher. The beer and cider lists lean local, the international wines have got some funk. The food menu features excellent snacky bites and plant-forward plates like rutabaga steak. Cobble them together into a shareable tasting menu or splash out on a seafood platter, showcasing sustainably sourced Atlantic gems.
GO
Mondays for $12 Patron Margs.
Arrive
Early, from 4 to 6 p.m., when oysters are only $1.50 each.
Photography by Michelle Doucette (Portrait), Anisa Francoeur (Drinks)
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