New restaurant pays homage to Hotel Saskatchewan's unofficial mascot — the bunny

CBC

30-01-2025

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When you step into the Hotel Saskatchewan's new restaurant on a cold winter's night, you'll settle into the cozy yet chic dining experience that is The Burrow.
While the hotel has a storied history of famous guests and royal visits, this restaurant is a nod to a certain VIP and unofficial mascot — the bunny. Portraits of bunnies have long graced the hotel's lounge.
"When we were going into renovation [in 2015] we actually had guests writing emails and providing us with feedback that you cannot get rid of the rabbits," said Ashley Pelechytik, director of sales and marketing at the hotel.
Given that passion, the hotel decided to embrace the concept when it launched its new restaurant, not just with bunny art, but with the feel of the space as well.
"We really wanted to take that warm tone that you see here on the walls up to the ceiling to provide more of that intimate atmosphere."
The Burrow first began as a pop-up steakhouse in 2023. It closed over the summer and reopened in October 2024 as a new concept: elevated cuisine featuring local and Canadian ingredients.
Previously the hotel's tea room, the Burrow dining room is beautifully redecorated with a roaring fireplace offering warmth and ambience. Gilded portraits on the wall, the crystal chandelier, a wood coffered ceiling and a herringbone wood floor lend a European elegance to the room.
The food is refined as well, courtesy of executive chef Brett Steyck, who's from Regina.
Stecyk remembers working as a dishwasher at the Wascana Country Club as a young man, unsure of what to do with his life.
"That summer after high school, I asked if I could be a line cook because I was kind of interested in [cooking]. It was the only thing I was really good at outside of school or sports or whatever."
After completing his professional training and working in kitchens across Canada, Steyck's come back to his hometown to don the executive chef's jacket. He puts tremendous care into the menu.
"We focus on getting good ingredients and letting them shine, putting the flavours and garnish together to let the food kind of speak for itself," he said.
All of the dishes Stecyk served me — the trout croquettes, the sous-vide pickerel and the coconut panna cotta — are unique, inventive and inspired. They showcase complex technique, hours of experimentation and a desire to wow the customer with every bite.
Each dish had an unexpected twist, such as the licorice-like flavour of the fennel in the pickled beets that accompanied the croquettes, or the halibut-like texture of the pickerel achieved by sealing a mousse in with it before it was cooked. Then there's the strange familiarity of pistachio cake and coconut panna cotta, which lands on the palate somewhere between key lime pie and cake with ice cream.
Stecyk said desserts are sometimes an afterthought in other restaurants, but that runs counter to his philosophy.
"You want to end on a good note, right? A lot of the time you want dessert to almost be the best dish of the night."
I told him I had a hard time describing what I was eating with the panna cotta, which had a light, refreshing taste and complexity that rivals desserts in top eating destinations around the world. The feedback pleased him.
"I like when a customer says their mouth was kind of confused. They don't really know what to think."
Creating a buzz in Regina
Keeping with The Burrow's motif, the food is plated on stoneware that resembles the rocks you might find in a bunny's underground home.
Even the whimsical cocktails play on Alice in Wonderland themes, whether with the Hatter's Tea, a butterfly pea-imbued rum with elderflower and fresh citrus, or the Fox Hole, a gin cocktail greyed with edible charcoal and served with a bubble of rosemary smoke.
Pelechytik said people are beginning to take notice of The Burrow, with many making reservations for special occasions and events, along with hotel guests walking in, wanting to experience the menu.
For New Year's Eve, the place was sold out completely, capping off a busy holiday season.
"It's good to see it's starting to be well received," she said.
At the end of one visit, I was delighted to find a tiny brass bunny paperweight sitting atop the bill. It's the type of care and attention to detail you can expect when you visit The Burrow.