Where do you want to have a drink tonight? Six Calgary bars are on the top 50 list across Canada
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Judges from across Canada voted on their best five experiences at a bar over the last 16 months, and one had to be outside their home province.
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With the exception of Honi Honi Tiki Lounge in Edmonton, all the Alberta bars to make the list were in Calgary.
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Missy's This That was Calgary's top bar on the list at number 8. Missy's bartenders mix up 14 house cocktails, serve seven party shots and have an extensive wine, beer and eclectic selection of hard alchohol. With an almost three-page drink menu, it would be difficult to not find something you like.
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Proof, at number 16, is the longest running Calgary bar on the Canada 100 best bar list, making its debut in 2020. Located at 1st Street and 13th Avenue S.W., Proof has an extensive cocktail menu that includes a new weekly cocktail and weekly specials.
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Coming in at number 35, Rain Dog Bar is spending its third year as a top 50 bar on the Canada's Best list.
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'The zine-style menu, updated two or three times per week, features rarities such as Brasserie Cantillon's Sang Bleu and Temporal Artisan Ales' Void Series — strong ales aged in spirit barrels,' the Canada's Best site says of Rain Dog.
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Business & Pleasure, a short walk down the street, has made its way onto the list for its first year at number 45. With intriguing plates such Ahi tuna and pickled golden berry crudo, as well beets and blackberries, comes 14 equally inventive cocktails. Specials Wednesday through Sunday pair appetizers with drinks like sparkling wine and their featured classic drinks.
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Paper Lantern is also a mainstay on the 100 best bars list, going back to 2022. It is a Vietnamese-inspired, tiki-tinged basement bar below a Chinatown restaurant. With 18 cocktails, four high balls and shots, a selection of Asian beers from Vietnam, Japan and China and from around the world, wine and eight zero alcohol drinks, anyone can enjoy a night at Paper Lantern. You can make it dinner and drinks as well — Paper Lantern's food includes Vietnamese subs, small and medium plates and bar snacks.
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Cision Canada
5 days ago
- Cision Canada
EDC and VinaCapital sign MOU to expand Canada-Vietnam business and trade ties Français
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Established in 2003, VinaCapital is Vietnam's only multi-disciplinary investment manager, with nearly US$4 billion in assets under management and approximately 300 employees across the country. Its investment teams span public equity and fixed income, private equity, clean energy and infrastructure, carbon credit, real estate and venture capital. VinaCapital is a major shareholder in several of Vietnam's largest companies, and EDC recognizes its market leadership, deep sector expertise, and strong networks as valuable assets for Canadian exporters, investors, and the broader trade ecosystem. VinaCapital is a member of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam and a recognized partner of the Trade Commissioner Service, with experience supporting Canadian enterprises and coordinating inbound trade missions. Through this MOU, EDC and VinaCapital will outline a framework for collaboration, with the shared goal of advancing trade and investment between Canada and Vietnam in key sectors and promoting responsible business practices by sharing guidance on environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards. With Vietnam's growing demand for infrastructure, clean energy and advanced manufacturing, the EDC-VinaCapital partnership is poised to help connect Canadian capabilities with Vietnamese opportunities. Launched last year, EDC's representation in Ho Chi Minh City has been a valuable resource for Canadian companies and investors seeking to grow into the Vietnam market and broader Indo-Pacific region. Quotes "I am proud to support the strengthening of commercial ties between Canada and Vietnam to help build new partnerships between Canadian and Vietnamese companies. Vietnam's rapid economic growth in the Indo-Pacific region positions the country as a promising hub for Canadian businesses. As Canada's largest trading partner in ASEAN and a key member of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), Vietnam offers favourable prospects for our exporters and investors. The new MOU between EDC and VinaCapital will further deepen our bilateral relations and help Canadian companies succeed in this important market." The Honourable Maninder Sidhu, Minister of International Trade "Vietnam is a dynamic and rapidly evolving market, and this partnership with VinaCapital will help Canadian companies tap into its vast potential. VinaCapital's deep market knowledge, sector expertise and strong local connections make the organization a strategic partner for EDC. Together, we can help Canadian businesses navigate the Vietnamese market with greater confidence and foster mutually beneficial trade between our two nations." Alison Nankivell, President and CEO of EDC "VinaCapital is proud to partner with EDC to help bring more Canadian innovation and investment to Vietnam. This MOU reflects our commitment to work with EDC to build a stronger, more strategic trade relationship between our two countries. We look forward to working closely with EDC to support Canadian companies and contribute to Vietnam's continued growth." Don Lam, CEO and Founding Partner of VinaCapital About EDC Export Development Canada (EDC) is a financial Crown corporation dedicated to helping Canadian businesses make an impact at home and abroad. EDC has the financial products and knowledge Canadian companies need to confidently enter new markets, reduce financial risk and grow their business as they go from local to global. Together, EDC and Canadian companies are building a more prosperous, stronger and sustainable economy for all Canadians. For more information and to learn how we can help your company, call us at 1-800-229-0575 or visit About VinaCapital Founded in 2003, VinaCapital is a leading investment management firm headquartered in Vietnam, with a diversified portfolio of USD 4 billion in assets under management. VinaCapital is the only company investing across all asset classes in Vietnam, managing a closed-end fund listed on the London Stock Exchange as well as several open-ended funds for international and local investors that are distributed through a variety of channels. VinaCapital was awarded "Best Fund House –Vietnam" in 2018-2020 and 2023-2024 by Asia Asset Management magazine. The company also has partnerships with a number of international investors in hospitality, venture capital, and energy. As a responsible corporate citizen, VinaCapital prioritizes investments in companies contributing to Vietnam's sustainable growth. VinaCapital is a founding member of the Institute for Circular Economy Development (ICED) to promote and drive initiatives on the environment and economic development. More information about VinaCapital may be found at
Winnipeg Free Press
5 days ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Housing project built for Vietnamese refugees for sale
Nearly four decades after a social housing project for Vietnamese boat people opened its doors, the downtown apartment building is up for sale and likely to become part of Manitoba Housing. Carolyn Ryan, CEO of Manitoba Housing and Renewal Corp., said while the building is more than $3 million in arrears on its mortgage, the current tenants of Saigon Centre at 458 Balmoral St., have no need to worry about the building that's been managed for decades by the Vietnamese Non-Profit Housing Corporation. 'Our goal is to retain it as social housing,' Ryan said. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS A multi-unit downtown apartment building created almost four decades ago to house Vietnamese boat people (and owned and managed by them), is up for sale. 'That's first and foremost. The foreclosure process at this point is the only option remaining for us to meet that goal. 'We would be happy to negotiate a voluntary transfer and we are still open to those kinds of negotiations with the board of directors. The sale option is just a required part of the foreclosure process.' The reserve bid for the building is $3.095 million, which Ryan said is the mortgage arrears. She said the tenants are protected by a caveat put in place when the 54-unit building officially opened on May 6, 1989. 'When the building was first built in 1987, with government funding, we put a caveat on the title that it had to maintain its social housing forever and ever,' Ryan said. 'Theoretically, another organization, private or non-profit, could step in, but because of the caveat our expectation is it would again have to approach the province for the funding needed to keep it as social housing. 'One way or the other, it has to stay in social housing… our strong expectation is this will be owned by (Manitoba Housing).' Tenants who spoke to a reporter, but did not want to be identified, said they were concerned about what is happening to the building, a place some of them have lived since it opened. Vincent Bueti, longtime lawyer for the Vietnamese Non-Profit Housing Corporation, said he had no comment to make at this time. When the building opened, the $4.4-million capital cost for the housing was borne by the provincial government while the three levels of government, through the Winnipeg Core Area Initiative, contributed $60,000 for the main floor cultural centre. The province gave an additional $80,000. The project consisted of 20 two-bedroom apartments, 20 three-bedroom units, three four-bedroom units and 11 single bedroom ones for seniors. The building has since housed both the Free Vietnamese Association of Manitoba and the Vietnamese Cultural Centre. Asked about the sale of another non-profit housing block sold a few years ago to a private corporation, Ryan said there was one key difference between Lions Place and the Balmoral property. 'The building MainStream Equities bought didn't have that caveat. There was no requirement to keep it as social housing.' The province is paying $3.3 million over three years to subsidize tenants in that Portage Avenue building. 'Given the caveat, that it operate as social housing, and the extensive repairs needed… our expectation will be that there is unlikely to be any other bids,' Ryan said. 'All tenants (at 458 Balmoral) have right of tenancy, so there should be no impact with the foreclosure on tenants. No impact to their rent — it's all rent geared (to income).' Sundays Kevin Rollason's Sunday newsletter honouring and remembering lives well-lived in Manitoba. Shauna MacKinnon, of the Right to Housing Coalition, said she is pleased the Balmoral block residents don't have to worry. 'That's the lesson — it really is important to have that caveat built into the agreement,' MacKinnon said. 'That's what is leading to what looks like a positive outcome — as long as it gets the necessary repairs.' Ryan said she believes the process of foreclosure and transfer to the Manitoba Housing and Renewal Corporation will be completed by Oct. 1. — with files from Malak Abas Kevin RollasonReporter Kevin Rollason is a general assignment reporter at the Free Press. He graduated from Western University with a Masters of Journalism in 1985 and worked at the Winnipeg Sun until 1988, when he joined the Free Press. He has served as the Free Press's city hall and law courts reporter and has won several awards, including a National Newspaper Award. Read more about Kevin. Every piece of reporting Kevin produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Winnipeg Free Press
7 days ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Vietnam wants to be the next Asian tiger and it's overhauling its economy to make it happen
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Vietnam also aspires to become a global financial center. The government plans two special financial centers, in bustling Ho Chi Minh City and in the seaside resort city of Danang, with simplified rules to attract foreign investors, tax breaks, support for financial tech startups, and easier ways to settle business disputes. Underpinning all of this is institutional reform. Ministries are being merged, low-level bureaucracies have been eliminated and Vietnam's 63 provinces will be consolidated into 34 to build regional centers with deeper talent pools. Private business to take the lead Vietnam is counting on private businesses to lead its new economic push — a seismic shift from the past. In May, the Communist Party passed Resolution 68. It calls private businesses the 'most important force' in the economy, pledging to break away from domination by state-owned and foreign companies. So far, large multinationals have powered Vietnam's exports, using imported materials and parts and low cost local labor. Local companies are stuck at the low-end of supply chains, struggling to access loans and markets that favored the 700-odd state-owned giants, from colonial-era beer factories with arched windows to unfashionable state-run shops that few customers bother to enter. 'The private sector remains heavily constrained,' said Nguyen Khac Giang of Singapore's ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute. Again emulating China, Vietnam wants 'national champions' to drive innovation and compete globally, not by picking winners, but by letting markets decide. The policy includes easier loans for companies investing in new technology, priority in government contracts for those meeting innovation goals, and help for firms looking to expand overseas. Even mega-projects like the North-South High-Speed Rail, once reserved for state-run giants, are now open to private bidding. By 2030, Vietnam hopes to elevate at least 20 private firms to a global scale. But Giang warned that there will be pushback from conservatives in the Communist Party and from those who benefit from state-owned firms. A Closing Window from climate change Even as political resistance threatens to stall reforms, climate threats require urgent action. After losing a major investor over flood risks, Bruno Jaspaert knew something had to change. His firm, DEEP C Industrial Zones, houses more than 150 factories across northern Vietnam. So it hired a consultancy to redesign flood resilience plans. Climate risk is becoming its own kind of market regulation, forcing businesses to plan better, build smarter, and adapt faster. 'If the whole world will decide it's a priority…it can go very fast,' said Jaspaert. When Typhoon Yagi hit last year, causing $1.6 billion in damage, knocking 0.15% off Vietnam's GDP and battering factories that produce nearly half the country's economic output, roads in DEEP C industrial parks stayed dry. Climate risks are no longer theoretical: If Vietnam doesn't take strong action to adapt to and reduce climate change, the country could lose 12–14.5% of its GDP each year by 2050, and up to one million people could fall into extreme poverty by 2030, according to the World Bank. Wednesdays What's next in arts, life and pop culture. Meanwhile, Vietnam is growing old before it gets rich. The country's 'golden population' window — when working-age people outnumber dependents — will close by 2039 and the labor force is projected to peak just three years later. That could shrink productivity and strain social services, especially since families — and women in particular — are the default caregivers, said Teerawichitchainan Bussarawan of the Centre for Family and Population Research at the National University of Singapore. Vietnam is racing to pre-empt the fallout by expanding access to preventive healthcare so older adults remain healthier and more independent. Gradually raising the retirement age and drawing more women into the formal workforce would help offset labor gaps and promote 'healthy aging,' Bussarawan said. ___ The Associated Press' climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
