Peterborough & the Kawarthas in 48 Hours
Spend 48 hours indulging in an authentic taste of arts, culture, and local cuisine in Peterborough & the Kawarthas.
This itinerary was written by Jim Byers, and inspired by his article: Surprising, Artsy and Oh, So Delicious: A Look at the Rice Lake Area near Peterborough
This blog was originally published 2020. Updated in 2021.
Day One
Pastry Peddler
Deanna Bell-Hall and Colin Hall run this fabulous coffee shop/restaurant in the adorable town of Millbrook. You’ll find beautiful, wood floors, soaring ceilings, bicycles hanging from the walls, local art on display, and the delicious, beckoning smell of baked goodies and strong coffee. Everyone seemed to know each other when I went, which made me feel like I’d wandered into an Ontario coffee shop version of “Cheers.” Look for lemon cookies, servings of bread pudding the size of a softball and a special “Flaky Friday” pastry. The town is equally delightful.
Lunch at Rolling Grape Vineyard
Doo Doo’s and a Coffee
Bailieboro, Ontario
K0L 1B0
You can get into serious trouble in Peterborough & the Kawarthas when you start talking about who’s got the best butter tarts. After all, this is a place with an entire TOUR dedicated to the gooey, sticky, sweet, and oh-so-Canadian dessert. I can’t say theirs are the best, but I’ve never had better. Their trophy case is stuffed with awards to show just how good everyone else thinks they are. Try one with bacon and a good cup of coffee for a mid-afternoon treat.
Dinner at Elmhirst’s Resort
Elmhirst’s Resort not only has wonderful cabins where you can practice social distancing, but they make terrific meals, too. The hotel is a member of the FeastON program, a certification program that recognizes businesses committed to sourcing Ontario grown and made food and drink. They also raise their own beef, ducks, and turkeys on the family farm next door. They source local cheese and, of course, use Kawartha Dairy for their ice cream and other dairy needs.
Day Two
Breakfast at the Speak Easy
The Speak Easy Café in downtown Peterborough is renowned for its breakfast menu, with everything from Greek omelettes (feta cheese, tomatoes, olives, and more) to amazing Eggs Benedict and, of course, Canada’s most famous contribution to breakfast, peameal.
Lakefield Lunch at the Canoe & Paddle
The Canoe and Paddle is a warm, comfortable British pub a few steps from the Trent-Severn Waterway. Start with their Nutty Goat Salad (in small or large), which features mixed greens, red pepper, candied salmon, goat cheese, toasted almonds and maple balsamic dressing. It sounds like a lot going on, but it all works beautifully. The pulled pork sandwich is moist and tasty and quite filling, as is the fried chicken. They also have a wide array of local, craft beers. You can nip next door for a lick of Kawartha Dairy ice cream at Stuff’d Ice Cream, Bakery and Café. Or stay at Canoe and Paddle for their marvellous, sticky toffee dessert.
Indigenous Culture and Shopping at Whetung Ojibwa Gallery
The Whetung Ojibwa Centre is a massive and engaging retail store, art gallery on the Curve Lake First Nation outside Peterborough. You’ll find colourful artwork of all kinds, dozens of styles of moccasins and sparkling jewelry, not to mention walrus skulls and marvellous, old black and white photos in the small museum in the basement. They also have a great collection of locally made jams and jellies. If you can’t find something here to take home, you’re an incurable non-shopper.
The Canadian Canoe Museum
This is a tremendous museum that pays homage to one of the most important vessels in the history of Canada. It’s also home to the largest collection of canoes, kayaks and paddled watercraft in the world. Visitors can find displays that tell incredible feats of fortitude and bravery from Canadian outdoors types and check out dozens of styles of canoes. You can gaze at the Little Canary Yellow Boat that Gordon Lightfoot once sang about, as well as admire former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau’s old buckskin jacket.
Native Canadian craft also are on display, and you can learn a great deal about the lives of aboriginal Canadians with a visit to the museum. You’ll find canoes from across Canada, including Quebec and British Columbia, as well as craft used in Fiji, Florida and Polynesia.
Dine on the Patio at Publican House
Publican House is a fine brewery, restaurant and bar in downtown Peterborough, which is increasingly lively and engaging these days. They make a wide range of beers, including lagers, flavourful ales and IPA”s that don’t make you feel as if you’ve bitten into a pine tree. Being close to the Canoe Museum, they’ve named one of their beers Paddlers Ale. They donate a portion of the proceeds from every can to the museum to help keep it going. I had a tremendous black bean and sweet potato curry when I visited, and a very good wood-oven pizza with ham, smoked pineapple, red onions and just the right number of hot, green peppers. They had a duo playing lovely live music when I visited.