Excellent clubhouse and fries at The Garage Pub & Grill in tiny Tofield, Alberta

Perhaps the only reason the road tripper might be passing through Tofield, on Highway 14 southeast of Edmonton, is to reach Beaverhill Lake, an internationally important bird migratory stopover in wet years. When I stop in Tofield and walk into The Garage Pub & Grill, it’s dark, dingy and empty, save for a couple of guys nursing beers at the bar. Tack on the pulsing music and the glow of TV screens and slot machines, and I’m about ready to turn around.

Instead, I sit down and order a chicken clubhouse with fries, which turns out to be a bountiful, tasty plate of food for only $8. While I wait all of four minutes for it to arrive, I soak in the motorcycle theme, from a bike in the darkened rafters to menu items named cylinder heads (trout from Beaverhill), alternator burgers and differential oil (gravy).

There’s the morning-after breakfast—complete with eggs, steak and a shot of Baileys— but no pancakes (owner Geno “hates ‘em”) or crepes (“not a chance.”) It’s definitely a place dripping with character.

The Garage Pub & Grill
5018 51 Avenue, Tofield, Alberta
Monday to Thursday 11 am-midnight, Friday 11 am-2 am, Saturday noon to 2 am, Sunday noon to 10 pm