A little pub in Val-David among Air Canada's Best New Restaurants

Wednesday night, 9:46 pm. The pub is closed on Wednesdays now, so the news landed in an empty room: an email from Air Canada. MacTaverne, in Val-David, is one of 30 finalists for Air Canada's Best New Restaurants 2026. We read it twice. Then we called Mike.

More than 90 restaurants were nominated across the country. Thirty made the list. Ours is a village pub of about sixty seats at 1430 rue de l'Académie, open since June 19, 2025, with seven rooms upstairs and Le P'tit Train du Nord at the door. We won't pretend otherwise: we are proud. Not of ourselves. Of the place, and of the people who make it.

What Air Canada saw

Their finalists page talks about the river, about the pace slowing down as you reach Val-David, and about precise, ingredient-driven cooking. They call MacTaverne "very much a family affair." They got that right. Mike in the kitchen, me behind the bar, our father on the books and at the door, our mother in the dining room she designed, and a team that kept the place open 70 hours a week all summer without losing the smile.

There is no secret in it. Fish and chips done properly. A scotch egg we have served since day one. A pint poured without hurry. Private-import wines from small importers. A candle on every table. The same tonight as the night we opened.

What comes next

The Top 10 is revealed in November at the Air Canada's Best New Restaurants event, presented by American Express. We try not to think about it too much. We think about Friday, the bookings, the prep.

The full list of 30 finalists is here: Air Canada's Best New Restaurants 2026. Read the whole thing. There are wonderful tables on it, coast to coast.

Book a table, even last minute

Two ways. As always, book directly with us. And as of this week, MacTaverne is also on DINR, Air Canada's partner app for same-day reservations. If you're riding down the trail on a Saturday and the idea hits you halfway, that's where.

Staying the night? The seven rooms are just up the stairs, bookable direct.

Thank you

To the team, front and back. To those who wrote about us this year: La Presse, Tastet, Le Journal de Montréal. It is all gathered on our press page. And most of all to you: the Friday regulars, the cyclists who pull in sweaty, the families who take the big table at the back. National recognition for a small village pub is earned one plate at a time, and you are the ones who ate them.

The candle is lit. Come celebrate with us.