Charlotte Lane Café, Shelburne, Nova Scotia

Chef Roland Glauser hails originally from Switzerland but has spent his adult life perfecting his culinary artistry in Canada, from Jasper to Halifax where he and his wife, Kathleen, settled for many years. Twenty one years ago they moved to the absolutely beautiful, some say ‘quintessential’, sea side town of Shelburne. Rich in Loyalist history, Shelburne’s coastal architecture is reminiscent of a gentler era with painted clapboard homes and picket fences. It was in one of those old homes (theirs was build 170 years ago) that the Glausers chose for Charlotte Lane.

Chef Glauser’s menu is very approachable and very Nova Scotian. The South Shore fish sampler shows off smoked and marinated seafood from the region. There’re eastern shore mussels steamed in the classic mixture of white wine, garlic and tarragon and of course, there’s a creamy fish chowder. He pays homage to his homeland with a pork tenderloin ‘Zurich-style’ which means it has lots of mushrooms and the requisite rosti potatoes, grated potatoes that are pan-fried in butter till they cling together forming a crisp, delicious cake. Kathleen’s favourite is the Nova Scotia lobster and scallops brandy gratin with the lobster and scallops simmered in what they call a “decadent brandy cream” then baked with monterey and cheddar cheese.

I love how the dessert menu leads off with a number of samplers of Nova Scotia’s fine liqueurs and eau de vies. The distilling industry is coming into it’s own and in nearby Lunenburg is Ironworks the micro-distillery that encloses whole ripe pears in their bottles of Poire William.

The recent roll call of awards began when Charlotte Lane was honoured as being the Best Small Restaurant in the Province in 2014. Food communicator, Bill Spurr, dubbed it Restaurant of the Year – outside Halifax in his annual awards while Taste of Nova Scotia, the regional branding organization, named it their 2011 Restaurant of the Year from Taste of Nova Scotia. In 2015 Roland won the Taste of Nova Scotia Chowder Cook-off.

Contact Charlotte Lane at the number below to reserve a Food Day Canada table.

Contactez Charlotte Lane Cafe directement, au numéro ci-dessous, afin de faire votre Journée des terroirs réservation.

Charlotte Lane Café
13 Charlotte Lane,
Shelburne, Nova Scotia,
B0T 1W0
T: 902- 875-3314