BABY BABY
Neighbourhood: Osborne Village
Address: 137 Osborne Street
Phone: 204-452-2229
Entrees: $12 – $60
Osborne Village has been waiting far too long for its landmark corner building to matter again. With Baby Baby’s spring launch, co-owners Raya Konrad and Chris Gama have engineered not just a comeback story but a full restoration of civic affection. The once dormant, often mourned space now feels decisively returned to the neighbourhood.
Baby Baby’s design is intentional without being precious: dark wood cabinetry framing the length of the bar, a hand-painted floor softening the room’s geometry, and an open kitchen at the back in clear view, grounding the restaurant in the work of cooking rather than the performance of it. Konrad’s front-of-house is polished but relaxed, attentive without ceremony.
The menu reads like a casual shrug, simply structured into small, medium, and large — but that understatement is its most successful misdirection. Gama’s complex cooking is dialed up with confidence, letting the dishes themselves reveal a level of technique and layering that doesn’t announce itself on paper. The pickerel beignets demonstrate this immediately: crisp and weightless, with fermented plum and aji amarillo honey adding depth.
The lobster roll refines a familiar east coast form. A soft milk bun cradling sweet lobster, sharpened by kohlrabi and warm Madras-spiced butter reveals its complexity after the first bite. Fried broccoli is reimagined, turning the ubiquitous vegetable into something novel: kosho aioli gives delicately tempura-coated morsels brightness; golden-raisin relish rounds the edges with subtle heat.
The scallop XO noodles express the kitchen’s style with ease: the tangle of silky noodles threaded with prosciutto and breadcrumbs used sparingly for texture rather than theatrics. It’s a dish deserving of its quick signature status.
The plate that best illustrates Baby Baby’s ambitions is the pickerel vadouvan. In a city where this fish is routinely pan-fried, buttered, and left respectfully alone, Gama’s version reinterprets the local staple. The fillet is crisp, but the surrounding elements push it into new territory: aromatic vadouvan, a barbeque-squash purée with real depth, and a cashew ajo blanco that adds richness without weight. The plate honours regional tradition while demonstrating the joyful impact of global interventions.
A whole sea bass continues that line of thought. The eye-catching fish, sitting atop tangy passionfruit beurre blanc (the “blanc blanc”), is irresistibly tropical, grounded by fennel and a scattering of crispy rice.
Baby Baby’s generous chicken dinner offers a playful interactive for two: crispy and skewered pieces served with buttery lettuce and pink radish for wrapping, plus kicky garnishes that let each bite shift direction. Dessert stays aligned with the restaurant’s clarity. The creamsicle parfait layers tonka-bean ice cream, citrus, grape granita, and meringue for a cool, focused, celebratory finish.
Baby Baby isn’t simply a notable new opening; it’s the restaurant that reorients the neighbourhood around it. The Village has its anchor back, and Winnipeg its most assured debut of the year.