Exploring a world of cuisine at a local Regina food court

For those looking to support local while also tasting food and flavours from around the world, look no further than the Victoria Square Mall.

Fiyin Adebara works at the Laghos African Kitchenette, one of four-locally owned, multicultural restaurants found in the Victoria Square Mall food court.

“When you are looking for something that is a taste of home… real home cooked African cooking, you barely find it around town,” Adebara said. “Here you are being served the culture of the people. Not just the food, but you are tasting the culture.”

Lunch hour at the food court is often filled with people waiting to try foods from China, Africa, Vietnam or even just a slice of Regina pizza.

Justin Nguyen is the owner of Hanoi Kebab, a Vietnamese restaurant. Here, the most popular dish is the Vietnamese beef noodle soup.

“I am very passionate about cooking,” Nguyen said. “When I see people eating my dishes, and they say ‘it was really good,’ it makes me really happy.”

The multitude of cultures on display is bringing in people from all over Saskatchewan to check out the food.

Tim Connors and his wife live in Assiniboia, Sask., and when they heard about the mix of cultures in a food court, they knew they had to stop next time they were in town.

And as someone who is always looking for new meals to try, having lots of different cultures together in one area is amazing to see.

“Food kind of defines people’s culture,” Connors said after admiring his Vietnamese sandwich he was about to bite. “So if you have the food, you understand the culture a little bit more.”

For Rod Bird, he said every time he comes to Regina from northern Saskatchewan, he stops in at the Supreme Chinese Bistro.

“Personally, I like eating Chinese food,” Bird said. “Anywhere I go I like to give it a try and here the portions are really big. I will definitely be coming back.”

Adebara said customers with all different kinds of backgrounds order from not just his restaurant, but all the others in the food court. He hopes moving forward, even more cultures are able to move in and continue to showcase their cuisine.

“Regina is a mix of all nations and that’s exactly what happens here,” Adebara said. “There is a sense of accomplishment that you have people willing to wait in line to taste what you are offering… the world is small enough to accommodate everybody.”