Walls, Shops and Dogs: A Stroll Through Riversdale
As much as I'd like an entire visit anywhere to be all about the food, it just wouldn't be realistic. You need to have time in between meals; reset between first and second lunch, and first and second dinner. ;)
That time between meals is best spent strolling!
When I went Saskatooning, a stroll through the historic Riversdale district was the perfect way to discover the city between meals. This local shop-lined street, which has been around for 100 years, is currently experiencing a renaissance that's not only worth talking about but definitely worth visiting.
Below are some highlights of our Riversdale stroll. I encourage you to copy our route!
Stop and snap Instagrammable Walls
There are some beautiful walls in Riversdale!
I'm very much about finding and photographing Instagrammable Walls—these pretty, interesting coloured, textured, often muralled, and ultimately highly photogenic walls make a great backdrop for photos! Every city has them, and lucky for me, Saskatoon and specifically Riversdale—has a bunch! You're bound to come across a bunch of these walls on any casual stroll through the neighbourhood, like this awesome, colourful one outside of Drift Sidewalk Cafe & Vista Lounge. If you want to be more intentional about it, check out the full guide I put together on Instagrammable Walls of Saskatoon!
Shop, shop shop!
Lots of neat home decor and design inspiration at Garden Architecture & Design!
With over 300 businesses, Riversdale has something for everyone. Shop cards, prints, and notebooks from Soul Paper, show off how proud you are to live in Saskatoon with 'Made in SK' or 'Grown on the Prairies' shirts from Hardpressed, beautify your home with flowers and inspired decor from Anthology Home Collections, and get the perfect gift at Garden Architecture & Design (they carry a bunch of Sid Dickens Memory Blocks— popular, handmade, collectible wall plaques).
Pet All The Animals!
Good boy Clarence is so proud of his stitched portrait via Hiddenstitch
Sure, you should definitely shop local clothes, furniture, prints, shoes, and more in Riversdale, but you should also make a point to visit the district's surprising amount of shop animals! During our stroll, we were delighted to come across a number of these cute animals.
Dogs (and one cat) happily greet customers as they step in to each shop. Some of the real good doggos and kittehs we met included Charlie the cat at Garden Architecture & Design, Karma from Green Ark, and Clarence at Last Shoes.
14/10 would go into Riversdale shops and pet all of these animals again.
And of course—eat at some of the best restaurants in Saskatoon!
Hong Kong-style egg waffles with caramelized bananas from The Odd Couple!
Riversdale is home to some of the very best restaurants in Saskatoon! During our visit we were fortunate enough to squeeze in a few, including Park Cafe & Diner, The Hollows, and The Odd Couple. It felt like every other building we passed in this neighbourhood was a local restaurant and each place we ate had such an energy to it. There's such a variety of restaurants too—whatever you're feeling, you can likely find it here in Riversdale.
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If you're visiting Saskatoon, Riversdale is a must-stop! My husband Mike and I had such a lovely time Saskatooning through all of these local shops in between visits to some incredibly tasty restaurants. I'm sure you would too!
Linda
Linda Hoang
Linda Hoang is a popular, Alberta-based food, travel and lifestyle blogger and content creator. She has worked with countless tourism boards and travel destinations creating guides and sharing recommendations on things to do and food to eat wherever she visits. You can find all of Linda’s travel guides on her blog at www.linda-hoang.com