Kiju's Restaurant

Lovely, relaxing restaurant next to The Membertou Heritage museum. Fresh local food included North Atlantic salmon and garden vegetables and greens. Service was friendly and very efficient. Decor is modern native American with wide windows and wooden tables and chairs. Very pleasant and relaxed. Highly recommend this restaurant.

My parents and I were staying at the nearby hotel, we ate here two nights in a row. We all enjoyed our food. Service was great, wasn't too busy on a Sunday and Monday night.

Service was outstanding! Did not wait long for the food, the staff was very accommodating! Food was absolutely amazing poutin n fish was so good n crispy ! The atmosphere in general was very relaxing and comfortable will have this restaurant as one of my top 5 best in Cape Breton ! Make sure to get that charcuterie board 🤌🤤

Had two meals at Kiju’s in March 2024. The food was really great both times. Very high quality of protein ingredients and the flavours were well done. This place may fit a bit under the radar with prices and location. I would highly recommend it.

Amazing Food and a must try. A authentic taste with good service. Really amazed at the location. We found little hard in identifying the location but was absolutely a good experience we tried almost 6 Dishes and was amazing by all means.

We were just passing through and stopped for a bite to eat. Everything we ordered was amazing! The service was fantastic. The house was packed and all the employees were running off their feet, but still seemed to be having a good time, helping each other out. And the cherry on top was the live music. We were fortunate enough to be there when the Turnbull brothers were performing. A very memorable night. This will become a destination trip for us going forward. Highly recommend!

Shared a lovely meal at Kijus in Membertou on Feb14th . The food was excellent; delicious, plated professionally. The meal was paced nicely between courses . Service was good. Great live jazz added a relaxing atmosphere that added to the dining experience. And it was all reasonably priced . Thanks to the chef and wait staff for a nice evening!

Delicious food, friendly service and cozy atmosphere. Definitely a must try when in Sydney, NS or if staying at the Hampton Inn by Hilton.

While recommended by the Hampton Inn next door, I would take that recommendation with the following in mind. They were out of 80% of the target menu items (lobster, clams, crab, etc) and while "settling" for mussels & a steak dinner, all came cold (mussels were overdone, cold, & sticky) & even the "dirty martini" was no more than a scant shot of vodka with 2 mini olives. While the menu looked impressive, the place was empty & we know why. Look elsewhere for your meal.

Loved being able to take out. Also appreciate the discount for hotel patrons. We also enjoyed a seafood chowder (delicious) and a flourless chocolate tortilla. Very satisfied!

Waste of time and money. VERY over priced for what you get. Also, we were only one of three tables seated and it took 50 minutes to get our food. Pics are of the $22 steak, and the $17 ceasar salad. Avoid.

An unusual experience. Located in Membertou, a Native-American enclave within Sydney, the restaurant is housed in a large, uninhabited cultural-center type complex. The surrounding neighborhood was also rather uninhabited. The dining space is rather cavernous but, at the time, was sparsely populated. The Four Cent Bread Skillet (indigenous fry bread w/ artichoke parm dip) was tasty, though my NY striploin was a bit overdone. Not very memorable.

We really enjoyed our stop here. The chowder was a transcendental experience. Unbelievably buttery, creamy, and hearty. I could have easily eaten another bowl. My 11-year-old son shared my bowl with me and was power-eating it, trying to shovel as much as he could while I wasn't looking. The garden salad was also quite delicious, as was the Panko-crusted halibut. My only minor complaint is that the signage and wayfinding are not great outside and inside the building. It's inside a convention centre and we weren't sure if we were in the right place. Overall, though, excellent food and worth a stop.

Great restaurant with great decor, right beside HamptonInn. I think they have shows from now and then, their food is great, check out their chicken wings, shrimp wrap, seafood platter, coconut risotto (not sure if the name is right). Really recommend it, call ahead if you are going there in summer to make a reservation though, my experience tells me that they are super busy!

By far the best chicken wings ever!!! . They are so delicious !! They are what I order 9 times out of 10 at Kijus. BLT is great !! Fish and Chips delicious. The home cut fries and the portions you get, you will not be hungry after you leave. Always great hospitality and great service. Red Seal service !

This place has great service and friendly workers! Absolutely would recommend to everyon! The foods great and is just all around great for any occasion that I can say from experience and leaving happier with each visit here. Love Kiju's restaurant so much

Nice interior, reminds me of a nice chain restaurant. Service was fine, nothing great but night amazing. Ordered a flatbread and poutine. Both were not good. Too oily for the flatbread and the poutines gravy was strange and did not suit the dish. I would never order either dish again. Out of my dining experience I'd recommend only going for drinks.

A nice quiet spot to eat. Great food. Great service. A bit pricy but the atmosphere is great.

Bit of a disappointment. Had our first meal here since arriving at the Cape Breton Island, since it was attached to the hotel we were staying. Probably the longest wait for the food to arrive, and the food was dry. A bit pricey and not worth the meal. The chicken and fries offered at the Membertou market by the gas station in conparison was appreciated and enjoyed by the whole family. Great ambiance and atmosphere, but the food was a let down.

Had the pleasure of eating at this restaurant 2x a day for 3 days...(didn't want to drive). Kiju's offers good food, good service and all meals were great. They serve "homemade" biscuits instead of the usual bread and butter, which was an interesting substitution from the same-old...

We are staying at the hotel that's attached to the restaurant. Clearly, all of the restaurants in Sydney must've decided that they need to close at 7 or 7:30 pm at the latest and the only options were either going back to that awful Boston Pizza or this one. Salmon was surprisingly well done, but everything else was just mediocre. Salad was once again might as well soup with too much dressing. Seafood Chowder was creamy and bland. My son's burger was too overdone and dry.

Surprisingly good for a place that sells bar food. They have some creative options that tasted pretty good, they were even able to provide gluten free choices. If you're staying at the Hampton and this place is part of your dinner plans I advise bringing your own bottle of wine and paying the $9 corkage fee, selection is very limited.

I would be happy to rate this restaurant better, however when someone orders a 6 Oz. $22 medium rare steak, it's better to give them what they asked for... Instead, I received an overcooked steak. And instead of rectifying it, she tries to charge me for a 12 Oz. steak and simply says, "sorry bout that". I'm not happy, and I will Not be going back! You want a decent steak? Go to the grocery store, buy one, and cook it yourself.

I don't know why but my review is showing the cost range as being $$$$. It is not. It is easily $$ but I can't change how it is displayed. Anyway, back to the review. We've been here numerous times over the years. Enjoyed it initially then there seemed to be a period of decline a couple of years ago. Happily, we revisited a couple of days ago and they seem to have rebounded. That being said, the place was empty. Like, we were the only ones there. It was a Monday so bear that in mind. Pleasant waitress took good care. We weren't famished so we stuck to the appies. It was a good plan. There was more than enough food. My wife ordered the small chowder and calamari. Chowder had a decent balance of seafood and potatoes and just on the edge of being too thick for my taste. Very tasty tho. The calamari was excellent. Light batter and very tender made it a winner. I had the shrimp tacos. Big for an app more of a meal really. But MESSY! Not first date food, I tell ya wut. Deep fried shrimp kind of got lost in the topping. A little different but pretty good over all. A nice venue but a little out of the way. Not a bad bet in a town that could use more good dining. One small but kind of weird thing was that to get a wifi password I was supposed to sign a form with my drivers licence number. Not sure what that was supposed to accomplish. I just made a number up so...

Wonderful dinner at Kiju's. The staff were friendly and helpful, the food was wonderful. I had the lobster spaghettini and it was amazing, I've never had so much lobster in a dish before and my only complaint was that it was too large of a serving to be able to finish. The cocktails are amazing too - I had the iron cran twister (I think?) and it was so tasty!

If you stay at the nearby hotel and do not wish to drive downtown, you can go there. This is decent, but do not have any expectation. Basic, nothing fancy or memorable here. Lobster and fish items are all overcooked. Mussels are ok. You can have better by driving downtown to Governor pub or North Sydney to Lobster pound... or sure values by going closer to McDo or Burger king... but this is NS! did you come here for Mc Do?

Came here two nights in a row because it was 42 degrees F, windy, rainy, and cold in Sydney in July. Just wanted a meal, but was pleasantly surprised. Wow! This restaurant is legitimately one of the best I've ever eaten at, at least in the first night I was here in July. The menu was fantastic and designed by a local chef and they make their stuff with local ingredients. Warm fire, excellent ambience. First time was amazing waiting service, the next night we went was ok service. The cheesecake pastry was one of the best desserts I've ever had at a restaurant. Overall, the meal had me full and I wanted to try everything on the menu. The next night, the menu changed and wasn't as good as the first (which was six stars), but it was still excellent (four stars). So the review averages out to 5 stars. Lamb was from New Zealand and was cooked perfectly. Lobster sampler dish with lobster three ways was quite an experience. Tasty vegetarian options were there for my vegetarian grandparents too. Hearty hot meal after a cold day in Cape Breton. Check out the Membertou First Nation exhibits just outside the restaurant too.

We ate here only because it was late, the restaurant was attached to our hotel in Sydney, and other options seem to close really early in this town. They were slow to serve our table. When I asked for my burger on a bed of lettuce (instead of a bun) the server explained they couldn't do that, because "they are really particular about presentation." How about they worry more about what the customer wants? Bobby Flay has figured out the aesthetics of a burger salad! Finally, when our burgers came out, they were all charred. We didn't request replacements because it was late and close to closing time, but it was nonetheless a disappointing experience!

Excellent! My husband's haddock was perfectly cooked, as was my 6oz. strip loin. Vegetables were nicely cooked, not raw or limp. Desserts--the phyllo covered cheesecake with blueberries and coconut cream pie--were delicious. There are also some interesting Mi'kMaq-inspired dishes on the menu.

Cozy inside with a fireplace. Food was good. Burger was flame grilled and tasted smokey and great. You get 10% off your bill if staying at the connected hotel. It was a great lunch

Well now. We just had a lovely dinner here at Kiju's! Not the experience we had a few years ago but since we're staying at The Hampton and tired, we had hopeful thoughts of a good meal and they definitely served it up. Forgot to photograph them but I had the Hot Turkey with mash and the best vegetable medley (which is not boiled to death like Mom used to do) and a truly "Homemade" gravy that I couldn't have made any better. 's off! Asked for more and they quickly served a nice sized little mason jar full. Hubby had the Club sandwich with spinach salad and he ate it all with delight. Fresh, moist and thickly sliced meat with thick bacon and Fixin's. Gotta say, best meal we've had without complaint....except for that Gin cocktail that doesn't measure up to the taste of all the ingredients. Gin and tonic with mint would have tasted the same. Anywho, we're having a coffee and a Award Winning Coconut Cream pie which may be in a small town but it's good. Hearty portions and we won't be hungry for awhile. Way to go Kiju's! We'll be back .

Great restaurant attached to the Hampton Inn. I ordered the Haddock and it was fantastic. Didn't expect this for middle-of-nowhere NS.

Tonight's supper was really delicious and topped off by great service. I ate close to the bar and the server was wonderful. Meal consisted of the new Canadian 150 beer that was ok tap, the haddock, soup, and a green tea. The only thing I would say is the batter was a bit thick for my personal liking. Otherwise on point and great ambiance with a professional piano player to go with the great service. Thank you and I'll be back!

Came here twice this week because it was next to the hotel. Service was good but the food was over priced based on what you get and it did not taste that great. My wife ordered the halibut one night and the seafood bomb (mixed seafood plate) the other night. Both times the fish / seafood was over cooked, so bad the second time my wife could only eat half of the plate. The second time my daughter ordered the kids burger she could only take a few bites because it was so over cooked and dry.

I'm a Sydney native and I've had the pleasure of dining at Kiju's several times during my annual visits home. It has a wonderful ambience and warm, friendly service. I have never been disappointed with any of the meals I have enjoyed there. I would highly recommend Kiju's if you are looking for an upscale restaurant at mid-range prices.

Better do better than this: this is an upscale restaurant with lack of upscale food. The menu reads great, got us real excited, but most of the food fell flat. The house salad wasn't special, but the beet salad was. The crab cakes were okay but seemed to have, well, shells in them. The turkey dinner was just okay at best. Two of us had the stuff pork loin: dry as the Sahara desert. We were starving and ate it anyway, but jeeze, this is an upscale place and they should know how to do moist meats. The garlic mashed potatoes were also dry, so our meal took a lot of extraneous fluids to push it down. The desserts were a big disappointment, too. The bread pudding was again just okay, but came out cold. Cold bread pudding with ice cream? The apple crisp was essentially Motts applesauce: no chunks and certainly no crisp. And it too came out cold. They didn't even ask to warm it. So if this place wants to attract more than the old people that were there staying at the nearby Hampton Inn (which is an awesome hotel!!!), and want to have more than 4-5 tables filled on a Friday night, better pay for mystery diners to come in and do evaluations.