Merchant Warehouse Retro Cafe & Wine Bar

The Merchant Warehouse is a retro cafe and wine bar in a restored waterfront warehouse on Water Street in Woody Point. Its outdoor patio sits over Bonne Bay, and broad windows keep the water in view from inside. Come for a sit-down meal or a drink alongside a stroll through Woody Point, not for a separate viewpoint; the draw is a characterful old building right at the harbor, with the bay as part of the meal.

Local cod is the menu's anchor: fish and chips, cod bites and a seafood basket with cod, calamari and battered scallops. Burgers are made with homemade patties, with sandwiches, salads, desserts and milkshakes filling out the cafe menu; wine and Newfoundland beer are available too. The fish and chips are the clear pick if you want the local ingredient, while the patio makes a longer meal more appealing than a quick takeout stop.

George C. Butt built this warehouse after an earlier fish warehouse burned in Woody Point's 1922 waterfront fire. The building later served as storage for the family's retail business. A six-year restoration brought it back into use as a cafe, and the operation remains in the family. The red clapboard and broad storefront windows keep that warehouse feel in the foreground. It also hosts local live music and the Woody Point of View show upstairs; the schedule varies, so think of a performance as an occasional extra rather than a guaranteed part of a meal.

The cafe is at 16 Water Street, in the village's waterfront area within Gros Morne National Park. Free parking is listed, but the exact arrangement isn't specified. Available season information points to May through October, so confirm before making an off-season detour. The Woody Point of View show is upstairs and involves a flight of stairs.