Restaurants in Victoria, British Columbia
FISH AND CHIPS |
| Barb's
Fish and Chips provides a unique experience at Fisherman's Wharf.
The floating hut serves to an outdoor experience on picnic tables
on the dock. The place is usually very busy. The dock holds fish boats,
fresh fish for sale, houseboats and a seal that comes to the dock
to be fed. The fish and chips are generally very good. Or try the excellent fare at
Salty's Fish and Chips nearby on Esquimalt Road. |
| The
Blackfish Café also floats on the water in the Inner Harbour
at Ships Point and serves good fish and chips. Several pubs serve
up good fish and chips as well, such as the Canoe Brew Pub on Swift
Street and
Smugglers Cove Pub in Cadboro Bay Village*.
Most restaurants serve Halibut or Cod. I recommend Halibut. Cod is
good, halibut is great! |
SEAFOOD |
In Victoria if you are looking for good seafood, I would suggest that
you try the
Blue Crab Bar and Grill in the Coast Harbourside
Hotel. The view is spectacular and the sea food is sublime.
For local
flavour, stop by Ferris' Oyster Bar on Yates Street. This funky
little restaurant has lots of ambiance and if you love oysters, this
is it. They also serve sweet potato fries, a delight if you have never
had them before.
Live crab and lobster are the specialty at
Pescatores,
located on Humboldt Street just north of the Fairmont Empress very
near the Inner Harbour.
If
you visit Victoria and walk away without having tried local Dungeness
Crab, then you have missed on of our local delicacies. For seafood
with a different flair, you might try
Nautical Nellie's. Although
the name appears whimsical, there is nothing whimsical about this
professionally operated eatery. Even the fish and chips have their
own flair. This is a great place to go for seafood, especially if
everyone in your party does not prefer sea food. There is lots of
choice on the menu and the food is good.
The Marina Restaurant
at 1327 Beach Drive has spectacular ocean views and great seafood. |
ASIAN FOOD |
| Victoria
has one of the oldest Chinatowns in Canada, and, along with that,
many places for good Chinese food. Along with the traditional
Chinese food you can also find Thai, Vietnamese, Japanese, and Korean cuisines. A downtown favourite is
Don Mee on Fisgard. One of the best in the city is
East Garden
near Hillside Shopping Centre.
Excellent Thai food is served up by super friendly staff at
Sookjai
Thai at 893 Fort Street. For a unique "fast food" experience
visit the flaming woks at the
Noodle Box 818 Douglas. Hot and
spicy and excellent food served piping hot in a cardboard takeout
box! Eat in or take out at this funky busy restaurant. Azuma Sushi
at 615 Yates will provide you with great Sushi. |
FINE DINING |
If
you are looking for superb food on the upper end, then there are some
nice places to eat in Victoria.
Pablo's, at 225 Quebec Street,
serves up exquisite French Food in a heritage house in James Bay near
the Inner Harbour.
Camille's, 381-3433, at 45 Bastion Square in the heart
of old town at Bastion Square has superb food in a character environment.
(If you're lucky, the resident ghost may join you for dinner!)
Café Brio
also serves excellent dishes at their unique restaurant at
944 Fort St.
If
you want to visit the
Aerie Resort for some of the best food
and ambiance on the planet, you will have to drive partway up the
Malahat Drive to 600 Ebadora Lane. This magnificent resort sits high
on the Malahat with spectacular views over Saanich Inlet. Super friendly
staff greets you and serves you in a dining room with great ambiance.
Head
for a drive out to Sooke and you will find the world famous Sooke
Harbour House is synonymous with great food. Sooke Harbour has
some excellent restaurants for such a small community.
Markus' Wharfside Restaurant, overlooking Sooke Harbour, also has delicious meals.
If
your travels take you to the Saanich Peninsula, in the Brentwood Bay
area, you will find the
Carden Street Café at 1164 Stelly's
X Road. The food is great, well prepared and well presented. Lookout for Closer to home is the French bistro, Brasserie l'Ecole, on Government St., winner of many awards.
|
PASTA |
| If
you get the urge for some great pasta, try the Luciano's, 388-5824,
515 Yates St. in the heart of downtown. Good Italian food and
pasta can be found at Il Terrazzo, 555 Johnson Street. The
restaurant is tucked in Waddington Alley and has a candle-lit courtyard.
Some regular chain restaurants serve great food and very good pasta
dishes as well. Try
Milestones
on the Inner Harbour, 381-2244. It has
the best location in Victoria and some of the best food in Victoria
as well. Consistency
and great quality make this one restaurant that keeps bringing me
back.
Zambri's,
at 110-911 Yates, will surely tickle your pallet with their Italian food as well.
|
VEGETARIAN |
| One
of the best vegetarian restaurants anywhere is
Rebar in Bastion
Square. Their food is great and served in a casual environment.
Santiago's
at 660 Oswego Street also has some great vegetarian choices served
with a Mexican or central American flare.
Green Cuisine in
Market square has some very good vegetarian food served cafeteria
style. |
|
PUB FOOD
|
| Don't
be fooled, many of our pubs serve up great food. Downtown, the
Cactus Club
at 1125 Douglas is among the best, as is the
Canoe Brewpub
at 450 Swift Street.
The 5th St. Bar and Grill,
on 1028 Hillside, has great food at reasonable prices.
Spinnaker's Brewpub
is famous for their beer, waterside location and good food.
Swan's
is another very popular brewpub in downtown Victoria. At the
4 Mile House
on Island Hwy there is an elegant dining room as well as good food in the pub.
|
|
STEAKS AND RIBS
|
|
If you like good meat, then try the
Keg Steakhouse,
Hunters Steakhouse and Wine Bar,
Harbour House, or
Milestones
on the Inner Harbour. If you want good ribs, the best I have had are
at Milestones. They do them with a cranberry corn relish, addictive
curly fries and an outstanding Asian slaw. |
BURGERS |
| If
you like a good burger, my favourite is the American Burger at Milestones
(sirloin burger with cheese and bacon), with curly fries.
Other great burgers can be had at
Rosie's Diner
, at 253 Cook Street, where the owner makes his own patties from pure ground beef, or try the
Spitfire Grill on the West side of the Airport in Sydney.
Fairfield Fish and Chips offers up a burger worthy of being on any list. |
PIZZA |
|
If you want delivery, then get hold of
Hot House Pizza , who make some of the best pizza in Victoria,
Domino's Pizza, or
Panago, all excellent choices and so close to Denniston by the Sea that their pizzas always arrive piping hot.
If you want a sit down restaurant then try
Romeo's Place.
There are a number of them around greater Victoria and they are regularly
voted as a top choice by Victorians.
San Remo at 2709 Quadra street makes excellent Italian Pizza.
You can also find one
Pizza Hut and three
Boston Pizzas in the Victoria area.
|
LUNCH OR LIGHTER MEALS |
| The
biggest sandwich in Victoria is made at
Sam's Deli on Government Street.
It is hard to get the sandwich in your mouth as they are stacked
high with superb contents and they are made fresh while you watch.
If you like a fast food Greek lunch, try
Eugene's Greek Restaurant & Snack Bar at 1280 Broad St.
Their gyros or chicken souvlaki are the best you will find
and make a great lunch.
If you are looking for a substantial lunch at a fair price, try
Frank's Honeybun at 605 Yates.
Maude Hunter's has great sandwich and soup specials with bottomless
bowls of really good soup.
Pagliacci's a.k.a. "Pag's" on Broad street has
great soup and sandwich specials and also has a bottomless
soup bowl. |
OTHER NOTEWORTHY RESTAURANTS: |
For
great Mexican food, try
Adriana's Cocina Mexicana at 1527 Amelia
Street.
Funky
Cafe Mexico is right in a good shopping area and has enthusiastic supporters..
Dock
503 in Sidney is a waterside café worth the trip to Sidney
and has great food.
Looking
for the best prime-rib in Victoria? Check out the
Impressions
Restaurant at 345 Quebec Street in the Harbour Towers Hotel.
If
you are looking for Tapas, try the
Tapa Bar at 620 Trounce
Alley or try
Temple Restaurant who serve Tapa style main
courses in a very unique and trendy environment.
The Med Grill Mosaic at 1063 has great Mediterranean fair, tapas, and nice
atmosphere. They have a second restaurant at Royal Oak, 4512 W.Saanich Road.
Mom's Café in Sooke is a landmark. For years
it has been serving up some of the biggest meals in the country,
nothing special, just "logger's fare" and lots of it, including homemade pies that are famous. And there's a working jukebox.
If
you are lost in the country (namely Metchosin) and looking for a
place to eat, try the
My-Chosen Café for home cooking
and country atmosphere.
The
Ogden Point Café is in a very unusual location
at the foot of the Ogden Point Breakwater, with fantastic views
of Juan de Fuca Strait and the Olympic mountains. The food is served
cafeteria style and is good. There are lots of treats. It is a great
place to go for a cinnamon bun and coffee or tea on a cool day.
If
you are in Colwood and looking for a place to eat, try the
Royal Roads Café, 1951 Sooke Road. Like Mom's, nothing
special but lots of great home-style food.
Ric's
Grill replaced the Cheezecake café. It is definitely
a step up from the Cheezecake café but the food is very good
and the atmosphere is great, with very friendly staff.
If
you find yourself in Brentwood Bay, stop in at the
Seahorse Café at 799 Verdier for some great
food in a restaurant over the water.
If
you are lost in North Saanich near the airport find the
Spitfire Café on the west side of the airport at 9681 Willingdon,
for a large menu with good food and home style cooking while sitting
at the edge of the runway.
If
you are looking for a traditional English Tea, you must go to the
White Heather Tea Room at 1885 Oak Bay Avenue, just behind
the "Tweed curtain" (what the locals call Oak Bay!)
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