Showing 1-21 of 21 results
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Black Olive
This sophisticated but convivial downtown restaurant fuses a foundation of Mediterranean dishes with West Coast and international flourishes, offering meals that range from tiger prawn linguine to olive-topped wild salmon. While the starched white tablecloths suggest formality, the staff are bend-over-backwards friendly.
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Blethering Place
The name means 'voluble, senseless talking' but don't act like a blethering idiot at this traditional tearoom.
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Blue Carrot Café
An ideal hang-out in the shadows of Bastion Sq, this wood-floored family-run nook serves local favorite Salt Spring Island coffee along with a host of chunky, mostly organic cakes and muffins. It's also a good lunch spot - regulars enjoy the ever-changing roster of made-from-scratch soups (carrot and ginger is frequently requested), and the hearty burgers are as far from fast food as it gets.
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Brasserie L'Ecole
Incongruously abutting Chinatown, this superb bistro offers country-style French cuisine in a warm, casual atmosphere. Locally sourced produce is de rigueur, so the menu constantly changes to reflect seasonal highlights such as heirloom tomatoes, delicate figs and foraged salmonberries. A local favorite is lamb shank, served with mustard-creamed root vegetables and braised chard.
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Camille's
One of the grande dames of Victoria fine dining, adventurous Camille's still challenges the city's new young chefs. Its charming subterranean dining room offers a lively, ever-changing menu reflecting whatever the chef can source locally: if wild strawberries are in season, they'll appear in soups and savory dishes as well as desserts. With a great wine menu, this spot invites adventurous foodies.
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Demitasse
This art school-style hang-out is where local grunge geeks come to sup endless cups of coffee and compare their latest Value Village purchases. It's very laid-back, with high-ceilings and old wooden tables. The food is chunky, fresh and satisfying but never gets much further than great soups, wraps and sandwiches - simple, satisfying food done well: check out the banana bread French toast breakfast.
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Dutch Bakery
If diners had been invented by little old ladies with purple hair, this is what they'd look like. This charming downtown institution has been packing them in for 50 years with its Formica countertops, chatty ambience and simple, old-school meals. Rub shoulders with the regulars and they'll recommend a beef pie with potato salad followed by a fruit pie chaser. After your meal, try to leave without buying from the Aladdin's cave of handmade candies at the front.
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Fairmont Empress Hotel
The prim and proper Fairmont Empress Hotel is the tea lovers' favorite, where mouthwatering scones, fresh Devonshire cream and decadent pastries are all on the menu. Reserve at least a week ahead during the busy season, and make sure you're properly attired - those wearing ripped jeans are relegated to their own room as if they've done something very naughty, and those wearing shorts are likely to be shot and mounted alongside the wildlife trophies in the colonial Bengal Room.
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Floyd's Diner
A funky eatery with an ultrafriendly vibe, Floyd's combines a sun-drenched patio, warming blood-red interior and a menu of serious comfort food - it's the spot to recover from a throbbing hangover. Along with the all-day breakfast menu (try the 'Elton', a heaping bowl of fruit, yogurt and honey), there are some bulging burgers and sandwiches and a great lunch deal: an around C$6 bottomless bowl of soup.
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Gatsby Mansion
Great views of Inner Harbour to accompany your genteel sipping of tea.
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John's Place
Victoria's favorite brunch spot - hence the weekend lineups - John's is worth the wait to get in. It has a wood-floored, high-ceilinged heritage room lined with funky memorabilia, and the menu is a cut above usual diner fare. Heaping Belgian waffles are served with homemade cream cheese, and those who come for dinner can choose from a medley of international comfort food, from calamari to pierogies.
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Legislative Dining Room
One of Victoria's best-kept dining secrets, the city's handsome waterfront Parliament Buildings has its own restaurant where MLAs, ministers and VIPs can drop in for sustenance. Far from being a simple pit stop between debates, the subterranean eatery is a delightful, silver-service restaurant showcasing the best in regional ingredients. Happily, the subsidized menu has some of the best prices in town and it's also open to anyone who happens to be passing by.
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Lotus Pond
Behind the unassuming, almost shabby exterior of this downtown Chinese restaurant is an extensive, all-vegan menu of delights created using Buddhist principles. Even meat eaters have been known to swoon here, as they tuck into surprisingly tasty spring rolls, dim sum and pot stickers. Combo meals are the best option, as they offer an array of different flavors.
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Mint
This loungey late-night hang-out is popular with bar staff winding down after their shifts. But they don't just come to bitch about their non-tipping customers; Mint offers an eclectic, finger-licking menu of Nepalese, Tibetan and fusion delicacies that runs from spicy lamb cooked with apricots to almond-and-cashew pesto fettuccine. There's an equally diverse menu of regular DJ performances.
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Noodle Box
Southeast Asian cuisine with a strong Malaysian influence is the approach at this buzzing business that started out as a street vendor. A great place for takeout - served in those funky boxes - it's also a chatty eat-in spot. Popular stir-fries include Thai-style chow mein, and the Cambodian Jungle Curry is recommended for those who like their meals with a spicy kick.
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Pagliacci's
A popular local hang-out for decades, 'Pag's' is a small restaurant with a big heart. You're almost guaranteed to make a couple of new friends here since you'll be sitting elbow-to-elbow with the diners at the next table, but it's worth it for a menu of dishes such as Mae West Veal Medallions and Hot Transvestite Sautéed Chicken, each served with salad, vegetables and perfect pasta. Save room for dessert: a frightening array of delectable cheesecakes.
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Point Ellice House & Gardens
Tea and fresh-baked scones are served in the fragrant gardens. If you have a monocle, this is the time to wear it.
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ReBar
A relaxing and contemporary Victoria dining favorite, ReBar fuses colorful interiors with a natty, mostly vegetarian menu. Carnivores will be just as happy to eat here, though, with hearty savory dishes such as shitake-tofu pot stickers and an array of dense fruit smoothies. Weekend brunch is popular and heavily patronized by hung-over University of Victoria (UVic) students moaning quietly from every corner.
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Sam's Deli
It's not just its proximity to Inner Harbour that makes this fuel-up spot ever popular - it also makes darn good sandwiches, although you'll have to have a particularly large mouth to chomp down on some of them. Its signature sarnies feature roast beef or pastrami but the bulging vegetarian sandwich is also popular. A good takeout spot.
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Temple
A soothingly trendy interior might indicate style over substance at this compact downtown restaurant but the opposite turns out to be the case. With a focus on Pacific Northwest cuisine, the menu is a taste-tripper's dream, with seafood particularly well represented: sample the Quadra Island mussels and you won't be disappointed. A Belgian beer focus at the bar means that you can try pairing food with an array of unusual ales.
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Zambri's
While this eponymous downtown restaurant is run by a second-generation Italian chef, its menu is far beyond traditional trattoria fare. Deceptively unassuming from the outside, the ever-changing dishes might range from a hearty squash soup with butter-fried sage to a mouth-melting sablefish, served with rapini-poached eggs. Diners in the know drop by on Saturday, when a creative five-course tasting menu hits the blackboard.
Showing 1-21 of 21 results
