The waitress was so mean to a customer. Unprofessional and we left and will not be back. Management didn't stop at the waitress for belittling the customer. read more

Not really impressed. We ended up here due to the missing two ferries. We needed somewhere to pass time, have lunch (plus a drink) that was close enough walking distance to the ferry terminal. Out of the two pubs nearby, this one had more of a vibe going. Note to self, maybe that's not how I should make future food decisions... We were greeted and seated pretty quickly. But after that, it was like we had to wave done someone to place our order. They have a big cocktail menu, we ordered a Caesar and a Blue Hawaiian. To me, pub meals tend to be on the extra large portion size, so the two of us opted to share a Celtic Shepherds Pie with a Caesar salad. It took a while for the food to come out. Everything was just alright, the Shepherds Pie was definitely living on the salty side of life. If there wasn't an issue with the ferry schedules, I'd have no reason to be there. And I won't be making the same mistake twice. read more

We were disappointed with our visit here. It wasn't necessarily bad, but it did not live up to the reviews or expectations. It's really just a relatively boring, run of the mill, eatery. It's fine if you need some food but don't expect a memorable experience. read more

A very nice location. We both ordered the Beef Burger, one with fries and one with a Caesar. Honestly this is the worst burger I have ever eaten (and yes that includes the flat disgusting McDonalds quarter pounder). $17.50 for a crap burger....wow! I've eaten a lot of $15-$20 pub burgers over the years and this is undoubtedly the absolute worst by a mile. Go for drinks and the view and do a drive though on the way there for food if you want a burger. The staff are amazingly nice and very attentive and the location is perfect if you're doing a ferry. read more

NOT RECOMMENDED. Really nice location and building, we had high hopes despite their rating on Yelp. Started out okay, we were seated right away, and we got out drink orders in. After that point I was really surprised how bad the service was. It was about 28 minutes later, after we made a request, that the waiter returned for our food orders. Wasn't even busy. Total con artists too, don't fall for the extra topping trick, on appetizers or mains, as they will charge you $3.00 for every additional topping without telling you, you will be surprised when you get the bill. The add on costs were unreal. They are well aware that they will get a crowd of people waiting for their Ferry, and stopping in for lunch. It seems that they hope for single time customers to take advantage of, and don't have to worry about serving again. Burger was cold, and took 1 hour to get. Again, this was happy hour, and many tables were empty. Beers were good. Bartender seemed to be a good guy, too bad the servers stripped away any chance of receiving a tip. BEWARE friends!! Spend your hard earned money anywhere else! read more

Only gave it one star because can't post with zero stars. Went in for a beverage and a meal with my wife. 15 minute wait for the beverage order to be finally taken, received the beverages a short time later. Then waited for a half hour after that but no server ever came back for our meal order, or to ask about a refill on the obviously empty pint glass on the table. Nothing! Now understand, they weren't all that busy. Several empty tables in the area we were seated in. For a server in a pub to ignore empties on the table seems very self defeating in my way of thinking. Finally we approached the hostess to get our tab, paid and left. Next to nothing in the way of an apology or any attempt to correct the situation was made. She Just basically dumped the collection task on a different waitress to deal with us! Unbelievable! Another Nanaimo location hits our never going back list. Too sad! read more

Worst customer service my family has EVER received. Food was good but the service was actually disgusting. Only go here if you want to waste your money! Servers and the female manager are unprofessional and will blame the customers when they were told that servers are making rude comments. Grimey place. The only person to have any class was the hostess. Just sad. read more

Stuffed mushrooms and potato skins with bacon. Have the choice of spicy beef or ham. Defiantly have had better. Mushroom caps not made in house, Food quality does not match the decor Our waiter we think he is drumming up business for his old employer in, he mentioned it three times with in a few minutes read more

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Look... I mean... when you show up in Nanaimo (Departure Bay) "the place you come to leave" you're expectations are...subdued at best. Enter - Carlos O'Bryans...a "first round draft pick" when googling "Nanaimo's best pub". With such a heralding title one can't help but feel like you've found the gem planted into the sea side landscape, a place full of lattice fries (pachos) and fresh pints of Guinness. However, it is with tremendous disappointment that I found myself sitting with a stand-in pint of Kilkenny, because...they don't have any Guinness on tap today. There could never be enough short kilts, gas fireplaces or excessive flat screen TVs to replace, the creamy, heartwarming flow of Guinness pored properly at an Irish pub. In my opinion Carlos O'Bryan is much more Carlos than O'Bryan these days... read more

General comment/question first. Is it odd that almost every pub on Yelp never gets more than 3.5 stars?! You would think this is a huge opportunity??? Anyway, this Pub is good. Pro's; location despite being a little difficult to access, service, atmosphere and view. Con's; food. How hard is it to make great chicken wings? Apparently, extremely because they're harder and harder to find. I'd go back, just not to eat. read more

This is a beautiful location, great structure, and the lights reflecting on the still summer waters seen from the giant windows and the patio are dreamy. The host at the front took his covid responsibilities seriously and gave me a great preview of the menu. My server was friendly, food and drink arrived quick, the meal was hot and well plated. it aint Michelin stars dining but it's good pub fare. Nice sound system, the oldies might not dig that. Come check it out, great place for a drink and to catch the game read more

I was very impressed by the bar like food and customer service, great 2 floor joint that follow covid protocol. I took high notice in that.

Just don't bother going here. It's terrible. The waitresses were very disorganized. They did not seem to have sections as I had two going back and forth from my table the whole time I was there. I noticed them doing this at other tables too. The Beef Dip was by far the worst Beef Dip I have ever had in my life. The beef was processed beef and for some reason was sopping wet and gross which made the bun all soggy. The beef was so bad, I literally could not even get half way through it. The Au Jus was artificial and was obviously made from powder in a package. The cost? $16.50! And there was no more than a small handful of fries on the side. The cocktail menu was made of paper and covered with food stains. When my drink came there was no straw. I asked the waitress for a straw and she seem perturbed that I had the audacity to ask her. When she came back, her fingers were all over the top of the straw as she went and dropped it in my drink, (thanks, I want to put my lips on the part of the straw your hands were just on). All in all I made a big mistake walking through those doors. I won't make that mistake again. :( read more

Fantastic friendly service, albeit it took a few minutes to get our first drinks. Nothing major though as the place was packed solid for a Monday evening. Fish tacos and stuffed mushrooms were both excellent. I didn't enjoy the gravy with the Yorkshire pudding bites however. Seemed like it was a reduced teriyaki and it doesn't pair well and overpowers the Yorkshire pudding itself. Besides that though I will be back in the future! read more

There is nothing special about this chain of family style pubs. I've been to many Kelly O's (and Carlos O's) and this is same as the rest. The service is on the slow side, the food is just ok, the prices are little high but none of this is a surprise. What is nice about this location is the actual location on the water. Lots of boat traffic to watch and there is always lots of parking. read more

Well now the beautiful surrounding sure do not match the food quality we ordered potato skins and mushroom caps stuffed with crabmeat very sub par read more

Carlos O'Bryan's - This was a place I've gone to many times before but it has gone through a big chang waiting for your food can't wait - Pubs Near Me - Nanaimo, British Columbia

To be clear: this is not a 5-star gourmet dining experience; you won't be impressed by a roaming sommelier or tableside salad mixing. But this place knows exactly what kind of restaurant/bar it is and it's oh so awesome at executing that standard. Huge, varied menu of lots of deliciously heavy comfort foods served by friendly, attentive waitresses; A drink list thicker than most paperbacks with amazing prices; and a fun vibe with beautiful views. Just a shout out to a lot of other reviewers who are giving this 1 or 2 stars: if this type of experience offends you, or if you're off put by attractive women (and men, according to my wife) serving you food and drink, why on earth are you going to a Carlos O'Briens? My wife and I came last Friday night (late-January). Unfortunately we had a huge wait to get a table, but our own fault for not making a reservation. The manager (owner?) Was incredibly hospitable and even found a way to open us a table way before the quoted time - she was amazing. Many Holy Waters, and Shamrock Shooters later - combined with surpringly delicious jerk chicken fettuccine and Pacho Fries - we had a heck of a night. Had to leave the car overnight (check-in with the bartender for a car sleepover pass) and cab. We're heading back to Carlos O'Briens this Saturday night! read more

I can't comment on the food. The place is an acoustic nigbtmare, just as it was as "Muddy Waters." Walked in last night to more decibles than a Super Bowl game, went upstairs hoping for peace and quiet. Fat chance. At that point, I left. When I got outside, I turned my hearing aids back on. read more

This place is really swanky, compared to the Muddy Waters that it replaced. I had the "Pacho" fries with cheese and green onions. I really like crosscut fries and they were tasty, but $8.50 was really steep. Also had the "Cajun spicy" wings. They were not Cajun or spicy, at all. The wings were covered with a brown sauce that looked like BBQ sauce, but really didn't taste like anything. I can't think of any reason I would return. Muddy Waters may have been kind of a dive, but I liked it more and the process were way more reasonable. And while I'm at it, Miller's Pub is gone, too. WTH! \_0_/ I used to like staying at the Buccaneer Inn, when in town, which is often, and being within walking distance of two decent pubs. read more

Went for lunch with a work colleague. He had the Halibut burger and I had a Steak sandwich. Great service. Everything was great but the killer is the deck. Combined with the view and the food......priceless I will be back with my wife and friends . read more

Food is good. Menu large and prices reasonable. The waitresses are young, cute and clad in very very short kilts (the better to watch them walk up the central staircase). Does this make for good service? Nah. But the place does draw a lot of young men, which in turn draws a lot of young women. I guess it all balances out. read more

Carlos O'Bryan's - Asian Chili Prawns, 2 for 1 appetizer after 9:00. - Pubs Near Me - Nanaimo, British Columbia

I have never had such bland food before. I ordered the fajitas and it tastes like they were seasoned with bell peppers alone. I had to spice it up with black pepper and a little salt to make it palatable. Dad ordered the broccoli soup and the chicken cesar salad. The soup was under spiced and watery and the chicken was under spiced as well. The servers were quick and polite. The atmosphere and location is really nice. Bring. Your. Own. Spices. You will love this place if you do! read more

5 Stars for the drinks and atmosphere. 3 Stars for the food. This isn't the place you want to take your mum for mother's day dinner. This is a place you want to take you friends to have a few shots after a long week. Would recommend. read more

Have been here quite a few times and were always pleased with the food, but this last time was just the opposite (makes it harder to write this review). The service was still excellent; but the food was only a 2 out of 5. Ordered the halibut and chips and the fish was one of the smallest pieces I'd ever seen! (price was not reflective!). A few other people in our group ordered the same thing, and each piece of fish was just as small. And the coleslaw (although excellent), was about 2 tablespoons worth. The rest of the plate was filled with their fries (good; but way too many). My husband had the chicken, and it too, was nothing to write home about. We were thoroughly disappointed this last visit. We did have the dry ribs to start, and they were excellent. We'll wait a while to go back, and will likely give it one more go. read more

the food was ok, the atmosphere was loud and stuffy, our waitress was pretty terrible (forgetting drinks, taking a half hour to bring drinks, only taking one or two drink orders at a time) At one point a waitress who wasn't serving us told a person at our table, that our entire table was cut off from getting double, but our waitress kept offering them to us. So, either they were ripping us off or not communicating with each other. But the worst part was the liquor was watered down. I am a hundred pound girl, and i had a hundred dollar tab and I walked out pretty much sober. the only people at the table who actually got a buzz were those drinking beer. so if you go, buy beer, and nothing else. read more

The food is consistent, the service is good and friendly, the portions are a healthy size; I am a large man and am full when I leave. Depending on when you go, it can be crowded and very loud; don't forget that this is basically a pub. The view is great, right on the water. read more

We have been to this location dozens of times in the last year. We continue to enjoy the view and staff. However this time we ordered dinner. Very disappointed. Burger over done , bun asked to be toasted was not and at 17.50 !!! My partner had the halibut fish and chips for 17.50. Added the extra piece for 9.95. Most disappointing!!! Quality of food for the price questionable , unfortunately we will not order entrees again. Happy hour being the best option. Food mediocre read more

Great place to eat pachos and a burger! Very delightful views and friendly staff, recommend to anyone in the need of good food and a great view on the water! read more

Good location, but horrible food. I had the Hawaiian chicken burger. They slapped a frozen, pre-deep-fried stringy chicken strip on a bun that was 4 times too big. It was drenched in so much sauce that by the time I was half way through my burger it was a sloppy mess. My partner had the Guinness burger, which was pretty much the same experience. read more

I have ate here 5 times over the year and the food is by far the worse pub food ever. You cant get a medium rare steak at this place, they cant cook ribs, the dry ribs were so plane no salt or nothing and by far the dryest ribs ever like it was cooked a week befor and preheated in a microwave. The only thing going for this place is the drinks n prices read more

I came to this area to pick up my new boat, thought to have some food first before the long journey home. What a great place, the food is awesome and the staff are efficient and friendly. read more