Service was great fast and kind. The food tasted fresh and amazing exactly like I expected. The…read moretree house design with the leaves made me feel so cozy like I was in an actual tree house. There were some cobwebs on the roof but that's ok

On tues Aug 18/26 My daughter and I thought we would try the cafe for lunch based on great reviews…read more Our experience was a major disappointment. We sat for an hour and a half waiting for our food. New tables sat down around us, ordered and ate. Our server offered 'there was a slip up'. (Likely she forgot to order our food). No real explanation or ownership of the problem was shared. There was no offer to even comp our coffees. Clearly not a professional server. Very unfortunate experience.

Everything I have had here has been incredible! This cute little cafe is tucked between the gas…read morestation, grocery store, and liquor store - so there is no reason not to pop by! I got many things and loved every single thing. I wish their website had a menu but I'll do my best to sum it up! Savoury items: Veg salad (it came with pickled shallots, beets, yam, a ton of cranberries, pumpkin seeds, feta, on a bed of greens with vinaigrette dressing). This salad was huge and had so many flavours and textures. Too many cranberries for my liking but the salad was packed! The pickled shallots were a nice touch! Vegan sausage roll was elite! How it was so buttery and crusty and the vegan sausage was flavored well! What a find! Spanakopita was another gem! Packed full of spinach and cheese and pretty hefty! It melts in your mouth too! Sweet: Caramel nut brownie like bar. It was dense, sweet, and had a nice chew! Good but not my fav! Nanaimo bar was sweet and very soft! Really good bar! Caramel bar was all our favorites! I highly recommend this one! It's not over sweet but has a cooky like texture! My friend also got a sandwich that was packed! I love this place! It's clearly a winner and hit among locals and visitors alike!

Had a quick lunch here on the day i arrived at the island…read more.. Place was buzzing and i was so hungry i forgot to add picts lol. But we have the chicken and bacon sandwich. Beef pot pie, soup, blueberry scone, and ham and cheese croissant and the clam chowder! All i can say is that, food here is great! Very nice island cafe. The sandwich was packed with quality ingredients. Beef pot pit was hearty and held a lot of filling. The scone was also very good. Full of blueberry flavour. The ham and cheese croissant was excellent. Pastry was nicely done and inside was hearty combo ham and swiss cheese. The soup was one of the best clam chowders ive ever had. Even had bacon in them. Wow! Only thing i would change is that they should offer to grill up and warm The sandwiches or the pot pies. All they offered is a small communal microwave. Lol. But nice island vibe and good coffee. Service was quick and efficient. Staff always ready to help and provide whats needed. Cheers! Happy eating!

I love this place for 2 things: their soups and their homemade peanuts butter bars…read more Expect a lineup because this place is hot. They offer a collection of teas and coffees as well as baked breads. The soup of the day was lentil spinach and it was so comforting and soothing. The peanut butter bars are a treat best enjoyed chilled. I'm obsessed and make the trip to this joint specifically for them! Definitely check out this place! You won't regret it.

* Same kitchen, but somehow not as good *…read more This cafe is right next door to the Port Browning Pub (http://www.yelp.ca/biz/port-browning-pub-pender-island#hrid:94ZBvI8PvI7wbRSmT8wZhA), which we had a nice meal at the previous night. So we figured we would return and try the cafe for lunch. I think they share the same kitchen, as the menu looked awfully similar! Service was a bit better in the pub, and it had nicer views. Tried the clam chowder, which had a good amount of clams and veggies. It had a nice richness to it: http://www.yelp.ca/biz_photos/SGlMCuTv8PV1ivMJdIDOFQ?select=MusBNdfSkCf2XtHVNxogrg Boo for them charging extra for a slice of bread with the chowder. Uncool. The lamb burger platter (http://www.yelp.ca/biz_photos/SGlMCuTv8PV1ivMJdIDOFQ?select=KDN8_-MvR9uKPbLur9Mxqg) came with a side salad. The salad was good and very fresh, and included kaiware as a nice touch. The burger was a bit of a disappointment. It was a thin commercial style thin burger and was overcooked. They said it was served with tzatziki on the menu, but came with some semi melted feta cheese on top instead - which didn't really work well at all. Really unfortunate burger as the platter was otherwise a decent one. Photo: http://www.yelp.ca/biz_photos/SGlMCuTv8PV1ivMJdIDOFQ?select=4JQ_pm5VuOS1wmFUTGwTvA I suppose I would have been disappointed if I had ordered the lamb burger in the pub next door - but even writing that off, I think the view in the pub is nicer and the prices are the same. Also the service was much better in the pub. Go figure!

We discovered this spot on our recent trip and it was INCREDIBLE! What we loved:…read more- Our waiter was very cool & great to talk to - The cocktails (a lot of which our waiter had invented I believe) were amazing including my husband's Canadian Tuxedo whisky drink that included a red wine foam. I also loved my frozen espresso martini - The wine list was great and reasonably priced - The food was delicious and a great price for the quality. The brown sugar tart dessert, for example, was so good and tasted a bit like an amazing cheesecake. All the appetizers and mains were perfect too! As we were finishing dinner around 8:30 pm-ish on Friday night, new guests arrived for their Happy Hour which included great food options (that we skipped since we were full from dinner) and specialty cocktails were around $13. Such a great price for such delicious and fun drinks! We'd hoped to come back the following night again but ended up getting tied up with kids' bedtime and missed it. We were bummed since we really wanted to go back to try the Happy Hour and more cocktails!

Amazing doesn't even begin to describe my experience at Atelier in Sidney…read more The service by Cade was beyond anything I've experienced - his brilliant demeanour and knowledge of all the dishes and drinks were top notch. The food we had were the following; freshly made bread + whipped butter, the decadent prawns , chicken pot pie and 3-course tasting menu (pork belly, stunning scallops and he best chocolate torte I have ever tasted. I can't say enough about this food and service. Our only hiccup was the cold draft coming in - but the food and service was so good, that we can overlook. We can't wait to come back!! Thank you for an amazing experience!!

We not only had dinners there but stayed there as well. We felt pampered with delicious meals…read more(breakfast and dinner). The first night my wife and I had scallops for appetizers and herb crusted Wild pacific salmon for the entrees. Their fish were cooked to perfection and the accompaniments were an enhancement as opposed to a dominating force. The second night I had escargot and my wife had the beet and goat cheese salad. We both loved our appetizers. The shepherds pie was good although I found the cheese on top of the mashed potatoes was neither necessary nor authentic, but it was still quite good. My wife had the duck confit which she liked very much. The ambiance is one of a country English cottage which felt cozy and warm and the servers were personable and solicitous without hovering. I'm guessing as good as most of the restaurants in town (Hastings House lies just outside the main strip).

With a fantastic view into the harbor we knew the evening would be great. And the staff and food…read moreprep did not disappoint! Started out with lobster bisque (with a good amount of lobster) and a dozen snails (chef slipped a couple extra!) in a marvelous garlic butter and Parmesan sprinkled over all. Then for entree we enjoyed a wonderfully prepared Herb Crusted Wild Pacific Red Snapper With Creamy Parmesan Polenta, Basil Pesto. I enjoyed the Pan-Seared Nova Scotia Deep Sea Scallops on a fresh bed of lettuce mix and greens. So definitely a restaurant to try but you'll want to plan staying a night or two given they are on an island off the Vancouver island! Rooms are great also with some placed in cabins with views making you feel like you're in a tree house amongst the pines.

Excellent eats and great service. Interesting specials, and a cozy vibe. No notes. Friendly and…read moreattentive staff.

Duncan's best-kept secret just set the gold standard. From the moment we walked into the Old…read moreFirehouse, it felt like we were stepping into a vibe that hits that rare, perfect note: elevated but unpretentious, energetic but intimate. Huge shoutout to Owner-turned-Mixology-Mastermind Jeff, who absolutely crushed it behind the bar -- every cocktail and mocktail was a handcrafted work of art that could hold court in any top-tier city. We're talking serious flavour fireworks here. And April -- what can we say? Her service made us feel like VIPs who owned the joint. She read the room, anticipated every move, and wrapped the whole evening in the kind of hospitality you can't teach: pure instinct, heart, and grace. The food? Next level. Every bite was a flex of flavor and presentation. The kitchen is clearly playing in its own league, balancing creativity with pure culinary muscle. Combine that with an ambience that feels like cozy meets cool, and you've got an absolute home run. If you haven't experienced Firehouse Grill yet, fix that immediately.

Always a nice experience. The servers are great and the menu is very salt spring and very niceread more

The best mussels I have had in a very long time. Local mussels, which are mostly very large in a…read morebroth with butter, white wine and crema fraiche. The focaccia that went with it was perfect. For entree the pork jowl had a nice combination of fatty skin that would melt in your mouth and also a lot of fresh tasty vegetables cooked to perfection. A very good variety of vegetables. The mushroom risotto was amazing too with the same set of vegetables. To close the desserts are pretty good too: the chocolate cake, the pear and the crepe brûlée. The best one was the crema brûlée.

This is the second time we stopped here for breakfast on our way from Victoria Island to Vancouver…read more We ordered breakfast then picked up some bakery items for the ferry ride and trip to Vancouver. It's a cute little restaurant/bakery/store before catching the ferry to or from Vancouver. The smashed baked potatoes are crispy and nicely seasoned. They had gf bread to accompany my eggs and bacon. At the bakery we purchased a couple gf cookies and a couple of regular ones. The lemon gf cookie was delicious ~ soft and lemony.

Made a quick pit stop to The Roost Farm Bakery & Vineyard…read more Tasting is $5.00/person for four 1oz pours or $15.00 for 3oz pours. Fee is waived with a purchase of a wine bottle. At least you can pick which wines you want to try. Wine bottles are $16.00 to $30.00. - Tasting ($5.00) - big red rooster, petillant naturel, highland bramble and sweet ginger. Best of the four was the pet-nat. Ginger port was decent. Did not like the big red rooster or the highland bramble (unrefined, rough, needed to be airated). Seems the older folk come here for the bistro's sandwiches. Wouldn't go out of the way to visit.