I was only in town for three days, but ended up coming to this lovely restaurant twice during my…read morestay. Apparently the owner chef has been there for more than 10 years. The food quality was outstanding and service was top-notch. I highly recommend.

We came here for the Reuben and were not disappointed! Thankfully we decided to split the sandwich…read more(with fries) and added the Little Gem salad. Wow! What a great combination and great flavours! Plenty enough for lunch for two people. The meat on the Reuben was so juicy and flavourful and the Little Gem salad was amazing. We throughly enjoyed our meal. The service was great; quick, friendly and welcoming. I would definitely come here again when back in Nanaimo.

This is my favorite after work pub in Nanaimo. The staff are…read morefantastic and provide a relaxed but entertaining environment. Wednesday and Friday are wings nights with Friday hosting a musical poker bingo that is very fun while having a good challenge, the host for this is fantastic at his job. Food is moderately priced with the best quality coming at night, from 3 pm to close. With daily specials. With a huge selection of local beers on tap this place will definitely quench your thirst for what ales you.

The Windward has a decent pub burger (comes with cheese, bacon, and sauteed mushrooms) for around…read more$12. Food is basic, and alright. I've never stayed in to eat because I felt slightly uncomfortable around the "regulars." They have frequent poker (?) nights and as someone that definitely looks gay/different, I've gotten a lot of looks.

So... This is a bizarre review…read more.. The food, I have to say, was pretty good. Solid pub fare. The most enjoyable hot wings I've had at a pub in years. Nachos that were cheesy and loaded with toppings. Weird toppings maybe, and a very strange tasting salsa, but not bad... The ambiance on a Monday night is a little meh. Only about 6 tables seated in quite a large, voluminous space, made it feel a little vacuous. Maybe if they turned their lights down a bit the vibe might be a bit nicer. They sure like their decorative lights here.... The server was very nice. Pleasant, but could have come around to check on things a couple times more, especially since it was so quiet. Now, for the weird part... Toward the end of my nachos I lost my appetite when I saw a mouse scurrying on the floor. It was very daring and was exploring under tables right up to me. I notified my server and she said "oh we know, we try to catch them but it's difficult. I think we caught one a couple days ago. Yesterday I saw one run up the stairs. I'm sorry you had to see that. Would you like a box for your nachos?" Um, no thanks! I finished my drink while watching this mouse wander around a few more times, and ANOTHER mouse come out from the opposite side of the room. and decided it was time to leave. There was no other response from my server about this - I just paid my bill and left. I get that this is a port town close to water, but it seems like these folks probably need to get a bit more serious about pest control.

I got a "mango smoothie" which at first tasted like water. And then when I sent it back for them to…read moreremake, it just tasted like mango flavoured water. I also have a friend that got served raw frozen fish. How do you even do those things that bad?!

Very authentic British Pub, a very warm and cozy atmosphere!…read moreNever had a bad meal, so good! Servers have always been friendly. I always go here when in the area. Wouldn't miss it!

The place is cute, but your really paying for the ambiance. The food is very average, the beef dip…read morewas more like heated up deli meat and tough to chew, and my partner had the burger and described it as so greasy is kept sliding out of the buns. The service is friendly but if you're not willing to wait you'll probably have to sit inside on a nice day.

The pub review A little pub in the middle of Gabriola…read moreIsland, looks like your typical rough-around-the-edges spot... and then the food comes out and you're like wait, what?! So good.

Had lunch in Oct 2024 so very quiet then. Friendly service and a beautiful view, from somewhat worn…read moredining room.

This was an over all great experience! The service was…read moreperfect. I give it a 10/10. Our waitress (Jessie) was so kind and super helpful and made our lunch amazing!! By Olivia from Sooke, BC 11 years old

Beef Szechuan is my favorite, the chef nailed it! The server bring not only a smile but you can…read morefeel the positive energy too

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

Not really impressed. We ended up here due to the missing two ferries. We needed somewhere to pass…read moretime, 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.

ABSOLUTEY TERRIBLE! Some of the worst food we've ever had, but they have a great selection of beer,…read moreand the bartenders are amazing. When we do get food everything comes out cold, and the BLT was two measly strips of gross hard bacon, wilted lettuce and a slice of old soggy tomato. The fries used to be great but now theyre the worst ive ever seen, theyre just bland and dark, and always mushy, sometimes they switch back to the old ones and its great. Come for the beer, and stay for the more beer, if you have to eat the food stick to something deep fried. All in all, don't go. Save your money, save your dignity, and enjoy the next few days of your life since you didn't just get food poisoning.

I've said this before I love this neighbourhood pub. Always fantastic service. And the food is not…read moreoverly priced big portions and always tasty. They are definitely doing something right at this local watering hole. Servers are always friendly and Sherri is fantastic. I used to come here years ago and I'm so happy I'm back. try it for yourself. You won't regret it.

My First Friend and I decided to check out Oxy last night. It used to be a venerable watering hole…read morein a hotel called the Occidental. We'd heard it had been renovated recently and wanted to see what it was like. Our waitress was very friendly and helpful, and got my FF's drink order spot on. We ordered a couple of half-price appys - onion rings and vegetable samosas - and a couple of entrees - a Reuben sandwich and a rib-eye steak sandwich. Everything that was deep-fried was a little too soggy with oil for my taste, and the Reuben could have used some real Swiss cheese instead of processed, but the steak was tasty and the fries were good. Standard pub fare, really, but that's not what folks come to the Oxy for. What they *do* come for is the atmosphere and camaraderie. There was a good mix of younger college folks with more mature types like ourselves, all very friendly and looking to have a good time. We specifically came for the karaoke and were not disappointed; the DJ was friendly and never overbearing, only singing one song himself, and his selection was the best I'd seen in Nanaimo so far. All in all, a fine time. Highly recommended, especially if you're looking for some karaoke on a Friday night. We'll be back.

The Oxy is a classic! Although they sold the pool table to make it through Covid :( great staff,…read moreand great patrons full of stories! Food menu is good, but if you're over 50 and get the poutine, have some tums ready...

Love the place very friendly and good serves the owner is a a hoot a great person I recommend it…read morehighly give it a try and tell her Leo says Hi

Had SO much fun!! Delicious cocktails, clean comfortable space, and the staff are the best. Thanks…read moreto Jason for taking care of us on our night out in Nanaimo! We had the best time! Love forever! ^_^