Man this place used to be awesome, not sure if it's a new cook or what but todays hot chicken sandwich and chicken gravy was flavourless, and I mean zero wow factors, no seasoning or salt, ciabatta bun not toasted and soggy from their mayo/garlic ioli sauce which was drab and without any flavours. We added $5 poutine option (came with friend so we added cheese and gravy) and we wish we hadn't... A few small nuggets of cheese curds and some drippings of gravy was a complete disappointment for $5. Last time we went here a few months back we had a similar experience and just thought it was a one off, but having the same lacklustre food today is enough for us not to go back for awhile. $60 for 2 people to have brunch is becoming the normal and we don't mind paying it when the food is good, it doesn't seem to have the same standards as before. read more

Everything was so good. I had the brisket and egg hash. The brisket was good and tender. My husband had chicken and waffles and he said it was a good piece of chicken. Get there early because it may take you an hour to get in. read more

We came here because Jam Cafe had a long line. There was no line here which I should have taken as a sign that the food wasn't going to be good. So we get seated right away but then had to wait 20-30 minutes for the food to actually come out. So at this point I am annoyed that I didn't just wait in line at Jam Cafe. Next, the food finally comes out and only 1 of the 3 dishes ends up being edible. The quinoa porridge tasted so bad that we only ended up eating the few pieces of fresh fruit on top, and the rotisserie chicken hash came out burnt! So only the salmon benny on a bagel turned out to be good. I should mention that these were all dishes that our waiter highly recommended to us. To be fair, he was right about the salmon benny. It was delicious. But overall, very disappointing experience. read more

I took my dad (Glen) to The Ruby for his birthday. He is 80 years old. It was wonderful to see him out of the house as he often refuses to leave because he is addicted to Wheel of Fortune. We had the BEST MEAL I HAVE EVER HAD and then went home (he lives in my basement). Happy Birthday dad I love you so much! read more

I'm not sure why there haven't been any reviews for this place yet... The food is excellent and there was no line up when we went on a Friday morning. I've been trying all the top ranked downtown breakfast joints for the past week and this was the best so far! Try the Brisket Hash and you won't be disappointed! read more

The Ruby - Johnson Street - Brisket Hash - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Victoria, British Columbia

This is a must visit brunch spot! A bit of a wait to get in but then we had quick, fantastic service. The Ruby Cesar is delicious! We had chicken and waffles and the fried chicken Benny and we not disappointed! Will definitely be coming back next time we are in Victoria! read more

Great place that plays vinyl records. Very unique atmosphere with a modern country feel. Food was great and was definitely stick to your ribs Canadian! All of our plates were completely devoured. read more

The Ruby - Johnson Street - Chicken and Waffles - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Victoria, British Columbia

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Lovely breakfast! Had the fried egg sandwich and an almond milk latte. The Ruby did not disappoint! Yum yum! read more

The Ruby - Johnson Street - Fried egg sandwich - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Victoria, British Columbia

I came here in such a hurry so I'll definitely have to come back to try more items! Beautiful interior, wonderful and efficient service. Large portions as well so I packed the breakfast poutine for a second meal and it tasted just as good. Eggs perfectly poached. Look at the cheese pull...! read more

The Ruby - Johnson Street - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Victoria, British Columbia

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Service was very slow. Coffee was not good. Took 10 minutes to be seated and another 15 for my order to be taken.

LOVED this brunch spot!! Zero wait when we sat at the bar. Servers were great and portion sizes were massive Will definitely be back. read more

The Ruby - Johnson Street - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Victoria, British Columbia

Traveling to a new destination there are always going to be questions I have to answer for myself regardless of how great the reviews are. The Ruby just happened to be connected to the Best Western we resided at for our three day stay so we decided to give it a try. I did Google the reviews and found a lot of appreciation here and awesome photos of the restaurant as well as the delicious meals. We had breakfast twice and could tell by the presentation of our meals someone has passion for the meals they prepare. This restaurant will become a land mark every time we visit Victoria. The staff, food and interior design of the restaurant are a class act. read more

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Excellent service, tasty breakfast! Great coffee. We really appreciated the staff working during a snow storm.

Great little place to grab a salad or sandwich. The food is as expensive as it is yummy. Highly recommend the kale salad as it comes with lots of other toppings besides Kale. read more

The coffee tasted sour, the food was bland- I ordered the eggs Benedict and my husband ordered the poutine. Both of us did not even eat half of our food. I ordered the breakfast sandwich for my son and he just had 1 bite and said it's nasty. For almost $20 a plate totally not worth it. Service was also bad. The waitresses were so unfriendly. read more

The Ruby - Johnson Street - Inside the restaurant - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Victoria, British Columbia

Stayed in The Best Western and had a recommendation for The Ruby from a friend in Victoria. What a great find. We had breakfast two days in a row. Good food, brilliant service. On both days there was never a wait to get in- that's a bonus in Victoria. The service is quick and the staff totally aware of what's going on. Try it if you visit Victoria. My only suggestion to make it a 6 star would be improve the coffee. As an add on, The Best Western is worth checking out for a stay. Centrally located, nice rooms, great service and friendly staff. Will use both again. read more

The food my second time around was definitely better than last time I went. I had the fried chicken hash and it was really good, although it should've come with more sauce on top and was a bit expensive for breakfast at $20. I was really excited for the shredded hashbrowns but unfortunately my server forgot to ask and I ended up with the cubed. I would have said something if I had been asked, but I assumed the shredded was the default option. Other than that the service was lovely and our server was very sweet. As for the environment, again the music was far far too loud. If you are going for a hangover brunch on a saturday morning this is absolutely not the place to go. There was live music which was lovely and I really appreciate the support for local artists. It was just so loud we could barely hear each other speak and we almost left initially because it was so overwhelming. Thankfully once they switched to a record it was not nearly as loud as they keep the music at the other location. But it is definitely not a sensory friendly place and if you are someone who get easily overwhelmed in loud spaces this is probably the last breakfast spot that I would recommend for you. Another notable benefit was that there was no wait on a saturday morning, which is hard to come by in Vic. read more

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Really a neat little restaurant in a great location. The service was great and everyone was very, very friendly. I had the fried chicken and waffles and it was amazing! My wife had the breakfast poutine and she said it was the best breakfast she's had in a long time and that she may be having dreams about it for the next few weeks. I can't recommend it enough! read more

So yummy. I had the caramelized bananas & candied pecan waffles with bourbon syrup. Best waffles ever. The staff is very friendly and I love that the music is records that are kept in front by the hostess area. read more

The Ruby - Johnson Street - Caramelized banana & candied pecan waffles - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Victoria, British Columbia

The best breakfast ever!! I had the breakfast poutine and it was amazing. All the ingredients were fresh and it was a perfect mixture of yummy!! read more

The Ruby - Johnson Street - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Victoria, British Columbia

We spend a lot of time on waiting for our food. It tastes ok, but actually not worthy for waiting about forty mins for the meal. read more

The Ruby - Johnson Street - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Victoria, British Columbia

The food looked amazing but the food itself was very average. I went for brunch with a group and both a friend and I went for the 3 taco breakfast. The taco with the meat was incredibly salty, both mine and his (i don't remember the name of it as we went a few months back). Maybe it was just that one time, but the salt was far too much on that specific taco. The other 2 were fine read more

We did not have a very good first time experience at Ruby. While we understood we were dining on a Sunday morning, which can usually be quite busy, the quality of the food and service were poor. We ordered fried chicken and waffles and a bacon and cheddar omelette. The waffles came out soggy as if they'd been waiting under a heat lamp for awhile (they're covered in gravy but they shouldn't come out soggy). The chicken that came with the dish was small for $17. Unfortunately, the omelette wasn't cooked through and nothing could be done about it, since no one checked in on us while we were eating. We ordered a Diet Coke - It's odd nowadays to order a fountain soft drink for $3.50 and not get free refills. While this dining spot has a lot of potential, sadly the execution was poor on the day we ate there. read more

The Ruby is our favorite breakfast spot in Victoria. This is our second trip to Victoria, but our fifth time eating at The Ruby. I've gotten something different every time I've been here, and it's all been phenomenal. All of the food is fresh and the atmosphere is so chill. The staff is so friendly and accommodating. read more

So amazing! Really glad we found this place. One of the only places that has shredded hashbrowns in Victoria, so we gave it a try. Service was fantastic and everything we ordered was delicious. Totally recommend and worth the wait on a weekend day. read more

The Ruby - Johnson Street - Veggie Beni Shredded Hashbrowns - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Victoria, British Columbia

Came here for Sunday brunch with three friends as it was highly recommend. Experience was totally awesome. It was busy but got seated in good time. I had the beef brisket waffle and it was delicious. The beef was a nice portion and tender. I was able to also switch for poached eggs and the waffles were perfect. Coffee was nice and hot and the server was very attentive. read more

The Ruby - Johnson Street - Beef brisket waffle - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Victoria, British Columbia

The Ruby? More like the...RUDE-by. The hostess refused to seat us when we first showed up because our fourth party member was finding parking. Then, when we asked for a menu, she said it was the manager's policy not to hand out menus to waiting customers because he doesn't want people placing their orders as soon as they sit down. Quoi?! This seems counter-productive to a business model that is successful when it is able to economically manages the flow of customers to maximize orders and reduce wait times...but whatevs. You do you, boo. Looking into her eyes was like looking into the eyes of a child who was just told Santa doesn't exist: the look of all light extinguished, only to be replaced with bitter resentment towards the adults around her. Who hurt you? The food was mediocre on a "Sunday-brunch-at-your-grandma's" kind of scale. But food at Gma's is free. This plate, consisting of two pale eggs, a thimble full of hollandaise, Thrifty's-style frozen hashbrowns, and stale bagels cost $16. To add avocado was an extra $3.50 (next time I'll bring my own). Serves me right for trying somewhere other than Blue Fox, where their staff is always patient, food is always delicious and bountiful, and where the wait time is actually worth it. On a positive note: I give 5 stars for the decor - its definitely a hipster's wet dream. -Gladys Shuttlecock read more

Our team had a fantastic brunch at the Ruby today. Great service and food. Highly recommended!

Absolutely LOVE this restaurant! We were walking up Johnson Street looking for a place to eat. We found The Ruby and decided to eat there. The staff are so friendly and helpful and best of all, the food was INCREDIBLE!!!! I had their chicken teriyaki rice bowl and it was one of the I've ever had! The ambience was nice and they decor was vintage style and they had vinyl records on display (not for sale I believe) and made the restaurant nice and comfy! The only thing we noticed was the background music was a little too loud. I'm was hard to talk over it. But other than that I highly recommend and will definitely becoming back next time I'm in Victoria!! read more

Service was very friendly, and they've done a good job of physical distancing the tables with screens. We've been meaning to stop in and try the fried chicken and waffles for months, and finally got here today. We shared, and the portion size is more than enough for two people. The chicken was crispy, and well cooked. Overall, we were underwhelmed by the dish as a whole, but as my husband grew up in Mississippi, maybe our standards are a bit high. We also requested that the gravy be on the side, and it wasn't. The espresso in my latte was way over extracted and the milk steamed to too high a temp, but again, we are serious about third wave coffee, and the Ruby hasn't claimed to be a third wave coffee establishment. The three star review is based giving this establishment the benefit of the doubt considering our standards, and maybe we didn't order something they do well. I'm glad we tried it, but there are other places in town that execute better. read more

The Ruby on Johnson is usually my go to for brunch with friends in Vic. The line up and wait time is usually reasonable and they offer decent food for what you pay. Most brunch places in town are priced similarly, but the Ruby on Johnson has been quite consistent and good. Definitely a fan. read more

We had a selection of the breakfast food including the Lox bagel, a special gnocchi hash, the breakfast poutine and the skinny hash. All the food was delicious, the wait staff was very friendly and helpful and it was a pleasant experience. Definitely would recommend this place! read more

Go here! It's amazing. We had the breakfast. The smoked salmon Benny and the breakfast poutine are delicious. Their in house hot sauce is a must! So good! The service is great and the drinks are good. read more

Grabbed some take out last night from these guys and gotta say the chicken was phenomenal!! Such a cool environment, food was ready real quick! Also happens to be in the lobby of the zed ! So a great spot for anyone traveling to Victoria ! read more

Super rude host at the front, when we asked to see a menu she said no, you can look at the one at the front. General rude attitude, when she explained why we can't see the menu she said she doesn't want customers to know what they want right away, to have the experience of looking. But what's the difference if I look at the menu taped to the wall or one in my hands? Anyway won't go back food was mediocre but definitely not worth that attitude, so unimpressed! read more

I really wanted to like this place, but it was very painfully average. My food had brown avocado, a half toasted and quite cold bagel, the hollandaise tasted like popcorn butter. We didn't have a server, the hostess took our order in a rush and we didn't see anyone afterwards. Overall, it was not at all what I expected and don't think I'll be coming back. read more

Great place for breakfast or lunch--sooooo much better than the average hotel diner! Hip French country vibe, great tunes, and wonderful from-scratch meals! read more

Extremely good eats. Great music & the staff are super friendly. Definitely my new go to when I visit Victoria again. I tried the bacon avocado tomato Benny on a croissant - was legit the best Benny I think I've ever had. read more

My chorizo Benny was AMAZING. From the vinyl playing to the delicious coffee... everything was totally pleasant. All the boss babes who work in there are on it! Super attentive, so kind & gave great recommendations for local hikes. read more

Great service, decent food (yummy brisket), a good downtown option for breakfast or brunch.