Victoria, BC, Canada - {Travelogue}
About a year and a half ago, one of my friends got married in Victoria, B.C. Being so close to Seattle (yes, a few hours including a ferry ride is close especially considering I am now a solid twelve to thirteen hour drive away from Seattle), I have been to Victoria a few times. What can I say? People love flowers. Well, not me. I liked going to Victoria because we always went to Vancouver, and Vancouver meant food! No trip to Vancouver was complete without some Goldilocks (before they made it to Seattle or Sacramento - which incidentally has already closed), bola-bola, dim sum (seriously, puts the dim sum in Seattle to shame), and hot pot (the first time I had live shrimp in my hot pot was in 1994 at a hot pot place in Richmond I don't know the name of, but my Godmother was horrified that they were alive and flapping - she said they were too cute to eat).
I am a fan of destination weddings though, and when he told me that it was going to be at the X-Mansion, of course I just had to go! Of course, it's not the official name (it's actually Hatley Castle), but calling it the X-Mansion is so much fun!
Hours: Daily 11am-6pm
We arrived at the tiny airport around 3:30pm and had plenty of time to pick up our rental car, check into the hotel, and make our way to Fisherman's Wharf and find The Fish Store. It was, not surprisingly, very much like the type of place you can find in Seattle near the waterfront.
Hours: 4pm-2am Daily
I will admit that I picked Fiamo primarily based on its location and convenience. Thus, I picked what seemed like a simple Italian restaurant in the hopes that it would satisfy.
Most likely, if you've ever driven from Seattle to Vancouver, you pass through Granville Island. On our family trips, we never took the time to stop. We were always on a mission to eat some good dim sum or hot pot in Richmond, or picking up boxes of bola-bola from Chinatown (at New Town Bakery, of course). The Boyfriend and I, however, enjoy perusing markets so I told him this would be worth a visit. Behold, all the seafood, produce, cakes, desserts, and eats!
After looking at all of the tasty market foods, it was time to eat again. I made reservations at Kyuzo, a restaurant that appeared to serve sushi in a simple and relaxed environment. I eliminated a few that seemed like it would be better, but they were also higher end. I opted to go with something more affordable. And with parking more convenient.
So first off, the parking. The parking lot is a pre-paid lot so you have to guess how long you'll be (basically like parking downtown, but you're in the burbs here, just on a very busy main road). When we got there, it was still early and there were plenty of spaces. By the time we left, the parking lot was full. If you plan on going, plan ahead for the parking situation if that's something you're likely to worry about (I have friends who won't go downtown in any big city just because they hate dealing with parking).
Sushi Kashiba, Kyuzo is not, but the fish was fresh and the service prompt. Would I go back? Maybe if I didn't have anything else in mind. It was not the most memorable meal I've had, but it was definitely not bad at all. If you're in the mood for some fresh seafood with nothing too exotic, this is your place.
After the wedding, we just had until noon to head back to the airport. This was probably the most relaxing wedding weekend I've ever had, and I didn't even have anxiety watching the photographer work! Ok, I'm exaggerating. I still did. But it wasn't as bad as other weddings! I had a blast! And because it was one of the most relaxing weddings I'd attended, I was able to wake up and have a leisurely coffee before heading to our last stop - some more seafood.
I am a fan of destination weddings though, and when he told me that it was going to be at the X-Mansion, of course I just had to go! Of course, it's not the official name (it's actually Hatley Castle), but calling it the X-Mansion is so much fun!
Well, once in Victoria, what do we do when it's not the actual wedding or ceremony time? Eat, of course! While I was able to find a few outdated blogs about the best places to eat, I found myself having to trawl tripadvisor more than normal to see what people had to say. Hopefully if you are traveling there and need some ideas on where to eat, this list will help!
Fisherman’s Wharf
1 Dallas Rd
Victoria, BC, Canada
Hours: Daily 11am-6pm
We arrived at the tiny airport around 3:30pm and had plenty of time to pick up our rental car, check into the hotel, and make our way to Fisherman's Wharf and find The Fish Store. It was, not surprisingly, very much like the type of place you can find in Seattle near the waterfront.
That's right, we got there just in time for some buck a shuck.
All the oysters!
Fish and chips... using salmon!
Whether or not you like using lemon or mignonette, these were super fresh and tasty.
Once you're done eating, if you want to walk around to digest, Fisherman's Wharf has a ton of random things to see. Just remember not to bother the people who live in the funky houses!
This guy swam by to say hullo!
I see what you did there.
Need a cab?
Legislative Assembly of British Columbia
Fiamo Pizza & Wine Bar
515 Yates St,
Victoria, BC V8W 1K7
Hours: 4pm-2am Daily
I will admit that I picked Fiamo primarily based on its location and convenience. Thus, I picked what seemed like a simple Italian restaurant in the hopes that it would satisfy.
If you sit at the bar, it might be a bit warm as it's right in front of the kitchen.
Soup of the day
The Tartuffo pizza - seasonal mushrooms, spicy capicola ham, mozzarella cheese, truffle oil, and arugula.
Linguine Carbonara (you can get this as a half or full order) - pancetta, free range egg, parmesan, and cream.
Mood lighting.
The next day, since we had a full day to ourselves before the wedding, we decided to take a ferry and spend it in Vancouver. Please note that if you go this route, it's not cheap! At the time we went, it was about $90 CAD for car, driver, and one passenger. If you are going to shell out that much for the hour-ish long ferry ride, at least head up to the top and enjoy the scenery! Oh, and don't be one of those people who keeps the car idling while the ferry is still docking. It's ok to wait until the ferry is docked and the cars are actually moving. This has been a spare the air PSA from someone who likes to breathe clean air. Thanks!
Like I mentioned before, if I'm in Vancouver, I'm going to get some dim sum. There are a ton of places to choose from, but my current favorite is Sun Sui Wah. They have two locations, and as of this trip, I have been to both. I think the downtown location is fancier, but this one is easier to find parking at. The last time we went to the downtown location, we were able to watch a dude in a Lambo drive by a few times looking for a spot that could accommodate his car's size (yeah, he ended up leaving).
Abalone and pea shoots
Deliciously juicy famous squab. One of the best! The group at the neighboring table were saying that they drove from far away just to eat this here!
Daikon cake stir fried in XO sauce (蘿蔔糕)
Shrimp dumplings (蝦餃 - why do people write it in English as "har gow"? There's no "R" sound anywhere...)
The sign of a good shrimp dumpling is that the skin is semi translucent, and the inside has a good amount of shrimp. And preferably not overcooked. This one was plump and filled - no fillers here! - and the skin was strong enough to make it to our mouths.
Tripe! I have noticed that in Sacramento, it's often super soft and overcooked. Here, it still has the bounce and chew that is the perfect texture.
The real test - how do the phoenix claws hold up? Are they mushy? Is it too salty? Not enough salt? These ones were really good. And, they cut the claws.
Spare ribs
1210 Robson St
Vancouver, BC V6E 3Y4
Vancouver, BC V6E 3Y4
Canada
Hours:
Mon-Thurs: 11am-8pm
Fri-Sat: 10:30am-10pm
Sunday: 10:30am-9pm
Hours:
Mon-Thurs: 11am-8pm
Fri-Sat: 10:30am-10pm
Sunday: 10:30am-9pm
After dim sum, we wanted to walk around downtown Vancouver for a bit. Mostly, I wanted to snack on some macarons from Ladurée Robson and just enjoy the cool weather. The Boyfriend wanted to check out Konbiniya, which just happened to be a few minutes walk away. In a stroke of good luck, we passed by L'Eclair de Genie and popped in for a snack. As you can see from the pictures below, we were there around Canadian Thanksgiving (which is different than U.S. American Thanksgiving).
In honor of Canadian Thanksgiving, I snagged a maple flavored eclair, while The Boyfriend ordered a yuzu flavored one. They look very sweet, but they were actually just right. The filling wasn't overwhelming (I hate when there's too much cream and it just explodes unceremoniously out the other end of the eclair), which means I probably could have had multiples, but just the one eclair was perfect.
After finding some parking on Granville Island, it was time to walk around the public market!
1669 Johnston St
Vancouver, BC V6H 3R9
Most things looked pretty good, but this looked a bit sketchy to me.
Bold decision to stuff this face with a smaller fish.
Kyuzo Japanese Restaurant
5701 Granville St #112
5701 Granville St #112
Vancouver, BC V6M 4J7
After looking at all of the tasty market foods, it was time to eat again. I made reservations at Kyuzo, a restaurant that appeared to serve sushi in a simple and relaxed environment. I eliminated a few that seemed like it would be better, but they were also higher end. I opted to go with something more affordable. And with parking more convenient.
So first off, the parking. The parking lot is a pre-paid lot so you have to guess how long you'll be (basically like parking downtown, but you're in the burbs here, just on a very busy main road). When we got there, it was still early and there were plenty of spaces. By the time we left, the parking lot was full. If you plan on going, plan ahead for the parking situation if that's something you're likely to worry about (I have friends who won't go downtown in any big city just because they hate dealing with parking).
Sushi Kashiba, Kyuzo is not, but the fish was fresh and the service prompt. Would I go back? Maybe if I didn't have anything else in mind. It was not the most memorable meal I've had, but it was definitely not bad at all. If you're in the mood for some fresh seafood with nothing too exotic, this is your place.
I ordered the assorted nigiri while The Boyfriend had the omakase
Clearly the omakase had more extras than my nigiri, but that didn't mean I couldn't order a few extras, right?
Of course, you knew this was coming. I can't turn down fresh uni.
Ok, I said there was nothing too exotic, but I didn't see many posts or reviews with anything too out of the ordinary. If I hadn't had houbou before I would have tried it here. Since I had, aside from the uni, I went for some baby hamachi. Shown just below the ebi.
8351 River Rd
Richmond, BC V6X 1Y4
I have seen posts about the Richmond Night Market, but never had the chance to go. The timing of this trip was just perfect to make it the last night for the year. Touted as the largest night market in North America, I had to give it a try.
What I expected from the night market:
-Expensive prices
-Subpar food (I'm sorry, the Bay Area night markets have me scarred)
-Long lines
-Large crowds of people
-No personal space
What I got from the experience:
-Mid to expensive prices for "street food"
-Decent food
-Long lines as the night went on
-Large crowds of people as the night went on
-No personal space aside from camping out by a garbage can
Here's half of the line that we waited in. It did move surprisingly fast.
I readied myself for disappointment and gave this place a try.
Looks right!
The best part, it tasted pretty good. I debated on getting another just because it was there, but it was still kind of expensive for fried tofu.
Apparently, I only wanted to eat soy based products.
Taro with some tofu dessert. If it didn't cost money to get in, I would probably be tempted to come back and get this if I were in the area. This is probably the best I've had in the Americas.
If you didn't get some Tim Bits, did you even go to Canada?
Had to get my Timbit fix along with some coffee before heading to the wedding!
Back to the X-Mansion! Seriously, this place is gorgeous. For me, it's worth going to Victoria Island just to see this piece of history (film, real life, whichever one matters more to you).
Caffe Fantastico
398 Harbour Rd #101
Victoria, BC V9A 0B7
Victoria, BC V9A 0B7
After the wedding, we just had until noon to head back to the airport. This was probably the most relaxing wedding weekend I've ever had, and I didn't even have anxiety watching the photographer work! Ok, I'm exaggerating. I still did. But it wasn't as bad as other weddings! I had a blast! And because it was one of the most relaxing weddings I'd attended, I was able to wake up and have a leisurely coffee before heading to our last stop - some more seafood.
We could have taken the water taxi from Cafe Fantastico, but we drove to save time. It was such a beautiful day that I was actually not looking forward to leaving. I just wanted to sit at a cafe and relax. But, fish awaits.
1006 Wharf St
Victoria, BC V8W 1N8
Daily: 11am-7pm
Highly recommended by just about everyone, we saved this for last. Mostly because the hours of all of these waterfront shops are very similar and close pretty early in the afternoon. I opted for some "tacones" - tacos that aren't tacos because they're pretty much just wraps with coleslaw and pickles, and the seafood item of your choice.
After trying the tacones and grilled salmon salad, I could see why it's so popular. It's one of the places that actually lives up to the hype. If you're in Victoria and are there between 11am and 7pm, head over to the waterfront and grab a grilled snack!
Grilled salmon served on a salad ($17)
Wild salmon tacones with some local root beer
All tacones are served in a flour tortilla with coleslaw, pea shoots, and lemon-pickled onions. It was a very different tasting and I liked it. It was a nice, light meal before heading to the airport ($13.50 for two)
The menu, which is also viewable online
The seating area
Central Terminal
17801 International Blvd
Seattle, WA 98158
I have written about Anthony's a few times already here. Generally, I stick to the classics like the steamers, a Bloody Mary, and grilled fish. The special of the day was grilled Ling Cod, so we added an order of that.
I have written about Anthony's a few times already here. Generally, I stick to the classics like the steamers, a Bloody Mary, and grilled fish. The special of the day was grilled Ling Cod, so we added an order of that.
I have seen Bloody Marys without a chilled prawn at other restaurants and airports that cost more than this. For a restaurant in the airport, and a fine dining one that, this is well priced!
Sometimes you just need a salad. One that is covered in shrimp.
Thanks for reading!
While this post was based on a trip made October 2017, the restaurants visited and linked here are all still current as of May 2019.
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