The next series of articles will be about my dining adventures in Whistler, BC mid April. They could’ve been posted sooner, but I was up there on a working vacation with very little time to enjoy myself. I was a member of Parker Productions and we had 72 hours to make a short film to submit to the Telus World’s Ski and Snowboard Festival. And immediately after that weekend of fun, I had to prepare for final exams.
Oak Bay’s Blethering Tea House’s New Face
Now known as Oak Bay Bistro, this new dining establishment has a new look and is open to the public. I came across this news when I picked up the May 2011 issue of Snap! Victoria, a photo newspaper spotlighting local culture.
Local designer J.C. Scott reworked the interior decor and according to this article, new booths were added, a new bar was built, and fancy lighting fixtures were created. A month was spent renovating this place. The new owners Bart Reed, partner in Moka House, Beagle Pub and Island Meat & Seafood in Cook Street Village, and Petr Prusa, the owner of Floyd’s Diner, couldn’t be any happier. The snapshots taken during their opening celebration showed some grandeouse smiles.
When our schedule permits, the Two Hungry Blokes crew will have to visit to see how well their meals fare. We can only hope this new establishment will continue some Blethering Place traditions. It’d make Robbie Burns proud.
Yokohama Blues
Yokohama Japanese Restaurant
980 Blanshard Street
Victoria, BC
(250) 384-5433
2016 Update: This operation has since closed and become Xiang Rui Chinese Restaurant.
The Yokohama Japanese Restaurant has been around since ‘79, but that doesn’t mean anything in terms of quality. Especially in regards to the quintessential ingredient that’s used in Asian cuisine—rice.
At dinnertime, their “Regular Sushi” was priced at $13.95, $2 more than what’s listed on their lunch menu. Let’s hope that wasn’t a misprint. Both came with a bowl of shabu soup. The soup arrived quickly, and I gulped the flavourful broth down in nearly no time. When I was examining the ingredients in this soup, I wondered about the other flavours. The carrot slivers tasted like they came from the outer skin than the core, and the mushrooms were nothing special. Normally, I’d expect to have shitake than white, so I was left with mixed feelings when the bowl sat empty.
Fine Dining at the Chalet
Today’s installment comes from our guest writer, Michael Allen, the webmaster of 28 Days Later Analysis, an informative website dedicated to news and reviews in the independent horror entertainment scene.
Deep Cove Chalet
11190 Chalet Road North
West Saanich, BC
(250) 656-3541
The French-styled Deep Cove Chalet has been a fine dining experience along the west coast for over forty years. It is run by married couple Pierre & Bev Koffel. Lunch and dinner are served between Wednesday and Sunday, with the summer season offering courses on the beautiful deck, overlooking the water.
The complimentary fresh poppy seed bread and cold bottles of water helped clean the palette as we anticipated new tastes. This dining occasion was a birthday celebration and the co-owner, Bev, provided chocolate truffles for Mercia. The smiles were genuine and the service was delivered on a very high level of professionalism and care.
When James goes awry, Ed gets to play
Maude Hunter’s Pub
3810 Shelbourne St.
Victoria, BC
(250) 721-2337
I’m left with the task of holding down the fort because my partner, James, is struggling through some tough financial times. That means we won’t be doing as many articles together. Not like this mattered before, since we live in two different areas of Victoria, but this news is important for those readers looking for our humorous banter about the eateries we hit.
The straight man is out and the little fella will be running around loose.
So down the road I went, to Maude Hunter’s Pub to enjoy a meal and to hang out with my buddies from the Nexus Newspaper. It was the end of the Fall/Winter publishing year and we usually have a gathering before people spread their wings as Spring hits.
Trip the Fountain Fantastic
Fountain Diner
#102-2800 Bryn Maur Road
Langford, BC
(250) 590-6130
I said I was going to return to Fountain Diner for their lunch and boy was I surprised…at the line-up.
But once more, my parents were in tow as willing test subjects. Breakfast before was a disaster but what about lunch? I had seen Fountain’s previous advertisement for line cooks and I hoped it was of some good. I wasn’t willing to look my dad in the face for a second time just to see his disappointment.
I ordered their ‘Bad Ass Burger’ with fries that came to a slightly higher price of $12.49. It came with the usual trimmings of tomato, lettuce, mushrooms and cheese under a whole wheat bun top. An addition was red onion rings and bacon. Perhaps ‘Bad Breath Burger’ would be a more suitable name.
It’s not hard to make a burger but for some it’s harder to make a decent one.
