178 replies to this topic

[Bingo]

The waitress making the "living wage" of $25+/hr is probably a good start in assuaging your disbelief.

I am out of touch with what is a fair wage for a server. Is $25.00+/hr too low, or too high, and does it include tips?

[Matt R.]

Virtually every non-union server makes minimum wage, plus tips. A decent server working in a decent environment will make another $10/hr in tips to start and a good server working in a busy place with a higher average guest check can make $40/hr or more. Of course the sky is the limit on tax-free income.

The rub is that the hours are inconsistent and cash disappears much too quickly for many.

I presume this facility was a union shop, which is extraordinarily hard to make work unless you have hotel rooms to foot the bill. Many golf-course restaurants exist solely as a service to the members and rely on a subsidy from the golf fees to make a go of it, much like room rentals at a hotel.

Matt.

[Phil McAvity]

Good point. The character of the community changes drastically in those few inches between the city's northern border and the golf course property.

So you would describe the area around Cedar Hill golf course as "urban"? I wouldn't. It looks like suburbia to me.

[Bingo]

So you would describe the area around Cedar Hill golf course as "urban"? I wouldn't. It looks like suburbia to me.

Urban vs. Suburban
"What are urban and suburban areas? The cause of confusion lies in the definition attached to each term. Nevertheless, it is important to know that the meaning of an urbanized or suburban territory may be differently perceived among the various countries."

http://www.differenc...n-and-suburban/

By the way, what became of the idea of putting an allottment garden on the slope just north of the Cedar Hill Rec Centre?

[Bernard]

Urban/suburban is not as clear when you get to small cities like Victoria. By many definitions I would say we barely have any urban parts of the city, on the other hand my neighbourhood feels much more like an urban single family home neighbourhood than a suburb.

For me the dividing line is "can kids play road hockey in the street?" - if they can it is a suburb

[Holden West]

Curiosity got the best of me yesterday and I quickly walked through the soon-to-be-closed restaurant at Cedar Hill golf course.

Sure enough, the restaurant has no signage apart from one of those LED "open" signs with the flashing coffee cup hanging in the curtained window. Venturing inside led to the discovery of the restaurant, which was filled with a wide range of folks of all ages between 60 and 90. The no-nonsense interior decor appeared to be from the "fine dining" section of the 1995 Rubbermaid catalogue. I noted the special that day was the venerable turkey club.

[sebberry]

Geez.. the way you describe it it sounds like the Apple Tree at Hillside is more lively...

[Mr_E_Squirrel]

or the even more blue rinse restaurant of choice "JJ Morgans" on Mackenzie...

[Holden West]

Geez.. the way you describe it it sounds like the Apple Tree at Hillside is more lively...

Don't get me wrong, the place was hopping. And the servers were hustling faster than some sullen waitstaff I've seen at other joints who were a third the age of the golf club's staff.

We do have a thread on it if anyone has any further reviews.

[Bingo]

Sure enough, the restaurant has no signage apart from one of those LED "open" signs with the flashing coffee cup hanging in the curtained window.

I wonder why Saanich didn't amend the bylaw to allow them to put up a sign for the restaurant at the parking lot entrance?

[Bingo]

This fine weather has brought out the golfers at Cedar Hill. If you are walking around the course trail on the freshly laid wood chips, you can take in the display of Camas.

[Bingo]

Near Cedar Hill Golf Course and chip trail.

[Bingo]

Willows in fall colours - Cedar Hill Golf Course

[aastra]

Very nice.

[Bingo]

Cedar Hill Park controversy

UPDate: Saanich Council will have a Committee of the Whole meeting to hear from our community on Thursday November 28th. 2013 in the Garth Homer Center, 813 Darwin Avenue. Please come early for a 7:30 pm start. Please consider speaking to Council at this meeting or write to Council.

 

Many Saanich residents are alarmed at the Cedar Hill Clay Court Tennis Society’s (CHCCTS) proposal to construct a very large PRIVATE tennis facility in Cedar Hill Park. The private facility would take over the critical public green space known as the Ball Fields behind the Recreation Center, the only flat green space available for public's general use in the whole park.

http://www.savecedarhillpark.com/

 

And...

 

At the beginning of 2012 the District of Saanich was contacted by a non- profit group called the Cedar Hill Clay Court Tennis Society to discuss the possibility of installing an outdoor clay court tennis facility. The proposed location is on the north side of the Cedar Hill Recreation Centre in Cedar Hill Park. 

http://www.cedarhill.../-about-us.html

 

[Bingo]

For the last few years someone has hung ornaments in this tree overhanging the chip trail at the Cedar Hill Golf Course.

 

[arfenarf]

There's one way at the back of Thetis Lake Park.  It makes me so happy.

[Redd42]

There's one way at the back of Thetis Lake Park.  It makes me so happy.

 

Sliding off topic....came across a decorated tree today on the path in the park behind Tillicum Mall....the tree was quite a ways in to the park...made me smile too....big thank you to the folks who put the decorations there and also to the folks who have left it undisturbed....

 

Further sliding off topic....just returned from the most amazing xmas eve dinner at the Empress....the food, wine and coffee of course was superb...but the service....wow....I am thinking of never going out any where else and just saving my hard earned money for splurges at the Empress...EVERY staff person you encounter there knows what service is....even the friendly young lady (at 11:45 pm) at the exit to the garage....I contrast that to an evening a few weeks ago at the Coast Hotel....where the food was good...but the waiter told us about his screen play, how he was worried about how he was going to get home that night and then he and the bartender talked loudly, yelling across the bar, whenever he wasn't attending to customers....I know how much he paid for his last car from those conversations....I SHOULD NOT know these details...most folks in the food industry forget that we are NOT there just to get fed....we are paying for the EXPERIENCE.....the food is often better at home, and the booze is certainly cheaper...us, the customers are paying a premium for sitting in this space (your restaurant).....we should be treated better!

 

Ok, end of rant....Happy Holidays to all....we are very lucky to live in Victoria!

[Mike K.]

Now you know what good service is and you'll start to see just how lacking and amateurish service can be at many Victoria restaurants that bill themselves as fine dining. This isn't meant to be a swipe at restaurants in this city, but it goes to show that many staff in the "industry" are using their current positions as stepping stones (not that there's anything wrong with that, of course, but you can immediately see the difference between a waiter at The Empress and a waiter at other fine dining establishments).

 

At The Empress most, if not all, of the service staff are lifelong employees that have been working there for decades. These folks are professionals and take their jobs seriously.

[Redd42]

Now you know what good service is and you'll start to see just how lacking and amateurish service can be at many Victoria restaurants that bill themselves as fine dining. This isn't meant to be a swipe at restaurants in this city, but it goes to show that many staff in the "industry" are using their current positions as stepping stones (not that there's anything wrong with that, of course, but you can immediately see the difference between a waiter at The Empress and a waiter at other fine dining establishments).

 

At The Empress most, if not all, of the service staff are lifelong employees that have been working there for decades. These folks are professionals and take their jobs seriously.

 

Hey Mike -

 

Surprised to see a comment at this hour on xmas eve. So just a comment before I, in PJs hit bed....I TOTALLY agree with you about the other places that try to pass themselves off as fine dining...that is why I mentioned the incident at the Coast....they just don't get what their purpose is...and do nothing to instruct their staff about it...at least as far as I can tell....even more about that evening...we were the last in the dining/lounge area so also got to hear the conversations from the dining staff cleaning up after their last customer left....even though we were sitting feet away....

 

You hit the nail on the head about being professionals and taking their jobs seriously...

 

Reminds me of someone we recently got in contact with to do cleaning at our business....most of the big companies will charge you a big hourly charge but pay their staff very little...minimum wage or barely above it....so they get folks who don't really care about the job...but we paid this individual $25/hour and she did a wonderful job....I don't at all mind paying a cleaning person a good sum if they do a good job....I see someone who can clean efficiently and LIKES it as any other professional....serving tables well is a profession, just like cleaning well is a profession....

 

Just in case anyone wants to ask, the incredibly good wait person at the Empress got a $40 tip on a $200 dollar tab....no, I'm not rich but am in awe of the rare good service....the guy at the Coast got a LOT less.....