854 replies to this topic

[ObcVictoria]

Foo Hong's was great. We used to go there for lunch from 1981-1985 and order the big Wor Won Ton soup, it had a big shrimp in every wonton.

 

I think that Dave Barrett used to frequently go there for lunch with his henchmen back in the 70's when he was premier.

 

Dino's moved to Saanich Plaza I believe, and closed about 10 years ago, and that space became Lao Vientiane Restaurant, which also closed a few years ago, sadly. I remember Dino's Greek ribs... great

 

I remember eating breakfast at The Pantry in the 1970's it was the best breakfast in Victoria, it was really amazing. The one in Port Coquitlam was also pretty darn good. I wonder why they disappeared?

 

I see they still have 6 in BC and 1 in AB, including Nanaimo.  http://www.thepantry.ca/

[Mystic-Pizza]

]Foo Hong's was great. We used to go there for lunch from 1981-1985 and order the big Wor Won Ton soup, it had a big shrimp in every wonton.

 

I think that Dave Barrett used to frequently go there for lunch with his henchmen back in the 70's when he was premier.

 

Dino's moved to Saanich Plaza I believe, and closed about 10 years ago, and that space became Lao Vientiane Restaurant, which also closed a few years ago, sadly. I remember Dino's Greek ribs... great

 

I remember eating breakfast at The Pantry in the 1970's it was the best breakfast in Victoria, it was really amazing. The one in Port Coquitlam was also pretty darn good. I wonder why they disappeared?

 

I see they still have 6 in BC and 1 in AB, including Nanaimo.  http://www.thepantry.ca/

 

 

Oh yes, the War Wonton at Foo Hong's....nobody could beat them.  I used to go every Sunday evening and order a bowl of it for $12 bucks and it was HUGE! and full of all sorts of interesting things that I could not even identify.....but it tasted great.

 

In Saanich Plaza you are thinking of Tino's.  That being said,  Dino's, Tino's, and I was told even Bino's was all owned by the same family. Not sure they owned Bino's at the 5 corners Hilside, Douglas, Government, etc., but I am certain Dino's and TIno's were the same family.

 

The Pantry Victoria location was owned by a nice Christian Family. I must have gone there close to a hundred times over the years. Can't remember why they closed, but there was an article in the Times Colonist about it at the time. It was a big deal to see it go as it had been such a well loved eatery for decades in Victoria. 

 

 

 

Edited by Mystic-Pizza, 01 October 2018 - 03:30 PM.

[Rujiroj]

Wow...quite the trip down memory lane here.  Often times, it was not just the location, but also certain dishes that I miss from these restaurants.  At Herald Street Caffe, I miss the cinnamon and chicory-spiked coffee.  At Overtime, it was the arancini with spicy Thai dip.

 

Does anyone remember a vegetarian restaurant from the 90s that was on Wharf Street between Yates and Bastion square?  It had amazing soups and amazing corn bread with carrot butter spread. If anyone could help with the name (I'm not currently in Vic, so can't check the Library) it would be very much appreciated. 

[zenbunny]

Does anyone remember a vegetarian restaurant from the 90s that was on Wharf Street between Yates and Bastion square?  It had amazing soups and amazing corn bread with carrot butter spread. If anyone could help with the name (I'm not currently in Vic, so can't check the Library) it would be very much appreciated. 

 

Floyd and Floyd's Flying Rhino Diner?  Loved that place, especially Friday nights for daal.

Also miss Herald St. Cafe. And the Old Towne Cafe. And La Boheme.

[Nparker]

I am still mourning the loss of Camille's in Bastion Square and of course the Bengal Lounge at the Empress. Classy dining establishments seem to be going the way of the dodo in our neck of the woods.

[Rujiroj]

Floyd and Floyd's Flying Rhino Diner? Loved that place, especially Friday nights for daal.
Also miss Herald St. Cafe. And the Old Towne Cafe. And La Boheme.

Wow. Thank you. I used to love the Flying Rhino’s carrot spread. You’ve brought back some memories with the names of Old Towne Cafe and La Boheme. I know I used to frequent them but my memory is hazy. Was Old Town just past the parkade on Yates? I used to go there for hot apple cider. And La Boheme was at the bottom of Fisgard? Memories of Lapsang Soochong tea.

[Mystic-Pizza]

Now this is going back a ways..........Who remembers the Prancing Pony in Fernwood?  I believe it was Victoria's first vegetarian restaurant.  Took it's name straight from The Lord Of The Rings.

 

It later became the Soho Village Bistro in the early 90's.

 

And then of course was the George & Dragon (I spent a good amount of time in that place before it went downhill)

Edited by Mystic-Pizza, 30 November 2018 - 01:18 PM.

[zenbunny]

Wow. Thank you. I used to love the Flying Rhino’s carrot spread. You’ve brought back some memories with the names of Old Towne Cafe and La Boheme. I know I used to frequent them but my memory is hazy. Was Old Town just past the parkade on Yates? I used to go there for hot apple cider. And La Boheme was at the bottom of Fisgard? Memories of Lapsang Soochong tea.

 

La Boheme was at the bottom of Johnson where Willie's Bakery is now. 

I spent many hours there drinking studying, drinking fancy coffees and enjoying the live music.

 

And yes, Old Town was just past the Yates parkade. They had board games at many tables and my room-mate and I often went for coffee, snacks and chess.

Edited by zenbunny, 30 November 2018 - 02:25 PM.

[zenbunny]

Now this is going back a ways..........Who remembers the Prancing Pony in Fernwood?  I believe it was Victoria's first vegetarian restaurant.  Took it's name straight from The Lord Of The Rings.

 

It later became the Soho Village Bistro in the early 90's.

 

And then of course was the George & Dragon (I spent a good amount of time in that place before it went downhill)

 

I vaguely remember the Prancing Pony but never made it there. I did have many Sunday brunches at the Soho Village Bistro!

 

 

The old George and Dragon was classic.  

I remember one night a group of women came in all dressed like Peggy Bundy and yelling "Oh, Al!". It was awesome.

[Matt R.]

Java coffee house. That is all.

Matt.

[G-Man]

Was walking back to the office from near the legislature and two old places came to mind.

First Samuel's that was a nice place with decent prices especially for the location.

Second is the Cherry Bank, had a few day time pints there and you were always assured to meet a character or two.

[Nparker]

Samuel's had a Sunday brunch buffet that was a great bang for your buck.

[Mystic-Pizza]

Was walking back to the office from near the legislature and two old places came to mind.

First Samuel's that was a nice place with decent prices especially for the location.

Second is the Cherry Bank, had a few day time pints there and you were always assured to meet a character or two.

 

 

The Ole Cherry bank with their famous Ribs and the horse race betting lounge upstairs.

Edited by Mystic-Pizza, 12 December 2018 - 10:01 AM.

[pennymurphy2000]

Kiplings at the Empress was a family favourite for many years. 

[char8272]

There was a restaurant in the Mayfair parking lot. It was called the Macaroni Grill.

[G-Man]

With opera singing servers.

[Nparker]

Who were mostly music majors at UVic as i recall.

[Wes]

I was a big fan of the Old Towne Cafe when it was still in Market Square. Drank so many cups of coffee there! Loved their bagel and croissant sandwiches all named after Jazz musicians (the cream cheese was the Dizzy, the pineapple, ham and cheese was the Duke, if I recall). Loved the swings for the counter seats.

Did odd jobs for the owners, Max and Desiree, when I was in high school. Then in the summer of '85 or '86 started working as a dishwasher before I moved to the floor as a waiter. So many great people - working with Marion, Leif, Garret, MJ and Kate was a blast. The regulars were a fun and funny bunch - will never forget Edwin, long-bearded and obsessed with numerology and astrology. Always working on a book that would never get finished.

 

As with many restaurants, the owner couldn't be satisfied with a good thing and dreamed of expansion. Moved across the street to a much bigger location and filled it only rarely. Didn't last too long after that.

 

Would love to hear from any of the staff that worked there back in the day - find me at westhorpe(at)gmail.com

[den lee]

I lived in Victoria for the first 10 years of my life and remember many places me and my family went to. I remember Lee's smorgasbord, The mello spot (Jutland and Gorge) Poco pizza, (Island highway near view royal) as well as bob's burgers just up the road.

 

There was a fish and chip place on Tillicum near Obed that was pretty good from what I can recall. Also a small brick diner that was in sight of the johnson street bridge that used to serve great burgers. I was only there once when I was small but it left a lasting impression. It was torn down shortly afterwards.

 

I am sure there were a lot more but just can't think of them all...

[ironybynori]

pennymurphy2000, on 09 Jul 2018 - 11:44 AM, said:

Does anyone remember the name of the mexican food restaurant on Cedar Hill X road where the Purple Garden restaurant is now?

The Mexican restaurant on Cedar Hill X Road where the Purple Garden is now was called Garcia's. A couple of my friends were hired as entertainers there occasionally back in the early 1980s when we were all at UVic.

 

I've very much enjoyed this thread over the years and am glad to see it rejuvenated recently. Very grateful for the reminder that the restaurant/café at Mayfair that I remembered going to in the early 1970s was called the Coffee House, and for the information that the French restaurant on Broughton near Government was called La Petite Colombe -- we used to have lunch there in December just before Christmas in honour of our wedding anniversary.