182 replies to this topic

[tofino]

Hello from Tofino, I have been reading this line for some time, and have thoroughly enjoyed the discussion. Some of the latest udpates for all:

Wickaninnish Inn - Pointe Restaurant - now under the direction of Senior Sous Chef, Mike Bebault - best bargain is the salmon BBQ takes place on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays at $28pp. Dinners still great, service good, and still a tough reservation during the summer as accepting guests only due to the recent expansion.

Cafe Pamplona - Outstanding food, funky atmosphere, decent service - Eli is the person to talk to about hidden finds for wines at this restaurant. Go early for your dinner reservation and wander through the Tofino Botanical Gardens.

Long Beach Lodge - Not the same place since Lisa left the kitchen (I will talk more about that later). Still a great place to hang in there Great Room, eat nibblies and have a glass of wine or beer - service can be spotty.

Raincoast Cafe - Still some of the best food in town - pacific northwest with and Asian flair - Not a very good wine list - little atmosphere.

Shelter - the new kid on the block is holding there own - good food, mixed service (been there twice with two dramatically different experiences) - I still expect this restaurant to grow in stature once they get the details worked out.

Schooner - the old standby intown - always packed - slow service - go for appys (lots of flavours - mains tend to lack after the appys).

Alleyway Cafe/Costa Azul - yahoo, fun atmosphere, good cheap and plentiful food - new tapas menu in the evening is good and lots of fun.

Tough City Sushi - good sushi (if the real sushi guys are working), introduced a new regular (?) menu this year under Matthias, but just heard he walked out last week - not good!

Weigh West Pub - sorry other than a last resort for a cold beer - I do not recommend this place - Last week all nightly food specials and beer deals are gone - now costs $7 for a lousy draft - its cheaper at the Wick.

Sobo - this is Lisa Ahiers' new spot, a converted catering truck serving unbelievably great take out food. Located just behind Beaches and Live to Surf - Long live the killer seafood taco!!!

I think that is the basics for now - I can be reached at gypsyinnkeepers@hotmail.com if someone needs more direct needs.

Big Hugs from Paradise!!

[merlin]

I think that is the basics for now - I can be reached at gypsyinnkeepers@hotmail.com if someone needs more direct needs.

hmmmm....gypsyinnkeeper...is this Chris?

We'll be out Oct 15 staying at the house mid-way down the beach with the "eagle's nest" panoramic view

[tofino]

Latest scoop on Tofino:

Pointe Restaurant at The Wickaninnish Inn - still one of the premier spots in the area, Mike Bebeault is the Senior Sous Chef, worked under both Rodney Butters and Jim Garraway. Reservations for Inn guests only during the summer, although they do open up ressies day of for visitors to the area. Best deal is the Salmon BBQ, Fridays-Sundays from 11:30 - 2pm - yumm.

Long Beach Lodge - has never been the same since Lisa Ahier left (more on her later), mixed food, very mixed service - although the Great Room is still a nice spot to have a glass of wine or beer with some appetizers.

Cafe Pamplona - This is the real deal for all doubters. Rick has been consistently putting out some of the best food in the area, and with Eli and his pairings of wines - this is great value in a beautiful setting at the Tofino Botanical Gardens.

Weigh West Pub/Blue Heron Restaurant - UGH! - rushed service, average food, decent atmosphere (if being waterside with a bunch of locals watching keno and sports is your idea of atmosphere). Prices have gone up recently and believe it or not it is better value to have a cold draft at the Pointe then at the Pub - go figure.

Shelter - yes the new game in town in doing a good job. Have eaten there twice, both times with mixed service, although the food was very good. Alot of strong personalities on the service side, all seem to be trying to make their mark with not a lot of cohesion. Still recommended for food though!

Raincoast Cafe - Great food, lousy atmosphere, very basic wine list. The main Chef just had a baby so she is not always in the kitchen. Good Pacific Northwest cuisine with an Asian Twist.

Schooner - the locals favorite - I tend to love the appetizers, but find that although the mains are cooked very well, they tend to be lacking in flavour compared to the appies. - always busy.

Loft - most locals shun this place, but I would rather go here for a burger and fries, or fish and chips than most of the other spots in town doing the same food - good value for money.

Garys Chinese Restaurant - great takeout - don't eat in!! If you like spice youhave to really emphasize it with the lady taking the order, otherwise just nicely cooked food with no heat.

Alleyway Cafe/Costa Azul - Locals favorite - awesome breakfasts, gotta have the Huevos Verde (Tofinos version of Huevos Rancheros) - new nightly features are Tapas that are going over very well - no ressies taken - arrive early!

Breakers Deli - Great spot for a quick sandwich, pizza by the slice, decent cheese selection, great spot to stock up for a picnic.

Surfside Pizza - good pizza, not great - expensive if you are used to big city prices - always ask for the crust to be cooked a little longer - tends to be a little underdone most times.

Sea Shanty - Basic pub food with a view - enough said!

Cafe Jabez - Canadian/New Zealand food in a little spot down by the water - has been hit or miss regularly with food and service.

Tough City Sushi - Very good sushi (walk right out if the Japenese guys aren't behind the Sushi Line), used to have an alternate menu, but understand that Matthias who was running that aspect of the menu, left the property a couple of weeks ago. Still a great spot for sushi, with nice views over the harbour.

Sobo - okay - Lisa Ahiers new spot is a giant purple catering truck behind Beaches Grocery and the Live to Surf shop - holy cow - this is gourmet takeout at its finest. Not just recommended - its a must!!!!!!!!!

That basically covers the restaurants in the area - as a side the Long Beach Golf Course has a great little restaurant for burgers, sandwiches etc. If it wasn't a 20 minute drive from Tofino it would be a very busy spot.

If any of you need updates on what is going on, I can be reached at gypsyinnkeepers@hotmail.com

Until next time......

W

[tofino]

Hey Merlin, yes this is Chris, who is this??

Oh by the way to all, sorry for the double post, hadn't seen the first one go through!

W

[merlin]

Chris:

This is Bob Macdonald aka Merlin.

My wife and I were at the Wick last year and we talked during several lunches.

You were at the time looking for your own property until the new positions came available.

Recollect discussing our trip to PEI too given your history there.

We'll be out again after Thanksgiving.

Merlin

[tofino]

Sounds good, you can find me at the Concierge desk in our new building Wickaninnish on the Beach. Look forward to seeing you again.

Until next time

Chris

[M'd]

I agree with the posts on Tofino in general.

However; I would have to be critical of one property:

The Long Beach Lodge Resort is a hit and miss indevour to eat at. The young chef appears eager and proud and the food can show this, but they have had numerous staffing changes/walk outs and an apparent tyrant of a General Manager has good staff leaving as quickly as they arrived.

Lots of potential, but enter at your own risk.

Cheers,
M'd

[tofino]

Completely agree with M'd above - the place hasn't been the same since Lisa and Artie Ahier left -too bad its taken such a turn - it is a beautiful spot

[merlin]

That is indeed a shame.

We had several good lunches at the Long Beach Lodge watching the surf roll into Cox Bay [much different from Chesterman].

Did not understand their practice of only selling wine by the glass rather than the bottle at lunch. Did have Note Bene from Black Hills by the glass however.

I remember the fish tacos in particular being delicious.

Last week the Edmonton Journal published an article from the Victoria newspaper hilighting the Tofino Food festival and mentioning places like Shelter and Sobo which I had not heard of before reading some recent posts here.

Those two and Cafe Jabez are the new ones we'll try out this trip.

One more month to go and we'll be "Tofino bound".

[M'd]

Good choices Merlin.
Sobo is Lisa Aheir's little enterprise. She was responsible for the Fish Taco that used to be served at Long Beach Lodge.
When she left the lodge she took her fish taco recipe with her. The great food that she was known for at the Lodge can now be enjoyed outdoors in front of her snack truck kitchen and dining area. The affordable and completely unpretentious environment is perfect for her clean, slow cooked, treats.

Enjoy!!
M'd

[jcsaucey]

An update on Shelter. Chef Jeff has left to do a new restaurant in Whisler, the sous has also departed. No info on a replacement.(It may be interesting to note that the parent company Suze in Victoria burned through five chef's in their first year of buisness.)

[merlin]

Just got back to Alberta from almost three weeks on at least this occasion, the very "wet" coast.

Had a brilliant time in Tofino. Had cooking facilities this time so did not get out and try the local restaurants very much apart from a couple of lunches at the Long Beach Lodge Resort and another at the Wick.

The lunches at the LBLR were inconsistent both with regard to portion size and quality.

The Wick's lunch was delicious but the prices make it difficult to justify multiple samplings.

Did get some fish tacos from SOBO. They were as good as what I had remembered from last year's lunch when she was at the LBLR.

Cafe Jabez which had been mentioned by others was closed down. I could not find it and then asked at the liquor store and was told it had closed a couple of months earlier.

Dave Dolina's pizza from Surfside still pleases as does his very garlicy caesar salad when "yours truly" does not want to cook.

Made reservations at Shelter for one nite but had to cancel. Perhaps just as well given Saucey's comments above.

Cafe Pamplona and the RainForest...both recommended by people I had spoken to...will have to wait for next year when we return....both were good on past visits.

[paul mitchell]

Tofino Top Five:

1) Stay at the Tofino Swell Lodge. Ask Betsy the owner where to get fresh seafood. Barbecue in the backyard which
is on the waterfront. Sit in the hot tub. A perfect day.

2) Shelter: Hopefully Jeff the Chef will come back for the summer of 2004. Jay the owner is a great guy. Simple
locally sourced products.

3) Tough City Sushi. Kinda pricey, not the most exciting sushi but the owner Crazy Ron is worth the visit. Ask him
to 'hold up' a table. The patio on the back is best place to watch the sun going down.

4) The Wick - I like going in the afternoon after a long walk on the beach and eat weathervane scallops wrapped in
smoked albacore. A couple of Stellas and some people watching.



5) I also work out at Clayoquot Widlerness Resort and we have an unbelievable dinner cruise / barbecue on Saturday nights running through
the summer. I'm not necessarily trying to flog the place but it in my mind it is an incredible deal as they are aggressively trying to
showcase the resort. www.wildretreat.com You get picked up in Tofino and then enjoy a 30 minute boat ride out to the resort. The barbecue is in our
authentic native longhouse. We do smoked rib eye steaks, dungeness crab, salmon that smokes around the fire, roasting
oysters in the fire and a myriad of other unique buffet items. We also serve high end bc wines and always bring in a band.
You can also come most any night of the week and do our 5 plus course dinner in our dining room.

[jayhay]

So.....if someone were to go to Tofino in the next few weeks, what places would be open for dinner? Are there enough choices for several nights worth of meals, or should we wait until the winter 'blahs" have passed?

[tofino]

Latest Tofino lineup as follows:

Wick - open daily 3 meals a day
Long Beach Lodge - open daily 3 meals a day
Cafe Pamplona - re-opening March 1st
Raincoast Cafe - open daily for dinner 5:30-9
Shelter - reopening March 1st
Schooner - daily 3 meals a day
Tough City Sushi - daily 5-9pm
Surfside Pizza - reopening February 1st
SOBO - reopening February 1st (we hope!!!!!!!!!!!!)

I agree with Paul Mitchell above about Clayoquot Wilderness Lodge, great food, fabulous atmosphere and the staff are great, however, unless you are staying there it can be difficult to get transportation requirements worked out. I desperately tried to send numerous guests out there this past year, and on several occasions was told that unless there were 4 or more booked they wouldn't do the trip for 2 people. Bring a gang and enjoy it - a very special dining experience.

[Jeffy Boy]

SOBO - reopening February 1st (we hope!!!!!!!!!!!!)

Great to have eyes & ears out in Tofino!

Let us know when SOBO actually reopens, if you can. I'm looking for an excuse for a roadtrip out there, and I'm really interested in trying that place!!!

[Fountainhead]

Sobo will reopen on Feb. 6th with all the great goodies from last year and a few new additions. Cowichan bay farms duck confit over warm organic grains and port wine vin, grilled fresh albacore tuna with local komatsuna to name a few, and of course the daily specials are always worth a try. Closed tues. and wen. until may. 7 days a week in the summer.

[Foodie in Vancouver]

We are heading over to Long Beach Lodge on Friday, Feb 13th. Does anyone know the phone number for SOBO so we can make reservations for dinner? Having read the other posts I am assuming that SOBO is the first choice for dinner, followed by Rainforest Cafe and Cafe Pampalona. Other musts? Thanks for the help.

[merlin]

Foodie in Vancouver:

SOBO is, or at least was, when we visited in October a catering truck parked behind the surf shop and grocery store off the highway. It was/is a place you walked up to and read the specials off the blackboard and then got your food and sat outside at the few tables or took home.

Unless Chef Ahier has changed her format substantially to deal with the Tofino "winter" ? {this from an Edmontonian who has been dealing with minus 40's not too long ago} it is not a place for reservations or candlelit dining.

The fish tacos are great.....

[paul mitchell]

It doesn't matter that SOBO is closed or that it is a truck. SOBO is a good lesson on what to do in Tofino for dinner. Get your friends, go surfing or hiking then get some causal dinner and take it to the beach and watch the waves and feel alive outside. My advice is to go to Trilogy Fish Co. and get some indian candy smoked salmon and maybe some smoked albacore if they got it ( in the Weigh West Hotel complex) then go to the Sunflower Cafe and get a whole wack of take out stuff, then go to then go to the Liqour Store and get a bottle of champagne. Then walk past the liquor store, past the hospital, and about a half kilometer down the road till you get to a park with swings, turn right and follow the road another half kilometer as it winds itself to Tonquin Beach Park. You walk down through the rainforest along cedar boardwalks and get to the best beach ever. If you continue to the left (it takes a bit of hiking but worth it) you'll get to four of the coolest private beaches you've ever seen. Put your blanket down and feast. Enjoy everyones company. Talk about how good life is. Then you'll know why everyone knows that SOBO is the fanciest place to eat dinner in Tofino on a Saturday night even if it is just a truck parked in a gravel pit.

Edited by paul mitchell, 09 February 2004 - 08:50 PM.

[paul mitchell]

Take candles as well.

[Foodie in Vancouver]

Just back from 3 days in Tofino. We stayed at the Long Beach Lodge Resort in one of the cottages. The accomodation was wonderful especially as the kitchen was well-equipped and we were able to cook 2 of the 3 nights. We celebrated Valentine's at the restaurant at the Resort and were truly underwhelmed. The kitchen is open and the first table we were seated at was unbearably noisy and right in the traffic path. Dinner for 4 with wine was $375 based on a prix fixe menu. The appetizer choices were interesting but portions small. Mains were a choice of salmon, lamb or beef. The beef was just adequate. And the service was barely there. All in all disappointing for the price.
BUT the food at SOBO was beyond compare - what a find. We ate lunch there every day and everything we ate was fabulous. Lisa and Artie are clearly enjoying themselves and it comes through in the food. What was so wonderful? Shrimp cakes with a great mustard sauce, oysters with the same sauce, chicken sate with peanut sauce, tofu pockets with sushi rice and smoked tuna, Texas chicken chili, fish tacos and a southwestern caesar salad. SOBU is literally a catering truck in a parking lot and you eat at driftwood log picnic tables. But the food is out of this world - Artie says it is the second best thing you can have in a parking lot.
For dessert, suggest you try Chocolate Tofino which is in the same parking lot, at the other end. Gordon Austin has worked as a pastry chef at places such as the Wickinninish Inn and is now indulging himself as a chocolatier. His products are wonderful, inventive and taste divine.
One night we had crab, purchased live from a local crab fisherman. We paired it with a premier cru chablis and were in heaven.
All in all a great weekend. Can highly recommend the cottages at Long Beach Lodge Resort, Chocolate Tofino and SOBU.

[paul mitchell]

With all this talk about SOBO I am beginning to wonder when it will get it's 3rd Michelin Star?

Edited by paul mitchell, 17 February 2004 - 10:37 AM.

[Fountainhead]

paul, wheres the sunflower cafe.

[paul mitchell]

Isn't it right across from the COOP and next door to the LA grocery?

[merlin]

With all this talk about SOBO I am beginning to wonder when it will get it's 3rd Michelin Star?

not sure about the "stars" but given the venue, "michelin tires" for sure

[tofino]

sunflower cafe you are speaking of, is now called 'Breakers', great spot for pizza slices, and freshly made salads and sandwiches. Ah, another beautiful day in paradise!!

[paul mitchell]

Your right Tofino. My problem was that it was the first place with juice and sustenance as I stumbled out of my 'suite' at the Maquinna after the usual evenings of visits to the Weigh West, Shelter, Coffee Pod (never for coffee, always for beer). I just remember seeing sunflowers somewhere near it - it was always a little alarming at that time in the morning in a hungover state. Probably hallucinating with the sunflowers - some delayed acid flashback from my youth. But of course one needs a semi-solid stomach to brave the 9am forty minute boat ride back to work with a guide who knows your hungover and would like to see you puke cause he couldn't go to town the night before.

Edited by paul mitchell, 23 February 2004 - 11:42 PM.

[Keith Talent]

Went to Tofino this weekend and I can report that SOBO is almost worth the hellacious drive to Longbeach.

Best food in Tofino, and that includes the quite crappy Wikaninish. We tried the Shrimp Cakes, Polentra fries, miso udon, and fish taco. The fish taco was outstanding, in spite of the blue corn tortillia hardshell taco. You know how damn good a taco has to be to include freakin' kiwi and a hard shell and still say it's good?

Definately schedule lunches at SOBO if heading to Tofino.

Although, I have no idea why people head there. It's too far, too expensive and the scenery isn't markedly better than elsewhere on the BC coast. West of Sooke is just as picturesque, less crowded and a better value plus closer. No SOBO though.

[jayhay]

I don't know what's the matter with me, but we ate fish tacos at SOBO 2 weeks ago, and I can't honestly rave about them the way others have. I'm not saying the tacos & shrimp cakes we ordered weren't tasty, but I was expecting them to be much better after reading the comments here.

Maybe we hit them on an off day.....