Review The Pier Bistro - Sidney

The fish and chips were outstanding! We stopped by for lunch in mid July to eat outside and it seemed like there was a comfortable laid back atmosphere. We were able to bring our two small dogs to sit next to us during lunch which we thought was very accommodating. After getting seated I ordered the 2 piece cod fish and chips and I don’t think we waited a full ten minutes before our food was out. It was surprisingly fast. The food itself was very good. I think I had the crispiest battered fish I’ve ever had eating here. The batter was super crispy but not at all heavy. I would absolutely come back here again.

Got a clam chowder and crab cake combo. Came with a decent-sized soup bowl, two pieces of flat bread, and two crab cakes. One of the best clam chowders I've had in a while! And the crab cakes were delicious! Good amount of crab. The flatbread was just okay—wish they came warm or toasted.

Very nice little place on the pier, with an incredible view from the covered patio and awesome food. The fish and chips, the chowder and the crab cakes were perfectly cooked and tasted great. Service was very good.

I'm a 2 Michelin star chef from New York and wanted to try out local food. The food was absolutely good. But the only gripe I had was that they charge $9 for a can of beer.

Love this place. The food is always amazing and so fresh and the staff are very welcoming. The clam chowder and crab cakes are so delicious and the fish and chips are also very tasty. Well worth a visit if you’re in Sidney.

Fantastic fish , delicious crab cakes. Service was friendly. Really site spot at the end of the pier, it’s small so you may have to wait in a bit of a line. However it’s worth it. A little pricey but it’s uniqueness makes it worth it.

This place has got one of the best Seafood in Victoria. The clam chowder and crab cakes are ones I would definitely suggest to go for. Great decor and Ambience.

Good fries , good tarter sauce , fish 🐟 😋 👌. Pop cold nice glass mug. Everything you need. Good coleslaw ok sauce. Would come again.

The best views when you are in the area for dining. Excellent service. We tried crab cakes, chowder and salmon burger on our first trip. Then returned for dinner the second time to try the dinner plates and got the salmon and halibut mixed plate. Butter tart for dessert. The seafood is cooked perfectly, salmon was consistently under seasoned for my palate. Butter tart shell was more of a puff style but I liked the unique take on it. Will return for sure.

This restaurant is located in the prime location, right by the water. The clam chowder was good, and we enjoyed a beautiful weather and a nice water view.

Cute place, loved the location. Service was adequate but was super disappointed with the food. My burger had nothing but chicken and cheese on it.. there was no lettuce, no pickle - just plain. My friend ordered the fish + chips and it was basically all batter. We had to take the food to go because we had a ferry to catch so didn't notice until we actually opened the boxes. Again, the people were lovely, but I was super disappointed with my experience.

Just popped in to have a snack and hot drink. I have to say I was made the best hot chocolate ever. It was just very smooth and delicious. My hubby and I shared a bagel. It looked dark and heavy, but it was super light and delicious too. It was a new one apparently. Keep it I say 👍 Very nice little place

The crab cakes chowder and seafood puff pastry was all delicious and sitting on the dog friendly patio with our pup right on the water with a great view was enjoyed by all of us!

Very cute place but that's it! The chowder was horrible! I wouldn't recommend thus place to anyone!

great place to enjoy good food, friendly service and the best view in town

Fabulous view and great service. Food was really good as well. We all have our tastes, so my ratings are predominantly service and ambiance. I had the Clam Chowder and it was warm and comforting. Perfect for a January lunch.

This is a fabulous place. The crab cakes are the best, and the seafood chowder is amazing. I will be back for a 3rd visit. Thank you.

I love this place. I come every time I visit Sidney. I love that it's right on the water. The food is great and the view is perfect. It's a win win.

Great service, i had a weekly date with my husband and this week got a visitor my son who was coming out of a sickness. :( the food was really nice, the place very cozzy love the view and the best the service, very caring my son started coughing lots and they even offer warm water with honey...thanks so much. God Bless your business....

This was a perfect spot to end our holiday in bc. the service was excellent, the food was amazing and the view was breathtakingly beautiful. Do yourself a favor and stop in here... we definitely will be back!! �

Best crab cakes ever. So fresh & bursting with flavour. All seafood...no fillers.

Amazing food, beautiful view and super friendly staff :)

Friendly staff and the food was really good, especially the crab 🦀 cakes. Can't wait to visit again 👍

Went for lunch spur of the moment with my two little boys. The staff were lovely, brought a bucket of toys for the boys, and brought their dish out before mine so the hungry little boys could get to eating right away. They went out of their way to make it a good experience for us, and with little ones that can be hard! The food was delicious as well and the view was beautiful. Will definitely come back (maybe with hubby for a date).

Awesome little Bistro on the pier in Sydney. Luv the Clam Chowder and the view!

Amazing! Great views and crab cake benny was to die for!

I had extremely high hopes for this restaurant, especially from what I have heard. Unfortunately the food was below acceptable. My girlfriend and I got a burger and the seafood puff pastry. Now I’m no chef, but how the hell can you screw up a burger so bad that it literally takes all the moisture from your mouth. I would have rather had ate sand. With no exaggeration. And the seafood pastry, again seafood is full of flavour, but somehow then did the impossible. Made it as bland as toilet paper. I would advise anyone to stay away from this restaurant. Go to beacon landing or Haro’s. Atleast you know your getting a good meal for cheaper

I loved this place ! Located right on the water with indoor and outdoor covered seating. The food is so fresh and tastes homemade ! Loved the chowder and seafood sandwich. Give this place a try !

With a two-for-one coupon for fish and chips in hand, we went to the Pier Bistro for the first time. We got there just after 8 pm and found it not very busy since closing time (9 pm) was approaching. We each ordered a mimosa (orange juice and champagne) and waited for our meals. After 30 minutes we began to wonder what was happening since fish and chips doesn’t take long to prepare and cook. Our server soon informed us that due to a misinterpretation of the way the coupon showed up on the ordering screen in the kitchen, the relatively new cook thought that the entire order had been submitted and then cancelled. The server apologized for the delay and said the food would be ready soon and due to the excessive wait we would not be charged for the fish and chips, just for the drinks. The fish was tender, with a crisp batter, neither too thick nor overcooked. The fries and coleslaw were good and the tarter sauce was unique and probably made from scratch. While a free meal always tastes better, we would have happily paid full price. From our standpoint as first-time customers the staff treated us fairly and did not lose our future business.

We were starving after the ferry ride and Pier Bistro looked good from our quick search of the Sidney area. It’s located right along the docks beside the Seafood Market shop. Sign out front promoting their happy hour (3:00pm to 5:00pm daily). Menus on display out front. Chalkboard outside promoting a few of their specials.

the biggest portion sizes of fish in victoria!! had some halibut and chips, seafood chowder, and it was full of fish and crabs, more so than the chowder or the batter, worth a visit! way better than that over hyped hipster red fish blue fish joint

May 27, 2018 Supper: Halibut burger with salad + chicken burger with fries for my guest + coffees = $50.00. When we arrived around 6:00 pm, the nicest tables with a view all had 'Reserved' signs and were never filled, which is peculiar, especially when it means turning other people away. The meal was 'okay,' but would feel like better value if it cost about 1/3 less. My sense is that you pay extra for the location and scenery, and the market during the busy tourist season sets the price. Fair enough, but I'm not a tourist, and won't be back anytime soon. (To be fair, I remember some decent lunches from the Breakfast Menu in years gone by. It was important back then to try to beat the lunchtime rush, especially if you have mobility issues, because parking near the pier is extremely limited.)

I had an amazing fish and chips here back before I lived on the island so it holds dear memories for me. It's a great spot on the pier too! The fish batter is really good and reminds me of the UK

My husband and I had dinner at the Pier Bistro during our resent visit to Victoria. The location of the restaurant was lovely, the views amazing, and the servers accommodating.  However, the food was a huge disappointment!  I ordered the "Deep Sea Cod", my husband the crab cakes. I had to send my fish back!  I believe it had been fried at least twice, maybe even more... it was a very thin filet to begin with, and with the double or over frying, not sure which, left the fish beyond the heavy batter completely dried out. It wasn't fit to eat and should never have been presented to a paying customer. The fries we believe were also re-fried, and the crab cakes left much to be desired.  When I complained to the waitress, she did agree to bring me the Haddock, which had been freshly prepared, and was much better.  However, the overall meal was completely unsatisfactory for the price charged. I spoke to a second server that evening as we were leaving and suggested that they really do need to do something about the Cod they were serving... she stated "I agree", but didn't linger for further discussion. The person serving us also indicated that they seem "always to have problems with the Cod"... thus her offer of the Haddock.  I have attached an image, which speaks entirely for itself!

Didn't get a chance to try their food (the cook did come out at one point to yell "it's worth the wait" while stinking of B.O.), but the service was beyond atrocious! We were a table of 5 that came in and waited for about 10-15 mins (which was absolutely fine). A server then comes and asks if we'd like to take a table on the patio (windy day), I said only if we can have a table inside as soon as it comes up. She said yes, absolutely. We get outside and it only has 4 chairs. We're told to order and they'll locate a chair as soon as possible. We sat outside for 8 mins with no menus or any service... We eventually couldn't bare the cold any longer so we went back inside to let a server know that we'll just wait for an inside table. <br/><br/>Her response was... Oh that's too bad. We just sat a group of 10 about a minute ago...<br/>This table of ten came in 5 mins AFTER us, and told them they could be separated. So how did they get a table when I told them we would want to move as soon as something was available inside. We also never got that chair that they would 'locate' for us. So someone from our group was supposed to stand the whole time but you could seat a group of ten that came after us no problem??<br/><br/>This whole fiasco was completely made worst with their bad attitudes. I understand that you're all 60 year old servers that hate your job but try to at least fake some decent customer service. Do they actually expect decent tips with such sourness? <br/><br/>We left and as soon as we walked into Haro's across the street, we were immediately 100% happier! We were actually met with energetic, friendly faces!

First time there. Had breakfast there with my wife. We alway wanted to try eating there when we visit Sidney. Very disappointed with the bland omelet and crab cake benny. Location is very cute but food left us wanting. Better breakfast elsewhere in Sidney

We went to the Pier Bistro on Thursday for a special test of eating out. We were so disappointed. I ordered the chicken burger. It was two tiny pieces of chicken breast so dried out that I could bite through it. The fries were quite good. The bun was very stale and the replacement french bread was even more stale. Last time we will go there.

A fantastic View. I always go to the bistro for the view. The restaurant is literally on the water and boats can sail within feet of the restaurant. I enjoy the soup of the day and the fries.

If only?. Spectacular location, limited menu of average quality at best. Pity?

This place is pretty bad...the other restaurants nearby were super-busy so we defaulted to here. Bad choice. I had fish and chips. The fish tasted like frozen fish wedges from my childhood - soggy, doughy batter - and the fish was fishy, a good sign it wasn't fresh. Tartar sauce tasted weird and the fries were nothing to write home about. My partner had the crab cakes and clam chowder. Crab cakes were soggy and mushy and chowder was pasty, not creamy. Should've checked urban spoon before sitting down. Ah well.

Disappointing. Everything has already been said about this place. The location is the finest in Sidney but the food is less than appetizing. I can't understand why they take shortcuts on the food. This place could and should be a gold mine. Perhaps a fish restaurant would be the way to go given the location right next door to the fresh fish market. The chowder however is very good.

Go for the view...not the food. This is a great location but it's a pity that the food doesn't come anywhere near to matching the view. As a local I like to support local restaurants so I've given this place a few tries and the location is hard to resist. However, sad to say, I was disappointed each time by the food. Clam chowder was thick, goopy and not hot, and it was hard to find the seafood in it. The fish and chips weren't that great either. Thick, cakey batter and cool chips. The waitress was understanding and gave us a reduction on the bill but I found out later that the owner reprimanded the waitress for doing this. I wonder how long they'll stay in business. Most locals have figured out this isn't a good place to eat, but there are still lots of unsuspecting tourists.

Fake Crab Cakes. Fake frozen crab cakes, frozen fish halibut, cod and Salmon. Horrible management and not at all a good representive a good seafood place in Sidney. The big blonde with all the hair should just stay off the floor when the servers are working.

Just had a great breakfast - Friendly and efficient staff.

Disappointing. I was hoping to get some good sea food since we were ON the ocean. I asked of I could order off the menu and just get some prawns in bitter and garlic, they said they were going to charge me 10$ for 6 prawns (assuming these were fresh and from the area) I doubled the order. When I got them, they were clearly boughten frozen and bagged, and they only gave me 8 1/2? Really ? 8 1/2 ? I complained , they charged me 16$ still. I ended up paying more per shrimp , than if I would have for a full order. I will never go back

Delicious butter tart!. Went there last night with a few friends for dessert as we were in the area. The butter tart was the yummiest thing ever, and I don't even like butter tart. 2 friends had the other dessert option - carrot cake, which they also really liked. Our server told us that the butter tart is made using the owner's grandmother's original recipe.<br/><br/>The bistro has an amazing view of the ocean and is really really cozy.

Terrible food, bad management<br/>I had the so-called crab cakes, they were greasy and over cooked<br/>The large woman who seems to run the place didn't care to hear about it or make it better<br/>Never again

Could be a million dollar place. Ok.. You guys are steps away from the Sattelite fish Market.. Why don't you check out the recipes the Floating Fish Store at Fisherman's Wharf have ..learn to cook fish like they do...buy your fresh fish next door and put in out door seating... You might find yourself shocked with line ups next summer instead of disappointed customers...your location is the BEST in Sidney.. I spend a lot of time walking my dogs in Sidney and you would be amazed at the number of people who ask me for a great place to buy a great meal of fish...It would be nice to not have to suggest they drive to Victoria..<br/><br/>As well revamp your breakfast menu and make old fashioned hash browns! I go out gor breakfast twice a week and would love to go to your place, but other restaurants have better breakfasts.

WARNING. The fries here are cooked in beef fat. I informed my server that i was a vegetarian.. I ordered the veggie burger( it was good, not great, lots of veggie burgers in victoria i would rather eat) with fries. Once i realized the fries tasted off I asked my server who went to kitchen to find out what i suspected. We have ate here a few times and I find the view to be amazing but the food so-so. With a few really good restaurants in Sidney I will not be visiting the pier bistro restaurant anytime soon.

Great View and Lousy Food. Not a surprise this place is so far down the ranking list. We opted for this place because of the views rather than go to the more popular breakfast bistro up the road that had line ups to get in. There was absolutely no line up and that should have been our first clue...the food was just crap...yesterday's bacon on an unappetizing looking plate. No offer for coffee refills or anybody checking during the meal if everyything was alright. The stale bacon was addressed to the waitress who was very haughty and said it was rude of us to point it out...no customer service skills whatsoever!! I would never go back anyway, but, it turns out the haughty rude waitress was the owner and told us not to come back...what happened to try to please your customer? Instead of apologizing for the very obvious presentation of yesterday's leftovers, she just gets nasty!! We are locals and we will spread the word for sure!!

Fantastic. My husband and I came to dine at the Pier Bistro for dinner tonight and I felt I had to share my experience (especially after reading all the negative reviews)<br/><br/>It was an unforgettable experience and if I ever get the chance to come back- I will!<br/><br/>#1 THE VIEW. You can not get much closer to the water than this unless you are on a boat. You are completely surrounded by ocean and there is not a bad seat in the house for this show!<br/><br/>#2 THE FOOD. Our server suggested the fish and chips as well as the clam chowder and crabcakes. We concluded she knew best and I ordered the clam chowder and cakes while my husband ordered the halibut and chips. When the food arrived, we were glad we listened to the recommendation and very impressed. The portions were sufficient and the chowder lived up to its name.<br/><br/>#3 THE SERVICE. The service was quick and delightful, although the restaurant was about to close the server did not make us feel rushed what-so-ever (which is a rarity these days). She indulged in conversation with us and made us feel right at home.<br/><br/>The only issue we had was not having room for dessert- the butter tarts were the size of my hand.<br/><br/>You are missing out if you pass this hidden gem down.

Very accommodating to my fish and seafood allergy. Great location on the water. The chicken burger is excellent and a chicken breast not ground chicken. The fries are amazing! The Cobb salad was very good but not a true Cobb salad. We would return.

As mentioned in earlier reviews, the chowder want that great. Personally, the potatoes and carrots were a bit under cooked and the crab cakes were just sort of ok. However, my wife and son had fish and chips and those were amazing. The service wad friendly and the view fantastic. I would return, but I would order the fish & chips instead.

Great crab cakes. Ate here twice during stay in Sidney. Had medley of seafood special - salmon, crab cake and halibut - delicious. Partner had the prime rib - delicious. Service was friendly. We would return.

Still coming back!!. Hey you all, maybe they read the reviews,<br/><br/>We are weekend regulars at this wee bistro,<br/>They have scrumptious crab cakes Benny ( maybe adjusted the crab cake recipe).<br/>Endless decent coffee, fun staff and views that can't be equaled. Try late Sunday morning and watch the sailboat races, sometime the finish line is just outside your window!<br/><br/> Had lunch here too, halibut and chips were great,salads <br/>fresh , and the deli style sandwiches were better than downtown Vic.<br/> Next we'll try dinner, menu looks promising.

Horrible. This is not real food. tasted fake and manufactured. really bad clam chowder

13 bucks for this?. Guest #1 (me) Ordered crab cakes and "award winning chowder". <br/><br/>I don't know what kind of awards this chowder is winning, whatever got the awards was a different bowl than the one that came to my table. It was slightly reminiscent of seafood I guess, but that might have been due to the leftover smells of rotting shellfish on the beach. The crab cakes were good-thing-I'm-hungry passable, in the same way that a hotdog from a street vendor tastes so great at 2:30 in the morning when nothing else is open and you're drunk. Too salty! floury! are you even supposed to put flour in crab cakes? blech.<br/><br/>Guest # 2 (Fiance) had grilled halibut burger.<br/><br/>I'm gonna be frank here, just don't even bother with the grilled halibut burger. Save yourself some misery and go across to Haro's for the tuna melt. Halibut is a great fish, it takes on pretty much any flavor you want. In this case, I suppose they opted for the minimalist "no flavor" approach. Tasted like...nothing (athough it was not entirely overcooked so I was impressed with that). Furthermore, the fresh multigrain bun, suspiciously resembled a whole-sale-value-kaiser . There was sauce on it, that looked colorful...and tasted like nothing. Tuna melt! Across the street! Do it! I wish I had:(

$6+ for a stale egg salad sandwich! No refund, no offering to replace! Are you kidding? With so many restaurants in Sidney why bother to going here.