Reviews Canoe Brewpub

Name: Canoe Brewpub
Address: 450 Swift St, Victoria, Vancouver Island, I-V8W 1S3
Telephone: +1 250-361-1940
Rating: 83

The Simmering Pot

The food is decent but I go here primarily for the patio and the view, sometimes for a pitcher with friends to enjoy a sunny day. It's a massive building with a restaurant, a pub section and easily one of my favourite patios in the city.

Feb 20, 2018

SuperWhy

+4.5

We went to the Canoe Brewpub for lunch and we were both throughly impressed.
I had their quick lunch which was a chicken salad sandwich with cranberries and apples with side salad and potato soup. My boyfriend had the canoe burger and fries. They were both delish.
The beer was also great! We tried to two specials (watermelon and white ipa) and the pale ale - both delicious!
Our server was great also. Very accommodating and friendly.

Jun 08, 2017

Lisa Frey

Great harbour view and classy ambiance. Tasty craft brewed beer (but no fruity beer option, not even in a bottle, despite it being a relatively fairweather day in April). Food was quite inspired, with some unique culinary flair - great visual presentation of the salads, and soup had an abundance of fresh dill and other lovely herbs. But, I would have preferred more vegetarian options. I agree with opinions below that this place could go from a 70% to a 95% with a bit more variety in their food and beverage options!

Apr 14, 2017

Jjd3

+3.5

Live music hot spot on the water. Large venue, with indoor and outdoor spaces away from the stage if you need a quiet table. Multiple bars, ample seating, good drinks.

Aug 15, 2016

Nicole Justine

+4.5

The location and stunning water views of this place are unlike anywhere else in Victoria I've been. It's a great idea to have heat lamps and blankets on every chair, being on the water it can get a little chilly.

The wait staff are friendly and helpful in making suggestions as to what is good on the menu.

My dad got their Aussie burger when it was still a part of the menu and ranted and raved about how good it was. I've had their steak frites and short rib tacos, both of which were incredibly well done. We really enjoy coming here when we're in Victoria.

Aug 11, 2016

Leah Vininsky-Oakes

Canoe is a little bit out of the way from the main downtown area. It's off a side street so you might miss it if you aren't looking for it. But this is an amazing dt location. Not only do they have a gorgeous patio by the water, but they also have live music and drinking/dancing inside. It's a bit pricy but the foods great. They have balcony blankets if you get cold which is a really nice touch.

Aug 06, 2016

3amigos

Canoe was our destination for dinner one early-evening during a recent stay in Victoria. We had missed getting there during our February stay, I had it high up on our to do list for this stay, and we were sure not disappointed -- wow, what a lovely spot, with good food and beverages to match!

The day was bright and sunny, the setting shined, and looked very welcoming upon arrival. And luckily, we managed to catch a spot for the car in their small parking lot, when we got there about 5:20 pm, or it would have been back out trying to find parking on one of the nearby streets (note: when you park in their lot, you see the hostess on duty at the time, to catch a parking permit to place on the car's dash). The building, erected in 1894, has been designated as a heritage site on the Inner Harbour. It's lovely inside and out, with all the red brick, wood finishings, and decorations.

We chose a table inside, the weather was sunny, but it was a touch too cool and windy for us to sit outside in the patio areas. Once in and settled, our server was at our table with food and drink menus. We ordered cold beverages, then sat back, relaxed, and enjoyed them and the surroundings for a while before ordering food.

Drink: Mom ordered an ice water w/lemon, and daughter and I a flight of beer, their 'core brands' -- a lager, pale ale, IPA, and a dark ale. The beers were cold, flavourful, and tasty -- much-enjoyed, and got our taste buds off to a great start.

Food: we ordered three of what they call 'smaller plates & sharing' -- w/descriptions from menu - the flash fried Humboldt squid (w/shaved fennel, roasted shishito peppers, parsley), wings (w/chili-shallot glaze, burnt scallions, slaw), and the margherita flatbread (mozzarella cheese, cherry tomatoes, arugula, basil, olive oil, parmesan). When the plates and board were brought to our table, there was a rather loud 'wow' from each of us! it all looked so good - the presentations so bright, colourful, and nicely-arranged. Then the tastings - we thought the preparations were as 'perfect' as they could possibly be - the food fresh, very distinctively spicy (but not overly), so flavourful, and tasty. The squid and wings were almost unbelievably tender, and major taste treats. This was our first taste of flatbread 'pizza', and it turned out to be such great dish to accompany the others. There was nothing was left on the plates to go back to the kitchen, except a few small streaks of sauces, and the like!

We thoroughly enjoyed our dining experience at Canoe. It was such a pretty and welcoming spot, offering such well-prepared and presented food, drink, and fine, friendly service. Canoe will definitely be near the top of my 'must return to' list when we get to Victoria next.

May 03, 2016

J-doug131

+3.5

Nice location at the edge of Chinatown. The bar/restaurant is located just outside of Chinatown and is a good place to go to for a waterfront view of their private marina and to grab a quick bite and beer. Venue is spacious with the bar on the ground floor and the restaurant up a flight of wooden stairs. However, the tables were too close together and we felt really cramped with the our chairs hitting the back of others. The chef that night could have been lighter on the black pepper. All our entrees were heavily doused in black pepper (garganelli carbonara, steak frites) and took the other potential flavours of the dishes away. Despite the food not tasting the way we hoped, it's a nice place to go to for a change in scenery.

Mar 10, 2015

Jen-b

+4.5

Good pub food, don't go if you dislike loud open spaces. I have eaten at Canoe 3 times and have not been disappointed yet. The food is well-prepared, fresh, and tasty. The menu isn't amazingly innovative but it has something for everyone and is good pub food. The restaurant building is neat, however if you are looking for a quiet/private/romantic night out I wouldn't recommend it, simply because it is an open-concept layout and the high ceilings mean the whole place can get noisy. I didn't mind it though. Also, their patio is awesome!

Apr 25, 2014

VictoriaDiner

+4.5

Best Patio.. So even though it is winter, I think it's necessary to bask in the glory of the summer that is to come. The Canoe Club patio is the best in Victoria. On top of he view, you get exquisite craft beers and real, local, healthy (relatively) food! I must have the calamari every time I get here, and the homemade ketchup needs to be bottled and sold! Thumbs up Canoe club.

Dec 23, 2013

Jen

+4.5

First time eating here, the service was terrible. Took waitress 20 mins before taking our drink order, 10 mins later she came back and asked drink order again, she'd forgotten she'd already asked us. 10 mins later they finally arrived. Took 15 mins until she came back and asked for our food order. Food took 50 mins to arrive (I understand not waitress fault). She never came back to our table to ask how food was or if we wanted anything else. After our plates were empty, took her 20 mind, until finally we had to ask for our bill ourselves otherwise she probably never would have come back. Only good thing about the experience was the Grilled Chicken Sarni that I ordered, it was unbelievably good.

Sep 21, 2013

Sharon

+4.5

Great atmosphere. This is my first time back to Canoe in over a year and it has really changed. The food portions seem to be a little smaller but much tastier. It seems the "new" style of food is really taking off. There was a table of young people beside us that were just raving about the new menu. My husband had the duck confit pizza and loved it. I will agree with some of the other reviews on here that this pub is a bit more expensive than it's competition but well worth the extra few bucks. Great patio and beer as always. This is a summer must.

May 12, 2013

I Don't Sugarcoat

+4.5

I was super let down. Ive been here 3 times in the past year and it's a different experience every time. My second time there was to die for. I had the spinach and beet salad and my friend had the chicken. Both were spectacular! The dressing was like nothing I'd ever had before!! I swore I'd be back again soon. A month and a half later I went back, and I had the same Mel, the spinach and beet salad... Yes, a creature of habit... It was NOTHING like the last time. It was small and nothing special at all. In fact, I don't think there was even dressing on it!! I was SOOOOO excited for it. LET DOWN big time. We also ordered the bread/chz/meat appy and the waiter told us it was awesome. It really was $17.5 of a waste. The cheeses were just 'ok', the one that should have been served warm definitely wasn't and it was difficult to eat. The meats were mostly flavorless, I've had better from a deli to be honest!! The blue cheese was pretty good... We also ordered mussels, again othing special. The sauce was more impressive than the mussels themselves. Honestly, I'm not a foodie at all, and I could eat most anything without much omplaint, but for an entree and 2 appies that cost $50, I was seriously disappointed :( my boyfriend and I left pretty upset about the food, no joke! Literally upset that we chose this place to go for his birthday...

Feb 26, 2013

Taylor Sands

+4.5

Love it. Service was great. Live music was amazing. It is absolutely beautiful in here with all the pictures taken in BC. I feel like so many people just focus on the negative when they're writing a review but I want to say that this place is really awesome.

Jan 18, 2013

Conzee

+4.5

Great local beer, decent service, great atmosphere particularly Thursday nights, all the food was I had was good.

Oct 29, 2012

Jeff Wilbur

+4.5

Good beer, food is a bit overpriced for the size of the plates but overall nice place

Sep 02, 2012

Candu

+4.5

Beautiful Patio. Sitting along the water sipping freshly brewed beer and eating tasty apps is wonderful. The atmosphere is one of the best in Victoria. Their brewed beer was great and unique. I had the mussels to start. They were cooked in very flavourful broth. The only criticism is that they need some good bread (not standard baguettes) for dipping into the broth. This brewpub is on the return list. :-)

Aug 18, 2012

Bree

+4.5

New to Victoria and was recomended to try out Canoe's Brews. They were delicious. Service was alright. it was busy, and had a nice pub atmosphere, over looking the water. They have a fleet, where you can try all their beers in tasters and a delicious 5$ appy menu inbetween 3&6. I will be going back some time in the summer no doubt.

May 05, 2012

Claytonious

+4.5

Hit and miss, got a burger and beer and was spot on! Then the next visit had pasta that was dry and nasty and tried the chochlate cake and was all so dry.

Apr 17, 2012

YRS

+4.5

I'm generally a fan of this pub primarily because of the fresh brews made on site, although their beers seem to have stagnated over time; no comparison to my local microbrew favorites from Driftwood, Lighthouse and Moon Under Water. The space/location is among the most prime in the city, but I find the food overpriced, big on presentation and claims to local sustainable that fails to deliver on substance, quality and originality. Today we opted to sit in the upstairs dining room section and service was unacceptably slow. For the prices Canoe demands, they need to deliver near flawless service. Service today was anything but.

Apr 07, 2012

Bella

+4.5

Our #1 spot. We're pub people...who love craft beer, great service, and good food. Canoe Club has all of this....plus the largest patio in town. We spend most of our summers on this patio with a pitcher of beer, loving life. The views are great...the building has an old rustic look that slightly glammed up. They do have tvs in the pub as well so we can spend our winter nights with a beer watching the hockey game.

Oct 27, 2011

Bang4Buck

The CC is fantastic.

A knarly old brick building AND huge timber framing inside,...It's the coolest inside local in Victoria.

Fantastic atmosphere inside, best patio outside.

Good food but expensive, I've always had good service and good/great, as usual, local beer there.

A popular place that understands that a live band pays for itself 5 times over in drink sales,...now that the Swans has sold out and put tables on their dance floor I'm a regular.

It would be a great place for a large group party.

If this place was listed on the stock exchange it would be your best long term investment.
Whoever is running this place has got it figured out.
Cheers.i

Sep 23, 2011

JLP

+4.5

Pricey, but good.. We went to canoe tonight for dinner and drinks, and everything was good, in fact the calamari was great! Service was pleasant, all of our food was good, and the drinks were decent too. I do agree that they are pretty expensive, ( it wouldn't be a bad idea to start running some winter promos to attract locals) but we left happy and will be back again.

Sep 12, 2011

Shine

+4.5

Great live music on Thursdays!!!

Jun 21, 2011

Caesar_time

+4.5

Good. Not Amazing. But Good.. I have spent many a Thursday night at Canoe Brewpub enjoying various beverages and listening to amazing live music. On Thursday the beer couldn't be better priced. 12$ for a realllllly big pitcher of incredible, handcrafted, house brewed beer. This along with free live bands provides a great, affordable evening.
I feel fortunate in saying that I have visited Canoe on many different occasions and all were good. I have never been extremely wowed by the food, but for the most part it is tasty and somewhat fresh but usually is quite pricey for what you get.
On a recent visit I enjoyed a caesar, extra spicy, big glass. It came fresh, expertly crafted and nice and spicy, just how I like it. The garnish was two pickled olives and a pearl onion on a skewer. I like to think that anything is better than a celery stick, and the seasoning salt rim tasted homemade and wasn't remotely stale. My partner was not drinking and had a non alcoholic Ginger Beer. This was freshly made, creative and a good blend of ginger and sweetness. We shared the feature main, a homage to Japan featuring a sesame crusted salmon, miso dressed mixed greens salad and a side of tempura shrimp sushi. The sushi was an excellent side and the salad was a bit over dressed. The salmon was undercooked, normally I like my fish to be a bit undercooked but this was half a step up from raw...Not really what you want when paying 23$. Our other entree was the margherita pizza. This had a delicious flavor but it looked/tasted as though when out of the oven it had been doused in olive oil. There were pools of oil swimming amongst my grape tomatoes and I found it a bit off-putting. Our bill was just under 60$ which we both agreed was a lot for what we got, but we do recognize its a trendy spot with a flare for higher priced menu items. Our server was also pretty nice and helpful with our menu.
All in all, I have to give Canoe Brewpub a positive review as I have never had a bad time here. There have been many fun nights in the upstairs bar area, and great brunches on the sunny patio over the summer months. Make sure you try a beer and maybe a caesar as well.

Mar 29, 2011

Gourmessa

+4.5

Absolutely love this place!!! The Calamari and the fish tacos are my favorites, I love that all their fish is ocean wise. The food is consistently great and the atmosphere lots of fun.

Mar 28, 2011

Churnin Em Out

+4.5

7.5/10. Always nice to step into a unique pub environment, and you definitely get that at the Canoe Club. High ceilings, with beautiful brick and timber wherever you look. Decent food, but a bit over priced. Killer beer - some of my favourite in town. I usual get the River Rock Bitter.

A very different scene if I hit the Canoe patio on a summer's eve. Then, it's nice to slow things down and enjoy a few extra beers and enjoy the view of the waterway as the sun sinks. I am occasionally willing to spend a bit too much on the good-but-not-great food in order to enjoy the beer and the location.

Feb 07, 2011

Tom

+4.5

Great brunch. Im going all the time to canoe. i love this place, the atmosphere is great. the food is actually very good and they lowered there prices too.
i tried brunch the other day and i had the best eggs benny ever. Im a big eggs benny fan and this just blow me a way. definitely worth to go down to canoe for brunch.

Feb 05, 2011

Dan Byrne

+4.5

Beer anyone?!?!. This place is my favorite place to go any night of the week. The beer they brew is sooooo good and the food meets the same level of quality. if you love beer....or heck if you don't love beer... I guarantee after going to Canoe you WILL LOVE BEER!

Dec 09, 2010

Khanusoor

+4.5

Great beer. But food isn't their forte. Very generic "west coast fare" that costs more than it should. At least the patio is mediocre.

Nov 16, 2010

Perm

+4.5

Nice to feel appreciated :). My recommendation mostly comes from the atmosphere of Canoe. I absolutely love the feel of this place. Even though it is a very large brewpub, it offers a cozy, friendly, neighbourly feel. Even though it offers a changing variety of excellent food, it has a few key menu items that you can always count on. Even though you can order anything you would like with the ability of being surprised by the top notch bartenders, there is always my favorite Canoe beer on tap. Check out the beautiful building, accommodating staff and stay for the good times and great specials.

Oct 15, 2010

ChefChild

+4.5

Decent Beer, Overpriced West Coast Pub Menu. Boasting one of the nicest (and largest) patios in Victoria Canoe Brewpub offers an array of house crafted beers and GastroPub fare. Although they offer an assortment of menu options their prices on some of their menu options ($16 Bacon Lettuce Avocado & Tomato Sandwich with fries or salad) seem a bit steep. It is important to note however, that although this is pub fare, its obvious that Canoe Brewpub prides itself on using local and sustainable products wherever possible, which may explain the slightly inflated prices. If you stick to the specials though you can enjoy this this West Coast Gastropub as if it were any other in Victoria. Personal menu favorites include Margherita Pizza, Panang Noodle Bowl with Chicken, and their Caesar Salad.
One thing that annoys me slightly is their partially deconstructed salads. They are deconstructed enough to make it difficult to eat, and not deconstructed enough for there to be a point. (Please message me if there is something with this half deconstruction that I maybe missing-I would love to know!)

Aug 24, 2010

Mahi-mahi

+4.5

I never liked this place before they did the re-vamp, now I love it. The food quality and atmosphere has improved tremendously and so has the service. Beer is not stellar but not bad either.

Aug 19, 2010

Clairerreese

+4.5

Solid brew pub with a great patio.. A great brew pub with a good wine list. Don't miss out on Wine Tuesdays. (1/2 price wine by the glass.) See website for other daily specials. Beautiful inside with high ceilings, large glass windows, and brick walls. Best patio in Victoria, other than having to arrive at 3:00pm to ensure a seat before the after work crowd. Food is hit and miss. But the hits are surprisingly good. Grilled local albacore tuna salad is outstanding. Good pub grub -burgers and fries. Pizza's are disappointing.

Jul 01, 2010

Sarah

+4.5

Very cool atmosphere with a laid back vibe. Prices are a little high for a pub but the food was excellent and it was served looking like it was a 5 star resturant. Beer was good as was the service. I would happily come back!

May 02, 2010

Reaper

+4.5

Great beer but stop at # 4 though!!. For drinking associates and I, Canoe is an essential Victoria watering hole.

Arguably boasting by far the best patio in the city. The vast two tired alfresco area has a great view overlooking the water and Johnson St Bridge. The best spot in town for a long summer evening( however everybody else knows this too so get there early)

The interior is very well designed with a cathedral like ceiling, exposed beams and a great décor.

Canoe is a brewpub and the beer is one of its best features, offering seasonal specials and a solid regular selection. The Larger and summer Heffe are particularly notable! Don't have too many though as nothing gets you quite as annihilated as one too many Canoes!

The food is pretty decent, not as good as you would hope for or might expect. It 's a little over priced and often heavy on the grease. The unfortunate placement of the drug addicts hostel also taints such a great place, I have on more than one occasion seen users openly shooting up, no more than 100 ft from the bar.

These little issues aside Canoe is great spot, day or night, rain or shine, old or young!!

Mar 24, 2010

Jon

+4.5

Canoe pub has great beer for great prices. There food has been reasonable. Nothing eye popping but certainly decent. The service on the last visit was a bit odd. The man was weird that's all. I love the patio and is a destination place in the summer.

Mar 08, 2010

Emma D.

Nice restaurant with a lot of spaces indoor and also nice patio. There are customer parking spots so I never had difficulty parking downtown. Service is great, reasonable waiting time for the foods to come but a bit slow at the end after we finished and wanted to leave. Foods have nice decorating and tasted quite good for pub foods.

Lisa Wilson

We had a really nice outdoor table. Tried the canoe burger, poke bowl and kids chicken tenders. The fries are delicious! IPA was traditional style and enjoyable. House red wine was good also. Service was personable and efficient. We will return!

John Santos

Beautiful patio. Nice sunshine dinners. Great atmosphere. Friendly staff. Food selection is pretty good. Need more beverage options esp domestic beers in bottles. I'd go back. Looks like I have to drink Corona beers. The poutine gravy was quite salty.

Greg Anderson (ganderson)

Great setting and brick building. Right on the harbor. Inside beautiful. Local brew excellent. Had the HELLES pale bavarian-style lager and was enjoyable. Had curry tomato soup and did not enjoy to my liking nor the fried chicken. Should have read menu better. Service was good to ok. Ambiance is chic. I’d return for the beer, ambience setting but different food choices.

Souparno Bandyopadhyay

Great ambiance, views and service. The menu lacks a few of my quintessential pub orders but the stuff they have isn’t too bad. They’ve generous portions but are tad bit expensive. Seating arrangement is nice and spacious. I had the veggie burger which was slightly dry but the flavour was great. Decent sized side of fries. The Chicken wings only come in one flavour and it wasn’t bad. Tacos are a surprise package. They are marked as a starter but are meal sized when combined with a side of fries.

Frederick Parsons

Very clean and lovely space. They do have a 2h limit per table. The fish and chips were decent however the humus appetizer wasn't memorable. The beer flight was very good. Staff was very kind.

Shelley Vaags

At 65.00 a plate for New years, No music , early covid curfew , I was skeptical. But the food was delicious and the waiter very personable. The room was aglow with lights from the chandelier and the huge Christmas tree and reflecting off the windows. It was worth the money and felt like a perfect evening out.

THECpt PHOON

Awesome patio and great service! Great beer brewed in-house. Great place to start your night as it is downtown with lots to do and see near by! You even get a view of the new bridge from the patio.

Martin Leroux

Huge, gorgeous looking brewpub, lots of wood and metal, with different sections of what seems to be a gigantic barn. We usually hit the bar, but this time around it was full, so I feel like we didn't get as good service as we usually do, in the sense that we waited long enough that we could have had another beer. Too bad, because the beers were good. Simple styles, but well done. Didn't try the food. Prices okay.

Jim Meijerink

Since moving to the Victoria area 3 years ago, Canoe has become my absolute favourite place to go. I’ve been to 3/4 of the restaurants, pubs, and craft breweries in the greater Victoria area, and this place comes on top for me. Any family members, or friends who come visit, I ALWAYS take them here and they are never let down by the hype I bring up about it before. The building couldn’t be any cooler or more beautiful, old brick with lots of history, the staff have gone above and beyond and I don’t say that lightly. They have fantastic beer that they brew on location (I’m a beer nut), and the food is amazing and constantly fantastic. You can literally order anything in the menu and have a 99% chance it’s going to be amazing. A must if you like historical architecture, delicious beer, and tasty inspiring food.

Reviews Canoe Brewpub

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