The food is good but the amazing staff and quirkiness are what attracts and keeps its repeat customers. Not the most exciting food, but the ingredients are always farm fresh and I never feel gross afterwards like at many other chinese places. There can be some rather odd items in the buffet, from chili to taco's to sushi, but that's all part of the charm. If you want exotic traditional chinese there are more suitable places, but the food here is quite good despite being rather eclectic.
Great food and a very reasonable cost. Hosts were so nice and friendly. Highly recommend eating here.
Wonderful atmosphere with the friendliest and most helpful staff ever! We had the buffet lunch and definitely ate our fill! Despite it being a buffet the food was delicious and fresh, and included a wide array of meats (from octopus and fish to duck and pork) and plenty of vegetarian options. Will definitely be eating here often!
I've had better, however the staff and duck are unbeatable!, the staff was insisting that I eat more, such charm!
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Incredibly friendly staff and delicious food! What more do you need?. I've walked by this place hundreds of times, and have never given it a second glance until today. I was bouncing around urbanspoon looking for a place to go for lunch, and noticed that this place had a ridiculously high rating with almost 200 votes. Obviously rating isn't everything, but I wanted Chinese and I figured it was worth a shot. Thanks internet! I ordered takeout over the phone, and was greeted by the friendliest woman I have ever spoken with. Ever. No exaggeration. I wish I liked anything as much as that woman likes taking take-out orders.
When I went to pick up my food, which was ready super quickly, I was again greeted by who I assume was the same incredibly-stoked woman. I realize it's her job to be friendly, but nevertheless I didn't stop smiling the entire time I was there. She seemed genuinely excited for me to try what I ordered (the Tuesday Lunch special), and gave me an apple for no discernible reason to round out my lunch.
The food itself was hot, fresh, and delicious, and was all the best parts of north-american chinese food without the usual greasy/salty taste I'd usually associate with it. The price is a little more than I'd usually pay for chinese food and/or lunch, however you got a ton of food so it was pretty much two meals. Not something I'd get every day because of the price, but definitely worth it when I feel like splurging.
All in all, I highly recommend this place, both for the food and the simple joy of another human being being outrageously excited to talk to you.
The Truthful Critique
+4.5
Delicious, friendly, and with just enough quirk to keep things interesting!. I can't say enough good things about this place! I live in Calgary where Chinese restaurants are a dime a dozen, however I have yet to find many places that offer up anything more than some microwaved pre-frozen buffet leftovers! When I was looking here on Urbanspoon before I left for Victoria for some good Chinese restaurants, I was surprised to see the high rating and number of incredibly positive reviews for Hope Key. So I was determined to give it a try, hoping that it would finally be the kind of quality place I've been looking for. Well, luckily this place was only a short walk from the hotel, so in less time than it takes to tell we entered the restaurant and were already impressed. We were greeted by probably the friendliest people ever (and this is not an understatement - these folks take friendly to a whole new level!) and were led through a wonderfully funky restaurant to our table. Instead of your traditional Chinese restaurant with fish tanks, paper lanterns, Chinese music, and ugly wallpaper, this place was modern, vibrant, and just quirky enough to keep things interesting! A really nifty place, that's for sure! We decided to try out the buffet after hearing good things about it, and boy were we glad we did! The food was probably the best Chinese fare I've ever had. Wonderfully flavourful without relying on salt, fat, or sauce for taste, and each item was fresh and unique. The buffet was a bit smaller than some I've been too, but it still had a good assortment of offerings that everybody can pick and choose from, and also had a much more unique and original selection that didn't include your typical mounds of sweet and sour pork, ginger beef, and lemon chicken. All in all, this was probably one of the best Chinese food experiences I've had, and I will make sure to return here again whenever we are next in the Victoria area. I highly recommend this place to any Chinese food lover, and can guarantee you won't leave disappointed!
Insanely friendly, really good food. Went here with the kids and my 91 year old mother. We all thought the buffet looked pretty good. Lots of choices, with duck, wonton soup, and enough non-meat items to satisfy the vegetarian. Buffet food was good, but it was lukewarm, which detracted a bit.
Mom decided on a mixed item plate from the menu, and she was well satisfied with her choice - we all agreed that we would order of the menu next time. Kids really liked their real fruit bubble tea; because they picked multiple fruit there was some left over and the owner brought us each a little taste of the leftovers in a little paper cup - yummy!
The staff are super-friendly. They greet you like a long-lost relative and make sure the water and tea are topped up. It's just a pleasure to go there - can't wait to go back.
Fantastic!. If you're feeling depressed, head to Hope Key. The place is quirky and cheerful, as are the staff. The food is also very good. Of the four of us, 2 of us usually order the War Won Ton soup. Large soup full of vegetables, won ton and a lovely light broth. The other 2 order chinese. Not the most sophisticated chinese food, more like anglo-chinese, but yummy nonetheless. The Bubble Tea process is also loads of fun for the kids.
Impressed. I am amazed at how friendly the service was. I had bowl of wonton soup with vegetables and a soda. I went in at 1:30 and had my my food by 1:36. The soup was great and I left very happy. I will be back, I just have to remember to go there... kinda like Jackalope, I forget it exists.
I'd like to echo what most others have said about this place. The owners were wonderfully friendly and enthusiastic and we had a great time as well as great food. It was our first Bubble tea ever and we really enjoyed it. We left with full stomachs and big smiles.
Feels like coming home to your favourite aunt and uncles! Great bubble tea & Always friendly and fun atmosphere! Funky art and environment, the chairs walls and even the stairs have neat art.
A staple in Victoria that we are lucky to have - you must visit.
Thank you for your great service!
Decently authentic Cantonese food, ridiculously outstanding service!
I didn’t have high expectations of this restaurant given its location, but what a nice surprise!
Google review did not disappoint, the service was second to none, we honestly felt like having dined at a friend’s house. Everyone was so friendly, served us spring rolls on the house, gave my parents bubble tea samplers, took time to chat with us, and made sure to make the food extra soft for my senior parents.
The decor is quite charming, there is a world map where customers pin where they are from on the map, it’s almost full. :)
Probably the best bubble tea I have ever had. The customer service here beyond exceptional. 10/10
Some of the best customer service I’ve ever experienced.
Food was excellent as well. Not greasy, fresh and good quality ingredients. Loved the slices of garlic. The honey garlic chicken tasted of real honey.
I’ve never published a google review, but I had to write this one because this business deserves to be recognized for their efforts. Wishing them continued success!
Deanna Jeremy Notheisz
+5
I've been thinking about it for a few days and I have to share. The Chinese food at Hope Key on Douglas was amazing. The owners Brenda and James are an adorable brother/sister duo I believe. The service was amazing, the food was unforgetable. So delicious, not greasy or oily, and piping hot. I have not stopped thinking about it for days now.
The spring rolls were perfectly stuffed, the filling didn't fall out in the first bite. The broccoli in the beef and broccoli had an amazing crunch while still being soft. The chow mein and sweet and sour pork were so good.
The prices were extremely reasonable with the quality of the food.
My party scarfed the food so fast we didn't remember to get pictures. It was so good. I look forward to going back. Highly recommend 5 stars!
Excellent customer service with great food! The food served here does not make you feel like you've over-eaten like most restaurants you go to. The restaurant environment is very neat with lots to look at, you can really tell that the owners put a lot of their personalities into creating a lively, funky, and welcoming space. Will definitely come here again! ☺️
Came in unsure what to expect. The atmosphere is the definition of kitschy, the service was wonderfully enthusiastic & decently quick, but the stand out was the food!
While I admit our dish choices were rather "white people Chinese food" in selection... The food was honestly a big stand out from many I've had before. Incredibly flavorful, tender meats, lite rice & noodles and comfortably filling. I highly recommend the honey garlic chicken & pork fried rice. If you're searching for some good eats, this will do the trick and more!
I give it 5 stars because I want these lovely people to continue to succeed so more people can come in & enjoy the "Hope Key Restaurant".
Xièxiè
I walked by this restaurant many times and was very curious to check it out, and finally went here a couple of weeks ago. I was really only interested in the decor and cozy atmosphere; and was surprised by the unique vegan options, huge portions and wunderbar service.
I had the Spicy Tofu Veggie Vermicelli hot pot and it was really really good. They had an option of 1-10 for spiciness and the spices they used were made from scratch in house. The portion was huge and I got 2 meals out of it. I want to try some of their other vegan options next time!
My friends had combo dishes with meat and they were really happy with their meals saying that it was some of the best Chinese food they'd ever had.
I didn't tell the servers it was my birthday dinner, but they made me feel like it was and went out of their way to accommodate my dietary restrictions and brought me free egg rolls (that didn't actually have any egg in them).
The family who run this place are so great :)
We (German family of four) went there and it was really awesome! We had bubble tea, which was excellent as well as the appetizers and the main courses. The service was increadible! The owners were extremely friendly, warm and welcoming!! We highly recommand to visit this restaurant!
Could be one of the most unusual places have been to in a long time but super friendly, warm family services. We went for bubble tea which they did a fine job of but most people seemed to be there for the Chinese. Place is super kitschy. It’s like eating in the weird rec room of some Chinese relatives you never knew you had. Maybe the place has had 5 different owners of the last 20 years and each one just kept adding to the decor of the previous owner. It’s fun. Lots of people in there noshing on the food and enjoying themselves. Food looked like good reliable white guy Chinese but can’t vouch for it. Little bubble tea ‘lounge’ up the centre stairs.
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