The Vine Cowichan Bay - COWICHAN VALLEY

We all appreciated the peaceful and soothing atmosphere at the restaurant. It was a delightful experience to savor our meal in such a cozy and welcoming setting. The beautiful view added to the enjoyment, and the food was delicious. Highly recommended!

Nice place on the main drag in Cowichan Bay. It's a nice little detour between Duncan and Victoria. Parking might be a little dicey on a busy day but we had no problem. The place had only one occupied table. The menu is largely made up of a variety of crepes with different fillings. This is not a vegan restaurant. There was, as I recall, one vegetarian crepe which is what I chose. It was stuffed with zucchini and eggplant and a good helping of goat cheese. It was very tasty but it was very rich. I decided to only eat half and bring the rest for later. The other crepe selections were basically variations of beef, pork, chicken and, of course, seafood. My partner went with the chicken and enjoyed it. The restaurant has a comfortable but a bit plain, rustic feel. The nice part is that it's on the water and has a nice view. Service was efficient. This is a spot that relies heavily on tourists and local traffic. I personally won't go back but that's because of my vegan/vegetarian preference. As a satisfying spot for everyday diners I think it's worth a look.

The chef doesn't always greet people at the door as he has other things to do, but he did us on this visit. I briefly mentioned to him that I'd be a nuisance to him as I'm vegan. He said that I wouldn't find anything on the menu and then asked what I'd like. I said something warm and without animal products. He said that he'd figure something out. Indeed he did. Palm hearts , portabello mushroom, other mushrooms, grilled tomato and grilled sweet pepper. He prepared them to be tastey. Afterwards I asked if he does much vegan stuff. He said that he gets asked for special things regularly and when he knows in advance it's very helpful. He did a lovely job of it and his front staff was friendly and professional too.

We'd heard wonderful things about the Rock Cod Cafe nearby, which is unfortunately permanently closed, so we took a chance on The Vine. Very clean and beautiful dining area, gorgeous view of the docks, delicious food, and quick, friendly service. This is based on a single visit, so two caveats: 1) one soup was too salty. 2) It was a quiet weekday lunch, and I couldn't speak for how it would be on a busier day.

We had dinner here on the Valentines weekend and it was excellent. We started off sharing the pan fried oysters then I had the steamed mussels in white wine cream for my main course. They came with French fries that were cooked perfectly. My husband had the full rack of ribs that also came with fries and the ribs were tasty and tender. We shared a Cream Brule for dessert. Our server was very pleasant as well.