Sooke Harbour House

Service was imperious and indifferent. There were only two other couples when we arrived 3 minutes early for our reservation. The server gave the impression we couldn’t be seated right away. We were seated outside. Service was slow, lunch was just ok. The gardens and the buildings look unkempt. This is surprising because this establishment was impeccable in the past. Definitely not worth the drive from Victoria.

The facility has gone a bit downhill from when I was here 15 years ago. Still very rustic but the grounds are not as well maintained. The food was unique and very good. A couple of the dishes were exceptional we did 4 course menu with wine pairings. All the wines were from BC and were surprisingly good.

I had a not so good experience here, I emailed them to address the issue 4+ weeks ago and the business did not bother to respond. Originally we booked a table at the main dining room,  unfortunately, my wife has some allergies and dietary restrictions so a few of the items on the set menu were not going to work for her, so we asked if we could move into the Copper Room which had a more friendly menu for her.  I ordered the Chef's Trio Surprise for $55 and enjoyed all 3 of my dishes.   My wife ordered 2 dishes that were completely made a mess of and left her to pick at my main dishes.   The first dish my wife ordered was the Wiffen Spit Greens, which was described in the menu as Sprouts, Shoots, seeds, harbour house herb vinaigrette.  What arrived was a bed of romaine lettuce with a couple pickled mushrooms, tiny sour berries and berry vinaigrette dressing.  Not even close to what was on the menu. We sent it back. Her second dish was the Mushroom Fricassee which also came out not even close to what was described in the menu. What arrived was a bowl of sauteed veggies with a puck of polenta on top in what looked like some beet juice. No mushrooms, no creamy leek sauce, no green beans as stated in the menu.....in fact not even close to a Mushroom Fricassee (not a mushroom in sight).  Our server was clearly embarrassed and was as confused as we were on how such an enormous mistake could happen not once, but twice at what is described as a fine dining restaurant with a good reputation. Same kitchen, same chefs, sending out stuff not even close to what is on the menu.  We are disappointed there was no offer or attempt to remake the dishes according to what we ordered and what was described on the menu. We are also disappointed that no manager came out to apologize for what happened and left the server to face this absolute disaster on her own.  Did no one check dishes for consistency and accuracy in the kitchen before they get served to the customer?

The food was super delicious and able to accommodate dieatary restrictions.

Romantic atmosphere, delightful service, delicious and unique food.