Aioli Seafood Restaurant

For a number of years we have bought shaved salt ice here during our annual fishing trip out of…read moreGold River. For one whole tote, delivered to the parking area beside our boat, the price was $35 in the early 2000s. One tote was enough to fill 3 or 4 ice chests, plus a couple of fish lockers on the boat. In recent year the aged woman who runs the place has been accusing us of "stealing Ice" and has raised the price every year. In July 2023 she raised it to $150, and told us the commercial fishermen were complaining because they used their own totes???? She also insisted on cash payment, which we suspect went directly into her own pocket. Beware the Ice Nazi of French Creek! We, nor our fellow fishermen, will ever again stop there.

We recently moved to Parksville and were delighted to learn there is a fresh seafood store near us…read more This is my first yelp review and the one-star rating of this place prompted me to sign up for Yelp and proceed with this review. First visit we bought shrimp cakes. You know if you don't mix jello enough, there's a layer of thick rubber at the bottom? That's the consistency of the shrimp cakes. The next time I asked if the crab cakes were any different, and she said if you don't like the consistency of the shrimp cakes, you're not going to like the consistency of the crab cakes. Second visit was for halibut. Not fresh, but apparently flash frozen and cut the same day as it is sold. Was extremely watery, so...... Third visit is a charm - or not! Fresh sockeye salmon for $27.99 a pound. They were not deboned so I spent half an hour deboning four fillets. Of the four, one still had a section of bone attached to the side which had to be trimmed. One fillet had a large section of fat that had to be trimmed. There goes about $6. Thrifty's and Quality Foods has better seafood - just sayin....

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Herring Season at French Creek

Chameleons

4.5(34 reviews)

0.1 km

We went to Chameleons the other night for my birthday dinner and it exceeded our expectations in…read moreevery way. The service is friendly and attentive. The ambiance is warm and cozy. I started with the flavorful lemon merengue martini. Yum! The wine selection was pleasing, and we able to order both a chardonnay and a cabernet. My husband had the potato leek soup and I enjoyed the stuffed mushroom caps as our appetizers. They were both delicious! For dinner, he had the special of the day - stuffed chicken with Mashed potatoes and vegetables. The chicken was perfection and the mashed potatoes were incredible. I had the seafood crepe with garlic bread and vegetables. I'm so glad I tried this! It was rich and savory, without feeling too heavy. To finish things off, we shared the sticky date cake - a dessert that is a must-try. It's clear that they take great pride in their food, beverages and service. Other than recommending every item we ordered, I'd also suggest making a reservation ahead of time since this is a small restaurant. You won't be disappointed dining at Chameleons!

I saw a review on Yelp and likewise decided to try this place. I was lucky to get a table, as the…read morerestaurant was nearly booked (5:30ish on a Thursday)! It is a small but charming venue, with comforting jazzy standards playing quietly in the background. Had a glass of BC wine and the crab cakes. They were not made with lump crab, but whatever binding they used was light enough and didn't get in the way of the flavor. Fully enjoyed my experience and felt very cared for, despite the busy atmosphere!

Hard to explain how good this was

Ribs, this time with apple. So delicious

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Seafood crepe with garlic bread and vegetables

Shady Rest Waterfront Restaurant

3.4(100 reviews)

11.3 km

We live in Comox but drive the coast highway often and see this as one of a couple of places to eat…read morelunch. Food and service have been reliably good. Portions I judge to be large enough and fairly priced. We are staying nearby for all of June and eating here, alternating with two other restaurants. I believe this business is underrate.

After hearing there were new owners, decided to give this place another try. Unfortunately the…read moreexperience was less than good. The food was mediocre and service not good. It seemed like the server was doing us a favour by taking orders. It is unfortunate they keep getting it wrong because the location is a gold mine.

The view from my seat

My clam chowder - this was truly awesome

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Fat tire beer

Kalvas Restaurant

3.7(70 reviews)

0.6 km

What a great meal, with exceptional service! They were kind enough to seat us a little late in the…read moreservice as two of our guests were from out of town and could only get there for a 7 PM reservation. The place is a round log frame building that is quite spectacular inside of you are a log fan. This time of year in Parksville is pretty quiet, most places make hay in the summer and shutter for the slow season All of our food was delicious, prepared with care. Now to be fair there was hardly anyone in the place other than us five, so the kitchen wasn't slammed with people. That all said we enjoyed a wonderful, if somewhat pricey dinner, that would bring us back again!

Went in on our way to Nanaimo from Denman island to get dinner. It seemed busy and the manager/…read moreowner? Greeted us and we asked for a table for 2. He asked if we had called earlier and we said no. He said he had a table but he would need it for a 7pm booking they had and if that was ok. It was about 530 so that was plenty of time for us to finish and we accepted the table. We ordered seafood chowder, oyster Rockefeller, seafood sampler, and a lobster tail. Everything we had tasted wonderful. The rice pilaf that came with the sampler was cooked perfectly. Beautiful rice separation, nice mixture of celery, carrots, wild rice and either leek or onion; nicely seasoned. The halibut and salmon were cooked nicely and had a lovely cream sauce. Veggies nice and al dente. Oyster Rockefeller tasty and fresh. Lobster cooked beautifully, was tender and with hot butter to dip was lush. Seafood chowder was the right texture and consistency, not too thin not to thick and enough seafood to be proud of its name. For dessert the special of the night was a flourless chocolate torte served with vanilla ice cream and whipped cream. That was delicious, not overly sweet and had a nice chocolate flavour and texture was nice and smooth. The service was impeccable, water was always filled and the manager or another server always asked if every thing was alright and or if we were happy. But also you can see with how busy it was they would go off to tend other tables. That being said the fact they take the time to ask and make sure you are taken care of is awesome. I've been to fine dining where the serve disappears and doesn't ever ask how things are until like the last 10 minutes. Overall for an impromptu dinner here we were pleasantly surprised and thoroughly enjoyed our meal. I would recommend dining here if your in the area, reservations might be best as this was a Monday and they were packed.

Part of the dining area!

Lobster tail, seafood chowder, oysters Rockefeller, and seafood sampler

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Halibut

Rusted Rake Brewing

4.7(42 reviews)

10.4 km

Everything was amazing! Worth the stop!…read more The place was highly recommended by a family member that frequents this brewery. Of course we had to make a stop on our route up island. We all enjoyed our meals. Visited back in August so it's been a couple of weeks. Our table shared the mushroom kalamari and it went fast! It was so good, crispy and balanced, we could have easily ordered a 2nd plate - it was that good! I wasn't too hungry and ordered the West coast chowder with a side of bread. Little did I know this was one of the best meals this summer. I took a photo and ate the rest! I need that recipe! My 2 kids had the pesto pasta and both thoroughly enjoyed it, no leftovers. Husband had the brisket plate. He also enjoyed his flight of seasonal beers. Highly recommended and anyone heading up island or back to Victoria, make.the.stop! Parking was difficult, but it all worked out, there was a 20 min wait. Our regret was not buying the merch, cute shirts for sure! Instead we bought brews to go as host gifts before we left. We were visiting from Los Angeles and can't wait to be back next summer! Round 2 of my west coast chowder and husband wants to try the burnt ends apps!

Great beer, but the pleasant surprise is that their seafood chowder was perhaps the best we had…read more Great service and fair prices, plus excellent t-shirts...

Clam chowder

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Fern and Cedar Brewing

4.3(28 reviews)

9.3 km

Was looking for a brewery on the island and Fern and Cedar in Qualicum Beach came up & was close to…read morewhere we were... perfect! We put our name in and the wait was only 15 mins so not too bad considering how packed the place was our server was out going & that always makes for a nice time the 2 piece fish and chips were really enjoyable I especially liked the very thin crispy batter and also the chutney that came with it really different in a good way my wife had the Seafood Chowder with Bannock to start and loved it also the Avocado bowl with Salmon for her main and she said it was just what she needed lots of good nutritious food and the Salmon was cooked to perfection I also had a couple of their great dark ales, would definitely have those again The meals were a good serving enough that we passed on dessert As for price point a little more than other places but not out of line considering the quality of the ingredients and the serving size I wouldn't hesitate to return for another very enjoyable meal thx to all at Fern and Cedar

This is our second time returning to fern + cedar after our last trip to Parksville. The brewery…read morehas a very generous selection of rotating taps. The food is fresh and good quality cook - not overly done and they consider plant based options with a side menu for. I am not a vegetarian but feeling really full and good after the citrus avocado bowl with grilled tofu. There's indoor, indoor with covering and a nice patio space for seating. Service was good - the server somehow knew I don't eat spicy and provided a small portion of non-spicy veggies for me. We came later at night and there's ample free street parking. Definitely recommended.

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Truffle Parmesan Fries

Nanoose Bay Cafe

4.5(11 reviews)

13.7 km

Fantastic food! We came on a cruise excursion so the food was preselected and family style. While…read morethe regular meal service would be certainly different, the quality of the food and presentation was excellent! We loved the black sable fish with miso! Don't miss dessert, incredible brownies and ube cheesecake!

What an amazing place and a great meal! Their Happy Hour specials are fantastic, and the regular…read moremenu equally amazing! Their cocktails are done very well, and even their mocktails were delicious! The service here was on point and the view of the harbour is a great touch. It's a nice open space with a market and artist showcase as well. We will be back for more!

Miso Black Sable Fish

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Dozen oysters

The Bayside Restaurant & Lounge

2.9(39 reviews)

0.7 km

Gosh, I am not sure how to go here with our experience. As far as the Bayside goes there were good…read morethings, a few not so good, and maybe one or two real head scratchers. The signage to even find the place in the dark on foot (we walked from a neighbouring hotel) and by car could be better. Once there, plenty of parking (mental note) and a welcoming entrance. Our server was funny and engaging, but perhaps a little flippant. He also had to go back into the kitchen numerous times to check if they had things that were on the menu. They make gyoza in house, and it is one of my favourites. 6 PM reservation and they are out already with barely a soul in the place. Our beverages were pretty good, so we soldiered on at ordered our entrees one grilled halibut, one seafood pasta and two bbq ribs. Once the food arrived I was surprised at how small the halibut was given the price. That was nothing in comparison to the two that ordered the baby back ribs. Normally they fall off the bone when the professionals cook them, not this time. It was fork and knife time to get them off the bone which is totally wrong. I could go on, but you get the idea. I doubt we'd come back. Shame to have a place on the water and then serve food like that.

Disappointing. I was really looking forward to going after reviewing the menu options. I ordered…read morethe seafood chowder bowl with garlic foccacia bread. I was served a small cup of the soup of the day. I asked if I could please have the chowder. It was cold and bland. I had to ask for the foccacia. It came 15 minutes later and one piece was burned. My partner ordered the chowder and fish and chips. Fish was mediocre. Service was lacking.

View from the Inn's restaurant.

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Maggie's Seafood Market

4.3(18 reviews)

35.6 km

Maggie's Fish and Chips serves up absolutely stellar top notch fish and chips. The batter is thin…read moreand crispy without being greasy. The portion of fish in each piece was quite substantial. Our party ordered cod, red snapper and Ling cod. Every piece was cooked to perfection; meaty and tastey. The fries were hand cut and fried perfectly. They stress fresh oil and wild caught fish is used to prepare the orders. I will definetly be going back to Maggie's because the quality is equal or exceeds Red Fin Blue Fin in Victoria. There are about maybe 10 to 12 tables and counter seating. Not a fancy restuarant because after all, it is a seafood store. Maggie is very friendly and there is a self serve water station. You order at the till and the food is brought to your table. She totally gets a two thumbs up from me.

We found this spot far from the waterfront and decided to try it. Wow am I glad we did. The first…read moreindication that this was going to be good was the fact that they had a fresh fish market counter. We ordered Halibut fish n chips and was not disappointed, it was amazing. Maggie came to our table and made sure we were happy, she was great! I love supporting businesses like this, they have a quality product and are passionate about what they do. You won't get a waterfront view but you will get the best fish n chips in town.

Outside

Fish chips

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Menu

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5 reviews that are not currently recommended

The reviews below are not factored into the business's overall star rating.

Peggy C.

0

1

0

3 years ago

First time here, from Regina. We had the best meal and the server was excellent,everything arrived for the 4 of us at same time,well presented. Our crew had Lobster Bisque, ling cod, Prawns from the appetizer section. Everything was perfect. My friend mentioned it was my birthday and the waitress brought out a surprise dessert for me with 4 forks!!! The ambiance was perfect as well. read more

Kevin H.

0

1

2

12 years ago

Enjoyed the food immensely! The ambience leaves a little to be desired, but the service was solid. The restaurant was very busy; I suspect due the quality of the food, which was well above average. The average age of the clientele probably explains the low number of reviews for this experience. Clearly 'word of mouth' is at work here. Check it out... doubt you'll be disappointed. read more

Jason C.

5

3

1

12 years ago

Cheap food. Ok quality. Kinda skimped on the lobster (2 small chunks in my lobster bisque). We got seated at 7pm and ordered at 7:15pm... Food didn't come until 8:50!!! I kid you not! This is a record for me. Good thing we weren't starving. read more

Rachel G.

0

1

0

2 years ago

We enjoyed our dinner here so much, we came back the next night. Great food, reasonable prices and wonderful, friendly staff!

Tom H.

5

2

11 years ago

Great food! Great prices!

Aioli Seafood Restaurant - seafood - Updated September 2026

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We chose this place for their celiac gluten recommendations. They definitely accommodated celiac…read moreand shellfish allergies. The staff were extremely friendly and knowledgeable, even when we showed up close to their closing time we did not feel rushed, pushed out or an inconvenience to a staff considering we were there at closing. The place was very clean. The food was EXCELLENT definitely exceeded expectations. You will not be disappointed by coming here. Whatever staff chef was working July 29 at closing definitely deserves recognition. They did really well. We are not from Canada, drove all the way up here and this was the best food that we have had in a very long time even from our local area.

First time ever going there. Born and raised here…read more There was six of us tonight and our waiter was not good. I had high expectations going in here. He was so unprofessional. Read and study the menu and drinks. Learn to multitask. That's all I have to say. We will never come back here.

Kalvas Restaurant

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What a great meal, with exceptional service! They were kind enough to seat us a little late in the…read moreservice as two of our guests were from out of town and could only get there for a 7 PM reservation. The place is a round log frame building that is quite spectacular inside of you are a log fan. This time of year in Parksville is pretty quiet, most places make hay in the summer and shutter for the slow season All of our food was delicious, prepared with care. Now to be fair there was hardly anyone in the place other than us five, so the kitchen wasn't slammed with people. That all said we enjoyed a wonderful, if somewhat pricey dinner, that would bring us back again!

Went in on our way to Nanaimo from Denman island to get dinner. It seemed busy and the manager/…read moreowner? Greeted us and we asked for a table for 2. He asked if we had called earlier and we said no. He said he had a table but he would need it for a 7pm booking they had and if that was ok. It was about 530 so that was plenty of time for us to finish and we accepted the table. We ordered seafood chowder, oyster Rockefeller, seafood sampler, and a lobster tail. Everything we had tasted wonderful. The rice pilaf that came with the sampler was cooked perfectly. Beautiful rice separation, nice mixture of celery, carrots, wild rice and either leek or onion; nicely seasoned. The halibut and salmon were cooked nicely and had a lovely cream sauce. Veggies nice and al dente. Oyster Rockefeller tasty and fresh. Lobster cooked beautifully, was tender and with hot butter to dip was lush. Seafood chowder was the right texture and consistency, not too thin not to thick and enough seafood to be proud of its name. For dessert the special of the night was a flourless chocolate torte served with vanilla ice cream and whipped cream. That was delicious, not overly sweet and had a nice chocolate flavour and texture was nice and smooth. The service was impeccable, water was always filled and the manager or another server always asked if every thing was alright and or if we were happy. But also you can see with how busy it was they would go off to tend other tables. That being said the fact they take the time to ask and make sure you are taken care of is awesome. I've been to fine dining where the serve disappears and doesn't ever ask how things are until like the last 10 minutes. Overall for an impromptu dinner here we were pleasantly surprised and thoroughly enjoyed our meal. I would recommend dining here if your in the area, reservations might be best as this was a Monday and they were packed.

Firehouse Grill

3.4

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We walked into Firehouse Grill with no prior information and had the absolutely best meal in weeks!…read moreThe menu is surprising--including cornbread muffins and jambalaya! We ordered burgers--best burgers we've eaten in a long time. Amazing food, prepared and quickly out of the kitchen. Beautiful presentation. Service was perfect. Chef (owner?) came out to meet us and we learned his history, including time spent in New Orleans where he learned how to prepare cornbread and jambalaya. Interesting note--we'd asked for restaurant recommendations and this one had not been mentioned by anyone. Honestly, don't know how the other places could beat Firehouse Grill for service, selection, and taste. Next day, sitting in Vancouver, we talked about riding the ferry back to Nanaimo to eat here for a second time.

Minnoz Restaurant & Lounge

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We stayed at Coast Bastion Hotel and after walking all day, it was nice to have a place to eat…read morewithout leaving the hotel. Yes, they were pricey but the food was delicious. We ordered crab cakes and top sirloin . Service was awesome.

Second time in this hotel restaurant inside of a week. Both nights had large crowds attending a…read moretheatre event around the corner. Not surprisingly they were very busy. That said, we were there for both "slammed" situations, and endured little, to no, service. Our server last night had no answers to our menu questions and spent entirely too much time leaving us to ask someone else. Specials, fish of the day, etc should be a part of the offering that is well known and sold by the wait staff. We find hotel chain restaurants to be sub-par in general, but this Coast hotel disappointed twice inside of a week. The space is nicely appointed, but we found the folks that followed us in were looking to watch the hockey playoffs at 8 PM. Should be prime dinner/date night out. Overall, so average, which you are not looking for out of a Coast hotel situated a few hundred meters from the ocean.

Chameleons

4.5

(34 reviews)

We went to Chameleons the other night for my birthday dinner and it exceeded our expectations in…read moreevery way. The service is friendly and attentive. The ambiance is warm and cozy. I started with the flavorful lemon merengue martini. Yum! The wine selection was pleasing, and we able to order both a chardonnay and a cabernet. My husband had the potato leek soup and I enjoyed the stuffed mushroom caps as our appetizers. They were both delicious! For dinner, he had the special of the day - stuffed chicken with Mashed potatoes and vegetables. The chicken was perfection and the mashed potatoes were incredible. I had the seafood crepe with garlic bread and vegetables. I'm so glad I tried this! It was rich and savory, without feeling too heavy. To finish things off, we shared the sticky date cake - a dessert that is a must-try. It's clear that they take great pride in their food, beverages and service. Other than recommending every item we ordered, I'd also suggest making a reservation ahead of time since this is a small restaurant. You won't be disappointed dining at Chameleons!

I saw a review on Yelp and likewise decided to try this place. I was lucky to get a table, as the…read morerestaurant was nearly booked (5:30ish on a Thursday)! It is a small but charming venue, with comforting jazzy standards playing quietly in the background. Had a glass of BC wine and the crab cakes. They were not made with lump crab, but whatever binding they used was light enough and didn't get in the way of the flavor. Fully enjoyed my experience and felt very cared for, despite the busy atmosphere!

Trollers Fish & Chips

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3 ate for around $84 CAD. Had 2 plates of fish and chips (halibut and COD) and one roasted salmon…read moreburger. All cooked well, batter was good, and dill sauce on the burger and side was nice. It's on the water, so the platform moves. Not a whole lot of seats, and of course there's birds but I didn't mind it. Service was good and quick. Would go back again!

This fish and chips / seafood spot is fairly touristy in a prime location, and what is special…read moreabout this place is that it is on a floating dock. We got the 2pc halibut fish and chips which was a bit pricy over the cod since I've always had fish and chips with cod so I wanted to try something different. It came with fries and Cole slaw, both of which were okay. They were very stingy with the tartar sauce so it was barely enough for the fish only, and I typically like to dip my French fries with tartar sauce when I eat fish and chips instead of ketchup. And extra sauce is $1. When I'm already paying almost $30 for the order, at least be a bit more generous and not nickel and dime. Also, the fish is decent texture, meaty, but a bit dry, so it was a little underwhelming of a meal.

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