Giovanni's is split into two distinct restaurants: fine Italian cuisine in the main restaurant area and a lounge side catering to pizza enthusiasts, like me. What the lounge may lack in outward beauty, that is fully made up for (and then some) with its main course. Done in what I call "Greek Style", the pizza is baked in a pan and has a cupped edge crust that the ingredients come out to meet, with the bulk of the cheese spread on top. Additionally, Giovanni's has developed a wonderful sauce, which is not too sweet. Fresh ingredients and lots of them as well. When brought to your table by Tracey or one of the other wonderful staff, it is a thing of golden beauty. I never order anything less than a large (see photo) because I always want to take some home. Truly one of the top pies on the island. Enjoy! read more

Giovanni's Ristorante - Large pie - Italian Near Me - Qualicum Beach, British Columbia

What an amazing meal! My wife and I were greeted warmly by Peter and given a window table. That began quite the dinning experience. The specials were explained and then re-explained when we asked for more details. Peter was extremely professional and polite. Even though the restaurant was busy for a Thursday, he gave us ample attention before rushing off to provide the same to other guests. The food? Oh, the food! Seafood Pescatore was fantastic! The grilled chicken fettuccine special was as described. Fresh. Flavorful. Fabulous! We are so pleased we found Giovanni's! You will be too! read more

Some of the most yummy pizza around! Unfortunately, if you eat pizza, Giovanni's, you are banished to the pizza side or the outside. The ambiance on the pizza side is lacking. With the weather improving we are now able to eat outside. Delicious pizza, our favourite pizza was the deluxe. read more

When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie, that's amore. Love. Like the way we felt after dining in this restaurant. From the focaccia bread to the spaghetti to the vanilla gelato. And of course the vino rosso. read more

Nice Italian pub in Qualicum Beach. I had the pizza, which was quite good, and had a perfect amount of cheese and a nicely caramelized crust. Definitely need to check out their other offerings. read more

Great service, great food, nice ambience. What more could you ask for? Looking forward to patio season again and hopefully live music as the icing on the cake. read more

Tasty deep dish vegetarian pizza. Good location in town near many nice shops. Enjoy a glass of wine or beer while waiting for your pizza.

This is a beautifully decorated Italian place in the sleepy town of Qualicum Beach. Friendly and attentive staff, and large portions of traditional Italian Cuisine. I had the Chicken and Truffle Fettuccine in a Cream Sauce. The chicken was flavorful and tender, however I felt that the cream sauce was a bit bland to my liking and the fettuccine was not "al dente" enough; a bit over cooked. Great wine selection, good salads, and the rest of my party enjoyed their meal. read more

Since the new ownership in December 2016 this restaurant and lounge is BACK! My husband and I have been several times. The lounge is a great spot to stop in for a pint of IPA and their excellent pizza. They've added a couple of new beers on tap. Fun and busy spot especially on pizza special night. Staff is attentive and fun. Clearly it's a good place to work. Everyone is good-natured and friendly. We met the chef and manager one night sitting at the bar - great guys and good conversation. The restaurant side is perfect for date night. Cozy and comfortable feeling with a great menu. Yummy Italian! read more

Great Italian mid-Island spot. Lounge has great atmosphere but menu is limited. Great 'full-bodied' pizza.

As our server explained the original owner/chef came back and the place is revitalized. Very good higher class Italian menu. Great service. Highly recommended especially for the small town setting. read more

I know how great the pizza. It's been a favourite for many years, especially the Thai Chicken pizza. We've supported all of the changes in ownership through the years. They've stayed open with take out pizza only during the Covid19 outbreak. Good for them. But....last night, a Friday, at 6:00, I called to order a pizza and was told they couldn't take any more orders because...are you ready...they ran out of pizza dough. They are serving one thing, pizza. The person who answered the phone, although apologetic, suggested that I should have ordered at 3:00, opening time. I have recommended this lounge so many times and I am so disappointed in this level of foresight. We had qburgers instead. read more

I haven't been to this restaurant in over a year until last night. Wow things have changed. I remember getting authentic Italian food and service, rare for the rural mid island area. I understand the original owner has retired and the restaurant has changed hands. The service was nothing special. The other patrons all looked over 80, half of them needed walkers to get in the door. It looked like a retirement home cafeteria. And unfortunately the food tasted worse. I ordered the veal special (veal osso bucco). And my date ordered the veal piccata of the menu. Both tasted the same!!! Almost like the the chef bought microwave veal dinner and boiled it. Plates were covered in watery sauce. Which may have been from the penne side that came with it not drained enough before plating. Which also tasted bland and life less. I attached a picture of my Veal Osso Bucco. For those who are unfamiliar with this dish, just google veal osso bucco and take a look at the difference!! Poor ingredients, poorly executed dishes, no one is checking platings going out of the kitchen. Either this restaurants new owner is incompetent in how to run a restaurant or doesn't care! I don't normally write bad reviews, I'll generally blame myself for not picking a good establishment and not return. But at $25-$30 per entrée, I hope I can save someone else a $125 meal. Go to Cuckoo's in Coombs, even if it's just for the stone oven focaccia bread! read more

Giovanni's Ristorante - This is all I could manage to choke down. - Italian Near Me - Qualicum Beach, British Columbia

Based on the crowded seating and extreme noise level, crying kids, poor acoustics, etc. this should only be a 3 star rating. But.... and especially for this geographic area, the food is excellent. We had the 3 course "mystery" dinner, and as usual, it was perfect, veal, lamb and beef with vegetables, a salad and very good cheese cake for dessert. However, the wine list is complete, but expensive, as is the food. A couple won't get out of here for under $100, our bill was closer to $150. I wouldn't go on Friday or Saturday, or any busy time. read more

Super friendly waitress, loved the Bruschetta on the house, the buns were delicious, calamari good though came with a greek white sauce, smelled wonderful inside because of the open kitchen, the halibut il fornato was good with white sauce, capers, lots of vegetables and a side of pasta, tiramisu was wonderful. I loved the romantic setting, it truly made the experience memorable. One thing though which made it a 4 star instead of 5 was that I'm highly allergic to dust and when I came into the restaurant I started sniffling and having a reaction. I hope they will dust the ceiling air vent conduits, fans and wine shelves, wherever the dust may be gathering, otherwise it'd have been a perfect experience. read more

Our server was extraordinary considering the extreme heat in the restaurant, at least 25-28 degrees. The heat was actually unbearable, we skipped drinks and dessert. Our meals were mediocre at best. Small portions are fine when it is fine dining quality food, which this was not. One of our party had egg plant parmigiana, the coating tasted stale, the egg plant leathery and tasteless. No Parmesan was offered. Not a 4 star. Pizza is a solid 5 star. read more

Restaurant was very nice. Service was excellent. Menu extensive and what we ordered (pasta arabiata and I ordered the shrimp scampi. Beautiful presentation. We split a Caesar's salad and two extra plates were placed on table with two big spoons for splitting. Dessert was tiramisu and it was delicious read more

What a treat, good value for money. Cannelloni was perfect, Linguini Carbonara was a rich, velvety plate of goodness. Gamberi Provenciale is amazing. Don't forget to try the Fromaggio al Forno. read more

Giovanni's Ristorante - View from the entrance. - Italian Near Me - Qualicum Beach, British Columbia

We visited Giovanni's St. Patrick's evening. There was a big group of loud, rowdy people occupying two tables and having a noisy party totally inconsiderate of other diners. Then they started drinking - and things got worse. These people should have gone to a sports bar. Giovanni's sold to new management a few months ago; the wait staff are gone - the chef is gone - the food was mediocre but still pricey. We're not going back any time soon and the genteel folk of Qualicum Beach may be better served at any of the other great restaurants in town. read more

We were visiting the area for a week and had reservations to dine at our resort restaurant. After reading the reviews for that place, we decided to look elsewhere, and picked Giovanni's. Are we glad we did! We had a great evening out. The ambience in the room was warm and welcoming, our waiter was friendly, knowlegable, and efficient, and the food was delicious. We split a caesar salad, then our entrees arrived - my fettuccin pescatore (seafood) in a cream sauce and my partner's lasagne. Both were excellent and the prices are very fair. Giovanni (the chef and owner) stopped by our table to welcome us and was a charming host. We enjoyed our experience so much that we returned the next night to attend the opening of Giovanni's Lounge, right next door to the dining room. If we are in Qualicum Beach again we will certainly return to Giovanni's. read more

The restaurant smelled good even before we sat down. We were a group of four and all of us completely enjoyed our meals. Everything was done perfectly - and a good wine list to boot. read more

Extremely disappointed. We are foodies and expected a much better restaurant. I assume it was much better with the previous owner. The 3 course menu is very mediocre and certainly not innovative as we were promised. read more