I was here a few years ago, and it was SO good! I could swear they had some pretzel bread that was awesome. Now the menu is basic and the food not great. We split a Chicken Caesar Salad. If you don't like kale - don't get it as it's 80% just that. I couldn't eat it, gave it to my husband. The drinks were just ok. My peach Bellini looked much better than it tasted sadly. Service was mediocre. What happened to this place ?? read more

Lefty's Fresh Food - a fruity drink in a glass - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Parksville, British Columbia

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We went to Lefty's based on online reviews and it was a great choice. The service was really really good - food orders were taken quickly, food came out quickly, and when we asked for some suggestions around Parksville, she took the time to make sure we had a number of suggestions that were wonderful. At the end of the day, we had pretty basic food but it was made extremely well - this place is awesome. read more

Lefty's Fresh Food - My wife's bean burrito that she demolished - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Parksville, British Columbia

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It was fine. Good ambience- nice to sit outside. Servers were good- not great but good enough and likely was just too busy to be great. Food was fine. Chicken & waffles, Caesar salad w kale. Good stop. Not great but we had a nice meal. Tempted to give a 4- I almost never give 3's or lower but, well...it was fine. read more

The decor and ambiance are nice. The server was positive and attentive, the food was a disappointment. I had a pizza and the crust was soggy in the middle. Actually it was dripping wet. It was tasty, but wet. Maybe a misfire, I'd be willing to go again, just avoid the pizza. The server gets most of the stars of this review. read more

Although the food is reasonable, the service is inconsistent. One night we went there, and we were treated like royalty. The next time the male waiter snapped us and told me to go grab my own menu and pointed it out as if I should know it was tucked into some little slot behind Our booth. We both work hard for our money and we're not going to waste it on being treated so improperly so if you want to go to somewhere where it's a tossup between being treated decently or being treated like something that you might wipe off of your shoe after walking your dog, then pick Leftys in Parksville. We will never go back, some things just don't deserve a second chance. read more

Great service, good food..limited menu. Patio in need of updating..not appealing. Interior very dark. read more

We had a really lovely family lunch at Lefty's. Not only did we really love the menu, but our server was fantastic and we all enjoyed our food. We would definitely return when we're back visiting the island. This poke bowl was one of my foodie highlights of my trip! read more

Lefty's Fresh Food - Poke bowl - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Parksville, British Columbia

Mid afternoon snack. Or tea break. Call it what u Will, we stopped by Lefty's next to Thrifty market in busy Parksville BC. Been KITE flying. Sand Castle judging. Listening to Blue Grass music down by the beach. The de caf coffees were made fresh and pronounced delicious by all. Bottomless cups, prompt refills. Mediterranean style pizza shared by all except this writer was they said, really good and a generous serve size. Server was Chelsea, a hard working woman, but she had little HELP to look after our table of 4 and the ENTIRE restaurant. Wimmins loo was broken. Men's side had no paper I was informed, so our female diners left unimpressed. THAT has to equate to a loss of star. I would return, based on the coffee alone! read more

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This was a wonderful place to eat!! We found this place using the Yelp app and decided to give it a try. I am so glad we did! The food was delicious, there was plenty of it and the service was superb. Sherry, our server even provided us with a very valuable tip! We are from the U.S. and our customs are different. I believe I prefer the Canadian method of paying by credit card. In the U.S. you give your card to the waitstaff and they take it and ring up your purchase. In Canada they bring the credit card reader to you so your card never leaves your possession. That is the smartest way to do it and so simple. The homemade pies looked delicious, the homemade cherry jelly should be sold commercially so I can buy some at home!the decor was nice and I especially liked the story of why the place is named Lefties. All in all this place gets 5 star rating from me! read more

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Ate at their Parksville BC location. After eating at an old, smelly pub the previous night, it was so nice to walk into a fresh, modern atmosphere. I ordered a couple of Lefty's lime chili prawn tacos. It was delicious! Each taco with two beautifully flavoured prawns on shredded cabbage and radish slaw in a soft shell :) My wife ordered a blackened salmon burger on brioche. Came with home made kettle chips. Again, delicious. For dessert, I ordered a caramel apple crumble pie with decaf coffee. Beautifully presented. Server was friendly and efficient. Food came promptly. My wife asked for coffee with her meal. I asked my coffee to be brought with my dessert. She got it right! One entrance two different exits. It's the covid thing. Observed staff promptly sanitizing vacated tables. Highly recommend Lefty's. read more

Lefty's Fresh Food - Beautifully presented dessert. They also serve cream pies but you have to come early for those babies ;) - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Parksville, British Columbia

Ok service, menu is ok. In a town where restaurant selection is limited. I would return. read more

I have eaten at Lefty's many times and always pleased with the quality of food and service. From the best Burgers you will ever have to Eggs Benedict and everything inbetween including Fish Tacos are scrumptious and makes it hard to choose off the menu. The staff are very friendly, helpful and accomodating no matter how crowded the restaurant is, to make sure my wheelchair can fit in. The atmosphere is always happy and uplifting at the very least, and boisterous in the evenings sometimes. I love it there!!! read more

Came here for lunch ended up having brunch after looking at the brunch menu. Left coast toast for the win. Just the tight amount of avocado to smoked salmon. Super friendly staff and good fresh coffee. Definitely be back read more

Went to Lefty's for dinner and the food was very good, had a chicken Caesar salad and my partner had a burger, both meals were a good portion and flavorful. Service was good as well read more

The Bellinis were delicious! Unfortunately we didn't get to try the food, after waiting 40 minutes for a table we were refused service. Apparently they don't serve customers with allergies??? Although pizza seemed like an easy option without nuts. Maybe this should be posted on the door to save people the wait. Got a nice buzz tho after I had to chug back my drink before I pulled a "Karen" ‍ Really enjoyed our cheeseburger from McDonald's after! read more

Lefty's Cafe offered a quality breakfast using ingredients sourced locally. The drawback is that the price is much higher than I would like to pay. Breakfast @ $9 and up. I can see why the place was empty with the crowds at Tim Horton's and Denny's. It thought: might as well eat while I am there! +__+ Bottom line: Quality at a price to match. read more

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Good reliable restaurant in Parksville. Is definitely one of our go to restaurants. Keep up the good work.

Excellent fresh food - Lovely salads - Great home made desserts - try Nirvana! Very good food. The service is friendly and professional. Quite a surprise because Parksville had very few good restaurants 10 years ago. I am going to come back to Lefty's Cafe again It is worth the trip from Ladysmith. When you walk in the door you know the food is good. The place smells good! read more

Lefty's Fresh Food - Nice atmosphere - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Parksville, British Columbia

Very nice staff. Full disclosure - they warned us that food orders were a 45 minute delay. However, it was over an hour delay, and the restaurant really was not very busy. We thought maybe it was a lack of cooks issue in the back, but our (very nice) waitress assured us they were fully-staffed, so I'm not sure what their issue is? Food is adequate. I had "prawn" tacos which were tiny, freezer shrimp from the supermarket, not prawns. And, only 2 per taco, which could have easily held 4-5. The poke nachos and rocket fries were delicious. I think this place is a better place for drinks (we saw many delicious drinks coming from the bar) and appetizers only. DON'T go hungry. read more

good food and great service We came early but they let us in nice outdoors Go when the sun is out read more

Standard restaurant fare. Quality ingredients. Great fries! Nice patio in the summer.

My friend and I stopped in here after arriving from the mainland and it didn't disappoint! We were promptly seated at our choice of table and given ice waters right away. Our server, a very charming young man took very good care of us. Even though he was new on the job, he did an excellent job! I had the bacon cheese beef burger (sans mushrooms) and my friend had the panko breaded chicken burger. Both were well seasoned and verrrrrrry tasty!! We were tempted to try their pie or carrot cake but were stuffed after our main meal! My friend had a Caesar to drink and said it was very good. I'd definitely come here again! If I had the dessert I'd be giving it a 5 star! :) read more

Great restaurant in the heart of Parksville. Even though it was busy during our visit, the staff was friendly and had the kids giggling right away. The restaurant is large enough to not have too long a wait on a Sunday morning but small enough to maintain a casual atmosphere. My wife appreciated the available blankets on the covered outside patio. The menu is complete without being overwhelming and they were willing to make the small adjustments that we requested. Overall we were impressed with this place and will definitely return the next time we are here. read more

Terrible food, terrible service. I vow to never again eat at any restaurant located in a strip mall. Don't waste your time, money, or appetite. read more

We went to Lefty's on a suggestion from a local. When we got there, it was pretty empty, but still open and we were seated right away. The decor reminded me of YTV in the late 90s - round odd shaped booth in the middle, left hand print with a light under it on the booth tables, the bar area, etc. It felt kind of cluttered and dark, inside but at least had some personality. ((There is an outdoor patio, but it is right next to the grocery store and parking lot and isn't really my type of patio.)) The service was pretty good since there weren't many people there and the food came out relatively fast. The shrimp was not as fresh tasting as I expected, but on the whole the food was pretty good and it was definitely eatable and had FLAVOR to it. Yes, Lefty's wasn't so bad. The fact that we were starving and visited several disgusting food establishments also made it rise above the rest. And Thrifty's grocery was right there and we were able to supplement our meal with several tubs of amazing Island Ice Cream for later in the night... Go here if you need a place to eat out in Parksville. It is better than the rest. read more

Attached to Mulberry Bush Bookstore--perfect for us when we arrived for our event at the bookshop and hadn't had lunch. We'd had breakfast at the other Lefty's location, and really enjoyed our lunch here. The server was very jovial even though I was being impatient/helpful. I went picked up menus from the front because he said "sit anywhere I'll be right with you". I wasn't bothered, and he didn't seem put-out, but he jokingly implied that I could finish his shift if I wanted. Good food - very filling sandwiches. Good prices for lunch, and they knew we had to be back at the bookstore for a certain time, so they ensured that we were served promptly. read more

This review is for dinner. Lefty's is a pleasant place to eat with an upscale diner look and menu. The food, however, was hit or miss. The flatbread was a hit but the special pasta not so much. The iconic nirvana dessert is overly-sweet; perhaps you could try a pie. Of course this review is for just one meal, so we may have been unlucky. read more

We walked right in with three kids and got a great booth right away. The waitress was very friendly and the manager (owner?) was also super nice. That is where the excellence ends. The food was very disappointing. The chicken tacos were bland and over priced. But when my main meal came (California Chicken bowl), it was depressing. My "bowl" was actually a plate of sad, soggy rice, steamed vegetables that looked that they were water logged and just zapped in the microwave. The chicken looked like a small burger patty soaked in glaze, with a tiny bit of avocado that looked like it had been sitting out for awhile and wilted basil (could have been cilantro - was hard to tell). The kids meals were over priced. There was an abundance of food but it was uneaten bc my kids are little and don't eat adult portions. I would much rather spend less on a kids meal and get half the portion (and maybe include the dessert?) When the bill came I was horrified that a dinner for four people came to $95 when the food was so unappetizing. I don't usually feel ripped off by a restaurant and I've never written a review before but I truly felt it was necessary. Hopefully, in future the menu can be revamped and the prices can reflect the quality of the food more appropriately. The location is fantastic and the staff seem great so I'm keeping my fingers crossed all the reviews I've read on the poor quality of food will be taken seriously. read more

Had a very very overpriced salad. Handful of spinach and handful of chicken breast lunch meat (not kidding it was sandwich cut). All for 20 bucks. My daughter had a delicious pizza though. Avoid salads. read more

Located on the main drag In Parksville with free parking lot access...a little confusing to find as there is a sign for it right next to a pizza store but no entrance. The entrance was actually on the other side of the building. The restaurant is nice. Modern diner with some big booths with cool high back seats. We were seated quickly and our waitress was really friendly. I had a mushroom and bacon omelet with hashbrowns and toast. My husband had another type of omelet. I didn't find it very flavourful at all, it was kinda over cooked and bland. My toast had really dried out crust. I normally eat my crusts, like a good girl but not this time. The hash brown potatoes were good tho. Portion size is big, so the meal was filling, just bland. read more

Lefty's Cafe had an excellent array of food, with a funky atmosphere. The staff was nice but not quick at anything. The food was good but it was a tad frustrating when you had to flag her down for a water or even to pay the bill. I had Seafood a la Vallieres ($18) which had about 6 shrimp (with tails - so be careful) and a ton of seafood, salmon and scallops, with a yummy tomato sauce and rice. Don't leave without eating: Mad Dog's Chocolate Fudge Cake ($6) & their candies (when paying the bill) Don't order (my option): Rosemary Gorgonzola Pasta ($15) was blah and needed extra paramesan cheese and Tobasco to give it some flavor. Don't leave without seeing: All the left handed stuff (the menu, the clock, EVERYTHING) read more

We came to Lefty's with a group of 6 people on Good Friday, which probably is why this review is so lowly rated. We endured a long wait for a table and there definitely isn't room for that many people to be crowding around the small doorway. After being seated, we all decided on our drinks and placed our order. Our waiter wrote nothing down, which was okay at the time. Our drinks arrived promptly and it took another 10 minutes before our orders were taken. Again, nothing written down. When our food arrived, orders were incorrect and the sides looked a little tired and not overly fresh. We finished our meals and waited at least 15 minutes before someone came around to clear half of the plates. The remaining half were left on the tale for another while. We decided we wanted dessert, which added to the wait time, but at least the food was delicious. We gave up waiting to pay at the table and figured it would be safer to go up to the bar. While the wait staff was very friendly and the food wasn't bad, I don't think this would be a spot that I would visit again. read more

We just had a very nice meal at Lefty's. They told us we had to wait, but it wasn't long and we had quite good food. The quesadilla was just what you would expect, and my husband ate it all easily, the kids grilled cheese was well received, and my son said the dill pickle had just the right acid bite, and I enjoyed the salmon burger. The servers were all very pleasant and working hard. It was a pleasant night out. read more

Had Saturday breakfast at Lefty's. Service was friendly, seated us promptly. Expected a wait Saturday morning, but there were a couple of tables available plus their outside covered patio was empty. I had a typical sausage and eggs meal, wife had gluten free French toast. Coffee was good. Decor was good. No complaints! Met all our expectations, including gluten free options. read more

A shout out to Lefty's because of consistently delicious casual fare, not because I am left handed. It's our go-to when staying in Parksville, dining there three times last year. My favourite is the Leftcoast pizza ($13.50), thin crust plentiful with smoked salmon, spinach, red onion, cream cheese and artichoke hearts. It makes an addictive summer meal. The Mediterrano ($12.50) is the only pizza I can't recommend as its too salty, at least for me. The appetizer go-to to share is the Thai-Coconut Prawns on rice ($11) - fresh tasting quick sautéed in coconut milk, sweet chili/lime/basil sauce - not deep fried. It is also a good entree on the dinner menu. Or the tomato/basil/garlic/cheese bruschetta ($9.50), or both, when we hosted friends from Ontario. Lefty's has attention to flavour detail and consistent match to menu description. The open-window kitchen is worth a watch as there appears to be a good camaraderie and system going. Friends enjoyed burgers, pasta, and salmon entrees - all were happy with their choices. Desserts at Lefty's are on display front and centre in the glass case if you are on the main floor. That makes the homemade fruit pies and cheesecakes hard to resist. We always leave room, even if it's sharing one serving. They make delicious desserts, especially the pies. I have found service consistently attentive, knowledgeable on the menu and concerned for timing and dining enjoyment. I recently noticed there are savings coupons on Lefty's website for both Islanders and non-Islanders if you subscribe to their newsletter. I didn't use these in my review here, but will consider for future. read more

I've been to Parksville 3 times in the last 6 months and today was my first time here. Wish someone would have told me about it, Damn, because this is a great breakfast! Monday - Friday special is fantastic, coffee, eggs bacon potatoes and toast for 10 bucks! And really good quality as well. I couldn't stop drinking the coffee, very very good. Will be my to go to for breakfast from now on. Really nice setting inside and out. I don't think you'll be dissatisfied, go give it a try. read more

The food was just ok. The potato wedges were oddly soggy instead of crispy. Service was slow, and my order was wrong.

We had dinner there last weekend. 2 adults , 2 kids. The restaurant was busy when we arrived around 7 pm, very nice servers find us a seat in few minutes. They were very friendly all evening . Kids had mac & cheese from the kids manu. we had salads soup and wine- was great, fresh, tasty. The pea soup was wonderful and vegetarian. We thank you for making it a pleasant evening. read more

The food is always tasty and satisfying. Service is usually decent. I recommend trying the burgers and peach iced tea :) read more

Had a wonderful lunch! The food was excellent. We had the BBQ pizza and salmon burger, nothing left on our plates. Kids enjoyed their meal and fun worms and dirt dessert. Service was good, a little slow but the quality of food made up for that. read more