Hospitality and Product Recommendations, Recipes and Resources in Victoria BC and more, since 2003
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308 Catherine Street, 386-2739, http://www.spinnakers.com/default.aspx | |
Nothing really bugs me more than the mis-use of the term "gastro pub." The term means something very specific and for all Spinnaker's strengths it is not a gastro brew pub. Spinnaker's is a pub, and a very good pub at that. They brew their own beer, they have a great view and have acceptable food - this, does not a gastro pub make. Let me explain: the art of gastronomy refers to a style of cooking, that is above average and depicts a regional cuisine in a exceptional way. The term gastro pub originates from a recent UK trend of applying fine dinning style cuisine into a pub style atmosphere. There is no way Spinnaker's food qualifies as fine dinning, with respect to quality, execution or presentation. Now that I'm done with that - the food at Spinnaker's is in the top tier of pubs is Victoria. They do put in a little extra effort on the menu selections, but of course that is reflected in the price ($10-15 at lunch time). My principle criticism would be presentation: if I'm going to spend $15 on curry I would hope the restaurant could spring for some parsley, sparing me from looking down at a plate of entirely brown food. Otherwise, I would suggest that the curry tasted like over-spiced beef stew, maybe you'd call this English curry, but I think even an Englishman might be disappointed. Luckily, I like beef stew, so it satisfied me on this day. Patty had a Jerk chicken sandwich with Kennebec fries (Kennebec is a variety of potato). The sandwich had a nice flavour, was a bit spicy (perhaps spicier than my curry) and the fries were house-cut and had a lovely flavour. The service was acceptable and the ambiance pleasant. They do have a wine list that does exceed most pubs in town and that in conjunction with a selection of yummy house brewed beers, does set them apart in my opinion.
Reviewed: October 31 2005 |