The Cafe At Hope Bay

Great service, food, and view! Had the lamb kebabs and the rib special, plus a house salad. All were quite tasty but the lamb and rice a bit dry. Also had the coffee tort for dessert. Reasonably priced for the quality of food. Give it a try and you won’t be disappointed.

Nice place for family holidays, kids enjoyed the food. please note it’s closed on Monday.

I just returned from a trip to Pender where we ate at the Hope Bay Café three times, and every time I was amazed. I think the management has really turned the place around, because the food was much less impressive a few years ago.
We had dinner here twice, and everyone in our group was wowed by the crab gnocchi. It’s served with crispy potato skins which are a great texture to compliment the soft gnocchi.
We also had brunch (weekends only), and most of the menu seemed to be variations on eggs Benedict (fine by me!). I had the Yammoth, which was a benny with caramelized onions and crispy yam slices — absolutely delicious.
Bonus: complimentary gummi worms!

One of the best dinner’s I’ve ever had (lamb with blackberries and blue cheese with a lovely selection of perfectly cooked local vegetables), and the others at our table also raved about their dinners (seafood curry bowl, and chef’s special pork dinner). Appies (coconut prawns) and dessert (hazelnut torte) were also superb. Service was friendly and leisurely, and the view is fantastic as the restaurant juts out over the water at Hope Bay. Binoculars are provided for your viewing pleasure, and sealife sightings (otters, seals, etc.) are a bonus. Easily ranks up there with some high end restaurants in larger cities like Vancouver.

Unreasonably good food.
Hoping for it to be good enough to enjoy with the wife, but went back twice because EVERYTHING was off the wall good. Stupendous.
Probably my favourite restaurant in BC and that’s not even factoring in the ridiculously nice gulf island view.

Great view, atmosphere, food and service. Reasonably priced. We recommend as a «must visit» if you’re in the area. Tonight, we started with the muscles special (pesto and kale — delicious!), then thoroughly enjoyed our seafood entrees. Graciously served and prepared with care We 100% recommend this restaurant!

I would like to give this restaurant a 4, but due to some poor service issues I am taking away a star. I made reservation for my wedding night for an intimate meal of 7 guests months prior via email. I received an email confirmation from the place and sent my phone number as requested. That morning I stopped in on my way to the hair salon and was greeted in an unfriendly way by the woman serving with somewhat of a scowl when I peaked around the bar as she was coming back from her table. I said I had a reservation for 7 that night and she said «Do you?». To which I replied I did and was there to confirm. her reply «Oh, we crossed that one off». I said why would you do that? and she replied well it said 7 people at 6 and there was no other information so we crossed it out. After I said my information was provided and confirmed via email I had to say since this is my wedding dinner (as was noted in my email) I hope this isn’t going to be a problem. Since it was not a problem to make the reservation that day that they «crossed off» I am not sure what the point was for her rudeness and telling me it was removed on the first place. Upon being seated there were two normal sized tables with a tinier third table we were seated at. With 7 people someone was expected to sit on the end on the tiny table with no room for food? Given the chill from the fans on high overhead when we asked if they could be turned down we were told no, the kitchen requires it. So we asked to move over as one table next to us was open and this would no longer place us directly under the fan on this cool September eve. The place did get warm once cooking started, however when we moved tables the server attempted to move the tiny table with us and replace the normal table we would have if we simple moved over. I said we wanted a normal size table to which he replied” I will have to ask”. At this point I would have walked out if this wasn’t the my WEDDING DINNER. When the server returned and said the owner said it was OK I said «well I hope so», to which he replied «It is what it is». Putting the lack of customer care aside the meal was decent for being the only good selection on this small Island. The table service was good with the exception of earlier. Amongst us the fish and chips, roast lamb, linguini special, polenta with grilled veggies, chowder, and calamari was tasted. Everyone enjoyed their meal well enough with the vegetarian dish looking divine and getting rave review from the guest who enjoyed it. The ambiance of the room with its rich wood, mood lighting, and perfect dinner music was fantastic — and the view divine.

I have visited the island about twice a year for over 5 years and have seen this location change hands almost every year… the location’s food has always been the best on the island, and the new couple has made it truly stellar! I hope the new owners are successful and stay!
The food was… Awesome. We shared the flatbread pizza special, and I had the mussels and prawns in curry sauce. We had a party of 6 and the service was friendly and fast.
Great time and great food!

After reading other reviews we expected more. Service was very friendly but slow which given Island Time can be forgiven. Kids fish and chips were excellent except for the chips part. They need to review how they do their chips. My wife and I had excellent salads but our daughter and her husband had pretty average burgers. Excellent selection of micro beers.

I think I could eat here every day. And bring the homemade salad dressings home in my cooler.

Great food, great views of the ocean; warm, inviting atmosphere, friendly service.

Wow — someone beat me to the first review?! Nevertheless this only validates that this quaint oceanside café is well worth a visit. It may not be gourmet food but there are few places better on Pender for a great brunch, warm cup of coffee, a newspaper read and friendly service. After your meal why not take a walk through a local gallery or down the pier.
A real gem!

A cute little café located waterside on Hope Bay. Good basic food consisting of sandwiches, burgers, wraps, fish and chips, salads and creative daily specials. Beautiful artwork by local artists on the walls, attentive and friendly staff, great scenery, and just a great place to drop by for lunch or dinner.