Location: 1011 Broad St, Victoria, BC (Broad & Fort Street)
Phone:(250) 386-1662 | Hours: Lunch 11:30AM – 3:00PM, Dinner 5:30PM – 10:00PM, till 11:00PM on Sat & Sun, Sunday Brunch 10:00AM – 3:00PM
Website: http://www.pagliaccis.ca/
I can’t believe it’s been over a week since my girlfriend and I had went on our mini vacation in Victoria, BC! I’ve been wanting to write these few upcoming posts for awhile but it’s been such a crazy week that things just gets delayed and delayed again. Anyhow, I’m bringing you all to the beautiful capital of BC, Victoria this week! First visit is one of “talk of the town” on Urbanspoon, Pagliacci’s.
Pagliacci’s seems to be a family owned restaurant that just grew over the years. We were warned that the entire city restaurants were fully booked and it would be a good idea to make reservations. We didn’t know what to have exactly for dinner, so we just browsed around town to see what options there was. However, by dinner time we were still undecided. So, we started phoning restaurants, however, this place doesn’t take reservations since we were only 2. But, the wait was only around 15minutes at the time. So, we decided to go here. One thing I got to love is downtown parking, it’s FREE after 6:30PM.
Pagliacci’s is an Italian restaurant. They sure know how to impress the guests waiting in line by serving red wine in a coffee cup, free of charge of course. They don’t really have a reservation system, it’s first come, first serve. (As you can see from all these people waiting in line.)
And if you are an International tourist…
…You can rest assure that there is a language you can read.
This place was very busy, past 8pm when we were seated. The tables were so close to each other, they were almost touching. It’s their way of getting more people into the restaurant. So, if you’re looking for a fine-dining experience, you won’t find it here. This place is more like Anton’s on Hastings.
I believe even before we ordered, they served us bread. Probably knowing waiting customers are hungry customers. My girlfriend and I both agreed the Focaccia bread was a little too salty. But, the texture was everything of a well-toasted bread, crunchy and light.
The salad was a side that my girlfriend decided to add onto her pasta. This caesar was unlike other caesar’s we’ve had. It had romaine lettuce, croutons, parmesan cheese, the dressing, and EGG! Yes, EGG! I have never had a caesar salad with egg in it. This was a little surprising. But, it tasted pretty good. The dressing was a little lacking though, making the salad a little too dry.
One thing I like about this place is that they have full orders and half orders, for the small eaters. We both got the half order which was four to five bucks cheaper. This dish had baby shrimp, mushrooms, green onion, and bell peppers in an Indonesian sweet sauce with a touch of cream on linguine. It’s got a rather Asian feel to it, but very tasty and flavourful.
My girlfriend had the “Little Caesar” with baby shrimp in a cream sauce with mushrooms, spinach, and green onions on egg fettucine topped with fontina cheese. Hers was also very flavourful, a bit more of an Italian twist.
The bill only came up to $33 for 2! Not bad for a casual dinner for 2. We were full, we left room for dessert. But, later found out the dessert place we wanted to go to was closed down. =(
This place has pretty good vibe. The atmosphere is quite comfortable, however, the tables being so close, this ain’t the place for secrets. The waitresses were very busy, I didn’t think we were given as much as attention than I expected. Nonetheless, the food does make up for it.
