The Well

This place is a fabulous way to start off a Main Street shopping day stint. The food is more than affordable and everything looked really good too. They have a Pulled Pork Benny here served on cornbread for $ 10. Get it fast and get it early, it looks like they sell out FAST! I ordered mine and I noticed that the next few orders after mine were the last. I think they only serve it until they run out of cornbread.

Well, what can I say? They did the pesto wrap well. It made me well up inside. They didn’t get the water from a well. Everything was swell.
Decent food, good service, reasonable price. Was it amazing? No. Was it worth it? For sure. Pesto wrap was great, the pal had a breakfast sandwich, he said the same thing. Gets a recommend from this cat.

Loved it so much the first time around I came back 2 days later.
Visit #1:
We shared a mussels appie, and for mains we had the Asian lettuce wraps, cioppino, and sockeye salmon stuffed with shrimp and dill atop a bed of couscous.
It was all really delicious! My friend’s salmon was cooked perfectly. I also had a sangria, which could have used a few more fruits, but alas, I am comparing with the Truffles Bistro version which I love, but has been closed for several years. Alas.
Visit #2:
No appies this time, and members of our party had the paella, the burger, and salmon atop warm romaine lettuce with a pink sauce (that tasted sweet).
I was the one with the salmon this time and again it was cooked medium, just the way I like it. The sauce complemented the salmon really well, as did the chutney included in the dish. My friends enjoyed their paella too, although my boyfriend said that sadly his last mussel tasted a little «funny.» But other than that he really enjoyed his dish. My friend said that her Caesar was excellent.
Service is friendly although occasionally a little slow, and on some nights they feature live music!
Glad I finally tried this place! I would definitely be back for a third visit!

The empty restaurant should have given rise to suspicion, but we gave the Well the benefit of the doubt because the Canucks were playing and the restaurant doesn’t have any televisions set up.
«If it ain’t hoppin’, keep on walkin’ «is my new motto after the disappointing meal here.
I’m no aficionado on hamburger meat, but the meat was red in the middle so I asked the waitress if my burger was uncooked. She told me that it wasn’t, and it was just the type of steak-​like burger, but they cooked me another patty anyway. The new burger looked exactly the same, but I didn’t get sick so perhaps I was wrong.
The side caesar salad managed to not have any flavour, which was a first as far as caesar’s go.
My gf had pasta with spinach that drowned in a creamy sauce. Al dente is one thing, but the noodles still had a crunch to them.

Actually. I can’t give any star. The Well isn’t even worth rating.
It’s likely that the great reviews are from family members, or, people who have the time to pay a miserable prank.
Poor service, greasy food, no décor.

After a bad experience trying to have lunch I found myself in front of «The Well», They had a great specials board that offered 1 pound of Saltspring mussels for only $ 10! What a deal.
So I sat down and ordered the Hot wings (appy hour specials $ 5 every day 2 – 5) the wings came and they weren’t, they were what we refer to as «baseball wings» which is pretty much drumsticks, battered and soaked in hot sauce, the biggest problem with this type of wing is the propensity for them to be undercooked… and ½ were :(
So after a wing and half a uncooked wing i switched to the «NACHOS», although I think they might have been special to make up for the wings, they were indeed special, tasty and loaded. I would go back, but for the mussels or nachos… not the wings

It was Valentines Day and we seldom venture out with the crowds. The Well has a casual atmosphere but they had dressed the place for V-​day with Rose Petals all over the floor and candles on the table. I’m not sure that was a successful endeavor, but there was a special menu for the 14^th. so I thought we were in for a treat. Our appetizers were salad and Gnudi, something that looks like Gnocchi, but it’s more tender. That looked delicious but it’s not something I can eat. I enjoyed my salad of baby greens with a citrus dressing.
I ordered the meat entrée which was a steak and also came with one section of pork rib, served with potato and other vegetables. The presentation was nice and we couldn’t wait to dig in. I tried the pork rib first which pulled tenderly apart, and even on the first bite I got something going on in my Olfactory system that I’ve never experienced before. I guessed Truffle oil, and asked the waitress. It was indeed Truffle oil, along with some other culinary secrets.
No wonder they train Truffle pigs and hounds in France!
I don’t know for a fact that this was the real deal, but I know I’ve never had anything like it before and I’m pretty excited that I finally got to experience even a hint of that delicacy.
After enjoying every bite of that morsel of meat, my perfectly cooked steak which at any other time I would have done a happy-​dance for, seemed a bit sad and lonely.
Don’t get me wrong, it was good, (except for the chunks of gristly fat on it, which –I could have lived with out –but I would have loved more of that pulled pork rib and would gladly have forgone the steak altogether for more of that amazing dish.
I had to know if this Pork Rib is something on the regular menu, and they do offer a pulled pork dish, hopefully it’s similar.
Our server was sweet and attentive and the wine was really good. We had the Hester Creek Cab/​merlot and I’m not a huge Merlot fan but this is good wine!
I drank a bit more than I usually would as a trade off because of how torturously good the creamy glutenous dessert looked.

As usual, I found this restaurant in Unilocal and rated petty high for all. So, just tried it out…
We were the only customer when we walked in the restaurant. We got seated right the way, the manger was so nice and chatted with us a bit.
He was so funny to comment about Unilocalers… (Don’t just believe the comments, try out our foods and much better words)
My husband had chef’s evening special: (Appetizer, entrée & dessert)
appetizer: Roasted Beef short ribs — it was so good, tender. Also, the deep fried potatoes in cube was so crispy and tasty.
entrée: Pan fried ling cod & steak — the ling cod was ok, but i found it a bit salty n fishy. The steak was ok, not too tender and juicy.
dessert: raspberries cake with hazelnuts.
I had very simple dish — Bolognese meat balls spaghetti. The meat balls was a bit dry and not tender, but the spaghetti and sauce was very good.
Be fair, the food and service was good. I should rate them 3.5 star.

I’m going to do something foolish. I know it’s silly to say things like «best ever» — like «this is the best boulliabaisse in the universe». So I wouldn’t do that.
Except that this actually is the BEST BURGER IN THE CITY. But obviously I haven’t eaten a burger at every establishment in the city, so I can’t possibly say that. Stupid, right?
It is the best burger in the city. DAMN. It’s like Tourrette’s — I can’t help saying it. BEST BURGER. Shhit.
Anyway. Try the burger.
ps The only reason for ⁴⁄₅ stars is the room, which is unremarkable at best. But I haven’t even tried their famous brunch, so I’m likely for an update.

Is it wierd that I love the presentation of the food here more than everything else?
Don’t get me wrong, the food is mouth watering too!
I’m a fan of burgers, but it’s not usually at the top of my list. However, The Well has one of the best burgers I’ve ever eaten! The patty was thick, juicy and flavorful — you can tell it was made in the kitchen. The burgers had all the regular fixins (lettuce, tomato, red onions…), but it also had some sprouts. There are also some enoki mushroom for decoration, but I slapped it into my burger anyway. Such a simple thing (enoki mushrooms & sprouts) and it was deeeeee-​licious!
I’m so happy I found this little gem on Main Street. I will be back!

Why did Jack and Jill go up the hill? We’re told it’s to fetch a pail of water… but from where? Why, THE WELL, of course!
But why stop with the water? That’s only first thing that you’re served here.
My fam and I picked-​up our pail and drove out to find us some eats. We were celebrating a special occasion and I thought that we should try something new; as it turned out, not only were we new to The Well, but The Well was new to Main Street.
I had heard that the chef makes an effort to come out and speak to the diners of the evening. I was slightly disappointed when this wasn’t the case for us. We however did receive a lovely smile from someone in the kitchen who I can only assume was this famously friendly chef.
I will start, not with the salad, but with the downer of our dining experience. As mentioned in previous reviews, we waited for «well» over an hour for our food to be served; this has its pros and cons. The pro is you know that everything is made fresh, however the con is that you won’t receive your meal until you’re absolutely famished.
Our server made very little effort to make us comfortable during our wait and we were a bit disappointed with her lack of enthusiasm for our table.
She also mistook the origin of Kuskus– it is in fact a Moroccan dish, dear girl. As I am of Moroccan descent, I found this as a bit of a slap in the face, but I wasn’t about to fight with her over it.
Once our meal was served, the negative was developed into a positive picture and ‘lo and behold, our night was made.
Put simply, it. was. DELICIOUS. Hats off to the smiling chef in the back because I have never taken my mother to a place where the food exceeds her expectations. I know that may not sound like much, but it is a first in my life and quite a big deal for me, so I commend you whole-​heartedly on a well made meal, and thank you for the smile on her face– post-​receiving food.
I appreciated the little details such as the removal of the shrimp tails before they were served, the symmetry of the food presentation, and the over-​sized scallops. In fact, for my next visit, I believe that I will just order one giant plate of scallops, thankyouverymuch.
Recommended Dish: Checkout their specials, but I would definitely recommend the seafood platter.
Score: I WELL come back.

Before meeting with our wedding photographer, we needed to find a place to have a quick bite. Since my fiancé had come to witness all that was «Goodbye Chicken» the night before, I thought we should have a nice dinner. We were trying to go to a sushi place in the area… oh my, the line up was down the block. What to do now? Hmm, let’s walk down the street in the rain until we’re soaking wet…
The Well. Fancy place. The restaurant is dimly lit with candles on each table. At the door, we are greeted by the nicest hostess who would then become our server. We choose a table by the window because all the other tables are reserved. It’s their One Year Anniversary.
I order a coke (it’s from a can!) and my beau orders the beer on special. We peruse the menu and both settle on the burger. When the table beside us got their food, I was upset I didn’t choose what they got… the hugest platter of meat I have ever seen! I am coming back for that!
So I got my burger with fries and my fiancé got his with salad. The fries were lovely. I only eat a few fries and they have to feel right (wow, I sound crazy). I tap each one with a fork and it has to sound the right amount of crispy. I only got a little bit of ketchup, so I asked for another dish.
Okay. so the burger. It was huge! Bigger than my mouth is high. The burger was quite heavy and I couldn’t finish it. I tried, but it was just so filling. It came with all the usual suspects, supposedly it had a chipotle mayo, but I couldn’t taste it. Also, it came adorned with some raw enoki (well, they kind of looked like enoki) and pea shoots. Was I supposed to put them in my burger?
Our service was wonderful despite the fact that she was the only server/​hostess.

Thanks Unilocal for helping us find this little brunch gem!
My love and I got to sneak in a Wednesday morning brunch date and decided to check out The Well. There was only one other table in at 9am on a Wednesday so service and food was really quick.
The food here is great and the chef seems to really love what he does (he smiled and waved to us from the kitchen).
I ordered the Benny special with Italian sausage and caramelized onion. It was $ 13.99 but came served with two muffins topped with perfectly poached eggs, spicy and flavorful sausage and (not too creamy) hollandaise. It also came with oven roasted potatoes and a great selection of fresh fruit.
Normally I find fresh fruit on the side of a hot brunch meal is more of a garnish or after-​thought, but this stuff was delicious! A little bunch of grapes, strawberries, honey dew melon and rock melon and a wedge of orange. All of this food meant that I only ate half of my breakfast and my boy ate the other half later in the day for a snack.
My boy ordered the salmon scramble with capers and was also really pleased. The espresso was great and the service pleasant. The waitress was also kind enough to chase us down the street when we left a jacket behind.
Don’t let the unassuming appearance of this place put you off, the food is certainly worth the visit.

Thank you Unilocal for suggesting this place to me — I’m a new fan!
My husband and I decided we needed to try somewhere new for brunch and I’m SO glad we did. The Well was an amazing choice! I ordered the smoked salmon benny which came with caramelized red onions, piles of smoked salmon and capers. The flavours were fantastic and the plate was nothing short of a bounty — I’ve never had a brunch plate so adorned with fruit!
Do yourself a favor and drop by The Well next time you want to have a nice brunch!

Love being able to explore and walk around our neighborhood so we were totally pleased to find a local breakfast place within walking distance with such great reviews.
I ordered french toast with bacon and home style potatoes. The potatoes were amazing. Perfectly seasoned and cook to perfection without being mushy. The coffee was good but the best part was our waitress made sure to refill my coffee every so often.
Plenty of patio seating for breakfast on a nice sunny day in Vancouver. What more could you ask for?

Don’t let the modest and small appearance of this place fool you. Went to The Well yesterday for my brother’s birthday dinner with no knowledge of this place other than it got good reviews on Unilocal.I live in the Main Street area and have probably walked by this place 100 times, but never really noticed.
When we first arrived there was no one in the restaurant other then a small family of the chefs friends… hmmm, did I make a mistake booking this place was my first thought.
Chef Sabor then mention that he was just going to serve us and would close the restaurant, he asked use what we like and said he would prepare a meal… hmmm, sounds interesting and very nice of him, but still not quite sure what to expect.
After a bit of a wait, during which he gave us a free round of shots, Chef emerged from the kitchen with two huge platters of food… and I’m mean HUGE… grilled salmon, halibut, steak, roasted chicken, lamb, prawns, scallops, risotto, veggies, potatoes! I swear there was enough food to feed a BBW convention.
Over dinner he told us about how he loves to cook with passion, has worked all over the world, speaks 7 languages and also his grandma’s secret to looking young (you’ll have to go ask him yourself).
After dinner, he then pulled out a big platter of desserts… crème brûlée, tiramisu, cheese cake and chocolate mouse!!! We were of course all stuffed from dinner, but I live for dessert so made sure nothing was left behind. Me ma is a bit of a tiramisu connoisseur and even went so far to say that his is the best she’s ever had!
Needless to say, we’ll definitely be going back. Can’t wait to try brunch.
Oh ya, he even looked after my 3 month old has we ate dinner!!! Chef Sabor, a great chef and an even great person!

Unilocal app for the iPhone: Thank You. You steered me to brunch mastery at The Well.
Morsels ordered: smoked salmon scramble (check out my uploaded photo), beef burger, and classic eggs benny. Ok, so it took a while to get our food, but every second was worth waiting for. My salmon scramble was presented like food art. Surrounded by a garden of numerous fruits and greens and hash browns. I’m usually not a big fan of scrambled eggs, but the smoked salmon with capers thrown in the mix was drooling-​good. Flavour bam bam in your mouth.
Bonus points to the gorgeous and sweet eastern European waitresses. I will be back.

Where should we eat on Main St? we were wondering. We were just driving along and caught sight of a new Chinese veggie place, and decided to stop. It hadn’t opened yet (though it seems to be open now), and we discovered The Well just a couple of doors down. I had seen a review and it was pretty positive, so we gave it a go.
Amazing! The food was awesome. The service was awesome. The boyfriend, who doesn’t adore fruit, was able to get grilled tomatoes instead of the accompanying fruit, and at no extra charge! Quick, reasonably priced, and delicious!
Two thumbs up! We shall return!

was back here for brunch with my best friend.
i had the wild salmon panini… it came with potatoes and fresh fruit…
SO DAMN GOOD!!!
i dont know what they are doing here. but whatever it is, i hope they dont stop. i highly recommend anyone to check this place out… brunch/​lunch time or dinner!!! i have yet to be disappointed!
and the people there, so nice!!! =)

This 2 week old, chef owned restaurant is «well» on it’s way to being a success. The food is beautifully presented and you won’t go hungry. I had the healthy omelette which was every bit as described. Now only if the hotel conference room decorated dining room had a designers touch. Too bad, but makes sense as the owners talent lies in the kitchen.