Steamship Grill & Taphouse

I just had the worst Salmon Dinner I’ve ever had in a nice Resturant. It was Frazer River Salmon which should have been good but it was dry, over baked and appeared to have been cooked earlier in day and reheated in microwave. The vegetables were poor quality and only one carrot, a piece of cold pre poked zucchini and a little chunk of red pepper on tasteless rice pilaf. What in the world! They did discount a bit when I told them it was «a bit dry». What a disappointment for my last dinner in wonderful Victoria!

Amazing views on the outdoor patio, great service and delicious food. My girlfriend has some allergies and all her needs were satisfied by the kitchen
We had white sangria for drinks and even when it got a bit colder outside we had the heaters all around us and some blankets
A great dinner in Victoria, especially as it was our anniversary weekend

Nice location, great view! Great service, fast and efficient. 2 stars for that!
Crab avocado salad was the best of the meal, but bland when it came to the Caesar dressing. The mussels were just ok, a small portion (maybe 10 for $ 14) properly cooked but flavourless.
But the highlight, the seafood tower was awful! Overcooked/​dried out/​bland and cold mussels, prawns, pre frozen crab legs and clams. It came with Tuna tataki which was OK and the shrimp salad was edible but not worth finishing when it only had canned seafood sauce on it for flavoring… The raw oysters tasted and looked OK, possibly fresh (shells full of grit and their own water). The rest couldn’t have been $ 15 worth of pre frozen seafood spread out on ice to look bigger and failing, for $ 44… We won’t be back, which is too bad since we both live within walking distance. Hopefully tourists will keep it afloat, OR they could/​should change their menu to include only what they can get fresh AND do well, since they do have location and service in the bag… Be wary and try a burger maybe!!!

The service was decent, our server, Morgan, was incredibly friendly and always kept our drinks topped up.
The portions were smaller than we expected for the price point. Taste-​wise the food was alright, nothing mind blowing but fresh and hot. I wish there had been a couple hot drinks on the menu and a dessert or two.
The ambience was really nice! We sat outside at the waterfront, there were throws on each chair of you got cold and heaters.

Wow. Great location, terrible food.
We asked if the seafood tower was mostly deep fried and were told it was fresh shucked oysters, and the mussels, crab, prawns, clams etc were steamed. Our waitress seemed incredulous when we were dismayed that the seafood arrived all cold on ice. Mussels, clams, crab legs etc. To their credit they did take the tower away and did not charge us. However the mussels we ordered in lieu, which she assured came hot/​steamed, were a tiny pot of small, shrivelled mussels with less than impressive butter-​type sauce.
Overall if you’re looking for a fantastic location for drinks– this is it. Otherwise you’re better off to check out a place like Nautical Nellies for sea fare at around the same price, but with out-​of-​this-​world quality and taste/​preparation.

There are buck a shuck oysters here everyday from 3pm to 5pm.

Won’t be back… Very touristy, food was over cooked, service was decent. Definitely only making money as a tourist trap.

Best seafood chowder I have ever had!
Sashimi style tuna was knock you over tender. Servers attentive & friendly. So much better than most restaurants on the water that survive on their location only. Do go here for the FOOD — -best I had in Victoria

Beautiful location. However: originally placed on a narrow outside aisle; repeatedly bumped by servers and customers alike. Got bread, but no plates. Ahi was served without the advertised sauce. And finally– 20 minute gaps between server appearances. Go somewhere else.

Pros: Waterfront setting, friendly service, nice atmosphere, good location
Cons: Overpriced for quality of food, very slow service, food: overcooked, bland, unimaginative. Felt like eating at a chain restaurant.
Overall: Fine. Would go back for a drink on the patio (then have dinner somewhere else)

Service was beyond slow.
You want a refill of your watered down cocktail? Wait a half hour …
The waitress was just clueless … Not the sharpest tool in the shed!
When you get your bill they stand there and watch you as you select the tip percentage — starting at 15%. I wish I could mandate that at my work every time I do something whether it was good or not!
My dinner was delicious.

So, a couple of weeks after I posted this review I got a lovely email from a lady that said she monitored their online profile.
She apologized for my bad experience and said that I could contact the manager for so he could address my concerns personally.
I emailed him, left a message, he never called me back. That was a month ago.
Now I see the problem, it’s the manager!
Bad, bad, bad.

Cocktails were watered down and seafood tasted as if it had been purchased from the frozen food section at a local grocery store. As an added bonus, food was way overpriced. At least the waitress was competent (and super nice).

Mother’s Day brunch was fantastic. The Patio was great.
The servers were readily available and the place was really well staffed.
If there were any staffing issues (I read the earlier reviews) before, they Must have fixed it. at one point I counted 8 servers on the patio and was impressed. A very professional looking man in a suit, clearly looking over staff and the details.
I would say that this may be my new favourite hangout for weekend breakfast with the girls. I liked the location as well. parking wasn’t difficult and what I really liked about this place is that once your done eating you can wander the inner harbour, check out the boats, vendors, and then make your way into the city. center to check out what else is going in while you walk off your meal.
Can’t wait to go back with the girls on our next breakfast meet up.

Why go anywhere else in Victoria? Great food, excellent service and a stunning view. Gogogo to Steamship Grill!

A unpleasant experience. Overall very slow service and overpriced food for the portions. Friendly staff, but understaffed. A couple dishes were good, the others were under-​flavored and lukewarm — not surprising after taking so long to cook. We wondered if they actually sat out for several minutes after finished. And the «taphouse» name? 6 beers on tap does not equal a taphouse. Good local beer choices though. I have the impression they may have their good days. This wasn’t one of them.

Four of us went for the Dine Around three-​course special. Our reservation was for 7:30, and we got seated right away. Everything went smoothly at first — drinks, first course arrived just fine. But we waited and waited for our entrees, which didn’t arrive until 9:20. The waiter apologized a couple of times during the wait and said something about being slow due to Dine Around. But three people at the next table arrived, ate their meals and paid their bill while we were waiting for our entrees! And while the place was busy at first, by the time our food arrived it was emptying out. The waiter took our desserts off the tab, and the food was good. But the wait! Holy cow!

After two visits, I found this steamship has tourist pricing and isn’t the best choice for working locals with only an hour for lunch. .. .
The crab bisque was good, but sparse on the crab. The Artisan greens were not so fresh, with pickled vegetables (mostly onions), saved only by the honey cider vinegrette.
My most recent visit I tried the Mixed Seafood Salad ($ 19.95). While the salad was creative and satisfying, I was hoping for more seafood, and the grilled salmon was too fishy. I advised the waitress when she asked why I didn’t eat it, but that didn’t get any positive response or discount solution.
Both visits the restaurant was ¼ full yet the service was slow and took too long to get plated and bills paid.

Stopped in here for a couple of drinks before our ferry ride back to The United States.
They make a nice red sangria. Perfect for sipping while sitting on thier outside deck.

I don’t have a lot to say, so I’ll keep it simple: our waiter was excellent and gave us very good service (which is often a complaint for me here in Victoria, good service is hard to find), our food was tasty, and the restaurant had a nice atmosphere. It’s also nice to have another restaurant in Victoria that has a harbour view. I liked how it felt like we were waiting for, well, a steamship to come in and take us away. Very charming.
On the downside, the benches weren’t entirely comfortable and overall the lighting left something to be desired. Please, use real candles instead of silly little LED tealights (yes, nit-​picky I know, but an easy fix), and the fluorescent ceiling lighting was harsh, uninviting, and too bright.
However, overall, we really enjoyed our experience at this new restaurant. We will definitely return there. It’s nice to see an interesting new restaurant go into the old building. Hopefully it will stay and keep it lively.