Bard & Banker

One of my favourite spots in Victoria, always a great atmosphere, came out here for the New Year’s party, and it was really well put together.

This was a great place to meet up with an old friend. Food and service were both excellent!

It was really nice I could bring 4 kids in here for lunch! The caprese sandwich had a really sweet taste to it that I didn't love but the atmosphere and the service made up for it!

I've had good luck booking tables and gathering friends there. The food is good and the staff are friendly and responsive.

This place is amazing. The live music starts at 9 and would definitely recommend a visit. Its a little hard to get a table so probably a good idea to reserve one in advance. We made a second visit to Victoria especially because we couldn't get in the first time around

Very nice restaurant with a large bar and a very rustic atmosphere, worth a visit, very friendly staff and a large breakfast menu

Food was decent drinks and service were excellent. A cool bar to check out on our quick run through the city.

One of our very favorite places to go. It's always fun, very nice people and great service.

Great food, but really slow and untrained staff. The server didn't know what orders were for each person, almost half an hour to get the kids menu, the excuse of being super busy while it's possible to see that the restaurant was not even with 50% of the seats taken.

Excellent and historical establishment in the heart of downtown Victoria. Offers classic pub fare and some modern options also. Extensive beverage options and specials. Staff were friendly and plentiful. Always a pleasure to stop in.

Their tikka masala curry was great!
Messed up the order for garden burger and gave Beef burger. Environment was cool too!

Had a great time with friends over a few drinks.

Dinner was exceptionally well done.

Staff was friendly, helpful and provided fantastic table service.

Thank you!

Have always enjoyed coming here. The Christmas decorations were just amazing. The Robert Service Scottish Stone Fired Ale is just far to good. If I hadn't needed to catch the ferry back to Vancouver I'd be still there enjoying a few more. My chicken club was perfect in every way. Hubby said fish and chips were just enough with one very large serving. Throughly enjoyed the small side salad and fries. <great fries! Have been here every trip to the island and will be back again. First rate staff who took time to ensure that everything was satisfactory. Will be back.

Amazing bar and decor. Service was excellent and the drink menu was impressive. We'll definitely be back.

Just stopped here for a drink during our day excursion, really nice environment, friendly staff. We just sat at some bar stools since we weren't having a meal but some of the booths and second story seating areas looked really fancy if you had a nice date or celebration.

Fantastic place. You could not ask for better staff. Big shout out to Stacey, great and funny bartender. Cody from the Irish Times also a great bartender.

The breakfast is okay. The breakfast potatoes are just okay.
The shafts are some of the best in Victoria (order some if you haven't had. Or even if you have)

This might be the most beautifil pub I have ever seen. Very rich history, having opened in 1885 as a bank. While the place is very very big, the layout provides lots of nooks and crannies, alcoves, turns and levels, so you can feel cozy and have some privacy.
Great selection on local beers, whiskey, a wine cellar and good food. The service is quick and courteous, casual but not too much so. Live music, happy hour specials. What's not to love?
If I lived in Victoria, I would definitely be a frequent visitor, and I do plan on coming back next time I visit.

Went for breakfast and was surprised they were open so early! Typical breakfast fare, they did have gluten free bums as an option. Well priced and you get what you expect, no fuss no muss

Fun place for drinks and live music. We enjoyed the pre-dinner entertainment (a duo), then returned later in the evening for the main act, a band. The crowd was fun, although COVID restrictions put a damper on the dancing and mingling.

Can’t comment on the food menu as we only had drinks.

Great location in the heart of downtown.

Off meat in the hot dog and really underwhelming food, chicken wings are insanely small and steak was all fat: (

Stopped in here multiple times during my visit.
Really great atmosphere and a great building. Live music on the weekends was great.
Lots of great drinks and food to try out. Highly recommend stopping in!

Stayed near this place for a few days and was convinced by the shiny, lustrous fixtures and old school style as well as the crowds inside to pop in. Breakfast was horrendous; eggs were slimy and terrifying tasting, hash browns and bacon were over cooked nearly to the point of inedibility. Overpriced and slow service on top of that; won’t be back

Please do not go here for breakfast. The food was horrible - the eggs benny was hard boiled and the hollandaise was like Cheez Whiz. Everything was cold and seemed like it had been sitting out for awhile. Two of the meals were barely touched. When we brought this up they said they would discount our meal and then brought the bills back with a measly 25% taken off of the food only. Paid over 15$ for a cold uneaten meal and no management came over to see what they could do or what was wrong. I will give it to them the server was really nice (no complaints about her) and the Caesars were tasty, but wow the food was horrible.

Food was good. Service could have been better. Felt like we were forgotten once we were seated.

Love this restaurant. Our experience here was phenomenal and I would just like to say that Taylor our server MADE our experience. She is light hearted, positive and so kind. We came back 3 times and were happy to see that she was our server on the patio. We will be back. Thanks again to Taylor, what an amazing human.

Wonderful atmosphere and amazing service! The only letdown was the food. For the price paid, we weren't too pleased with what we recieved. The fish and chips were not up to typical Island standards. The batter was a little too wet, and overpowered the fish. The beef dip was a really good sandwich but the 'au jus' was thick and tasted more like tomatoes than beef. I would like to come back and try the cocktails eventually.

Beautiful restaurant with exquisite seafood plates! Live music! Exceptional service - this is clearly a must!

Definitely overpriced for what they serve; half a $30 dish is just regular fries that you can get in a fast food chain.

Glass with water had lip stains from the previous customer and the plate had a small black gooey stain (no clue what it was).

The waiters were professional.

The Bard & Banker is a lovely historic building in downtown Victoria. We were really surprised how closely packed the seating arrangement was this weekend. We waited over 45 minutes for our food and it was mediocre. It was over priced for the quality of the food and the service was slow and apathetic.

Meh. Came for breakfast after reading reviews. The location and vibe is great, but the breakfast was a let down. Eggs overcooked, sausage old and chewy, and toast not really toasted. Hashbrowns and cappuccino was great though:)

This place is lovely, the only reason I couldn't give it 5 stars was because of an error in regards to a food allergy. However the lovely staff and chef went out of their way to accommodate considering the situation, even to the point of providing a contact business card should my reaction have gotten more severe after leaving the restaurant. They genuinely cared about my health.

Pints of Guinness weren't properly poured or just lacked flavor, seemed off. Atmosphere was great and large comfortable seating. Food was decent and well portion. Service was good as well. Just disappointed with the drink.

I will never go back to this business. They have discriminating policies towards their employees and customers. I'll take my business elsewhere. They deleted all reviews from their website because they had an inflow of negative reviews. Unethical in so many ways.

Great location at the heart of downtown Victoria
This place has a great character. Nice indoor seating with great atmosphere and beautiful outdoor patio.
The food is good for pub food however the price is relatively higher.
Staff are also very nice
Recommend to go there pover happy hour time and make sure to make a reservation if you want to visit them on weekend nights.

I've always wanted to try Bard & Banker and with their new patio on the street it was too tempting not to. The heaters were extremely warm making dining outside lovely. The muscles and chickpea curry did not disappoint.

My friend, my wife and myself went to this place for breakfast. It was awful. I went to the washroom and my companions ordered their drinks while I was gone. We ordered breakfast and I asked simply for ice water. I never received my water even though I asked again when they brought the food. The food itself was terrible the toast and the cubed hash browns were so hard they were inedible. The waitress never came back to the table to ask if the food was OK. We were very dissatisfied with breakfast but they didn't hesitate to slap down a bill for almost $90.00. The food was terrible, the service was terrible and the price was ridiculous. Would not recommend this place and will never go there again.

Very cool place, a must see for any visitors. Tho it's very touristy, as it's right on the main strip, there is usually live music, a very fun atmosphere and just to see the inside (a turn of the century bank) makes it worth a visit. We didn't have any food here but the happy hour specials for drinks were great.

Super beau cadre, le services a été excellent, bières excellentes, repas excellent et en plus grande grande gentillesse et générosité du patron qu’on ne pourra jamais assez remercier pour son geste et son amabilité.

Merci encore x1000 et à l’année prochaine

Atmosphere and food was delicious. Service was wonderful. My issue arises from the salad being so very pretty and Instagramable, but not actually mixed and ready to eat. I do understand this is a me issue and not fair to dock stars for, but heck, I'm here to have lunch, not for a five minute project to bring my salad to an edible state. And, as I said, it was really really tasty

Employees are rude, aggressive to customers and frankly quite racist. They attacked us and were suspicious of us from the moment we stepped into the pub just due to our race, and threatened to call the police because their kitchen was closed and one person in our group brought food in from outside.

Great place for breakfast and really tasty wings. Next time I'm in Victoria I will come eat here again and try the other food. Everything on the menu sounds fantastic. Staff was friendly and service was fast. I definitely suggest stopping in for a bite to eat or a cold beer.

I was so disappointed. Came here thinking we were getting dinner. Waited in line for 20 minutes outside. Got sat and a waitress asked us immediately what we wanted. We hadn't decided yet and asked if we can look at the menu. She said sure. When she came back after 10 minutes and we tried to order food she said the kitchen was closed. 8 minutes ago. If she had told us when she first approached us we could have quickly chosen something and been on our merry way. We stayed for an over priced drink because we had already invested so much time into the endeavor, but I won't be going back. However, to her credit the waitress did recommended we go to Fiamo which apparently is the only restaurant still serving food after 10pm in Victoria on a Saturday night.

Usually this place is five stars. But you know that feeling you get when the people seated after you receive their drinks before the same waiter even so much as looks at you. I do. Then the beer they served me seemed stale. They said it was fine.maybe it was just me. But the worst part was this little guy mooning me the whole time I was there.

We had brunch on Sunday. We were surprised how busy the downtown was with tourists. So we were glad that we made a reservation. Service was decent, our waitress was definitely busy, stretched but coping. There was food runners and manager to help run food and drinks. Food was great, just personally was not a fan of their breakfast potatoes.
We sat on the patio so space on the table was limited so choose cocktails or water not really room for both especially when food arrived. The rest of the gang were drinking towers, everyone super impressed with the grapefruit mimosa one! Definitely one to reorder had more flavour then with Orange juice and less sweet, but all were disappointed with the shaft tower didn't come to the level that we are used to at several other places in town.

The layout and decor of this spot is impressive. Service was incredibly slow, we had a baby with us and they took well over an hour to bring us any food which made the meal more challenging than enjoyable.

Surprisingly cheap food during happy hour. Really tasty and really well done! The carnitas were amazing.
Staff were really kind and friendly

Garlic Mayo on the Parm fries was like chewing on a raw garlic bulb. Decor looks good, service was ok

The building is really impressive, the interior resembles an old historical bank, warm decor, the service is very attentive in my experience and the food is very tasty, they have TVs all over. It’s a nice place for many different occasions

Amazing service
Delicious food
Fantastic atmosphere

We went for dine around 2021 and everything about it was amazing.
First of all the service absolutely outstanding. They created dishes to accommodate my dietary requirements and they did not disappoint.
Our starter was a unique dish made to fit my dietary needs of a sourdough bread topped in mushrooms and house made smoked ricotta. Delectable.
Our mains were, for hubby the lamb and mine was barely risotto with halloumi! Absolutely fantastic.
Dessert for me was the chocolate smoothie bowl and hubby had the sticky toffee. Both incredible.
You should go.

An absolute must if you are visiting Victoria. Had an amazing experience from are server to the drink section and of course the food. The food is all locally sourced and freah. We started with the carnitas tacos and the charcuterie board. The tacos were a delight, and the board had a great selection of meats, cheeses and others. I had a Japanese katsu style burger with Japanese mayo an amazing tasty burger.

The Seafood chowder is superb and def.worth a return visit. Great live music in a Thursday evening. Very enjoyable

Stopped by for lunch and was first blown away by the Victorian architecture and decor! Cast iron and brass. Tufted leather banquettes with tons of detail.
Bar features top scotch selection!
Drinks were creative and delicious. We shared pulled pork nachos for lunch. The pork was super flavoured and not overly saucy.
The menu looked full of great choices and was not pages long!
Will definitely come back next time in town.
Service was awesome.can’t wait to come back and try more

Good variety of food and drinks. Very cosy English pub that will cater well to those who have want to sit it the corner with a pint with good food and food company.

Always wonderful atmosphere. The new menu is so 2021. More gluten and vegetarian friendly. The menu is thoughtful and creative and just so damn delicious. Lastly the service is bar none. Such a friendly place to go!

The staff at Bard & Banker are so upbeat and very helpful. Atmosphere is fabulous. I had the clam chowder, (to die for!), and the club house sandwich on cranberry sourdough bread. Best food from a 'pub' that I've had in a long time. My partner had the burger, fries which he described as delicious. We'll certainly be returning in the future!

Had the most brutal service we’ve ever experienced. My friend and I came here yesterday and took a table outside since there was a bit of a wait for something inside, and we were just really hungry (I love the wings here). Won’t be coming back though because it was around 15 minutes in, and no one had even greeted us. I work at 2 restaurants in Vic so I’m aware that is absolutely unacceptable and I would never allow that.eventually a host walked by to seat two others, and I asked her politely to let our server know that we were ready to order. She said she would. Another 10 minutes goes by, and still no one. I then got up and let someone else know that it had been well
Over 20 minutes and no one had come to our table yet. That person took our order and said Braeden would be taking care of us. I asked. “will he? ” Then Braeden comes, Drops our food off.not even an apology for forgetting our table.even though we noticed the whole time we’d been waiting, he was coming in and out and helping other tables. Anyways, he never came back once while we were eating to see how things were/if we needed anything else.so that was cool.

The food, atmosphere and service were all fine. But really watch out for the upcharges and errors made by the waitstaff. Our experience on Saturday Feb 6th resulted in us paying about $40 more than we bargained for and getting the wrong meal as well. This rather took the edge off the evening and it is unlikely we will be in a hurry to return. The staff need more training in customer service and should at least be passingly familiar with the menu before being let loose on the floor to serve customers.

Beautiful oldstyle pub in the downtown Victoria. Highly recommend to try Bard Porter beer. Chicken wings were slightly undercooked (not crispy). Beer is $8.25, wings $15.50. Staff was friendly

We love this place! Drinks are well done and huge bar menu. We enjoy the food and music. Excellent live music (check their website out for details covid has affected it this winter) we especially liked vinyl wave. Great atmosphere and decor

Great food, great service, beautifully decorated for Christmas. Greeter was a bit grumpy though.

Bard & Banker: impressive building, interiors, and nice ambiance. I would definitely recommend a visit for locals and visitors alike. Nicely decorated for the 2020 Holidays. A nice treat!

I had the Prawn Pasta ($24) - lots of very big, succulent shrimp and pieces of bacon though I thought the sauce had a weird aftertaste.

I finished the pasta first as the pasta serving on the small side. Bread not included so I ordered a side of garlic bread (3 small pieces, they didn't charge me) which was very good.

The staff were welcoming and professional. COVID protocols in place. There are 'snugs' available for intimate dining and conversation.

Yeah, nice experience. I recommend giving the Bard & Banker a try.

Great food, great service, great surroundings. There is no better in my eyes. Always a favourite of mine when in Victoria!

Great menu options and atmosphere. Always a must when visiting Victoria!

Avocado Smash with soft poached egg.

Beautiful building. Lovely interior. The place can be enjoyable for all, whether its live music, a niche in the wall, or watching the game on the TV. Always a good choice.

What a beautiful pub with exquisite decor.
It is especially beautifully decorated for Christmas. Drinks and food and service was fantastic. Truly a gem in Victoria.