Sooke's dining options range from high-end epicurian to funky coffeeshops offering sandwiches and fresh-baked artistan treats. Pick up the Sooke Region Food and Farm Guide at the Visitor Centre. It lists restaurants specializing in local food along with area farms (such as ALM Organic Farm, which offers workshops in organic food production) and farm gate produce stands (i.e. free-range eggs at Barefoot Farm).
The restaurant at Sooke Harbour House (at the end of Whiffin Spit Road, 3km/1.9mi west of the town centre) is a west coast culinary landmark, earning rave reviews the world over, and is renowned as one of the most romantic, scenic, and yet cool-casual spots in North America. Its much-lauded former chef, Edward Tuson, now runs the mid-priced five-star restaurant The EdGe in the centre of town.
At the west end of the Sooke basin is Markus's Wharfside Restaurant. Markus Wieland, chef/owner, works wonders with seafood, lamb and free-range chicken. The pretty blue restaurant overlooking the habour was certified in 2009 as a culinary destination by the Culinary Tourism Society of British Columbia.
Waterfront Dining
On the Victoria side of town at Cooper's Cove, Fuse Waterfront Grill is known for its salads, burgers and a super waterfront patio which on Saturday nights in the spring and summer has a great view of kayak waterpolo. The Smoking Tuna (Beecher Bay Road near the gates of East Sooke Regional Park) is a summer spot known for its creative menu.
Point-No-Point, about 30 minutes west of Sooke past French Beach on the West Coast Road, offers fusion-style lunches, dinners and traditional English afternoon teas in a charming cottage overlooking the Juan de Fuca Strait.
Bakeries & Coffeeshops
Organic breads and ultra-chewy baguettes make the Little Vienna Bakery Café (6726 West Coast Road) the town's source for artisanal baking. Best bet to partner with a coffee: the schnecke (pronounced "shhh-neck-ah"), a buttery Viennese twist on the cinnamon bun. A few dozen metres/feet closer to town is the Otter Point Bakery and Tea Room (Saturday brunches a specialty).
Three good coffeehouses are open in the town centre: Stick In the Mud (a cool nook on Eustace Road with killer baked goods, award-winning baristas and etch-o-sketch gear for idle hands); Serious Coffee (in the Sooke Centre next to Village Foods); and the Reading Room Café (attached to the bookstore of the same name in the Evergreen Mall).
Diners & Pubs
Substantial pub grub, good beer, and lively crowds are the norm at such local institutions as the 17 Mile House (an 1894 coaching inn near the East Sooke turnoff on Highway 14) and Mulligan's Bar & Grill (on Otter Point Road).
The Alternative Kitchen near Sooke's downtown stop light is a popular breakfast and lunch hangout. One favourite spot for daytrippers is Mom's Café. The cozy booths at this vintage roadhouse are a great spot for burgers and pie. Nearby, the Stone Pipe Landing features a casual fusion menu. Good burgers and exceptional milkshakes are available at Homers (next to the highway at Sooke River Road).
Ethnic Options
Ethnic options are minimal but good. Thai Nut Pop is a fine sit-down/take-out establishment across from the Village Foods mall in town. Sushi On the Sea serves fresh-rolls in an eight-seat boat moored in the habour on Friday/Saturday nights, and throughout the summer from a take-out booth in the courtyard of the Stick in the Mud.
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