Simonholt Restaurant in Nanaimo

Food is pretty good, but when a waiter simultaneously spilled two drinks on two guys laps, the manager only offered to comp the drinks. Definitely not an appropriate response to such a major mistake, but after a great deal of debate with the manager, the two guys got their meals comped. Should have just started with that. Staff are usually friendly, and the atmosphere is casual. Great place for an expensive pub-style meal and an equally expensive drink, or to watch the game, they just need to brush up on the finer points of hospitality. Most of the staff and managers are young students, or just young in general, so lack of hospitality (and lifeexperience is definitely understandable. Great place to go to support working students.

This restaurant was recommended to us as “the best in Nanaimo” What a joke.I had the 10oz stake. It was alright, nothing surprising but not bad. Not exactly sure if it’s worth almost $50 price tag, but I let it slide. Inflation, right?My wife had this pasta in picture. I only had a taste and a piece of salmon from it, and as we are leaving I already feel little weird in my stomach. But I let it slide too, I have weak stomach I get this a lot.My wife finished the whole thing and got the worst food poisoning entire night and was still throwing up next morning. And she rarely gets food poisoning, it’s usually me, as I have weak disgust system.You should be grateful that we didn’t go full Karen the next day in your restaurant.We will never set foot in this place ever again.

We were in Nanaimo for the day and decided to give this restaurant a try for dinner. Unfortunately, we weren’t happy with our food. My pasta was flavourless and hard, and my sister’s rice was wet. The service was good and our server was really nice, but we weren’t impressed with the food. Not worth our money unfortunately.

Amazing food! Huge portions. Wonderful service and yummy drinks. The also have a great kids menu.

Wings were great! Server was fantastic! 100% would go here again!

We have had many enjoyable meals at Simon Holt in the past, but we will not be returning. At the beginning of last month my husband called the restaurant to book a dinner reservation for his birthday. We called early because his birthday coincides with Fathers Day weekend and we knew it would be fairly busy. We have had his birthday meal at Simon Holt in the past, almost always on Fathers Day weekend. When he called, the young woman on the phone seemed confused, she told him she would need to speak to the manager. After speaking to the manager she returned to tell him that they had space still for that weekend, but "didnt want to have to set up a large table because it was a busy time." My husband said "so you wont reserve us a table?" And she said "no." We were requesting a reservation for 6 people plus 1 infant in a highchair, hardly a massive party. Apparently our money wasnt wanted, so we took it elsewhere and will continue to do so. Very disappointing.

Went for a late bday supper with my bestie. Food was incredible. Server was fantastic. She even scored me a free crème brulée for my bday. Amazing spot.

So just stumbled across this place on Google after being stuck in Coombs with no place open for lunch. Some of the photos caught my eyes, and always willing to try something new, we got in the car and made a beeline. Wow - it was worth it. Great food and service. Never knew this place was here, but we will be back next year when we are in town!

Moved to area Oct 2021Have been to both lunch and dinner at Simonholt several times now.Never disappointed.Great food, great service, neighborhood place. Its my new go to.

Above and beyond our expectations…yellowfin tuna salad of my dreams and hubby got perfect seafood chowder 🐠

First time here, was enjoyable!Standard fare food-wise, a good selection of food options.Was there for a work meeting, we were able to use theor private room, which was perfect.Our server was excellent - always checking in, but not obtrusive.

Great food and service, not at all crowded. Joey greeted us and is one of the friendliest people I have ever met.

Friendly service but not timely. The large truffle fries is 3 meals.

Me and my partner love this place good service good food and not to bad drinks. The chefs know what they are doing and what combinations pair well. We will definitely be coming back and a thumbs up to our server Hannah she is the best.

This was a private party for dinner, we had a separate room. Service was excellent, staff was very friendly. Rather noisy room. Food was way better than my last visit a couple of years ago.

Ive never left a restaurant feedback, but felt the need to here.... We gave the restaurant a second chance. Dined in the first time not long after opening and again recently, it was one of the worst meals weve had both times. So bad that I couldnt eat mine, and my husband wasnt impressed at all by his meal either.

The service was really good but the food was not enjoyable. All our food was dry as if it had been sitting under the heat lamp for too long. Pretty unfortunate as we picked this place as our go to after not being able to eat out during covid. Wont go here again.

We rented out the private room for about 35 people. The service was absolutely amazing. Hannah did a fantastic job keeping everyone pleased, full and well taken care of. When it came time to pay all of the bills were perfectly separated. The food was delicious.I 100 percent recommend Simonholt Restaurant.Thank you for a wonderful night

Doesnt look like much from the outside but very cool inside and great food - quick!We stopped in for a bite before heading further up island. I had the poutine with pulled pork and it was DELICIOUS!My wife had the Cod Chowder and a wrap and she loved it.This place would be great for a beer with buddies, good for dinner with family or friends, its good all around.I will be back.

Gabe worked today. She was strangely efficient yet oddly ineffective. Her knowledge of brass instruments is limited but very impressive. I feel she is the best at somethings but great at most things. Her goal to be a violin ventriloquist is admirable but most likely unattainable. Her love of water birds is my favourite thing about her.

Great food, drinks and atmosphere. Greek lamb, fish and chips, and chicken burger were all fantastic. The truffle fries were covered in parm and flavour. The only reason I didnt give it 5 stars was the brown for dessert was hard and cold. We didnt eat it but paid for it anyhow. 4*

Best wings in town hands down! Nice staff with good selections of food and drink at decent prices. Ive never had a bad meal here. Staff is super friendly and a great group of regulars.

Slow service, but the server was friendly. Seems like a super young staff working there. Seafood dip is awesome... The rest was meh! But Ill probably be back for apps and beer sometime.

Just had one of the worst dining experiences of my life here with my girlfriend. Drinks were flavorless and we were charged full price when they were clearly on the specials menu and it was well within happy hour. Though the proof was right there the waitress argued me so I just let it go. Ordered the Ribs and they were overcooked and, so dry I could barely chew the meat. My girlfriend had the seafood fettuccine which she also found flavorless. Very disappointing, dont recommend and wont be returning.

ordered a beef dip to share and 2 beer. beer was okay but the food was atrocious. wouldnt eat it. everything was cold and beef was almost raw.chips were small from bottom of the fryer looked like 4 days ago.paid for beer and left. wont return

Food is over priced. Lamb sirloin was very tough, salmon was over cooked and the mashed potatoes were actually cold. Despite the restaurant being half empty, service was poor. Ive tried this restaurant a few times for supper, will not be going back.

Great food and service. We had several menu items including wings, artisan salad, ribs, truffle fries, lamb burger, fish tacos and the chicken wrap and they were all delicious 😋

We went for brunch on Sunday. The service left a lot to be desired and thats not because they were short staffed. It took 45 minutes to get our food after ordering and then it arrived cold and not very appetizing. I asked twice for a refill of coffee and didnt get it. Please tell youre cook not to put an english muffin in fat and fry it thats just gross.Wont go back thats for sure

We just came from a group function for 40 people. We had everything ordered in advance. They had one server in the room. There were half the number of people in the actual restaurant and they appeared to have 2-3 servers in there. The bills took over an hour to prepare and the server was obviously flustered but that doesn’t excuse her behaviour. She was extremely rude and when my bill came out much higher than it should be she just said that’s your bill. I just paid it and left. Upon arriving home I worked out the total off of the menu and it was almost $25 less but hey be rude to people. We stood in that line for a long time and I did not hear anyone be rude yo the staff. This is a place that I will not be back too. Bad form Simon holt.

I have been here several times. The Food is always very good. background music is low enough not to be a distraction. You can actually have a decent conversation. Staff are knowledgeable and generous with their time.

10/10 hot wings. The wings were so good i compleetely forgot i had a beer to drink!Adding on to this got a second order of wings half the "Anderson" and half the "Sweet and spicy" and I cant believe how amazing these are. Definitely get the Anderson wings if you like the taste of hot wings but not the spice. Service has been phenomenal to. This is now my go to place whenever Im in Nanaimo

I had the Thai bowl, very disappointing. The vegetables were raw. Way too many peanuts, carrots and celery.maybe 6 cubes of chicken. And far too many noodles. My dish was totally out.of.proportion. Would not recommend this place.

Cant criticise or complain about anything! Our server was lovely. The food was amazing (spicy Nashville chicken for me and fish n chips for my husband). If I had to look really hard for one thing to complain about is that I couldnt try a dessert because the main portions were so generous there was just no room left. Next time....

Went to Simonholt for the first time. Started off with the Crab & Shrimp Dip with Tortilla Chips. It wasnt that tasty. Too bland for the price. It needed some herbs or spices for flavor. We were going to stay for dinner. However, one thing that turned us off was the fact that the Womens Washroom used by my wife was very dirty. There was toilet paper and disposable hand towels all over the floor, including cubicles. Her cubicle door would not fasten closed because the handle was broken. Service was slow and the acoustics was poor. Our table bench was in dire need of reupholstering and the wall board at our table needed paint repair. We were genuinely not impressed with this place. Didnt seem upscale to us. Wont return.

We went for brunch this morning and felt like couldn’t eat anything more for the rest of the day. Even the kids breakfast are large sized.Food are tasty and reasonably priced. I am very satisfied that they have whole wheat toast to choose. Hash brown is crispy and flavorful. We also tried the special Mexican benny it was really good to me. The meat was a little bit spicy but it was totally ok. Chelsea is very helpful and attentive. We would definitely come back again.

It also offers a good selection of sushi which I have not yet tried and it has a very good view of down town. The one problem is that I could not find handicapped access. Staff is very friendly and knowledgeable about the different food items.

I had a disappointing dinner experience so I was hoping my lunch would make up for it and it really did. Very nice servers, attentive but not overly so and very friendly. I just popped in for a quick lunch and was seated on their rooftop patio which was lovely! I had the bbq chicken and brie wrap (very good sized portionand a glass of rose. For such a simple dish the flavours were complex, there was a fruit chutney on it too with apples that complimented both the brie and bbq flavours really nicely and the chicken was very tender and moist. I had the French rose and it was crisp and refreshing, finished it off with the key lime pie, for me I would prefer it a little more tart, it was quite creamy and sweet, but still very good. Im only visiting but I plan to return to the island soon and I will definitely come back! 👍🏼

Food was delicious and the service was top notch even though they were short handed. We will be back, many times I hope

It was good, but I feel it was very over priced.My steak was seasoned poorly but cooked very well. The desert was next level though. Holy moly.

Prices were pretty high, so limited to what we could order. Sadly had expectations to be disappointed and I was.Ordered off the fresh menu and got the banh mi sandwich and the meat tasted like old meat that was on its last limb. Thankfully we werent in a toilet paper shortage that day.Would possibly try again, but worried the food wont match the high prices.

Originally was going for breakfast at white spot. They had a long wait so we ended up driving and coming across a great restaurant. Great bennys and awesome caesars. Will be returning again

Food is ok. Fries are great though.

Its OK, but thats all. This restaurant is located behind the Costco in a small shopping centre. Its has handicapped accessible parking, entrance and bathrooms. The building itself is impressive, both inside and out. High ceilings, with an industrial/West coast vibe. There is a large bar area on the main floor and comfortable seating with plenty of booths, patio seating is also available when the weather permits (usually just in the summerAn additional bar and dining room is located upstairs, nice for more private parties. ( Im not sure if there is an elevator to accommodate handicapped access to the upper floorThe menu is varied, with plenty of vegan/gluten free options. Ive eaten here several times, the food has always been OK, but not memorable. It doesnt seem to have a signature food style (eg; steakhouse, seafood restaurantsteak, seafood, pork,chicken and some curry dishes are all available, but nothing stands out as original. Very middle of the road flavours and presentation. The service has always been very good, attentive and timely. OK for a quick bite, but not a Foodie destination.

A great happy hour and some of the best wings in town! The staff is super friendly and welcoming -- plus, local (to the IslandCraft beer on tap!

The food was a bit cold but the atmosphere was great, the staff is friendly and welcoming! We did our coworkers retirement party there and she LOVED it!

Our server was very good and friendly. The kickass burger was very good and the fries were awesome. The attention to details is what keeps this place from being great. For example the seat I was sitting on at our booth wasnt fastened down so when I sat on it clunked and slid away from the table and continued to slide around through the meal. Also I asked for gravy and and extra ketchup and it didnt come with my burger until I asked again.

The server was great! The food was good! There was a few birthday parties and a party of 40 so it took a hour and a half for our food, but our server always updated with us and communicated well! Just might be the place to go if your in a hurry. It was also kinda pricey drinks for $7-9 and food ranges about $14-$29

After reading other reviews I was preparing for the worst but hoping for the best. When we walked in we were greeted right away and seated a minute or two later. For an appetizer we ordered the mussels from their feature menu, they were delicious and the sauce that they came in was equally delicious. For my main course, I had the prosciutto wrapped sockeye, layed over a bed of basmati rice with some fresh vegetables. One of the best pieces of sockeye Ive had in a long time. My wife had the seafood chowder which was very good and filling. Lots of seafood in it and a couple wedges of focaccia bread beside it. Our server Andrew was very professional. Not bothersome but timed perfectly to keep our wine glasses from running empty. Im pretty sure well be back since its only 5 minutes from our home. Hopefully sooner than later.Good job by the whole team tonight.

This restaurant was recommended by my hotel as a local favorite and Im glad I took the time to check it out. The exterior of the building is nice and the interior you can tell its new but its looking a little while worn. I was quickly escorted to my table and give it a menu and was able to order quickly. The waitress recommended the salmon crusted with cashew and when it arrived I was very happy with my choice as the fish was cooked perfectly as well as the vegetables.My waitress was quick and nice and I couldnt ask for anyting more as her suggestions for exactly what I was wanting. Also I asked for a substitution of extra vegetables and rice which she quickly said they were able to accommodate. I was out of the restaurant in less than an hour with a drink and a full belly. I would definitely recommend this place as their plating and food was delicious

Wife and I enjoyed our dinner very much. Very friendly, helpful and efficient male waiter and food was high quality. Wife had fish and chips and was not at all disappointed by portion size. I had the watermelon salad and zucchini bruschetta and both were delicious and amazing flavors. We will definitely be back!