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Ugly Duckling

  1. Victoria
  2. Vi̇ctori̇a Bakeri̇es
  3. Vi̇ctori̇a Di̇ners
  4. Vi̇ctori̇a Cafes

Reviews, get directions and information for Ugly Duckling

Ugly Duckling
"By Day, Ugly Duckling is a cafe, bakery, and general store offering a curated selection of products from talented Vancouver Island artisans.By night, we are an intimate fine dining restaurant inspired by the intersection between Vancouver Island’s magical landscapes and the rich heritage of our home in Chinatown. The experiences we offer are built around two promises: to serve you only those things which we have made by hand; and to work really, really hard to make you smile. We can’t wait to welcome you."
Address: 543 Fisgard Street , Victoria V8W 1R3, BC, CA
Phone: (250) 978-0915
State: BC
City: Victoria
Zip Code: V8W 1R3


Opening Hours

Wednesday: 17:00-21:30
Thursday: 09:00-16:00
Thursday: 17:00-21:30
Friday: 09:00-16:00
Friday: 17:00-21:30
Saturday: 09:00-16:00
Saturday: 17:00-21:30

Update Info

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Reviews
Beautiful restaurant in the heart of Chinatown. We ordered the four course menu and it was delicious. We loved everything we had: the rhubarb cocktail, milk buns, roasted carrots appetizer, clam chow mein, halibut main course, local white wine, coconut ice cream, gala apple dessert, macaron and chocolate fortune cookie. The service was fast and efficient. All the courses were presented by either Chef Corbin or Tito, the sous-chef, who presented the plates in French upon hearing us speaking French at our table. It was lovely. Can’t wait to go back for a special occasion.
Really went in with high hopes but to be honest this wasn’t worth the price. We love the tasting menu concept but work needs to be done. The good: - the food was good, definitely using fresh ingredients. The fusion is inspired & interesting - great cocktails & varied wine list plus a very reasonable $25 corking fee - the petit fours were perfect. No notes. We were also served a surprise chocolate cake at the end for a friend’s birthday and it was phenomenal The bad: - our service was subpar. Our table was really wobbly and we had to ask twice to get it sorted. The water service started off strong but fizzled out, and the removal of dishes was often clunky & loud. Another note is our wine wasn’t poured for us after the first glass - atmosphere is very quiet, no ‘energetic’ hum. Lots of plates & cutlery clanking and the room was HOT - very uncomfortable towards the end of the night - service was way too long, that really needs to be tightened up - we opted to have the menu come as a surprise rather than look at it prior, because of this we realized at the end we missed out on the opportunity to choose the fois gras over the noodles which we all were very disappointed about - the size of the courses were too small for only 6 courses, which added to the disappointment when waiting so long for the next course as it felt like we were starving by the third course - personal preferences maybe: I don’t like when ingredients are repeated in dishes and I don’t think granola is dessert. I also had a few bites of things that were over cooked or the wrong temperature While I believe there is a lot of potential here, the hefty price tag isn’t worth it right now. I won’t be rushing back.
I went to ugly duckling with very high hopes because of the great reviews but was left a bit disappointed. The dishes, while beautifully presented were often hit or miss in taste and purpose. For example, the veggie starter was lovely to the eye but tasted more or less like a few tiny raw vegetables and leaves. The cold noodles were nice but no different or better than the cold noodles you'd get at a typical Chinese restaurant. The dessert was also quite confusing as it had cornflakes and yogurt and tasted more like a breakfast cereal than an ending to a meal. While there is definitely potential at ugly duckling, and some delicious dishes, I'm not sure the overall concepts are fully there yet. That, combined with very long wait times between courses in a half empty restaurant, made it very hard to give anything but 4 stars at best.
Ugh, I really wish I could give Ugly Duckling a 5 star for the food as it was phenomenal - beautifully curated, pure and intense flavours, and gorgeous plating. Portions are to be expected for fine dining. Service was friendly and professional, and it felt like the entire team worked together on service. It was a unique joy to get to meet the kitchen staff. Unfortunately, despite all this, the wait times between tasting menu courses verged on unbearable, and brought my overall experience down to a max 4 star. We had a reservation for 8pm and left the restaurant at 1130pm, not by choice. It was fairly obvious that other tables had also felt weary, as we all waited on last courses there was more and more silence across the restaurant. A shame because the execution of food was spectacular, the menu well thought out, but time management matters and I truly have never waited so long between courses Sadly this was the main impression I left with rather than the food. I’m hopeful that this issue will be mitigated once they change to tasting menu only. The food deserves to be experienced, but I can’t see myself returning or recommending anyone wait that long for fine dining.
The atmosphere was lovely and we were served by one of the chefs. We tried the tasting menu and, while some of the dishes were gorgeous, a few were disappointing. My friend ordered the menu as-is and I ordered the supplements. Where he had carrots and tofu, I had octopus. Where he had noodles, I had foie gras. His courses looked sad compared to mine, and he was underwhelmed. I recommend ordering a la carte. We never received the salmon course, and were surprised when told the savoury portion of the menu was finished. We left feeling hungry and swung around the corner to Brasserie l’Ecole for steak frites and duck confit.
Great little restaurant in Victoria’s Chinatown with outstanding food and really nice atmosphere. We had the tasting menu of 7 courses if you count bread and petit fours. The food was absolutely amazing, Chinese milk bread with charred scallion butter, a trio of Chinese street food which include lamb, halibut and a scallop pure beautifully presented to be eaten with chopsticks, then we had cucumber where the water was replaced with champagne, served with thinly sliced albacore tuna, a halibut dish where the halibut was melt in your mouth with a miso buerre blanc, lamb with soybean cassoulet and a delicious dessert with white chocolate toffee sprinkle. Every dish was perfect. The wine list and pairing are also very well done. My only complaint is the timing of the service. A little too long between courses. Service was attentive and the servers were very friendly, but the kitchen needs to tighten up their timing. I love a relaxed pace, but it was just a little too relaxed. Despite that, I highly recommend this restaurant!!! Chef has nailed the food!!
We had a really great meal here from start to finish. You can tell everything is done with purpose, coupled with amazing quality fixated on local ingredients. The staff is top notch, love that you can go thank the chef in the open kitchen in the back, and the nod to Chinatowns history makes this place special. Well done all!Food: 5/5
Wow, what an incredible meal! It is hard to find full tasting menus like this in Victoria. I was very impressed by everything I ate. @Victoria_Foodies
For us, it was all about the food. That meant taking our time and really slowing down. We finished the 4-course option in under 2.5 hours, the suggested time frame provided by the establishment. And oh, was it worth it! We nearly passed out from joy. We opted for the premium wine pairings and they were absolutely spot on. From French champagne to California cabs to Hungarian dessert wines, they seem to have sampled everything imaginable to find the perfect pairings. The ingenuity was fascinating. The service was very accommodating, the atmosphere quiet and contemporary. The chefs visit your table and descibe their creations, a nice touch. Finding the door is fun; it's in Chinatown where all of the storefronts have loud and bold signage and red and yellow paints. This storefront is narrow, black, with just a small wood sign over the door with an etched image of a waddling duck. Knowing where to look is like being part of a secret society! Highest ratings!
We loved our experience at the Ugly Duckling; we had the tasting menu with the accompanying wine parings. The food was lovely, locally sourced and tasted wonderful. The pairings were excellent, almost all BC wines that were new to us, and customized for us once we expressed an interest in local wines. I very much enjoyed having the chef come out to introduce himself and explain some of the dishes. Cannot recommend this highly enough for anyone who likes this type of experience i.e. tasting menus and is visiting Victoria. Parking: Large paid lot across the street.
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Ugly Duckling map

Directions to Ugly Duckling with public transportation

Pandora Ave at Store St 60 meters
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Johnson St at Wharf St 190 meters
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Government St at Johnson St 220 meters
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Douglas St at Pandora Ave 260 meters
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22A
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70X
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Douglas & Pandora (Victoria City Hall) 260 meters
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