Elizabeth Grace Bryan outside of Emmaline’s with the artist who hand painted the restaurant name on the glass. Photo: @emmalineingreen / Instagram
After a couple months of teasing sneak peeks on social media, Emmaline's finally opened its doors this past Sunday in Quadra Village. The new restaurant at 2571 Quadra St. is the vision of Elizabeth Grace Bryan, who previously ran the beloved Dock Lunch restaurant in Vancouver. Emmaline’s intends to bring the same community feel of Dock Lunch—Bryan began operating the Mount Pleasant eatery out of her own apartment—while establishing its own identity.
Describing itself as a neighbourhood comfort bistro, Emmaline’s leans into classic bistro fare and takes inspiration from New York, New Orleans, and São Paulo.
The restaurant is kicking off its food service with brunch and a menu featuring steak and eggs, Dutch baby pancakes, brisket and biscuit eggs benedicts, and Turkish eggs. It also has classic dessert options like key lime pie and Brooklyn blackout cake—a staple New York chocolate cake.
Emmaline’s plans to have a fixed menu that will include pastas and tomato pies—it inherited a pizza oven from Bubby Rose’s, who previously occupied the space—as well as rotating feature and brunch menus.
It will serve bottomless drip coffee, alongside a curated and changing drink menu that features classic cocktails, beer, cider, and wine from BC, South America, and Portugal.
The restaurant will have both indoor and outdoor seating, with the patio being dog friendly. It hopes to inspire an atmosphere that encourages conversation, togetherness, and spontaneity.
Emmaline’s plans to eventually host pop-ups to highlight other businesses.
Saxe Point Pub will open this weekend
Saxe Point Pub opens its doors this Saturday, July 6 in the new Esquimalt Town Square. The new neighbourhood pub at 101-505 Park Pl. will boast 90 seats, with 30 seats on its outdoor patio.
The pub aims to be a community gathering place with an inviting and warm atmosphere. Its menu will focus on pub classics with a twist, made with locally-sourced fresh and seasonal ingredients. Among its dishes will be burgers, fish and chips, and cottage pie. Its dessert menu features Eton mess, sticky toffee fritters, and cheesecake.
Brunch will also be available at the pub featuring shakshuka, french toast, and beans and eggs.
Saxe Point Pub will serve local craft beers on tap, including staples from Driftwood Brewery, Hoyne Brewing, and Phillips Brewing. It will also serve up classic and original cocktails, wines, highballs, and mocktails.
The pub will offer happy hour daily from 3pm to 5:30pm on both drinks and bites to eat. Select beers, wines, and cocktails will be discounted alongside dishes like nachos, sliders, and arancini.
Saxe Point Pub has been a long awaited addition to the neighbourhood, as Esquimalt has been without a classic pub since Tudor House Pub burnt down in 2013 and Gorge Point Pub closed its doors in 2021.
Saxe Point Pub is being run by Demian Merino, who has previous experience at Bard & Banker and Irish Times.
