The Phoenix Restaurant — Restaurant in Ladysmith

I am very surprised by these reviews. I live near Sidney BC, with access to all the terrific Chinese restaurants in Victoria, but whenever we travel up-Island to camp in our RV in Chemainus we always drive up to Ladysmith for dinner at the Phoenix Restaurant on a Saturday night. We have been coming here for about 12, maybe 13 years and it is one of our favourite restaurants. There are a number of reasons why we love coming here. The deep fried prawns - my absolute favourite, have the lightest crispiest batter of any place we have ever gone. In some places it is doughy and heavy, but here - perfect. While there is not the very extensive selection we can get in Victoria, and the food on the buffet is not exotic, it is always delicious and well prepared. Food is brought out frequently and maintained at a steaming hot and scrupulously cleaned steam table. Kitchen staff, waittresses, and owner are in frequent attendance at the steam table to make sure dishes and food don't run out or get dried out and unpalatable and the area kept clean. I have not tried the hot and sour soup - not a fan - so perhaps I am not qualified to comment on it, but the wonton soup is delicious so I would have no reason to expect the hot and sour soup to be otherwise. Desserts are always a treat, with pie a delightful addition. The washrooms not only always look spotlessly clean, they always smell spotlessly clean. It is obvious the staff work hard to keep the restaurant well maintained. The owner, Richard, and staff are always friendly, polite, and welcoming. Richard goes from table to table greeting new guests and welcoming back...

I am surprised that this restaurant remains in business! I had the buffet and had to resort to eating steamed rice with soy sauce. Everything was over salted and/or tasteless. The cook was pouring hot water over the chow mein and the fried rice adding to the tasteless fare. The hot and sour soup that is served is a hot mess at best. Who puts ham in hot and sour soup??? No tofu at all in this soup. If you are going to make a hot and sour soup that is out of the norm at least tell people before they order this slop. The owner could care less about how the customers feel about this "food." He is rude and obnoxious. The hot and sour soup was sent back twice and he said, "I tasted it myself, it was good." He refused to take it off the bill. We would not go back to this restaurant if it were the only one left. Save your money....go...

This is a long standing debate around town in Ladysmith. - who serves the best Chinese food in Ladysmith. Tonight, we decided to check out one of the town’s favourites, The Phoenix. It certainly didn’t disappoint. We ordered the Chicken Chow Mein, Pork Fried Rice, Beef and Broccoli, and the Crispy Chili Beef. All the dishes were tasty, meat and noodles weren’t dry, the broccoli was cooked just right and the sauce was very light and yummy. We are now huge fans of the Crispy Chili Beef, not overly spicy but still had a nice kick. There was enough food for four adults or for two very famished adults. I would consider this to be Canadian Western Chinese Food.

Looking forward to checking out the other dishes...