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3 Vancouver Island restaurants make top 100 for best outdoor eating

May reservations jumped 61 per cent over 2019 numbers
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Finn’s Seafood, Chops and Cocktails in Victoria is one of three Vancouver Island eateries named to the OpenTable top 100 restaurants for outdoor eating. (Finn’s/Facebook)

With the promise of patio season on the horizon a trio of Island eateries have been rated among a top 100 list.

Finn’s Seafood, Chops and Cocktails in Victoria, The Dining Room at The Butchart Gardens in Brentwood Bay and Unsworth Restaurant in Mill Bay all made the cut as online restaurant reservation provider OpenTable unveiled its Canada’s 100 Best Restaurants for Outdoor Dining.

READ ALSO: Greater Victoria brunch spots voted among Canada’s best

“As the first summer and patio season in two years without lockdowns or restrictions, the energy and excitement from Canadians is palpable,” said Matt Davis, country director for OpenTable Canada.

The list, curated from diner reviews, features top-rated OpenTable restaurants from B.C. Alberta, Ontario and Quebec. Ontario topped the list with 62 establishments, followed by B.C. with 21, Alberta at 15 and Quebec with two. It is generated from 820,963 verified diner reviews collected between March 1 and Feb. 28. The overall score is made up of data points such as overall diner rating, user clout, total number of reviews and regional overall rating.

READ ALSO: Three Greater Victoria establishments make top 100 romantic restaurants in Canada list

While the top 100 highlights a handful of pup-friendly patios, in a nod to the 3.7 million Canadians who added pets into their lives since the pandemic started, none of the Island sites are identified.

May was among the wettest and coldest on the south Island, but OpenTable data shows Canadians are taking to restaurants, patios and street eateries with gusto as reservations that month jumped 61 per cent over 2019 numbers.

READ ALSO: Greater Victoria’s May was one of the coldest, wettest in 20 years


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