Port Alberni Restaurants
For a small city, Port Alberni has a surprising number of good restaurants. When you add the excellent diversity of food styles to the number of good restaurants, you get a great place to find a bite to eat.
Pubs and Grills
Probably the most common food style in Port Alberni is what we call “Pub Fare:” home-style burgers, French fries, roasted or fried chicken and a selection of lettuce-based salads. These types of restaurants are easy to spot, and most often serve good hearty meals for travelers and locals alike. One of the advantages of this type of restaurant is that it is tough to go wrong – meaning it’s pretty hard to have a “bad” burger and fries. To locate this type of restaurant in Port Alberni, look for a sign that says "Pub" in pretty much any section of the city.
Japanese Restaurants
Yes, you read the heading correctly: there is a Japanese restaurant in Port Alberni. Surprisingly, this makes a lot of sense. As you likely know by now, Port Alberni is known as the Salmon Capital of the World, and has an abundance of fresh fish and shell fish right down the Alberni Inlet in Barkley Sound.
Chinese Restaurants
For anyone who knows a bit about the regional history of Vancouver Island, it will come as no surprise that there are Chinese restaurants in Port Alberni. In the pioneering days, Chinese residents of Vancouver Island were integral to the expansion of road networks, mining operations, timber projects and fishing vessels. Chinese food is a welcome addition to the different food styles that one can find in Port Alberni.
Mexican Restaurants
Depending on how you count, there are one or two Mexican restaurants in Port Alberni. The food is excellent, and at both places you will find the regular Mexican menu that will "spice up" your visit. Expect tacos, burritos, Mexican salads and imported Mexican beer. This style of restaurant is often a favorite for local and traveling vegetarians, as they can always expect a hearty serving of beans to top off their meatless protein needs.
Greek / Italian Restaurants
Yes, we know that Greek and Italian are distinctly different food styles, but in a city with 20,000 residents, restaurants tend to serve a mish-mash of international fare. With this in mind, there are one, two or three Greek / Italian Restaurants, depending on your method of evaluation. But no matter how you "slice it" Greek and/or Italian food is an excellent choice when hunting for a good meal in the Alberni Valley. How can one resist the great combination of souvlaki and Greek salad or a pizza right out of the oven with a big Caesar salad on the side? This style is a particularly good choice if you’re looking for an extra energy boost on your way through town to Tofino or Ucluelet.