Food Review: Sam’s Deli & Bistro

Sam’s Deli & Bistro

805 Government St
Victoria, BC

I had finally checked into my hotel and I spent a few confused hours without food wondering around downtown Victoria. My ultimate goal was to sit by the beach in Beacon Hill Park (which is fabulous) and enjoy a bit of peace and quiet for a few hours before my friends’ flights arrived and I would have to deal with the hustle and bustle of the conference I was attending. This meant that I went to the first place that looked like I could get food fast. Sam’s Deli & Bistro was where I ended up.

It is a neat idea: it had the fast-food-sandwich-joint-style of serving and choices (bread, meat etc, veggies, sauces). The twist was that instead of having tons of bread and veggies, it was pretty much a regular homemade sandwich. The bread was plain old grocery store bread and it came packed in a little plastic container. Unfortunately, everything cost extra (avocados, pickles, even some of the bread options) and it was very unclear what was on the veggie sandwich.

Ultimately, it cost more than I wanted to spend and it tasted like a sandwich I could have made at home. At first this upset me because I should have just gone home and made the darn thing for cheaper. If you are a Victoria resident you should feel the same way; but this is the tourist zone. People who go here are probably far from home and don’t want to buy bread, pickles, tomato, mayo, avocado etc.. for a home-style sandwich because they would have to figure out what to do with them later. They just want that piece of home away from home and it can definitely be found in the sandwiches here. In that sense it is a decent place and I did enjoy it. I just wish it was cheaper.

Until next time,