Chewies Steam & Oyster Bar - Kits

So it's that time of the year again -- the Dine Out Vancouver Festival!! To start off our first DOV story, DC and I went to Chewies in Kitsilano last night. Neither of us had ever been here before and their ($30) menu looked appealing this year so we gave it a shot. We both loved it! Each dish was wonderfully executed. Read on to find out more.

The oysters aren't exactly part of the dine out menu per se, but you can get 3 of them as an add-on for $9. Since Chewies is known for their oysters, we thought we'd get one order to share. They called it "Shucker's Choice" Oysters because they just serve the freshest of whatever they have.

Each oyster we got was different. I think we got one kusshi, one kumamoto, and one from the East Coast (can't remember the name). They were served with fresh lemon, grated horseradish, and a variety of their special homemade sauces. I tried two of the oysters and they were awesome! Extremely fresh and perfect with their sauces (which are wonderful too, btw). My favourites were the cocktail and the spicy sauce which gave a nice kick at the back.

For my appetizer, I got the Cajun Seafood Chowder. It was great! Creamy but not too heavy and there was a good amount of filling -- some halibut, prawns, potatoes, and corn. It even came with a nicely toasted piece of bread. Perfect for cleaning up the plate!

DC opted for the Pork Belly Crackin' for her appy. It was served in a cute mini frying basket. There were 5 pieces which is actually quite a lot considering how unhealthy this is! It was good though. It was freshly cooked, the meat was soft, and it wasn't too fatty. The skin was crispy too but I did have some pieces where the skin stuck to my teeth -- maybe could've been fried just a tad longer. It was accompanied with some vinegar which was great but we'd prefer it to be more acidic to help cut the fat more. Otherwise, a solid dish. I'm not a huge fan of pork belly but this was actually quite good.

Moving on to entrees...

I ordered the Southern Fried Chicken and when I cut into it, I could see that the inside was glistening -- perfectly cooked! Tender and moist. Delicious. The batter was thin and crispy with a nice honey flavour. The mashed potatoes underneath were good too but very filling and buttery; I wasn't able to finish all of it. The green beans were the perfect veggie to go along with this dish.

Another entree option was the Cajun Jambalaya, which is what DC got. It was filled with toppings! Lots of chicken, sausage, ham, and even prawns. It was a bit too peppery and spicy for me but it definitely had that cajun flavour. Again, large portion but DC was actually able to finish everything!

By this time, we were both extremely stuffed. I was nearing my stomach's limit so thankfully the desserts weren't too heavy! I went for the Cayenne Chocolate Torte. I actually didn't notice the cayenne part when I ordered this so I was surprised when I was getting some heat as I was eating it. The flavour got stronger as I progressed so I thought it was some sort of pepper and sure enough, it was! I've never had a chocolate cake like that so it was a unique experience. The cake itself wasn't very sweet which was a good thing, actually. They used dark chocolate so the spicy and bitter flavours (and sweet from the raspberry sauce) worked well together.

Lastly, DC got the Bourbon Pecan Pie. I tasted it and it was good too. I could really taste the bourbon in the caramel sauce that they used which was awesome. Again, the pie wasn't overly sweet. Everything was just right!

So that pretty much concludes my review of Chewies at DOV. The service was friendly (all male!) and the restaurant had a nice, cozy vibe to it. It's definitely a place you should check out if you're thinking of Dine Out or even if you just want some delicious, hearty, comforting soul food. Or fresh oysters! You'll definitely get that here. I heard they also serve up a good brunch. Chicken & waffles anyone?

Food - 9/10
Service - 9/10
Ambience - 9/10
Value - 9/10

Chewies, we live and breath for this place. My boyfriend and I were so upset when the Coal Harbour location closed but made a point to go to the Kitsilano location for a special occasion. The service is so extremely friendly, it's hard to believe they can employ so many great service staff all in one place! The happy hour.. amazing deals!! High quality oysters, tasty appys of great portions and a good variety of drinks to pair! Love the local, cozy vibe - something that will bring us across the water any day!

Our favourite Happy Hour in the city! The calamari, oysters and wings are fantastic. They have a great beer selection but I always opt for the Lonetree Cider.

Staff and friendly and it's great sitting inside or outside. Pop in on your way down to the beach or as you stroll back up late night.

They also have great and fancy dinner options but I haven't done that in a while!

This place really exemplifies that West Coast is the best coast for oysters. This is clearly a town favourite and I really beautiful Kitsilano region.

I had a really pleasant experience and I did not have to wait for a table on the weekend. The oysters were very well priced and we're large. My friend who lives in Vancouver loves this place as her go to oyster spot.

This is a great spot for a snack or some great bar food. We had some fried chicken, which was also delicious. It is a more relaxed dining style sort of like a pub environment. I would not expect it to be a fancy date spot. But if you were just craving some oysters, and you had a coffee date in the area where a nice walk along the beach... then this is a great option for you

Servers were friendly but urgency and professionalism to check on the table was low. The food was plated very well but the chicken was dry. The only thing I would applaud would be the buttermilk biscuits and cornbread.

A stellar experience from moment we were greeted. The friendly, patient and informative staff offered outstanding service. Even the owner was a part of the floor team and made the meal extra special.

The oysters were tasty and made extra flavourful with freshly grated horseradish right in front of us. The top notch and tall lamb burger was hand made and cooked to perfection. Along with the large portions of prawns and grits, and jambalaya with sausage and prawns to top it off. The flavours were magnificent. Mouth watering from start to finish.

This will be added to my must-visit-again places!!

Came here for happy hour and had a great time!

My party of 4 came around 5 pm on a Monday and it wasn't busy at all. We opted to sit outside on their outdoor patio but the indoor area looked really nice as well.

Happy hour is 4-6 and includes both food and drink specials. All beer selections are $5 and wine is $7. I ordered a glass of their "I am Bob" sparkling wine to start. It was a bit on the dry side so not my favorite, but for the price I can't complain too much :)

We weren't too hungry, so we just shared a couple items on their happy hour food menu. Our first priority was taking advantage of their $1.50 hh oysters. There's a limit of 6/person/round, so the first thing we did was order 24 oysters. They come with lemon, horseradish, and house sauce on the side. To accompany the oysters, we also ordered the calamari ($14), spicy fried broccoli ($7), and chicken wings ($12).

The oysters were pretty good! I prefer sweeter oysters and the ones here are a bit on the salty/briny side, but I still enjoyed them. The calamari was standard, nothing special about them but they were done well. I didn't try the wings or the broccoli, but my friends said the wings were good but they wouldn't order the broccoli again.

Service was great, and they didn't rush us at all even though there were other folks waiting for outdoor seating. We left as happy customers after spending a little over 2 hours here.

The total came out to around ~$35 pp.

This is a neighborhood joint where regulars enjoy happy hour, not a destination spot. I'm going with a generous three stars because a member of our group who is a neighborhood regular said the food is usually better. Everything was so, so salty. The plain fries actually crunched they were so heavy with salt.
We tried all of the happy hour specials (oysters, calamari, fried broccoli, wings, and poutine) plus a burger and plain fries. If the food items could be considered as if they were not all too salty this would be our review: Poutine was served with andouille sausage and was tasty. Oysters were good as was the broccoli. Wings were marginal bar style wings. Calamari was not cooked well and was too soft with very little flavor. Burger was fantastic- savory beef and a good bun. Plain fries were tasty but way too salty.
Don't recommend.

This review is for happy hour only. Loved it! Biked in randomly today and was super impressed. $2.25 each for 6 premium oysters 3-6 pm on Sunday. The PEI oysters were perfectly shucked and omg the oysters were so mouthwatering. We could have eaten piles more if we didn't have other eating and drinking stops to make. We sat at the bar and the bartender/ oyster shucker was prompt, courteous and quick. I was dying for an oyster shooter so he prepared us each an Arbutus Pepper. Wow! That woke me up! Spicy and strong. We had other moves to make so didn't order anything else on the menu but I will absolutely be back. Awesome pit stop at Chewies!

I am amazed at how awful the food and service was here. The dish washer was not wearing a mask in the kitchen even after we asked them to do so. The waiters were unprofessional. The food was awful. The mac and cheese was tasteless. The coleslaw was not fresh. The poutine tasted like shit. The calamari was ok. They pour the wine into a water cup.
I am honestly shocked! This might have been the worst restaurant iv been to in Vancouver.

Disappointing dine out experience. Service was non existent... no check in from server or refill of water. I grabbed a bottle of water from a nearby empty table. Chowder was thin and runny. Jambalaya was small for portion in comparison to the huge chicken and waffles. The beignets ended up being rock hard batter.
The parking here is better than paying an arm and a leg around Coal Harbour.