JV's Diner in Lake Cowichan

A+ j and vs is the best good service great food if u havent had it befor put it on the list yummy

great poutine very retro feel and burgers

Deff in my top3 in bc

Great place to stop anytime your in Lake Cowichan, great food and great customer service !

Best milkshakes I had there s so many to select and there food Is also amazing especially with there hotdogs can t live without them

Cozy 50s style diner, vintage radios, telephones, etc .... burger was fantastic, perfect fries .... delicious

Wir sind eher zufällig in den Diner gegangen und haben es nicht bereut. Der Service war sehr freundlich und das Essen frisch und sehr lecker. Sehr gutes Preis/Leistungsverhältnis. Der Diner ist nicht nur wegen der Mega-Auswahl an leckeren Shakes, sondern auch von der Optik und der Einrichtung her ein Unikat. Ich kann den Diner nur empfehlen!

Went there last month, food took nearly an hour when the place was basically empty, burger felt like a sloppily prepared sandwich that was pretty bad. Milk shake and fries were alright. Wraps can take up to an hour for service with low grade ingredients, Worst service of any place I ve ever dined at.

It was alright. Basic diner food, priced a little high, but what isnt these days. Decent amount of food for the price though. Their menu is quite large and pretty diverse. I cant speak to all of it, but I pitty the cooks. The old saying Jack of all trades, master of none. may very well apply. If theyre going to give you water they should at least have it chilled or with ice. Cuz who wants room temp tap water on a hot day or any day for that matter? Theres not too many options in the area so I would eat there again, but if the service was the same I wouldnt be back a third time.

Our family stopped here for lunch. The service was excellent and the people very friendly. There was lots of choice on the menu and the drinks and food were delicious. The atmosphere was fun and upbeat, it was like an old diner!

A real diner. NIce

cute + yummy

Love their poutines and the milkshakes are delicious too

This place is super adorable with great staff and delicious food! Plus lovely sunny side seats out front

I loved the burgers and the atmosphere

What a hidden gem in the Cowichan lake area! The drinks and the food were delicious and fresh. Lots to see in this beautiful diner.

Nice little diner. Friendly service. Lots to look at and delicious comfort foods. Carl enjoyed the Hawaiian Pizza Food

Great place. Food was good. The service was great. If you love milkshakes definitely a place to go. First time going there and the lady behind the counter recommended the rum and butter shake. It was great. She made sure I had a good one since it was my first time. The cod wrap I had was a good size. My partner had a seafood basket and said it was awesome.

Awesome Family Restaurant .

I love it there

Wonderfully nostalgic dining experience with delicious food, great service and spotless venue. It was our first time experience and we expect to return. Take a well-deserved bow!

Such a cool spot, with old school diner vibes, and the service is so friendly. Had the poutine and strawberry and cream milkshake which were awesome

GOOD food, big portions, polite service! Will be stopping in again. Food

If youre passing through youve gotta eat here! food was delish, great atmosphere, super friendly staff, lots of diversity on the menu and you definitely get your moneys worth!

We got house special and bbq chicken pizza. Pizza dough could have been better. Very friendly and good customer service.

Wish I could give 6 stars for the old skool atmosphere but then Id have to give 6 for good and service as well. Love this place, from the pizzas to the extravagant milkshakes and poutine options

Good poutine :)

Awesome little burger joint/shake shack!

Delicious! We found our new favorite stop in lake Cowichan!

Love the vintage vibe and the food was fabulous! Friendly and accomodating staff and the yummiest milkshakes!

Just had the poutine(the Philly steak) but it the best one I had in BC so far .... will definately go back for sure !!

We ate lunch here yesterday. This was our first visit and we were all really impressed. The food was very tasty and the atmosphere was cool and retro. What stuck out the most was the excellent service. Very fast and extremely friendly. Cant wait to come next time were at the cabin. Food

Me and my boyfriend ordered delivery tonight and we both havent had food from here in awhile but we were amazed at how good it was he had a mushroom melt sandwich and I had the teriyaki chicken bowl both amazing and the milkshakes were perfect they also have some the best rice I usually stray away from food with rice at restaurants because its never too good but their rice is some of the best Ive had will definitely have to order again soon

Checks all the boxes for a classic diner. Great food and great vibe. Food is a little expensive but you get what you pay for.

Cool spot! Excellent food, excellent service, BEST espresso shake Ive ever tasted. My son asked if we could go back the next day. We will definitely stop in when we pass through again!

Super accomodating.

As everyone else has mentioned - get a milkshake! Decent burgers, good fries. Very obviously understaffed but it didn t seem to slow anything down. Would go again for sure. In fact I may grab one more milkshake tomorrow before I leave :)

Best staff I ve met. Especially the server Tom. Milkshakes were phenomenal and the atmosphere is amazing

An exceedingly friendly, bright, clean and well run family business. Try the yellow chicken curry. Its really hits the spot when youre hungry.

Fresh cinnamon buns B4 12:00!!

We were just looking for a quick snack and got delicous hotdogs and a fanatastic milkshake. The designe of the diner is really cool.

Great food and milkshakes! Owner very friendly and I have a lot of fun with it. Absolute recommendation!

Good service

Me and my son, two burgers, fries and a salad... so good. A couple of delicious milkshakes... so so good. Time well spent... priceless. Food : 5/5

Loved it, took me back to when I was a kid ! Fantastic location lots of cool history loved the food unbelievable amount of mile shake flavours and really milkshakes !

A must visit. Food and milkshakes are great

Friendly, kind and attentive staff. Delicious food and fantastic 1950s decorum detailing. J&Vs gives alot of love and attention to their clients. Parking: Easy to support parking! Kid-friendliness: Tolerant and kind to children. Menu includes food they love

The best milkshakes on the Island!

A must do if you are nearby on your roadtrip!

Such a fun place! Poutines are incredible.

Tom is a homie, he brought us so much water. Loveliest man in Cowichan

WOW what a place! So much to choose from and with the Diner Era Menu setting. Order at the counter and get ready for the best burger or pizza in Lake Cowichan. Staff is professional and friendly, location is always clean and inviting. If you like good food be ready to eat here every time you make the drive to the lake.

J&Vs is the best place for a milkshake, burger, or pizza in town. The food is delicious, staff are awesome, and the vibe of the diner is perfect. It is family owned and operated, and is more than worth a stop if youre travelling through the community. Kid-friendliness: Very cool place to bring kids. Lots of engaging things to look at inside, and you can even sit outside in the historic locomotive during the summer. Wheelchair accessibility: There is a ramp to go into the building at the front entrance and space to maneuver inside the diner.

This diner leaves me almost speechless. The food was absolutely amazing, probably the best milkshake Ive ever had and will ever have in the future. The staff are super friendly and knowledgeable. The vibe of the place is nostalgic. We played old-school arcade games while we waited for our food. Its a retro diner with so much heart. You can tell the food is made with love and the people that work there love working there which truly makes a difference. The food and atmosphere was so good that I didnt even think about taking my phone out to take pictures. If youre passing through lake cowichan its a must go for sure.

Straight from the 50s and an owner who really cares about the customer!

Pretty decent dining establishment in Lake Cowichan. Ordered the pizza and although it was good I felt it was a bit on the pricey side. The retro decor is rather unique and definitely worth a visit.

Holy amazing shakes and bacon cheeseburger. I wish I lived closer but then again, Id have both almost every day haha. Wonderful friendly service

I like the buzzed guy

Its a tradition to go for milkshakes every year when we are in Lake Cowichan at JVs Diner.

2 separate visits and both were disappointing. First time, I was told a 25 minute wait for food; it finally arrived 45 minutes later. Second time, they had no ice cream, so we had milkshakes instead, which were watery and tasteless.

This is a great place to go amazing milk shakes and much much more !!!!

Nice service who let our son watch the milkshakes being made. Beautiful place in 1950s style, just looking at it is worth it. They have many flavors of milkshakes and lots of delicious food. Vegetarian burger was homemade and very tasty. Definitely recommended. Vegetarian options: Vega burger Parking: In the town you can park well along the road, close to the location

Fast and phenomenal service. Staff were all so kind

Great milkshakes and cool retro interior Vegetarian options: Veggie burger Food : 5/5 |

great place, got a drink for free

The quality has definitely gone down in the past year or so. Theyve downgraded the fries to what feel like the frozen ones you buy at the store, and the burger patties are quite a bit thinner. Portion sizes have also shrank considerably. I would have much preferred they keep the quality and quantity the same, and just increase the prices, instead of fighting to keep them lower. Its better to have expensive food instead of worse food. Still friendly service and good atmosphere as usual! (3.5 / 5)

We love Silver! She was the sweet and charming member of the team who came to chat to our table and we were blown away by her friendly attitude! She told us we all look young and we love that ;) About the food, the four of us all ordered burgers and all agreed they were delicious. They re a home made patty they get from the butcher, it was lovely to have something home made. Plus the sauce they put on the burgers was lush! The atmosphere was so fun! It s all old school diner paraphernalia and some train themes. There s this adorable train car in the back with tables inside so you can sit inside. The restaurant was very clean too! It was nice to see an older restaurant that makes an effort to keep up appearances.

Never knew a peaches and cream milkshake could be a thing. Did not disappoint!

Very nice family diner. Thats definitely a place to walk in for a burger or a milkshake. You can wait for your meal playing an arcade game, or enjoying all the nice details on the walls. Burgers and fries are well done, as well as the kids menu and the poutine; Id recommend! Kid-friendliness: Fun place decorated for families and children with gummy machines, arcade game, and more. Toddler seats available.

60$ for 2 burnt pizzas .. disappointing

Really good burgers, friendly staff, fast service. The milkshakes are also as good as everyone says they are! Highly recommend.

Best diner atmosphere Ive ever been to. The server was the daughter of the owners and she was incredible and high energy. Absolutely amazing how much working vintage memorabilia there is here. Thanks!

Best pizza

Very good za

An original retro style place. Its worth a stop.

You walk in to a time capsule of a sixties diner, but the menu is so much more. I had the BBQ Beef and Bacon Poutine with a thick milkshake both delighted my tastebuds. Service is super friendly. Definitely worth the drive.

Stopped here on way to Port Renfrew. Loved everything about this place. Food. Service. Price. Definitely stop here if you can. Food

Great food and service

In town for a hockey tournament , highly recommended to visit. No regrets the atmosphere is bang for diner feeling with lots of memorabilia displayed around the store. The burger, beef dip and fries great. The milkshake ordered was superb full marks for flavour and creaminess if your town you gotta go went on the Sunday went back for more however it was closed

Was here for a couple weeks for work. Everytime we go for lunch, we always go here. Food is good, it would make you come back. But that s my top 2 reason why I m gonna come back here. The top 1 is the milkshake, it s the perfect amount of sweetness, with a variety of flavours. You can even mix and match flavours, which 100% satisfies my sweet tooth. It s REAL milkshakes not like other restaurants where the flavours are just pure sugary goo. Whenever I do have the time and money to come back in Lake Cowichan, this will be the first place I will visit. To all the milkshake lovers and sweet tooth people, get the PB&Oreo milkshake. You ll love it!

Beautiful 50s/60s style restaurant. Food is very very tasty, perfecly cooked and fresh ingredients. Staff is super friendly, lady that was taking our order was so friendly it made us feel as if weve known her for years. I recommend making your way here and trying pretty much anything on the menu. Weve had pizzas greek and pepperoni and another time Chipotle burger and a captains basket and weve loved it all. This place makes you wanna go there every day. Thank you very much to staff and owners.

Great experience, very retro and well decorated as such. Ordered a canadian personal pizza, ham and cheese sandwich and a chocolate milkshake. Very satisfied, the pizza was amazing loads of toppings perfectly thin crispy crust. The aandwich was a bit buttery but the ham was real black forest, cheesy and fresh sourdough bread perfectly grilled. Fries were true fresh cut fries. The shakes are made with soft serve for a great consistency not overly thick. Overall true 5 stars for you guys worth every penny.

A friend recommend this spot. We drove over an hour and their food was very good. They have a huge selection of milkshakes that was impossible to resist. Their poutine was to die for. I only wish they had a bigger dessert menu. Its a go again for sure and the hour drive...worth it!

Absolutely delicious. Sorry I didnt get a pic of the food. It was so good I ate it all before I thought of it . Ordered Roast Beef Mushroom Melt. It was literally perfect . Everything was extremely fresh and tasty. Bonus to the amazing food, was the staff. Super friendly and inviting family owned place. Seems like the staff really enjoy what they do and it shows. Really enjoyed the full experience! Thank you so much!

This is hands down the best place to get your grub in lake cowichen ..kudos to Crystal and the staff for great food and service

Went with the family Wednesday March 2nd. The food was great, the kids loved the place and the lady who served us was amazing and so peppy. She was so helpful and friendly, it made us love the place even more.

Best food in town

The service was very good, the good but the milk shake was to die for. Definitely going again and Im spreading the word.

I was exploring areas around Lake Cowichan and needed lunch while my car was plugged in at the EV charger across the street. Very happy I stopped in here - food was tasty, service is excellent, and great ambience. Will definitely stop in again.

So many options and great food! Friendly staff. Definitely get a milkshake. Love the whole vibe of this diner!!! Had the beef dip and it was amazing will be my new go-to spot when passing through Cowichan!

Outstanding pizza! Real food made the right way and you can absolutely taste it. We will definitely be back.

Went in and ordered two burgers and a pizza from Mel , paid interact . Was told to come back in twenty minutes. Came back in twenty minutes. Had to wait 25 more minutes. No big deal. Got my burgers. Was waiting for my pizza. Waiting for my pizza. Waiting for my pizza . Asked Mel where the pizza was. She said I didn t order a pizza. I said the order came to around $80.00 , don t you think that s a little expensive for two burgers, two fries? She said where is your receipt? I said you walked away when it was printing off. She just said you didn t order a pizza , just the burgers and fries. And we are closing in 10 minutes.I said check in the back with the cook. She repeated that I didn t order a pizza. And walked away. I remained standing at the counter till closing time. At closing time the cook came out of the back and asked who s pizza is this? I said it is my pizza , the cook then handed it to me with Mel giving me the stare down. Obviously the food was cold, but the taste was alright. Hate cold fries though. Never had a waitress act so pompous and rude. I d give the food a 4 star rating, the server a -10 star.

The people here are always friendly and genuinely treat all their customers whether regulars or new the friendly hospitality. While I cant speak on the rest of the food cause Ive never tried it, their original poutine is amazing! I cant help but order it every time.

Awesome milkshakes, warm delicious cinnamon buns, 50s style diner. Very cool place, friendly staff.

You should visit here at least once. The decor is a mix between 60s diner, and 80s arcade. The prices are, well, high - theres no way around that. Ideally they would slash the menu in half and really focus on making the staples incredible. Choice anxiety is REAL here, and its impossible to deliver on 40 different entrees. The chicken burger I received was small for 14 bucks, and didnt even come with fries. Id much rather buy local, but more than double the cost of A&W thats hard to justify.

Family owned and operated, super friendly service!! Best Milkshakes and Cinnamon buns ever!! Food is also delicious with a great selection.

Awesome little 50s themed diner, food was fantastic and service was quick and pleasant. Definitely will return again when Im in the neighbourhood.

This is such a cute little diner! Pretty good food, but a little on the expensive side. The staff here are always really nice too.

Great poutine and even better milkshakes

Such a cute place! Milkskakes are great and the staff lovely. Decor retro radio

If you find yourself out in Lake Cowichan you NEED to visit JVs. From the moment you walk in its like taking a step back in time. The food was delicious and exactly the type mom and pop diner menu you would want. The coconut cream milkshake is to die for! Definitely a must visit! My only complaint is the lack of air conditioning. But if you sit farther back you will get a pretty good breeze from the fan! The staff are rockstars for keeping the restaurant going during the heatwave!

Our server was awesome...we are celebrating 40 years of friendship with friends and she made sure our orders all came up together and hand delivered it outside ...outstanding.. and there was 6 of us....

Excellent spot to enjoy a dine in or take out experience at the lake! Great food and super cool atmosphere!

I ordered 3 different taste of cheese pizza it was do crispy & the taste of the cheeses were very strong & the source they put on the top made it more flavor.

Great, classic diner. Only had the ice cream but the decor was top notch.

Great service, delicious food & legit milkshakes. Generous portions.

Good food great milkshakes !

Stopped for a late lunch. Green curry chicken poutine for me and fish & chips for my husband and mom. Generous portions, Good coffee and very friendly, attentive wait staff. Decor of retro radios and Coca Cola items kept us busy looking around.

Great..next time I will try their Pizza when they are not so busy. Milkshakes are delicious!

Good poutine, I would be happy to try anything else because the food was good here. The server was extremely friendly and very hard working just for one person. The vide was 1950 retro was very neat touch and made restaurant standard our compared to other restaurants in the area. It is worth checking if your in the area.

Wasnt expecting much when we made the decision to go but was pleasantly surprised. Some of the best service Ive ever gotten from a fella who seemed to really enjoy being there. Food was great too. If youre doing the PMR/Visiting the area I definitely recommend stopping in.

Amazing milk shakes

Cool little place

Great food with excellent service.

Charming retro diner. The food was delicious we had a bacon cheeseburger and a turkey club wrap, both with fries. The service was also fantastic and very friendly. We will be back! Thank you.

Great food, great service, super funky diner. Had the clubhouse. Amazing.

We live in Victoria so we do not get here often. But whenever we are able to get here I am super happy with what I get. I have to give a shoutout to the beef dip sandwich. I am always on the hunt for a good beef dip and the one I had was in my top 5 that I have ever had, if you like beef dips do yourself a favour and have one.

Excellent pizza. We love it.

Just ordered 1 pound wings and pizza it was very good food very friendly when taking my delivery order too thank you

Great food. Plenty to eat. Definitely a place to go back to. Glad Im in the area now.

Dont trust them when they say your pizza for pick up will be ready in 20 minutes. Wait 40

Best pizza around, too bad they dont deliver to Cobble Hill lol. I go everything Im out there.

Wicked food.

Great food

Always good

Best milkshake I have had in decades, and an awesome atmosphere with a super guy taking our order.

One of those joints that makes solid food. Why the a and w down the street is still in business when you can get this, I have no idea, because this food is 20x better.

Friendly hardworking staff. It gets busy but the food is woth the wait

Great place to eat and take time to chill. Wonderful staff so polite.delicious food. Milkshakes are so good.

I had a milkshake at it was delicious

They have the best food , we drive all the way in from victoria just to get some!

She recommended an egg nog milkshake. I thought her insane but threw caution to the wind. It was a good shake.

Great food. I was impressed with my roast beef and mushroom melt. The rest of my group enjoyed their meals as well. Highly recommended for food and the fun decor, feels like an old time diner!

Milkshakes and pizza!

Most of the food is made from scratch and its very good, I love the owners, some of the best people I know n.n Retro feel to the place, lots of old memorabilia on display. They even helped restore an old train car and is now part of the restaurant. Its very cool. 5 stars

Great food awesome staff and old school video games and there Coke collection wicked. Thanks Mel ROCK STARS

Had a nice light curry chicken with rice and naan and I had a bacon cheeseburger with fries. Fries are homemade and greatly appreciated after the last place that had frozen coated fries. Service was excellent. Really friendly. Nicely decorated vintage diner with some vintage radios displayed. Next time we are going to go for ice cream or a shake.

Cute little spot. Their poutine is amazing! And the strawberry milkshake is the best!

Pizza was pretty basic.. super basic crust. Nothing to write home about but yknow basic pizza is still good/fine

Good food.

Loved every bit about it! Had one issue with one of our meals and it was dealt with promptly! Strawberry milkshake was sooo good too!

Such a cute place with great, real food! 100% recommended

A quaint little burger joint. We sat in the outside rail car. Food was ok, just a burger joint with interesting memorabilia

Great milkshakes many flavourful varieties

Standard burger fries pasta pizza restaurant with overpriced menu. For example, the poutine add on to a burger was 6 dollars, and came in a small 10 x 5 cm cup. The place also has ice cream and milkshakes. Very vintage atmosphere. Had jukebox and some arcade game machines. Quaint.

The place opens at noon and by 1155 there was a small line of locals waiting to bust thru the door on a weekday. We had the specialty poutine and was very satisfied with the taste and portion size.

Great service. Very friendly. The pizza was excellent. Will be back.

Awesome. Food was great - we had pizza and burgers - and the milkshake options are incredible. There isnt many of these places left in the world so go now, while they are still knocking it out of the park. Not for foodie hipsters looking for soy burgers and kale chips - its retro good but doesnt skimp on the quality. Fun, iconic, nice staff and fair prices.

Ebike stop in Lake Cowichan on the Cowichan Valley Trail. Great place to eat , Nice décor inside from the 1950s and 1960s

Amazing food, customer service is always wonderful. Really nice diner with cool antiques

Great food, great service and awesome atmosphere.

Was desperate for lunch while passing through the area and the lunch was sensational. They dont serve beer, but the Strawberry, Banana Peanut Butter milkshake was better than any beer I could have got elsewhere. This place also has a great old diner feel that played some great groovy music during my meal. 5 stars!

Wow. Flavours were on point, fresh and well worth the stop! Highly recommend this family run Diner on your way through the area!

Always amazing food. Always friendly staff!

Its a family run business with amazing service. They have so many types of milkshakes its astounding and I can go for months and never have the same two. Its a bit pricey but the sizes of the portions make it worth it and Ive never had anything I dont like here. They have pizza and burgers and fish and chips. Plenty of options for everyone! They also have vegetarian options which I love as I am one and find it difficult to eat out. Amazing place and I highly recommend it to anyone who hasnt tried it yet!

Ordered the captain basket, cod wrap and some slices of pizza. Amazing food! Loved the inside of the restaurant, like a blast from the past. Cant wait to try one of the milkshakes

Best strawberry sundae I ve had in a very long time!

This is a the best restaurant to go to if you re looking for a bite to eat in lake Cowichan. The service is great, food is great, especially the burgers pizzas and all 36 flavours of milkshakes, including my personal favourite, the apple pie one. I really enjoy the retro diner theme. This place even has an old railcar you can eat in. They also have gum ball machines, arcade machines, and my food was hot and fast. I have also had delivery from here and it was here fast even on a Friday night in the summer. The lady working was so kind and helpful and even recommended me some of her personal favourites, which were delicious and I would definitely recommend anyone to come here.

Terrible service with zero manners.

Best milkshakes every !!!!

Pizza was very tasty with good ingredients but a bit undercooked

Tons of food options, really good if you dont know what you want or you want a bit of everything.

Awesome food. Great variety!

Very friendly staff and great food

Good food, very strict about covid regulations and procedures which Im all for

Got the mozza mushroom burger. Usually mozza mush is zesty and full of flavor with the mushrooms. This burger however was lacking that umami burst from the mushrooms. Ingredients are good, lettuce is crunchy. No pickle slice on the burger, which in this instance may have been a needed flavor boost. $3 extra for fries was not worth it on account of the portion size. They came on a little cardboard clamshell Im guessing 1.5 potatoes were used for the fry portion. Too pricey for such a thing, home cut or otherwise.

Today we were heading home from ocean fishing in Port Renfrew. We had this spot recommended to us by our fishing guide and have to say we are impressed with the quality of food, prompt attentive service and the charm of this establishment. I actually even forgot my wallet and they waited an extra 20 minutes so that we could pick it up, mind you this was after the had closed. They really go above and beyond. Over all, super reasonable prices, delicious food.. so we will be back here for sure! :)

Fries are super overpriced. 3$ for a potato basically. Not very good flavor (flavorless). Descriptions on the menu could be a lot better.

Was super excited to try this place after a day on the river and reading reviews, but after a roughly 40 minute wait my fries were burnt and my moms fries from her poutine were burnt too not very much gravy either.

Closed for a week

Great experience, good quality pub food at a very affordable price. Excellent milkshakes too. For a quick meal on the road or with friends.

Good pizza! Nice crust, decent prices.

Excellent service and extremely friendly staff.

We stopped by for a quick lunch and were pleasantly surprised by their burger fries and milkshake. A classic bacon mushroom burger on a great bun, hot, crispy fries and a chocolate milkshake that will be unforgettable. All in a retro diner atmosphere. Sure beats the A&W next door! Friendly service too!!!

Great food, great people!