Nanaimo’s Best of the City winners and runners-up revealed – vancouverislandfreedaily. com
Nanaimo’s got election fever these days. Well, guess what? The votes are in – the Best of the City votes, that is.
This is our biggest-ever Best of the City survey, with more than 150 categories, including approximately a dozen new categories this year. We asked Nanaimo News Bulletin readers to participate in our online survey at the start from the summer, wondering about the best businesses, things to do and sights to see. We’re grateful that we received tens of thousands of votes, because such high ‘voter turnout’ logically makes the survey more representative, and hopefully, a lot more useful to Best of the City readers. If your favourite business didn’t win this year, please keep them in mind next summer plus encourage friends and family to get out the vote.
Congratulations to all the winners and runners-up. You all contribute to making Nanaimo the best.
Here are your 2022 Best of the City those who win and runners-up, presented in the order in which they appear in the magazine:
Best Accommodations
1 . Coast Bastion Hotel
2 . Yellow Point Lodge
3. The Grand Hotel
Best View of the City
1 . Mount Benson
2 . Sugarloaf Mountain
3. Dinghy Dock Pub
Best Playground
1 . Harewood Centennial Park
1 . Oliver Woods Community Centre
2 . Maffeo Sutton Park Playdock
3. Beban Park Altrusa Playground
Best Accounting Firm
1 . Church Pickard Chartered Professional Accountants
1 . MNP LLP
2 . Dougan, Irwin and Associates
3. H& R Block
3. Leakey and Lewicki Ltd.
Best Auto Detailer
1 . V. I. Precision Detailing and Car Care
2 . Eco Wash Automotive Detailing
3. Steve Marshall Ford Lincoln Auto Smile
Best Auto Servicing
1 . Supertech Diesel Truck Specialists
2 . Precise Mechanical Repairs
3. Bavarian Imports Auto Repair
Best Banking Institution
1 . Coastal Community Credit Union
1 . RBC Royal Bank
2 . TD Canada Trust
3. BMO
Best Bathrooms
1 . Woodgrove Centre
2 . Cactus Club Café
3. Casino Nanaimo
Best Beauty Salon or Spa
1 . Kiyo Salon and Day Spa
2 . The Babe Cave
a few. Foxy Box Laser and Wax Bar
Best Bike Shop
one Arrowsmith Bikes
2 . Hub City Cycles
3. Rock City Cycles
Best Carpet Cleaners
1 . Classic Care Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning
second . Suck It Up Carpet Furnace
3. Citrus-O Carpet Care
Best Cell Phone Repair
1 ) UbreakiFix
2 . Blackapple Cellular
3. London Drugs
Best Collision Repair/Auto Body Service
1 . Trojan Collision
second . Craftsman Collision
3. CSN Mid-Island Car Collision
Best Barbershop
1 . The Edge Barber Shop
2 . That 50’s Barber Store
3. Four Crows Barber and Shave Co.
Best Community-Minded Business
1 . COCO Café
second . The Thinking Garden
3. Junk In Our Trunk
three or more. KC’s Boutique and Petites
Greatest Computer Sales and Service
1 . R-U Computing Co. Ltd.
2 . Jason’s Computer Services
3. Alpine Technical Services and Sales
Best Customer Service
1 . KC’s Boutique and Petites
2 . Meat Craft Island Butchery
3. Burnt Honey Dessert Company
Best Dental Clinic
1 . Franklyn Street Dental Centre
2 . Lantzville Dental Clinic
several. Diver Lake Dental
3. Seven Sails Dental Centre
Best Denture Clinic
one Nanaimo Denture Clinic
2 . Pacific Denture Centre
3 or more. Harbour City Denture Medical center
Best Electrical Company
1 . DenMar Electric Ltd.
2 . Walls Electrical Ltd.
3. Mazzei Electrical
Greatest Clothing Store for Inclusive Sizing
1 . CurVa-Voom
2 . Pennington’s
3. Old Navy
Best Engineering Firm
1 . Herold Engineering Limited.
2 . McElhanney
3. Sorensen Trilogy
Best Pest Control Solutions
1 ) V. I. Pest Control
2 . Pest Doctor
3. Abell Pest Control
Best Exterior Cleaning Company
1 . West Coastline Softwash
second . Mr. Sparkle Exterior Cleaning
3. Men In Kilts
Best Financial Planning Business
1 . RBC Dominion Securities
2 . CIBC Wood Gundy
2 . RBC Royal Bank
3. Coastal Community Private Wealth Group
Best Fitness/Exercise Company
1 . Healthy Role Models
2 . Authentically Fit
3. Orangetheory Fitness
3. Red Door Yoga
Best Floor Covering Store
1 . End of the Roll
2 . United Floors
3. Home Depot
3. City Tile
Best Flower Shop
1 . Turley’s Florist
second . Thrifty Foods
3. Ladybug Floral
Best Furniture Store
1 . Dodd’s Furniture plus Mattress
2 . La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries
3. ScanDesigns Furnishings
Greatest Plumbing Business
1 . Norm’s Plumbing and Heating
2 . 250 Plumber
2 . Archie Johnstone Plumbing and Heating
3. Gary McKinnon Plumbing and Heating
Best Heating Business
1 . Norm’s Plumbing and Heating
second . Bryans Mechanical
3. Archie Johnstone Domestic plumbing and Heating
Best Gas Bar
1 . Mid Island Co-op
2 . Snaw-Naw-As Market/Shell
3. Super Save Gas Stations
Best Hair Salon
1 . Hair Tech Salon Ltd.
2 . Kiyo Beauty salon and Day Spa
3. The Edge Tresses Design
Best Health-Care Clinic
1 . Caledonian Clinic Ltd.
2 . Medical Arts Center
3. Wellington Medical Clinic
Best Hearing Center
one Costco Wholesale
2 . NexGen Hearing
3. Connect Hearing
Best Home/Kitchen Appliance Store
1 . Coast Wholesale Appliances
2 . Trail Appliances
3. Home Depot
Greatest Home Builder
1 . Shining Knight Construction Inc.
2 . Alair Homes Nanaimo
3. B. Gallant Homes Ltd.
Best Home Improvement Store
1 . Home Depot
2 . Home Hardware
3. Lowe’s
Best Optical Store
1 . Highview Optical
2 . Costco Wholesale
a few. FYidoctors
Best Home Renovation Company
1 ) Shining Knight Construction Inc.
2 . Pheasant Hill Homes Ltd.
3. Alair Homes Nanaimo
Best Housewares/Linen Store
1 . HomeSense
2 . Flying Fish
three or more. The Bay
Best Insurance Agency
1 . Driven Agencies
2 . BCAA
several. Coastal Community Insurance Providers Ltd.
Best Janitorial/Housekeeping Service
1 . Vancouver Island Grime Fighters
2 . Acacia Cleansing Services
3 or more. Lemon Tree Housekeeping
Best Jewelry Store
1 . Keller’s Jewellers
2 . Peoples Jewellers
3. Michael Hill
Best Law Firm
1 . Ramsay Lampman Rhodes
second . Duncan Allen Law LLP
3. Heath Law LLP
Best Landscaping Business
1 . McKenzie Maintenance
2 . Concepts Landscaping
3. Jim’s Mowing and Gardening
Best Lighting Store
one Mclaren Lighting
2 . Home Depot
3. Lowe’s
Best Marine Supplier
1 . The Harbour Chandler Ltd.
2 . Stones Boatyard and the Sea Store
3. Parker Marine
Best Massage Clinic
1 ) Knead Registered Massage Therapy
2 . Woodgrove Pines Wellness Clinic
3. Pure Spa
Best Mattress Store
1 . Sleep Country
2 . John’s Bedroom Barn
a few. Dodd’s Furniture and Bed mattress
Greatest Mortgage Broker
1 . Oceanvale Mortgage plus Finance
second . Flawless Financing
2 . Sand Dollar Mortgages
3. Invis
Best Moving Company
1 . Junk Within our Trunk
2 . Take A Load Off Moving
3. Clydesdale Moving and Hauling
Best Oil Changes
1 . Great Canadian Essential oil Change
second . BCAA
three or more. Steve Marshall Ford Lincoln
Greatest Paint Store
1 . Cloverdale Paint
2 . Benjamin Moore
several. Home Hardware
3. Home Depot
Best Painting Company
1 . Pride Painting Ltd.
2 . Sonshine Girls Painting
3. Student Works Artwork
Best Personal Training Business
1 . Authentically Fit
2 . Empowered Physique/Coach Katelynne
3. Body Tempo
Best Pet Grooming Business
1 . Dog ‘N Suds Pet Services
2 . 4 Paws Mobile Nail Trims
3. Nanaimo Dog Services
Best Pet Supply Shop
1 . Bosley’s Pet Food Plus
2 . PetSmart
3. Oliver’s Pet Supplies
Best Pharmacy
1 . Central Drugs
2 . Medicine Shoppe
3. Save-On-Foods
Best Photographer
1 . Janayh Wright Photography
2 . Jorja Portraits (Angela Eaves Photography)
3. Concept Photography Incorporation
Greatest Place to Buy a New Vehicle
one Steve Marshall Ford Lincoln subsequently
2 . Nanaimo Toyota
3 or more. Nanaimo Honda
Best Outdoor Garden Centre
1 . Little Tree Backyard Centre
second . GardenWorks
3. Green Thumb Garden Centre
Best Place to Buy an Used Automobile
1 ) Galaxy Motors
2 . Steve Marshall Ford Lincoln
a few. Bouman Auto Gallery
3. Nanaimo Toyota
Greatest Place to get Tires
1 . Cedar Tireland
2 . Kal Tire
3. Costco Wholesale
Best Real Estate Agent/Team
1 . Scott Parker Team
2 . Dawn Walton and Associates
3. Robyn Hewer
Best Retirement Community
1 . Berwick On The Lake
second . Origin At Longwood
2 . Kiwanis Village
3. Eden Gardens
Best Roofing Company
1 . Erickson Roofing
2 . All the Way Roofing
3. Best on Top Roofing
Greatest Security Company
1 . Footprints Security Patrol
second . Securco Services Inc.
3. Spectre Protection Inc.
Best Estheticians
1 . The Girl Cave
2 . Foxy Box Laser and Wax Bar
3. Breze Aveda Concept Salon and Day Spa
Best Nail Studio
1 . The Babe Cave
second . The Nail Lounge
3. Neon Nail Studio
Best Sewing Notions Store
1 . Fabricland
2 . Snip and Stitch Sewing Centre
three or more. Michaels
several. Serge and Sew
Best Sporting Goods Store
1 . Cabela’s
2 . Sport Chek
3. Kirby’s Source For Sports
Best Storage Organization
one Budget Self Storage
2 . U-Lock Mini Storage
3 or more. Nanaimo Mini Storage
Best Shop to Buy Books
1 . Chapters
2 . Literacy Main Vancouver Island
3. Rotary Used Book Sale
Best Store to Buy Tools
1 ) Midland Tools
2 . Home Depot
3. Canadian Tire
Greatest Tanning Salon
1 . Golden Sands Tanning Studio
2 . Divine Glow
3. Solisa Tanning
Best Tattoo Studio
1 . Relegation Tattoo
2 . The particular Electric Umbrella Tattoo plus Gallery
3. Black and Blue Skin image
Greatest Tile Store
1 . City Tile
2 . Cornerstone Tile
a few. BEtile
Best Toy Store
1 . Kool and Child
2 . Toys ‘R’ Us
3. The Children’s Treehouse
Best Travel Agency
1 . Amanda Rauh The Travel Agent Next Door
second . Marlin Travel
3. Imagine Cruise and Travel
Best Tree Service
1 . V. I. Tree Services
2 . Davey Tree Expert Company
3. Flying Squirrel Woods Service
three or more. Jeff’s Tree Service
Best Veterinary Clinic
1 . VCA Canada Island Animal Hospital
2 . Chase River Vet Hospital
several. Mahalo Veterinary Hospital
Best Vitamin/Health Food Store
1 . Pomme Natural Market
2 . Charlie Brown’s Health Foods
3. Costco Wholesale
3. Nanaimo’s Health Shop
Best Yoga Studio
one Red Door Yoga
2 . Modo Yoga Nanaimo
3 or more. Oxygen Yoga and Fitness
Best Shoe Store
1 . Frontrunners
2 . A Step Ahead
3. SoftMoc
Greatest Kids’ Clothing Store
1 . Once Upon A Child
2 . Old Navy
3. Pumpkin Pie Kids
Best Farmers’ Market
1 . Planks Farmers Market
2 . Island Roots Farmers’ Market
3. Nicol Street Market
Best Lingerie Store
1 . Purple Cactus Underwear
2 . La Vie En Rose
3. Elizabeth’s Lingerie Drawer
Best Place to Shop
1 . Woodgrove Centre
2 . KC’s Boutique and Petites
3. Costco Wholesale
Best Store for Ladieswear
1 ) KC’s Boutique and Petites
2 . Winners
3. CurVa-Voom
Best Store for Menswear
1 . Mark’s
2 . NYLA Fresh Thread
3. The Bay
Best Consignment or Thrift Store
1 . Nanaimo Hospital Auxiliary Thrift Store
2 . Nanaimo Hospice Shoppe
3. Friends of Haven Thrift Store
Best Performing Arts School
1 . Vibrant Studios (Vibe)
2 . Harbour Dance Studios Inc.
3. Kirkwood Academy of Performing Arts
Best Art Gallery
1 . Nanaimo Art Gallery
second . Yellow Bird Arts Gallery
3. The particular View Gallery
Best Jam Session/Open Mic
1 . The Queen’s
2 . The Vault Café
a few. The Nanaimo Bar
Best Karaoke
1 . Oxy Pub
2 . Quarterway Pub
3. Carlos O’Bryan’s Neighbourhood Pub
Best Music Trivia
one Landlubber Pub
2 . Musiq Trivia with Rory
three or more. Oxy Pub
3. Well Pub/Wellington Pub
Greatest Place for Live Bands
1 ) The Queen’s
2 . Port Theatre
3. The Nanaimo Bar
Best Place to Dance
1 . The Queen’s
2 . Vibrant Studios (Vibe)
3. LevelTwo Nightclub
Best Theatre Company
1 . Nanaimo Theatre Group
second . Yellow Point Drama Team
3. TheatreOne
Greatest Bakery
1 . Red’s Bakery
2 . Bodhi’s Artisan Bakery
several. Cobs Bread
Best Nanaimo Bars
1 . Red’s Bakery
2 . Nanaimo Bakery
3. Hearthstone Artist Bakery
Best Asian Food
1 . Huong Lan Vietnamese Restaurant
2 . Nori Japanese Restaurant
3 or more. Quality Foods
Best Breakfast/Brunch
1 . Gabriel’s Gourmet Café
2 . Tania’s Restaurant
3. Kelly’s Kitchen Café
Best Catering Business
1 . Spice of Life Catering
2 . COCO Café
3. Smokin’ George’s BBQ Restaurant
Best Chicken Wings
1 . Landlubber Pub
2 . Oxy Bar
3. Carlos O’Bryan’s Neighbourhood Pub
Best Cinnamon Buns
1 . Cobs Bread
2 . Red’s Bakery
3. Bodhi’s Artisan Bakery
Best Steakhouse
1 . Bold Knight Restaurant
2 . Montana’s BBQ plus Bar
3. Mahle House Restaurant
Best Nachos
one Longwood Brew Pub and Restaurant
2 . Gina’s Mexican Café
3. Carlos O’Bryan’s Neighbourhood Pub
Best Place to Meet for Coffee
1 . Drip Coffee Social
second . Buzz Coffee House
3. Brüd House
Best Curry
1 . Gateway To India Restaurant
2 . Flavours Of India
3. Heritage Indian Cuisine
Best Deli
1 . Nesvog Meats and Sausage Company
2 . Nellie’s European Deli
a few. McLean’s Specialty Foods
Best Desserts
1 ) Burnt Honey Dessert Business
2 . Red’s Bakery
three or more. A Wee Cupcakery
Best Family Restaurant
1 . White Spot
2 . Montana’s BBQ and Bar
3. Milano’s Ristorante
Best Fish and Chips
1 . Troller’s Seafood and Chips
2 . Maggie’s Seafood Marketplace Fish and Chips
3. Cod Squad Fish and Chips
Best Happy Hour
1 . Carlos O’Bryan’s Neighbourhood Pub
2 . Cactus Club Café
3. Browns Socialhouse
3. Old Town Station Pub
Best Place for Birthday Parties
1 . Carlos O’Bryan’s Neighbourhood Pub
2 . Brechin Lanes
3. Asteras Greek Taverna
Best Place for Cocktails and Shots
1 . Carlos O’Bryan’s Neighbourhood Pub
2 . Cactus Club Kaffeehaus
3. The particular Nanaimo Bar
Best Sports Pub
one Carlos O’Bryan’s Neighbourhood Bar
2 . Old City Station Pub
3. Original Joe’s Restaurant and Bar
Best Appetizers/Tapas
1 ) Carlos O’Bryan’s Neighbourhood Pub
2 . Asteras Greek Taverna
3. Cactus Club Café
Greatest Martini
1 . Cactus Club Kaffeehaus
2 . Carlos O’Bryan’s Neighbourhood Pub
3. The Nanaimo Bar
Best Place to buy Create Beer
1 . White Sails Brewing
2 . Longwood Brew Pub and Restaurant
3. Longwood Brewery
Best Place to Buy Wine
1 . B. C. Liquor Shop
2 . Lucky’s Liquor Store
3. Greenrock Liquor Store
Best Wine-Making Store
1 . Nanaimo Wines Shoppe
second . Wine Kitz
3. The Wine Works
Best Fast Food
one Big Wheel Burger
2 . A& W Restaurants
2 . BarBurrito
several. Delicado’s Deli
Best Food Truck
1 . Sip and Sliders
2 . Harbour City Donuts
3. Tacomania
Best French Fries
1 . New York Fries
second . McDonald’s
3 or more. Costco Wholesale
Best Hamburgers
1 . Bin 4 Burger Lounge
2 . Top Notch Burgers
3. Big Wheel Burger
Best Ice Cream plus Gelato
1 . Burnt Honey Delicacy Company
2 . Cold Front Gelato
3. Dairy Queen
Greatest Kids’ Restaurant
1 . White Spot
2 . McDonald’s
3. Smitty’s
Best Lunches
1 . Crow and Gate Pub
second . Gabriel’s Gourmet Café
3. Delicado’s Deli
Greatest Mediterranean Food
1 . Asteras Ancient greek Taverna
2 . Alexandra’s Bistro
3. Milano’s Ristorante
3. Zougla Cafe
Best Pasta
1 . La Stella Trattoria
2 . Milano’s Ristorante
3. New York Style Pizza and Pasta
a few. The View Oceanside Grill
Greatest Patio Restaurant
1 . Crow plus Gate Pub
2 . Carlos O’Bryan’s Neighbourhood Pub
three or more. Dinghy Dock Pub
Best Pizza
1 ) Mambo Gourmet Pizza
2 . Milano’s Ristorante
3. Una Stella Trattoria
Best Place to Buy Meat
1 . Nesvog Meats and Sausage Company
2 . Meat Craft Tropical isle Butchery
several. Costco Wholesale
Best Place to Purchase Produce
1 . Cedar Farmers Market
2 . Thrifty Foods
3 or more. Nanaimo Fruit and Vegetable Company
Best Place to Buy Seafood
1 . Seadrift Fish Market plus Eatery
second . Thrifty Foods
3. St . Jean’s Cannery and Smokehouse
Best Pub
1 . Crow and Gate Pub
2 . Longwood Brew Pub and Restaurant
3. Carlos O’Bryan’s Neighbourhood Pub
Best Restaurant Overall
one Asteras Greek Taverna
2 . Mahle Home Restaurant
3. The View Oceanside Barbeque grill
Best Romantic Restaurant
1 . Mahle House Restaurant
2 . Asteras Greek Taverna
3. The View Oceanside Grill
Best Seafood Eating place
1 ) The View Oceanside Grill
2 . Troller’s Fish and Chips
3. Nori Japan Restaurant
Best Sushi
1 . Nori Western Restaurant
second . Umai Sushi
3. Sushi Ryu
Best Tacos
1 . Gina’s Mexican Café
2 . Baby Salsa
3. Jalapeños Mexican Food
Best Take-Out Food
one Poké Page
2 . Huong Lan Vietnamese Restaurant
a few. Mambo Gourmet Pizza
3. Smokin’ George’s BBQ Restaurant
Best Vegetarian Meals
1 ) Eve Olive
2 . Gabriel’s Gourmet Café
3. Delicado’s Deli
Best Local Campground
1 . Living Forest Oceanside Campground and RV Resort
2 . Westwood Lake Campground Resort
three or more. Brannen Lake RV Park and Campsite
Best People-Watching Place
1 . Maffeo Sutton Park
2 . Harbourfront Walkway
3. Commercial Street Night Market
Best Place for a Picnic
1 . Saysutshun Newcastle Island Marine Provincial Recreation area
2 . Pipers Lagoon Park
3. Neck Point Park
Greatest Place for Paddling
1 . Westwood Lake
2 . Departure Bay
3. Newcastle Channel
Best Place to Jog, Walk or Hike
one Westwood Lake Park
2 . Neck Point Park
several. Harbourfront Walkway
Best Place to Swim Outdoors
1 . Nanaimo River
2 . Westwood Lake
3. Departure Bay
Best Place to Mountain Bike
1 ) Doumont Hill
2 . Mount Benson
3. Steve Smith Bike Park
3. Westwood Lake Recreation area
Best Place to Take Guests
1 . Neck Point Park
2 . Crow and Door Pub
3 or more. Harbourfront Walkway
Best Place to Walk Your Dog
1 . Colliery Dam Park
2 . Westwood Lake Park
3. Neck Point Recreation area
Greatest Place to Watch Birds
1 . Buttertubs Marsh
second . Nanaimo River Estuary
3. Morrell Nature Sanctuary
Best Tourism Activity/Adventure Company
1 . Saysutshun Newcastle Island Ocean Provincial Park
2 . WildPlay Nanaimo
3. Kitties plus Cream
3. Explore Vancouver Island
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