Dine Around Victoria Will Be a Full Month Long in 2012!

Start your tummy engines rumbling, foodies!

The Dine Around Victoria 2012 dates are set: Feb. 17 through March 16. This year’s event will run for a full month rather than three weeks, thanks to enthusiastic demand from Victoria diners last year.

What is Dine Around, you newbies ask? Just the best value EVER in restaurant dining, that’s all!

All across the city, restaurants will be offering special three-course Dine Around menus. Special prices for these menus are set at $20, $30, or $40 per person. Local hotels get in on the game, too. Victoria visitors can take advantage of special one-night room rates of  $69, $79, $99, and $129 at many of the city’s best properties.

At least half the fun is in browsing the menus beforehand to drool over the culinary descriptions. Most menus have at least one option for vegetarians, and I count 16 restaurants providing specific celiac menu options this year. You can view all 2012 Dine Around menus online here.

To get your saliva flowing, check out the $40 per person menu options from The Empress Room at the Fairmont Empress Hotel. Oh, yum.

• Appetizer 1

Organic Greens Salad: Braised Root Vegetables, Farmhouse Feta Cheese, “Empress Honey Bee” Vinaigrette

• Appetizer 2

French Onion Soup with Parmesan & Emmenthal Cheese

• Appetizer 3

Smoked Salmon Gravlax, Frisee Endive Salad ,Toasted Baguette, Caper Vinaigrette

• Entree 1

Sesame Crusted Sablefish Filet, Shiitake Mushroom Risotto, Soy & Cauliflower Cream Sauce

• Entree 2

8 -ounce AAA Striploin Steak with Creamed Leeks, Scampi, Wasabi-Mashed Potatoes

• Entree 3

Quinoa & Grilled Vegetable, Swiss Chard Roll, Charred Tomato Coulis

• Dessert 1

Empress Creme Brûlée with Brandy-Infused Cherries

• Dessert 2

Spiced Apple Pie with Rum Raisin Ice Cream

• Dessert 3

Chestnut Cheesecake with Hazelnut Brittle, Cassis Coulis