The Discovery Room is Vancouver Island University’s full-service learning restaurant connecting students with our community patrons. Learning by doing, Hospitality Management and Culinary Students together serve up a contemporary dining experience. By experiencing the Discovery Room, your support fuels our student’ growth and education.
Become a partner in our students' learning! Join us to dine, Sign-up for email updates or follow-us on Instagram.
Lunch & Dinner Service - Fall 2023
Lunch Service
Lunch service is offered on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays (with the exception of statutory and academic holidays and special events) from mid-September to mid-June with reservations for parties of 8 people or less from 11:30am to 12:30pm.
Fall 2023 lunch service dates (reservations are accepted a maximum of three weeks in advance - a new week opens every Wednesday at 9am):
September 20, 21, 22, 27, 28, 29,
October 4, 5, 6, 11, 12, 13, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 27
November 1, 2, 3, 8, 9, 10, 15, 16, 17, 20, 30
December 1, 6, 7, 8, 13, 14, 15, 20, 21
Bold = special holiday menu with details to be announced.
Fall 2023 Reservation Release Calendar (to see when you can start booking)
Trying to add yourself to the waitlist? Here's how + FAQ
Dinner Service
Dinner service is offered on most Thursday and Friday evenings from early October to early April with reservations for parties of 8 people or less from 5 to 6pm.
Fall 2023 dinner service dates (reservations are accepted a maximum of three weeks in advance - a new week opens every Wednesday at 9am):
October 5, 6, 12, 13, 19, 20, 26, 27
November 2, 3, 9, 10, 16, 17
December 7, 8, 14, 15, 21
Bold = special holiday menu with details to be announced.
Fall 2023 Reservation Release Calendar (to see when you can start booking)
The Discovery Room Reservations
Reservations are managed using the TouchBistro Reservations Website.
Menus
Our menus change weekly and are typically refreshed here every Monday for the coming week's service. Because we work with fresh ingredients in this learning environment it is not uncommon for the menu to change from what is posted.
If you have special dietary requirements, including the need for a vegetarian meal, please let us know ahead of time.
Lunch Menu: Lunch Menu (Oct 4-6)
Dinner Menu: Dinner Menu (Oct 5-6)
Parking & Access
The Discovery Room can be hard to find! We recommend parking in Lot F which is accessed via entrance 5C off of Fifth Street (pay parking machines accept cash or credit cards). Enter building 300 through the Welcome Centre for level access.
Parking can be at a premium, especially during the lunch period, so consider allowing a little extra time to find a parking space.
We accept Visa, Mastercard, Debit and cash (cash is our least preferred method of payment). We cannot accept AMEX, VIU PCards or Work Order transfers.
Gratuities are not expected but are very much appreciated. Gratuities are put towards extra-curricular educational enhancement opportunities for the Hospitality and Culinary students.
We offer a modest selection of wines, bottled beer and spirits. During the dinner service you can anticipate that the students will present a mixed drink feature as part of their learning experience.
Our wines-by-the-bottle are priced at $10 above cost. You are also welcome to bring your own bottle of commercially produced wine for $10/750ml corkage. Please pass your wine to the host when you arrive. Bringing wine with a cork is a great opportunity for students to practice with their corkscrews!
Beverage Menu (as we carry a small inventory it is likely that offerings may be different when you dine)
Loadable gift cards are available in any denomination, are valid anytime, and do not expire. You can purchase a gift card during one of our regularly scheduled service periods or order by phone with credit card payment (we will hold the card for you or mail it to the recipient).
Seasonal Soirée (November 23, 2023)
This is a unique opportunity to celebrate the season with friends, clients or colleagues while contributing to a one-of-a-kind educational opportunity for our students at this banquet-style event for 100 people in VIU's building 300 cafeteria.
Previous year's menu and wine details: 2022 Seasonal Soirée Menu & Wine
Sensory Dinner (December 1, 2023 / Spring 2024)
The Sensory Dinner is an event that used to be exclusively offered to our culinary students as an experiential palate expanding part of their curriculum. Changes in our cohort sizes means that sometimes we can extend an invitation for you to join us.
The dinner includes 8-creative and expertly prepared courses at your own table in the Discovery Room (20 - 24 guests in total) for $89 plus tax.
Past menus: Nov 2022 Sensory Dinner Menu; Mar 2023 Sensory Dinner Menu
Plant-Based Tasting Menu (Spring 2024)
A 10-course 100% plant based experience served by our Hospitality students and prepared by the graduating Culinary Diploma students for 20-24 guests in the Discovery Room.
2023 Menu (previous year): Plant Based Tasting Menu 2023
Gastronomic Dinner (Spring 2024)
A 9-course wine paired experiential meal served by our Hospitality students and prepared by the graduating Culinary Diploma students to culminate their education at VIU.
This is an up close and personal educationally focused event for 20-24 guests in the Discovery Room for a collectively focused experience that includes facilitated conversation on dish composition and wine pairings with one of our Chef Instructors or a guest sommelier.
2023 Menu: 2023 Gastronomic Dinner Menu
We are on Instagram
Location
Building 300, at the side of the cafeteria.
VIU Nanaimo Campus Map
Contact Us
Email us at Discovery.Room@viu.ca (email is checked daily). Phoning 250.740.6338 is also an option (phone messages are returned on Wednesday, to Friday).