The Waddling Dog is a little pub with food as full of flavour as it is full of grease. Located just off the Pat Bay Highway on Mt. Newton Cross Road, this little pub offers that a quiet atmosphere that I love.
I’m not going to lie, folks: 90 percent of the reason I went was due to the name… how can you not snicker every time you hear it? Better yet, I’ve heard they even have a waddling dog on the premises! (Although I never saw him; too bad.) The restaurant features all the staples: dim lighting, booths and tables of wooden construction, sports on TV, and a bar.
It’s a “seat yourself” type of place, but our waitress wasted no time in coming over to ID us and take our drink orders.
For the eats, myself and one of my friends had the clubhouse sandwich, another had poutine, and the fourth had a chicken sandwich. Each dish ran about $11 to $13, plus drinks. Our drinks showed up quickly, followed shortly after by the food.
The clubhouse was pretty great, and came with bacon, chicken, tomato, lettuce, and avocado on multigrain bread. Mine also came with a side of French fries, which were amazing; bad French fries are always a downer. As near as I could tell, they were battered with something before being fried, making them that much more delicious… although they could turn a paper bag see-through.
The poutine was certainly unique as well. Coming with your standard cheese, gravy, and the same battered French fries, it also sported green onions and bacon, giving it some extra flavour. The fourth dish was the chicken sandwich, which came on a baguette with chipotle mayo and veggies. This one did not register as high in grease factor as the other two, but was still very good.
Some restaurants are greasy in the worst of ways (think seedy and unpleasant); The Waddling Dog is greasy in all the best ways (think deliciousness and curing hangovers). As the chicken sandwich shows, some dishes definitely dial back the grease, so don’t be scared off if you’re on a diet, as they still have plenty to offer. (But get some of the French fries anyways, because why not?)
As bonus, The Waddling Dog also has two free pool tables and dart boards, so even after you eat, you can hang out for a while and have some fun. So if you find yourself out in this part of Saanich, maybe returning home from the ferries, drop in to The Waddling Dog and enjoy some food and pool.