Set the tone with an enchanting vibe and fine dining experience inside Cowichan Bay's The Masthead Restaurant.
Up your romance game any day of the week for the light of your life with candlelit tables bedecked with small vases of flowers and the ever popular Masthead tenderloin or other menu item of your choice.
Owner Nuala Forsythe expects to be sold out on V Day, which she said, along with New Year's Eve, has always been one of their busiest nights. Guests will have their choice of four different courses for $109 plus taxes and gratuities, or for $139 with wine pairings. Guests will receive a glass of sparkling Rosé on arrival, and homemade truffles to take home. There will be seatings available at both 4:30 and 8 p.m., and prepaid reservations are required. To view the choices for their special Valentine's Day menu, and hold your spot visit themasthead.com.
While the fine dining restaurant sets the mood with music with every dining experience, they jazz things up even more every Saturday night with two sets of live music with double bassist John Wade, pianist Phil Newns, and his talented daughter KC who sings some sexy sultry jazz while guests enjoy their supper.
"Phil played here before we took over, but it was our decision to ask his daughter KC, who is a jazz singer, to perform every Saturday as well. She is such a cool kid," said Forsythe. "The first set is a double bass and piano, and then for the second set around 7:30 p.m., KC comes on to sing."
"I just love the energy, it has a 1940s vibe on a Saturday, and I really enjoy getting to perform alongside my dad," said KC.
People have been singing the praises of The Masthead, which is known for their fresh, local food for many moons. The heritage building, which was erected roughly in 1868, was built by European immigrant Gioanni Baptiste Ordano as the original Columbia Hotel — a roadhouse for visitors travelling over the Malahat. It's had a few faces, including as a car dealership, before serving fine food. Over the years, it's developed a reputation for quality through its former and second owner Luke Harms and his wife who ran the esteemed establishment for nearly two decades, bringing with him a wealth of service and culinary experience.
The Forsythes, who both hail from England, did not have a lot of restaurant experience between them with the exception of Nuala earning a degree in Hotel Catering and Institutional Management 40 odd years ago. They took over the seaside village staple in 2020, and while it hasn't all been smooth sailing it has certainly been an adventure.
"I'm a jack of all trades, master of none," kidded Forsythe. "It's amazing what came back from that, but I actually never went into the catering industry. Instead I went into general management. We bought it right in the thick of COVID and it was terrible," said Forsythe. "In the beginning we really struggled. We had take-out and about three or four tables on the patio. We did however end up buying these cool little pods that were like little mini wedding tents, and we set the three of them up, distanced apart and called them the cabanas, and people absolutely loved them."
The Forsythes first moved to Vancouver in 2007, and after spending several years in Whistler where Nuala worked as a building manager for a lodge as well as owning her own small housekeeping company which she still has today, it was their love of being close to their only child Oliver that led them to the Cowichan Valley. They had originally looked a buying a float home in the bay with the option to operate it as an Air B&B but when the owner wasn't having it, they decided to throw caution to the wind, and took him up on the offer to take over The Masthead.
"It was literally Oliver attending Brentwood that made us decide to move to the area," said Forsythe. "It's funny the day we closed the deal on The Masthead was actually Remembrance Day and we picked him up from school because he had a three day break, and we brought him here and came in the back and immediately asked if we had bought this place because we hadn't told him."
Since taking over they've introduced their brunch on Sundays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m where guests will be treated to a twist on their breakfast fare with impressive à la carte items such as their smoked salmon eggs Benedict.
"Our brunches have really been picking up and we have been seeing even more reservations for birthdays," said Forsythe. "On a nice sunny Sunday morning you can't beat the lovely view."
Since recently hiring two new chefs, the Forsythes have their sights set on several goals for the future including offering additional brunches and lunches throughout the week, as well as possibly bringing back their popular full English Breakfast, which was a huge hit with other local limeys.
Anyone who has ever worked in the restaurant industry knows how fickle it can be and how business can ebb and low, but Forsythe believes it is important to be true to your brand and the kind of restaurant you aim to be, and feels that their new chefs will help take things in the right direction to continue to elevate their already elegant service and outstanding cuisine, and already has plans to once again team up with some local wineries to offer their guests wine-making dinners. They have partnered with Averill Creek in the past and look to team up with other local wineries such as Unsworth in the near future, which will be publicized once dates are confirmed.
"We will be partnering with local wineries, the first being Emandare," said Forsythe. "So our chef will meet with with the winemaker and together will create a menu based on perfect pairings. We did a cool one last year on Earth Day with an East Indian winemaker from the Okanagan, and hosted it the day before Earth Day so everything we offered was very organic, and vegan."
With the exception of their pasta that they source out of Cow Bay's Kilrenny Farm they take pride in doing everything in house from their signature sauces, and freshly baked bread to drying their own fruits and smoking their own meats. Forsythe said despite the often ridiculous market prices, patrons will never not order one of their tasty tenderloins.
"Sadly the market price are what they are, we are at battle constantly with do we give in to the economy and go cheaper or do we stay true to the fine dining experience," said Forsythe. "I keep thinking if we can stay true to our brand then maybe we can ride the storm. We are typically the place people like to come for their anniversary or birthdays, but now it's about getting people to dig the food so much that they also want to come out on a rainy Tuesday."
While they offer a fine dining experience, there is never an expectation for a formal dress code in this romantic yet relaxed atmosphere. The Masthead currently has a staff of three to four hosts as well as four to five full time servers including valley veteran Mark Niven.
"Mark has been in the industry here in the Cowichan Valley for the last 30 years," said Forsythe. "He has worked at several restaurants throughout the valley and also twilights at Unsworth Vineyard, and it's just amazing how many people know and recognize him. It's been cool."
"The Masthead was the first restaurant I worked at when I moved to the valley in 2005," said Niven. "I returned when the Forsythes took over; I just love being able to connect with so many people, and giving them a good experience to remember."
Forsythe, who feels more than comfortable with her dream team up front executing exceptional service, said she prefers to stay behind the scenes to focus on her management and administration duties such as payroll and accounting.
"It can come with it's challenges sometimes, but as I like to say, Richard Branson doesn't fly the planes or play the records," jokes Forsythe.
Some locals may find it cool that the longstanding heritage building has a reputation for being haunted, but The Masthead prefers to focus their attention on different kinds of spirits altogether, including an array of local wines as well as their signature cocktails.
"One of our bartenders, Pam Stiles, is a fellow Brit," said Forsythe. "She had spent some time over in England and when she returned we ended up having a gin month with gin specials, and even had one with marmalade in it and called it the Paddington."
"One of my favourite parts of bartending is creating the cocktails; I just love the alchemy of it," said Stiles.
The Masthead, which is currently open seven days a week for dinner at 5 p.m., is looking at extending its hours come summer with an option for brunch or lunch from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. with the intent to close for a short period before reopening for dinner.
"Our favourite part since taking over has been gaining the support of the locals," said Forsythe. "It has been amazing. The former owner did such a good job, I feel there might have been some concern if we would carry the torch as well. My hope is that our patrons leave feeling that they experienced great food and great service."
