Victoria's brunch eateries adapt for Mother's Day

As the Mother's Day weekend approaches, Victoria's many brunch restaurants are having tochange the way they do things to stay afloat in the midst of apandemic.

Usually, on this weekend, Victoria residents could expect long lineups of people waiting to get tables.But this year is different as people stay home and follow public health directions to limit the spread of COVID-19.

Jason Chan is a partner in the Village restaurant, which has several locations in Greater Victoria.He says almost immediately after restaurants closed their doors, he had to think of a new way to do business.

"We tried takeout for a bit. It just wasn't working, so we pivoted to a food, meal box and liquor distribution service."

Chan says he misses the bustling environment of a packed dining room but says the new model is keeping the lights on.

"It's been really good, actually, and the support from the community has been fantastic.Because of that, we're not slowing down, we're ramping up right now."

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Many restaurants are now looking forward to what reopening will look like in British Columbia.Chan says the small, intimate nature of brunch restaurants is part of their charm.

"Part of our magic sauce is that it's a bustling intimate environment," but that could also make it even more difficult to stay in business right now.

Josh Miller owns Mo:L Restaurant in downtown Victoria and Mo:L on Millstream andsays restrictions on capacity could mean many small brunch spots will not survive the pandemic.

"For my downtown restaurant, with a 45 seat capacity, it's going to be a real challenge to do that with 20 seats. We need it to be full for it to actually be viable. With my Millstream location, which is quite a bit bigger, we can have a lot more space and we'll be able to survive out there with people in the dining room."

And he thinks the shift to food, grocery and alcohol delivery will have to remain in place for him to stay in business.

"We know we're not going to have the same revenues in the restaurant. Restaurants need to have a good takeout and delivery game of some sort, if it's going to work out for us."

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Rebecca Wellman wrote First, We Brunch, a book that collected recipes and stories from some of Victoria's breakfast restaurants.

She says the pandemic could change Victoria's brunch culture when some businesses don'tpull through.

"The question for them is 'is it going to be worth it?' to be paying staff and food costs when there's just not a lot of people going to be comfortable yet coming into their places."

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While Greater Victoria residents will not be able to take their moms out to a restaurant for brunch, many of those eateries are offering special brunch meal kits this weekend.

Miller says he has also made the unprecedented move of taking this Sundayoff.

"This is something that in the brunch industry you do not ever do. It's hard enough to get a Sunday off, let alone a Mother's Day."

He plans to stay home with his wife and kids, but will make time for a special visit.

"I actually get to go see my grandmother, through a window, for the first time in months."

Chan says being able to take some time off will be a silver lining for a tough situation.

"Sunday off, Mother's Day off, just even thinking about it feels weird."