Ancora - Ambleside

“We had a very tasty and satisfying meal here. The kids absolutely devoured everything! We came with four children, including one infant, and had an amazing time. The service was excellent, and the staff were very attentive and caring. We truly enjoyed everything and would definitely come back!”

“Fantastic service from Edward. Great wine pairing. Presentation and quality of the Ancora glacier seafood platter was 5 stars. Highly recommend the sushi "pizza". Finished with an amazing Amaro and double espresso. Chef's kiss.”

“Visited Ancora in West Van in June 2026 for lunch. Not very busy on a weekday but nice that it's just of the waterfront. We had thr Just Peachy ($12) and Sparkling Red ($14) non-alcoholic beverages which were refreshing. Then we moved onto the Ancora Glacier ($75 for 2 people) which comes with fresh oyster, ceviche mixto, poached prawns, tuna tartare, sashimi selection, crab causa, and mussels a la chalaca. We also added a side of Brussels Sprouts ($11) since we needed some veggies. The platter is very protein rich so it does get filling. Nice place to stop and grab some eats before strolling on the beach.”

“Debated whether to write this review because it was one of the most (if not the) most disappointing dining experience FOOD wise but also received the best service that turned the experience around. So 1.5 star for the food, 5+ for the service. Also I’m sure I’m biased because we had the dine out menu (3 course, 70$ pp) and I’m sure that regular menu is much better because or else idk how it can get all these good reviews. I love Peruvian food and Japanese food and I love Peruvian Japanese fusion. So it’s not that I wasn’t used to the flavors. It’s just the quality of the dishes from the conception to the execution was just not there. Even price aside, it’s simply not good. It’s not just “it’s not worth the price” - it doesn’t even justify the presentation. I know I’m being harsh but that was how disappointing the food was. I’ve never sent any dish back at a restaurant but upon asked I had to tell our lovely waiter how disappointed we were, and she was very kind to let us choose another dish from the regular menu and we got a great octopus appetizer (grilled very well although way too salty, but MUCH better than our mains) The best part of the meal was the complimentary sweet potato bread, although it didn’t really pair well with the spread. The beef tartare was too acidic and had too much mustard, could not taste the beef at all. The Peruvian nigiri set was just disappointing but I won’t belabor about it I should’ve known it wouldn’t be anything close to Peruvian or Japanese. But at least you can get the rice consistency right (too hard and wrong type of rice) and the mashed potato (causa)’s temperature right (not straight from the fridge..) and the crab meat was not fresh at all. The avocado mousse was a guac that tasted half spoiled. We were rly looking forward to the mains - the halibut was overcooked and so bland even with the sauce. The carrots were somehow charred and raw at the same time. The pork belly was barely edible - super fatty and bland, and paired with a creamy sauce? Idk how to eat that. The scallops were fine although they were very small. After our mains and feedback that’s when the head chef came out to chat with us and he was the sweetest guy - we explained that we believe it’s really this dine out menu that’s the miss and trust that the rest of the items are solid. Felt bad but he received the feedback so well, low ego and everything. He and our waitress rly made our night and turned the experience around. As for desserts, they were good! Not amazing but compared to everything else we had wont nickpick too much there :)”

“Came for DineOut 2026. The pumpkin bread and spread were nice, and the sushi was surprisingly good. The beef tartar on toast's visual presentation didn't seem that great but our kid enjoyed it. The entrees are where the entire evening fell flat. The fish we aren't sure if it was overdone or that's just how this species is, but it was quite tough and dry. Seasoning was lackluster and the sauce was bland. It came with ~1.5 sticks of root veg (yummy!) but oddly there were no carbs at all. Despite the small portions, some of our group didn't even finish their fish as it just wasn't that appetizing. On to the pork belly and scallops. Scallops were great and we loved those. My piece of pork belly was crispy but another guest said theirs was really fatty and greasy. There was a complete lack of acidity or other zing factor to accompany such a fat-heavy dish. Few pieces of potato but no veg. The steak frites equivalent (not pictured) was the most well received. The presliced filet mignon was great and came with nicely done fries, plus (oddly) a large pile of rice and again no veg at all. Dessert of panna cotta or some fried fritters was pretty nice. Service level was standard. Nice ambiance and feels classy. I have been wrestling with whether to write this review as I know how a poor review can affect business, but it's been weeks and clearly I haven't gotten over it. Ancora was one of only a handful of venues at the max-level $70 tier for DineOut, so we were fully expecting a premium experience, but the meal just didn't deliver. We are no strangers to dining venues with small portions but the main issue here is that the dishes were small *and not good*. The conceptualization, composition and end quality just weren't up to par and left us disappointed.”