You wouldn’t recognize it today, but this building became the first restaurant in downtown Sooke, way back at the end of the Second World War. It still stands at the corner of Sooke and Townsend roads, though we’ve heard there may be plans for a commercial development on that property.
When the war ended in 1945, the camp buildings at the district's two main army training camps, Milne’s Landing and Otter Point, were left with structures previously used by army personnel. At Milne, many buildings were retained for use by the newly formed Milne’s Landing High School.
At the Otter Point Camp, most buildings were sold for use elsewhere. This is how George Osborne acquired one of the rectangular structures and had it hauled to the downtown location. His wife, Kay, became the cook, and the restaurant featured pies and snacks for the hungry loggers and fishermen who stopped by.
Longtime Sooke fisherman Ray Vowles, a teenager at the time, recalled going there with his brother Tuck Vowles and buddies Wilbert Goudie and Art Cook. “It was the only place you could get something to eat, so we all hung out there," he said.
The woman pictured is Kay Osborne’s sister Phyllis, who retired as matron of the small hospital at Lytton and came to Sooke to help Kay bake pies. It turned out the pies were so good that veteran logger Byron Johnson from up Phillips Road found himself stopping by so often that he proposed marriage to Phyllis. The new Phyllis Johnson became an activist working towards a long-term care home for Sooke. (Through her fundraising efforts, the land was acquired where Ayre Manor Campus of Care is today.)
In the 1950s, the cafe required expansion, and the square-built addition you see on the left was added. In the early '60s, the cafe was purchased by a Victoria couple, Ray and Marg Price. I recall this dining room was often used for bridal showers, and Margaret was known for her delicate bone china teacups and fancy sandwiches. After she retired from restaurant work, she gave her teacups to the museum.
The Price’s son Trevor was permitted to attend Sooke School, though the family lived in Saseenos, and he recalls the many friends who hung out with him at this central spot.
Since those years, the restaurant has undergone alterations and seen a series of owners highlighting different cuisines. While other eateries have become available since, this corner building has served Sooke for almost 80 years.
Elida Peers is a historian with Sooke Region Museum
