Victoria’s iconic Fairmont Empress Hotel just completed a thorough revitalization of one of its most famous spaces: The Bengal. Known as Canada’s Castle on the Coast, the Fairmont Empress is one of the oldest hotels in Victoria. Construction began in 1904 and the hotel first opened to guests January 20, 1908. Given its long history, and the fact that it was designated a National Historic Site in 1980, any changes at the Fairmont Empress are carefully considered before being thoughtfully and respectfully undertaken. This thoughtful consideration was applied to the renovation of The Bengal.
From Reading Room to Victoria’s First Cocktail Lounge
Formerly, The Bengal was a lounge. That is, before it was shuttered for a decade in 2016, open only for private bookings or events.
Originally, it opened in 1912 as the Reading & Writing Room before, in 1954, it evolved into the city’s first cocktail lounge of its kind: The Coronet Lounge. The old design was heavily inspired by British colonial-era India. While in some ways, the new Bengal does still speak to that history, it now feels lighter. Rather than functioning as a lounge or cocktail bar, now The Bengal serves as the hotel’s breakfast room. Thankfully, key design details like the heritage-style beams, pallisters, intricate carvings, and antique ceiling fans remain. However, the colour palette has been softened: organic greens and creams harmonize with the prevalence of dark wood and create a connection to the gardens just outside.
How to Change the Historic
There’s a difference between a hotel that feels historical and a hotel that feels old. It is a constant challenge for historic hotels to grapple with preserving and cherishing the past while also not being stuck there. The hotel’s current owners, Nat and Flora Bosa, have not shied from spending to preserve the Empress’ past. Following their acquisition of the property in 2014, they embarked on a massive $60 million “Return the Queen” renovation.
The Empress is no stranger to additions and renovations. She went through two expansions, first in 1910 and then in 1928, before she even reached thirty. Her current lobby has seen some recent changes like the addition of a porte-cochère and a glittering 6 metre high chandelier. Her original lobby is now where afternoon tea is served and the Palm Court where afternoon tea was originally served was, for a number of decades, boarded up about until a leak in the 1980’s led the the discovery of the forgotten, jaw-dropping stained glass ceiling.
Afternoon Tea Feels Like a Trip Back in Time
I struggled to choose a tea from among the many high quality options and thoroughly regret not buying some to bring home with me from the tea shop across from the Lobby Lounge. They even sell it in little Empress hotel tins!
The Creamy Earl Grey is creamy as promised and delightfully sweet as well as fragrant with bergamot. My favourite was the Blue Suede Shoes that, also as promised, is a beautiful blue colour. The Fairmont Empress offers a specially tailored tea to suit kids aged five to twelve. I can imagine those attending the Children’s Royal Tea particularly enjoying this one. Although, it does contain a low level of caffeine. Its base is in fact green rather than blue tea. The spectacular blue colour comes from butterfly blue pea flower.
Service at Afternoon Tea is expert and all of the food is excellently executed. The hotel’s pastry chef has baked more than 8 million scones which explains why the raisin scone I tried was the best I’ve ever tasted. Other favourite items among the packed tiered trays are the roast beef striploin sandwich with pickled onion and horseradish aioli as well as the tiny truffled mushroom quiche.
Breakfast at The New Bengal
Whether you’re enjoying Afternoon Tea in the Lobby Lounge, or are starting the day with breakfast in The Bengal, food quality at the Fairmont Empress does not disappoint.
Some of the dishes on The Bengal’s new breakfast menu are inspired by Q at the Empress (which is currently under its own renovation). Other breakfast items give a nod to the former lounge. For example, the the Bengal Tartine which comes with spiced lentils, tomato chutney, and pistachio dukkha as well as a Mango Lassi Chia Pudding. Warming spices can be found in the Cinnamon French Toast or in the cinnamon butter that comes with the Triple Stack Buttermilk Pancakes. West Coast classics like Avocado Toast and smoked salmon round out the breakfast menu. You can choose from either hot smoked on a Benedict or cold smoked on an everything bagel.
For a time, The Bengal will also be serving dinner until Q reopens. Then, once renovations at Q are complete, in the evenings, The Bengal will become Victoria’s largest private dining room, available once again for events.
In a historic hotel, you can almost hear the voices of past guests echo through the halls, their laughter or the clink of glasses. The Fairmont Empress elegantly navigates these changes and evolutions, preserving the soul of the space while ushering it into the future.
