PLUVIO
about us
Pluvio restaurant + rooms is owned and operated by Warren Barr and Lily Verney-Downey, with the help of many talented professionals.
Pluvio restaurant was opened in April 2019, with the rooms following a little later that year, and was awarded 4th Best New Restaurant in Canada by enRoute Magazine. Three years and one pandemic after opening, we were honoured to be selected as Canada's 'Best Destination Restaurant' and 37th Best Restaurant by 'Canada's 100 Best Restaurant' for 2022.
After a few years of looking for the perfect location to open our restaurant, we were presented with a golden opportunity to purchase Norwoods restaurant and the land which it resided on, in Ucluelet. After being at home in Tofino for 8+ years, we were overjoyed to move the few kilometers down the road and join the community of Ucluelet.
Warren was born and raised in BC, first venturing into the culinary world at Doc Morgans Pub on Bowen Island and from there, he completed his apprenticeship at Le Crocodile Restaurant, an institution of classical French fine dining in Vancouver. His first Chef position was at The Inn at Bay Fortune in PEI, where he became one of the pioneers in championing Canadian food and local cuisine. Here Warren worked closely with local farmers and fishers, learning to truly appreciate the hard work that goes into quality product.
After 6 years of summer seasons in PEI and winters in Montreal, Warren moved back to the West Coast to take a position at the Wickaninnish Inn, where he was Executive Chef for 6 years, and put down roots closer to home. Warren has received many accolades and been featured in many cookbooks, but ask him about them and he’ll just mumble something at you and get very busy.
Warren. Our Chef, co-creator, resident Star Wars expert and chief ‘out of tune, not knowing the words’ singer.
You will find him behind the line pretty much all day every day in our open kitchen, and if you’re lucky you may get to hear snippets of his songs.
Some have likened him to the @tinychef but that’s probably not fair. His favourite cocktail is the naked + famous, or anything combining tequila or mezcal and hot spice.
#chef #chefowner #uhohopenkitchen #nakedandfamous #nothedrinknottheotherthing
After completing a culinary internship at the Wickaninnish Inn in Tofino, Lily returned to the UK just long enough to finish her degree, decide the macho English kitchen culture wasn’t for her and pack up her belongings. Lily returned to Tofino as a cook, where she met Warren and eventually stepped out of the kitchen and into hotel and restaurant management.
This is Lily, manager, co-creator, the beauty (+ the beast) behind Pluvio restaurant + rooms.
Never content to do one thing, Lily will be the one answering your phone calls + emails, taking your restaurant + room reservations, checking you in, greeting you in the restaurant, wishing you goodnight at the end of the meal AND she will still find time to squeeze in some @rupaulsdragrace with her favourite people, her cats (and maybe @chefwarrenbarr too).
A true Brit (ask her if she is from Australia, we dare you), her favourite cocktails all involve gin and she is quite partial to a Last Word or Negroni. The daughter of two clowns (yes that is what it says on her birth certificate) she chose the more ‘traditional’ career of hospitality at a young age in rebellion to the circus performing life and has done almost every job from dishwasher to cook to concierge to restaurant manager!
#pluvio #restaurantandroomsmanager #thatsamouthful #daughterofclowns
The goal at Pluvio is to ‘Charm and delight our guests, and each other, through kindness, generosity, creativity and fun’.
We are as dedicated to creating a rewarding, supportive, professional and fun working environment for our team as we are to providing an exceptional guest experience. Our goal in opening Pluvio was to create memorable experience for our guests that is unique to the West Coast, and to offer rewarding and long term employment to hospitality professionals who enjoy living in this beautiful part of the world.
Lily found her love of hospitality early and spent her youth scrubbing pots, peeling potatoes and serving tables in her small home town in the English countryside, before attending the University College Birmingham to study for a Culinary Arts Management degree.
Pluvio restaurant + rooms is fortunate to have an incredible team of passionate, hardworking, kind and dedicated individuals who don’t mind living in one of the rainiest places on the planet. Every year, we close the restaurant and rooms for 4 – 6 weeks starting on January 1st for the team to be able to enjoy some time off, visit family and friends, do some travelling, find inspiration and get some sleep!
To meet our team, join us for dinner or a stay and in the meantime, check out our Instagram for some smiling faces and brief introductions!
BUT WHAT DOES PLUVIO
EVEN MEAN?
