The Hatching Post

Summer evenings on the west side often end the same way, off the water or out of a tasting room and not quite ready to head home, looking for somewhere close by to sit down. The benches above Okanagan Lake hold a mix of tasting rooms, taprooms and pubs that cover exactly that moment, all within easy reach of the beaches at Gellatly Bay and the slopes rising behind them.

Places like this vary in ways worth checking before you set out with a plan in mind. Whether food is served and until when, whether there is outdoor seating for the shoulder seasons, whether there is space for a table of ten, and whether the room suits children earlier in the day are all reasonable questions for a quick call. If you are combining the stop with a swim, a walk on Mount Boucherie or a couple of tasting rooms, sort out who is driving first, because the bench roads are narrow and the crossing back into Kelowna can be slow on a summer evening. Arriving early is generally how people get the seat with the view.