Local Champion Victoria: How to Earn the Title

Local Champion Victoria is what the Mosey app calls a person who has rated five places, answered three Top 3 questions and made a list, all in the one city. You do not have to be an expert, and the title never judges what you think of a place.

Count the places you were going to eat at anyway: a coffee in James Bay, a brunch queue, a fish and chips lunch. Friends can make it a game by agreeing a weekend and giving each person five places.

Does Local Champion Victoria mean you have to be an expert?

No. The title records that you took part, not that you know more than anyone else. A student who has eaten at five cafes near the university can earn it as readily as a chef. What counts is the number of places rated in Victoria, three answered Top 3 questions and one list that includes a Victoria place. How you felt about any of them never enters into it.

How do you rate 5 places in Victoria in a week?

Count the places you were going to eat at anyway: a coffee in James Bay, a brunch queue, a fish and chips lunch at the wharf, an evening pint and a takeout dinner on a wet night. Only the place and the stars are required. Add the dish, a photograph or a tag such as Dog-Friendly if you want to, and skip the rest. The wharf guide and the brunch guide show two easy stops.

What are the Victoria top 3 questions like?

Short and friendly. The app asks one question on each visit about places near you, such as where the best coffee or the best restaurant is, and you choose up to three places and put them in order. Skipping a question is fine, though a skip does not count. Three answered questions are enough, and your answers sit in a private list called My Victoria top 3s that only you can open.

How do you make a list in Victoria without overthinking it?

Give it a plain name, such as Rainy day plan or Dog patios, and add the places you already know. Write a line on why each belongs, choose who sees it and save. The rainy day guide lists ideas to start with. A list of four places counts as much as a list of forty, and it can be edited any time.

Why doesn't the title care what you think of a place?

Because the app wants a record of who has been, not a scoreboard. The words are plain: it never depends on what you say about a place. A one-star rating and a five-star rating count the same. A restaurant cannot buy, earn or ask for the title, and the title never ranks anywhere. It carries no discount, prize, reward or money.

What shows up once you have it?

Local Champion of Victoria appears on your profile and beside your name on ratings you write. You can turn it into a picture to share, and you may add your first name to the card. A friend in another city can see at a glance that you have eaten around Victoria, which is handy when they are planning a ferry weekend.

How is it different from a badge?

A badge follows a kind of food: five different places carrying a tag such as Bakery earns Sampler, ten earns Taster, twenty Expert and fifty Connoisseur. The title follows a place and is earned once. A keen diner can hold several badges and a few titles, and a short stay in Victoria might earn a seafood badge long before the city title.

Can a visitor on a short stay earn it?

Yes, over a long weekend if the meals add up, or across several trips. The ferry to Victoria brings people from Vancouver, Seattle and the Gulf Islands, and all of them eat. Mention in a list note when a place was a one-off, so locals reading it know. If you are coming back next year, the count carries over.

Can friends make it a game?

Agree on a weekend and give each person five places. Compare Top 3 answers over a drink and tag whoever you ate with, so they can add their own rating of the same meal. If you want a different kind of puzzle on the ferry, Ingredient gives you seven rungs to climb on one dish, with a new set every day at midnight. It is for people aged eighteen and over, and no prizes are offered.

What is the point? A record. A city with few ratings is a city where a good new cafe stays hidden.

Is it only for Victoria proper? The title is for the place the app knows, so check which area your ratings fall in.

For the province, start at the Food in British Columbia page, and see the Canadian food guides for other cities.

How this works in the app: Local Champion.

Next time the sky opens over the harbour, get the Mosey app, rate the first Victoria place you duck into and let the count begin.