A number of hot spots opened this year
These restaurants survived opening during a pandemic to deliver delicious dishes
It's bonkers but yes, there were restaurant openings in this most inhospitable year. Many had lease commitments before COVID-19 wrought its havoc, but some jumped in with warrior courage. They all took deep breaths and danced barefoot on hot coals for most of this year, hopping about with new concepts, adjusting to provincial orders and a wary public.
The next bit is going to be the toughest of all, says Ian Tostenson, president and CEO of the B.C. Restaurant and Food Services Association. After the province urged people to dine only in household groups, business declined by 40 to 50 per cent beyond the effects of April and May closures and the June order to limit seating.
“If the health order loosens up in January, there's a fighting chance, but we're going to lose a lot, maybe 30 per cent or higher. January's going to be terrible,” he says, adding it's a $15-billion industry in B.C. that employed 190,000 people pre-pandemic.
For many people, restaurants are prime places of social connections and in many respects, good for social and mental health. Tostenson asks that households support restaurants citing provincial health officer Dr. Henry and the premier's assurances that they're safe places to be. Proprietors have been following guidelines and orders making it so, he says.
“If all else fails, order in or pick up. Buy gift certificates for people. That cash will help a lot,” he says.
I'm with him. In good times, restaurants knit us together as the social beings we need to be. Let us, in turn, support them through this terrible crisis.
Here are some of the notable restaurants that opened this surreal year. Phone ahead or check websites, as hours may have been cut back. And remember Dine Out Vancouver is coming up, running from Feb. 5 to March 7. Details will be at dineoutvancouver.com.
BARBARA
Where: 305 East Pender St., Vancouver
Info: barbararestaurant.com
Patrick Hennessy started construction on Barbara in the nick of time for the pandemic, but sees a silver lining: it slowed things down enough to make good decisions and he didn't have staff to lay off. Hennessy was one of the sous chefs at New York's Eleven Madison Park, which topped off World's Best Restaurant Award in 2017 and was the same at Chambar and Kissa Tanto in Vancouver. Small space, small plates and menu, big talent.
CAPO AND THE SPRITZ
Where: 350 Davie St., Vancouver Info: capoandspritiz.com, 604-642-0557 Lucais Syme and Dustin Dockendorf, proprietors of Autostrada on Main Street and Autostrada Osteria on West Pender, opened this pizza-primary spot in the former La Pentola spot in the Opus Hotel and it's good pizza at that. His starters and handful of pastas receive the same level of attention to detail and quality. The gnocco fritto bomba, deepfried pizza dough tossed with parmigiana, parsley and salt with a caponata dip, might be carb loading in one sitting but, oh my. So good.
DO CHAY YALETOWN
Where: 1269 Hamilton St., Vancouver
Info: dochay.ca, 778-379-2939
The first Do Chay, a vegetarian Vietnamese restaurant on Kingsway, was a smash hit. With a little business alchemy they turned the family's Yaletown restaurant into a second Do Chay, serving mostly vegan and vegetarian dishes with bright, fresh flavours. It's missing some Kingsway dishes, but added others unique to this location like Uncle Hing's Wings, Do Chay dumplings and green onion pancakes. The vegan pho is very good.
LUNCH LADY
Where: 1046 Commercial Dr., Vancouver
Info: thelunchlady.com, 604-559-5938
A collaboration with a Ho Chi Minh City street vendor popularized by Anthony Bourdain. The `lunch lady' sold her trademark recipes to her Vancouver friends and her dishes appear on the lunch menu along with other riffs from her neighbourhood. Chef Benedict Lim presides over the dinner menu modernizing traditional dishes. A must-try: Cha ca Thang Long with grilled turmeric ling cod and rice noodles under a mountain of fresh dill.
MILA
Where: 185 Keefer St., Vancouver Info: milaplantbased.com, 604-844-8040
Shhh. It's vegan but chef Jim Vesal isn't making that a big deal. The dishes are a come-hither to those wary of vegan food. Vesal, also the chef at the five very popular Virtuous Pie restaurants, had planned vegan fine dining but instead did the pandemic pivot to a more casual approach. For `meat,' he uses the company's very own Tmrw Foods meat substitute made with grains, beans and seeds. The aburi `lox' oshi, bao buns and peanut butter cup pie are musts. The cocktail bar advances the non-vegan feel.
OCA PASTIFICIO
Where: 1260 Commercial Dr., Vancouver
Info: ocapastificio.com, 672-999-3309
Chef Greg Dilabio turns out pastas that would please hardnosed Italian nonnas. He worked for eight years at La Quercia and partnered with its owner/chef Adam Pegg in opening this pasta temple. The pastas are rolled and extruded during service and change daily, depending on what he finds at the markets. The menu is on the chalkboard.
OPHELIA
Where: 165 West Second Ave., Vancouver
Info: opheliakitchen.ca, 604-800-5253
Chef Francisco Higareda was a sous chef at the three-Michelin Arzak in San Sebastian, Spain and at the two-Michelin L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon in Paris. At Ophelia, he returns to the cuisine that nurtured him in Mexico. The tortillas are freshly, locally made and don't miss the roasted half chicken with a molé sauce.
PUBLISHED
Where: 3593 Main St., Vancouver Info: publishedonmain.com, 604-423-4840
Chef and co-owner Gus Stieffenhofer-Brandson is no slouch. When the pandemic hit, he didn't simplify his food for takeout, he kept on creating new dishes and changing up his ambitious menu. Some dishes might be throwbacks to his prairie upbringing whereas others reflect his ultrafine cooking experiences staging at the celebrated Noma, cooking at a one-Michelin star restaurant in Germany and as sous chef at Pear Tree and Hawksworth restaurants locally. Published takes the No. 1 spot on my list of best new restaurants.
STREET AUNTIE APERITIVO HOUSE
Where: 1039 Granville St., Vancouver
Info: streetauntie.com, hello@streetauntie.com
Don't let the aperitivo in the name fool you; this is about precision-made Yunan street food. Owner and co-chef Yuyina Zhang adopted it from the street and remade it into refined and exciting dining in a cool theatric space. You pre-book and pre-pay for the tasting menu experience — weekly menus on Instagram, @streetauntie, until the website is updated. Lunch is $38 and dinner is $58. And don't overlook the takeout boxes, which offer great value.