GRUB | Cheeseburger and Milkshake x Burger Crush x Downtown

Financial District—Victoria's popular throwback to the fast-casual style burger and shake joint, Burger Crush, just opened its second (forty-seat) location in the old Johnny Rockets space, only a stone's throw away from the infamous Granville strip.

FEAST | Italian Meets Chinese x Miantiao Restaurant x Shangri-La

"Chinese gastronomy uplifted by the elegant simplicity of Italian cuisine."

ostrica freddo (poached and chilled oysters) + Soppratutto (with bourbon, mint amaro, lemon juice, and egg white)

Financial District—(June 22, 2021) Easily one of the year's most highly-anticipated restaurant openings has been the brand new Italian-Chinese fusion concept from Miantiao Restaurant & Bar—so named after the Mandarin word for "noodle"—located upstairs inside the luxurious five-star Shangri-La Hotel Vancouver after taking over the old Market by Jean-Georges dining space.

GRUB | Marukatsu Cuisine Pop-Up x Gyoza Bar x Downtown

teishoku (meal set served with miso soup, endless cabbage and steamed rice)

Downtown—(July 22, 2020) For the summer, Aburi Restaurants is offering a new Japanese-Mexican concept in the form of their limited-time Marukatsu Cuisine pop-up and specialty menu at Gyoza Bar.

FEAST | Greek to Me x Hydra Estiatorio Mediterranean x EXchange Hotel

Financial District—(July 18, 2019) Vancouver's newest Greek-inspired restaurant, Hydra Estiatorio Mediterranean & Bar (pronounced: HEE-dra), located inside the EXchange Hotel Vancouver and named after the culinary island in the Aegean Sea, opened recently to much fanfare in the heart of the downtown core.

FEAST | Yew Seafood + Bar x Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver

Financial District—(April 25, 2018) The brand new culinary team over at Yew Seafood + Bar celebrated the warm weather by unveiling a complete revamping of all their menus inside the Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver.

KAFFE | 49th Parallel Coffee x Lucky's Doughnuts x Downtown

Financial District—Another 49th Parallel Coffee Roasters and Lucky's Doughnuts location has opened up (after Mount Pleasant and Kitsilano) at the edge of downtown's office district. Vancouver clearly loves its booming artisanal doughnut industry.

GRUB | Tacofino Oasis x Bentall Opening x Financial District

duck taco (with dried apricot, jalapeños, cilantro, roasted corn, soy shiitake, and back chili mayo)

Financial District—(August 29, 2017) Tacofino's fifth brick-and-mortar taco outpost has officially opened its doors behind Bentall Centre, this one called Tacofino Oasis, in the Coal Harbour office district.

WEEKENDER | Brunch x Rosé All Day x Market by Jean-Georges

Financial District—(June 25, 2017) The fanciful Market by Jean-Georges restaurant inside the Shangri-La Hotel on Alberni Street introduced their new summer social brunch series and menu, very appropriately dubbed "Rosé All Day".

GRUB | La Taqueria Pinche Taco Shop x Hornby Opening

Financial District—(May 11, 2017) The newest La Taqueria Pinche Taco Shop location is now on Hornby Street right in the thick of the Downtown Vancouver core with its 3,000-square-foot space—the largest one yet—formerly occupied by Steamrollers.

GATHER | TWG Tea Salon & Boutique x Grand Opening

Financial District—(December 8, 2016) TWG Tea Salon & Boutique opened their first official North American location and celebrated by throwing a massive grand opening party. The Singaporean-based luxury tea brand, established in 2008, takes over the recently closed Urban Tea Merchant space with original proprietors Tom and Karinna James becoming exclusive TWG Canadian franchise partners and distributors under their VanSing Distribution Group.

KAFFE | New in Town x Honolulu Coffee x Downtown

Financial District—Honolulu Coffee opened its first North American location (Hawaii is considered a part of Oceania) in Vancouver taking over the old Relish pub/nightclub next door to Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ.

FEAST | Summer Crab + Lobster Boil x Yew Seafood + Bar

Financial District—(July 5, 2016) The culinary team over at Yew Seafood + Bar is celebrating the warm weather with a good old Summer Crab & Lobster Boil at the Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver.

GATHER | Pool Deck x Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver

Financial District—(May 31, 2016) Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver kicked off their summer festivities with an outdoor patio party to showcase their fourth-floor pool deck.

FEAST | Bon Vivant x Rémy Martin x Hy's Steakhouse

Financial District—(January 27, 2016) Celebrating all things cognac and Rémy Martin, invited guests were treated to an intimate Bon Vivant dinner pairing and luxury tasting at Hy's Steakhouse & Cocktail Bar in their upstairs dining room last week.

IMBIBE | Hy's Steakhouse & Cocktail Bar x Downtown

Financial District—(November 12, 2015) After sixty years in business as a fixture of the steakhouse dining scene, Hy's Steakhouse & Cocktail Bar has unveiled their partially redesigned restaurant including a brand new cocktail bar upstairs after a few months of renovations.

GRUB | First Look x Royal Dinette x Financial District

Financial District—(July 21, 2015) The newly opened Royal Dinette restaurant located below the formerly two-storey Blackbird Public House & Oyster Bar comes from acclaimed Farmer's Apprentice and Grapes & Soda chef/co-owner David Gunawan in partnership with the ubiquitous Donnelly Group (a silent partner). Taking over Blackbird's previous first floor dining area (and the Keg Caesars before that) on Dunsmuir Street, the freshly renovated space is gorgeous with a classy, sophisticated look and feel in a neighbourhood dominated by chain restaurants.

FEAST | Bao Boards x Gyoza Bar x Aburi Restaurants

Downtown—(May 12, 2015) Since opening last year to much anticipation and a mixed reception, Aburi Restaurants' Gyoza Bar has evolved their menu, branching out into more mixed Asian fusion culinary influences. As such, they introduced a new dinner concept anchored by their signature bao boards.

From Express to Lunch x Market by Jean-Georges x Shangri-La

Express lunch tasting at Market by Jean-Georges restaurant inside the Shangri-La Hotel on  Alberni Street on October 29, 2014.



Market by Jean-Georges is looking to bring the dining experience back to lunch and downtown's busy workers. Their new "express" lunch service aims to give diners a satisfying meal in a reasonable amount of time (they say within thirty minutes) with their 3-course set menu (2-course if you want to skip dessert), so you can get back to the office.

From Aburi to Dumplings x Gyoza Bar + Ramen x Grand Opening

Gyoza Bar + Ramen's dry-run preview tasting and grand opening on West Pender Street on September 4 and 8, 2014.



Gyōzas and ramen are among two of my favourite edible things and staples of the Japanese diet. Throw in Aburi Restaurants (of Miku and Minami fame) and their track record of top notch high end Japanese cuisine/dining and you have a highly anticipated recipe for this finally opened (slightly fusion style) Japanese noodle soup and dumpling eatery.

From Summer to Caesars x Joe Fortes x Rooftop Patio

Summer tweetup atop Joe Fortes Seafood & Chop House's rooftop patio overlooking the financial district on June 24, 2014.



Late June means Joe Fortes' annual summer tweetup. The day proved to be a glorious sunny one on the rooftop with drinks and food (like their chicken and waffles in bite size form) kicking off sunny patio season.