For all foodies and restaurant goers, a common question that pops up is: What are the best new Vancouver restaurants to eat at?
We’re all looking for the hottest new spot, wondering which super chefs are ready to launch another mind-blowing innovation in cuisine, and who’s adding one more gem to Vancouver’s glittering crown of eateries. We also know all of that happens at a rapid pace in this city, and it’s sometimes difficult to keep up.
So, to help you out, we’ve put together a must-hit list of all the restaurants opening now, or soon in and around your neighborhoods. We hope you’re ready to enjoy these rocking new spots in true Vancouverite style!
New Vancouver Restaurants That Opened Recently:
🍣 Return of Tom Sushi – After a lengthy renovation, one of downtown Vancouver’s top sushi spot is back in action! There’s a good reason we put Tom Sushi #1 on our best Vancouver sushi list: top quality sushi at an affordable price. They don’t take reservations so be prepared for a small wait.
🍵 BBT Bar Arrives in River District – New bubble tea and sweet shop, Boketto, announces their grand opening for Saturday Nov 26. According to their profile, the shop serves bubble tea (especially matcha flavours from Whisk Matcha), bubble waffle, and soft serve.
🥐 Hidden gem croissant spot expands – Authentic French pastry shop, L’Atelier Patisserie, previously had a homey hidden spot near Mount Pleasant. This week they’ve moved to a new and much larger space on Broadway (599 E. Broadway). They are known for their croissants and French baked goods.
🍝 New Italian farm-to-table spot – Viaggio Hospitality Group (Ancora, Cibo Trattoria, Papi’s Seafood & Oyster Bar) revealed their new Northern Italian x West Coast restaurant, The Farmhouse, has opened this week on Main Street (352 E 10th Ave).
🧈 Butter chicken flavoured everything – New Westminster’s River Market just opened up a spot that is perfect for butter chicken lovers. Butterica Foods has fries, samosas, and bowls that are butter chicken flavoured.
🍪 Milk Bar Is Here – the famous New York bakery known for their cereal milk soft serve and compost cookies opens in Nordstrom.
🍞 New Vegan Bakery Cafe – Popular Vancouver vegan food blogger and mompreneur, Erin Ireland, announced that To Live For Bakery (1508 Nanaimo Street) is set to open Saturday Nov. 19th.
🌚 Come join the Darkside– New Asian Gastropub, The Darkside, is taking over the previous The Union spot in Chinatown (219 Union Street). It is the new project by the creative duo behind Kerrisdale’s highly-rated Land & Sea.
🥩 New Vancouver Yakiniku spot – Alley 16 – the Japanese BBQ spot that took over the beloved Nabebugyo spot (3190 Cambie St.) – quietly opened for soft opening.
🍧 Dinesty x Blackball Richmond – also at the Ackroyd plaza (160 Ackroyd Rd #160), a Dinesty “Lite” opened recently. What makes this location interesting is that it has partnered up with the Taiwanese dessert brand, Blackball, to offer their drinks and cold desserts at this restaurant.
🍵 Hy Tea Patisserie Richmond – we spotted Hy Tea Lounge (the one located at the Waterfall Building, near Granville Island) has just quietly opened a new afternoon tea shop in Richmond (8171 Ackroyd Rd #165).
☕️ Simple Love Coffee Home Cambie – new homey cafe across from Queen Elizabeth Park (4936 Cambie St) opens for soft opening.
🍗 Eastern Canada’s fav wing spot, St. Louis Bar & Grill, opens their first BC location in Port Coquitlam. Several Toronto peeps in the Noms community has told us that St. Louis Bar was one of their fav. spots to hit up during university!
🐟 Coquitlam gets a Korean fish waffle (Bungeoppang) specialty spot called Carp Cake (1250 Pinetree Way). They are only open Thursday & Fridays currently.
☕️ Mount Pleasant is got a new cafe serving coffee, donuts, breakfast, brunch, AND late night eats. The new spot, called Cofeteria, is affiliated with New Westminster’s Bruncheria and Donuteria.
🎲 Gastown got a new 90s inspired board game cafe called Turquoise Goat. They are taking over the previous Catch 122 location.
🥐 We made a visit to Hazukido, the Global Taiwanese chain known for their Japanese-style French croissants, before their grand opening this weekend.
🎤 New karaoke and izakaya spot (yes, I know it is an interesting combo), Switch, opens in the West End. They take over the previous Robson Hons location.
🍰 Marpole neighbourhood gets a new creampuff and mousse cake spot called L&J Patisserie. The brand first started as a home bakery business at the beginning of the pandemic and has now grown to its first retail location. L&J takes over the previous Taanchar BBT unit.
🇭🇰 Vancouver HK style cafe, Van Tea Cafe, opens up new Richmond spot (9020 Capstan Way). To celebrate their opening, they are offering 10% OFF until the end of the month.
🐟 Popular poke chain, Steve’s Poke Bar, opened their first Richmond location in the Broadmoor neighbourhood (10111 No.3 Rd). This marks their 15th location in the province.
🍿 Powell Street’s plant-based snack bar, Wild Thing, to opens a second location in Mount Pleasant. The new location will not be entirely plant based.
🍗 Popular Filipino chain, Jollibee, opened their new West Broadway location (2549 Cambie St, 2nd floor). This marks their second outpost in the city.
☕️ Vancouver’s first “digital ordering cafe”, Cafeclub, opened their doors (1018 West Georgia St.) this week. This new cafe is primarily for those on the go since they only accept online orders from their website (and eventual app) and has minimal seating.
Coffee wise, you’ll find beans from local greats like Moving Coffee and Nemesis. Baked goodies wise, they’ll have items from Butterboom and To Live For.
Since this digital-ordering only concept is quite new, they are offering 1 brewed coffee on the house. So if you’re in downtown, give it a try.
☕️ Coquitlam (specifically Burke Mountain area) gets a new stunning cafe/restaurant called Ibex Cafe + Kitchen.
🥐 Yaletown’s popular croissant cafe, Angus T, opened their new highly anticipated West Van Park Royal location. Looks stunning!!
😱 Affordable HK style food spot, Bubble Waffle Cafe, quietly opened a new dine-in spot (not a food court stall) at Marine Gateway (495 SW Marine Drive). They took over the previous Celsius Dessert unit.
🍰 Richmond’s popular roastery and cafe spot, R Ki Coffee Lab, soft opened their new Dessert Studio by Steveston (#13-3993 Chatham Street, Richmond)
🍗 Popular Korean Fried Chicken spot, Frying Pan, to move from their Gastown retail location to the West End. This year also marks the 5th year anniversary for them, since starting the initial food truck.
@nomsmag Check out the newest cute cafe in Vancouver 😱 #vancityfoodie #yvrfood #vancouverfood #vancouver ♬ Cookie – NewJeans
🍩 Popular Korean Cafe & Donut shop, Mello, opens up their new Arbutus location (4635 Arbutus St, Vancouver, BC V6J 4A3). It is a total revamp of the previous large Starbucks space into a beautiful bright and quirky design. The design is by the same designer who did the new Saku on Robson.
Inside you’ll find their popular brioche donuts, cookies, cake, tiramisu and specialty coffee and tea available.
New Vancouver Restaurants Opening Soon:
🇯🇵 Upcoming Burnaby Japanese Yakiniku – A new upcoming yakiniku (Japanese BBQ) spot, Yorimichi, was first spotted by us opening on Richmond’s Alexandra Road. We also discovered that they are opening up near Crystal Mall, beside Dinesty.
🍗 Popeyes Landing In Vancouver – It is reported that the popular fried chicken brand is eyeing a spot on Main Street.
🇯🇵 Steveston Japanese Grocery – It looks like there’s a new independent Japanese grocery store coming to Steveston (110-3531 Bayview St.) called Ryoshi Market this Fall.
🇰🇷 Sooda expanding to Gastown – Bumping Brentwood Korean spot, Sooda, to open a new location in Gastown. They will be taking over the previous Frying Pan unit (60 West Cordova Street). You can expect all the signature and popular items at the new location. Slated for December opening.
🍜 Marugame Udon Vancouver – globally known Japanese handmade udon & tempura brand to open up their first Canadian location in or near downtown Vancouver. Slated for 2023.
👀 Mega popular New York chain, Halal Guys, announces their first BC location. Many people from Toronto and Calgary (who already tried Halal Guys in their cities) told us to keep expectations moderate. Thinking it will taste as good as the original in New York may be wishful thinking sadly 🙁
🍲 2 New Big Way Hot Pots – During our media visit to the popular Burnaby hot pot spot this week, the owner told us they are preparing for a new location in Richmond and Robson St. Slated for February 2023.
🐱 Upcoming Richmond Cat Cafe – new sign of a cat cafe and pet supply shop was spotted across from Richmond Centre.
🥭 Hui Lau Shan Richmond – Coming soon sign for the HK dessert brand spotted at one of the new apartment retail units, across from Richmond Centre.
☕️ Cafe La Foret Expands – the popular aesthetic Korean cafe teased about a new Royal Oak location in works. Judging from the photos, it may be going for the same concrete garden look as their current location.
🇨🇳 New Szechuan Restaurant in works – we finally know what is taking over the previous longstanding Specialty Chicken & Wonton House on Ackroyd – a spot named Myth Szechuan Cuisine. From what we saw looking through the window, the interior is clean with a wooden theme and dark green chairs. 0 info out there about the restaurant overall.
😱 Time Out Market Oakridge Park – the omega 69,000 sq. ft food court will include live cooking kitchens, 3 bars, coffee shop, and open patio. Time Out has similar gigantic food halls in Montreal, New York, Osaka, and more.
☕️ Published On Main’s Coffee Bar Coming Soon – The newly Michelin 1 star restaurant has announced that their breakfast coffee bar & grocery concept, Novella, will open later this month in Mount Pleasant.
🍳 Breakfast and lunch chain, Pur & Simple, spotted to be opening up across Crystal Mall. This will be their third location in the province.
🕵🏻♂️ Richmond is getting a new “premium” hotpot spot called Tasty Secret Hotpot.
🇰🇷 Korean fried chicken joint, Cocoru, announces that their Steveston location will undergo a new name and concept change.
🇭🇰 New dim sum and HK cafe called Happy Valley Food City, to be taking over the previous Swiss Chalet unit on 3860 Lougheed Hwy., Burnaby, BC V5C 6N4.
🍜 Local ramen brand, Zubu, to open their first downtown Vancouver location. They will be taking over the previous Boston Pizza unit (869 Hornby Street) and is expected to open in early 2023.
🍻 A new no frills bar inspired by 1970’s New York, It’s Okay, to open in Hastings Sunrise area in November. The team behind this new spot are no strangers to the bar scene (individuals from Tacofino, Blueprint, Hero’s Welcome, and GoodCo. Bars).
🍗 Popeyes is opening a GIGANTIC store inside Metrotown. It will be right across the ICBC.
🥦 Lonsdale Quay’s healthy Thai food spot, WELA, to open a new location in downtown Vancouver (980 Howe St.)
☕️ New Westminster is getting a new coffee shop called Coasters Coffee. This one seems to be very green as there’s zero info about them online. It is opening up across from Pizza Ludica.
🇯🇵 A new Japanese grilled meat is coming to Alexandra Rd called Yorimichi Yakiniku. From our initial research, it is not connected to any current restaurant groups.
🍣 Green Leaf Sushi is quietly opening up nearby Earnest Ice Cream in North Vancouver
🍰 Master Chef S7 winner, Christopher Siu, is bringing his bakery and cake lab concept to BC. With already 5 locations in eastern Canada, Daan Go Cake Lab will land in Richmond as the province’s first location.
At Daan Go, you’ll find cute macarons and cakes which lean towards Asian flavours. The cake lab is going to be taking over the car repair shop on Garden City Road (by Avery & Micha). Slated to open Spring 2023.
🤐 [Community spotted] Rumors that premium tea brand, CHICHA San Chen, is opening up in Richmond.
🍕A pizza in a cone franchise, called Konz Pizza, is opening up in Surrey.
🍜 An unknown Xian Noodle spot is in works and opening beside the bbq Chicken on Alexandra Rd.
🍞 Highly rated Burnaby Heights bakery, Fior Di Latte Cafe, to open a new location in Granville Island.
🍣 New izakaya and sushi spot spotted to be opening near the Richmond Oval. No information about this spot even though on the banner it says it has been established since 2012 (????).
🎨 A mysterious 2D themed cafe (like the ones you see in Asia) has been under works in the industrial area of Richmond.
🐟 Popular poke brand, Steve’s Poke Bar, to open in Yaletown by the Canada Line Station.
🍞 An Italian specialty Panettone spot is opening beside Pidgin in Gastown.
🥐 Beaucoup Bakery, one of the city’s most beloved bakeries, announces a new location in downtown’s St. Regis Hotel. Expected to open in the Fall.
🤩 Our friend spotted popular Tonkatsu spot, SAKU, is opening up in Coquitlam this winter. It is going to be right by Bjornbar Bakery (581 Clarke Rd #111, Coquitlam, BC V3J 0L1)
🇭🇰 Are you a fan of HK style cafe comfort food? Looks like Main Street is getting one in Fall called SAAN SAAN.
👀 Highly anticipated Japanese cheese tart brand, Pablo Cheese Tart, announced that they are opening on West Broadway.
☕️ One of Calgary’s top cafes, Analog Coffee, is taking over the longstanding Yaletown Blenz unit.
🐟 Popular Burnaby & Coquitlam fish & chips spot, Cockney Kings, to open a new location in Kits. Slated for Fall 2022.
👀 Our fren Dinevancity spotted Wicked Cafe (yea the one with the realistic cheese shaped cheesecake) is opening a new location near UBC (W 16th & Dunbar).
The luxury tea brand, TWG Tea, closed up their 1070 West Georgia Street store earlier this year. It has now been spotted to be relocating to the previous Robson Tesla showroom location (beside Peloton).
That rounds up our list of restaurants opening their doors, or getting ready to open. We hope you try a few, or all of them, and enjoy safe and memorable meals. If you’re looking for the best food in Vancouver, peek our lists so you won’t be disappointed.