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A definitive guide to Vancouver B.C.’s tastiest restaurants. These are the dishes worth going out of your way for.
I’m obsessed with Vancouver. The city is beautiful, ethnically diverse, bicyclist (& vanlife) friendly, and temptingly close to wild destinations like the Sea to Sky Highway in Whistler and Vancouver Island. But the real draw is the food. 40% of Vancouver’s population is immigrants which is probably (definitely) the reason for its killer food scene. This list covers some of Vancouver’s must-eat dishes for your next trip to the Canadian capital.
Canada is really just America’s better-behaved younger brother. It’s cleaner, kinder, less politically and racially charged, and outdoorsy. Eventually, we would love to live in Vancouver & will definitely add more must-eat meals to this list when we do.
15 Mouth-Watering Dishes in Vancouver B.C. & Where to Find Them
Most people won’t have the leisure of being able to eat out 15 times during a single trip to Vancouver B.C. For those normal travelers who are really just looking for a handful of “must-eat” meals in Vancouver, I’ll make a note of my 5 favorites with a blue infobox.
1. Monday Night Dosa Special at House of Dosa
A dosa is a paper-thin crepe-like South Indian meal that’s made from fermented lentil/rice dough. & House of Dosa does them right. You can also get Sri Lankan Kottu here (super rare) but I felt like it was missing the cheesy goodness of the ones I had in Sri Lanka. If you happen to visit House of Dosa on a Monday night you’ll pay only $6 CAN for any Dosa.
I loved the Mango Lassi as well. So fresh & velvety smooth it reminded me of cooling off during the sweltering mid-day heat in Mumbai.
This is a must-eat meal in Vancouver. If you’re from the USA you aren’t used to high-quality Indian eats. Definitely not South Indian cuisine. It’s phenomenal here.
2. Rosemary Rocksalt Bagels at Seigals Bagel
Sure, you could go to Rosemary Rock Salt- the Vancouver bagel chain named after the famed Canadian bagel flavor but it’s gonna cost you an arm and a leg. Or at least $10 CAN. Or you can go to Seigals, a no-fuss window service bagel shop with fresh Montreal bagels.
What is a Montreal Bagel? This bagel dough is dunked in honey water, then cooked in a wood fire oven– instead of the New York way (boiled first).
Rosemary Rocksalt is the famed flavor of bagel for Canadians. The denser bread is packed with herbaceous rosemary and topped with delicious chunks of salt.
3. Cauliflower Bites & Butter Chikken Poutine at Meet on Main
Yes, I’m including a vegan restaurant. I’m definitely not vegan. I love meat. I ate my weight in Thai sausages while backpacking in Southeast Asia. Regardless, I found this quirky little restaurant to be delicious enough to hold its own against the other meals on this list. Specifically, the pile of butter chicken poutine & the perfectly crispy cauliflower bites.
Oh & definitely have at least one of their signature basil-infused pineapple cocktails.
This is one of my Vancouver must-eat meals. I hesitate to include a vegan restaurant in my Vancouver must-eat’s BUT it’s truly delicious. & it offers the perfect opportunity to sample some Canadian classics like poutine.
4. Masala Chai at East is East
Full confession: I did not eat here. I did, however, warm up with a delicious cup of to-go almond Masala Chai. & again…I was transported back to the chaotic streets of India. The chai was so good I returned to peek at the menu. With a sitar playing live music and a huge authentic Indian menu we definitely plan to return here for food when we’re in the mood for a fancy meal.
5. Pide at Lamajoun
Lamajoun is tucked into the corner of an industrial warehouse surrounded by Chinese seafood distributors and auto repair shops. But don’t let that deter you. You’ll enter into a small cafe and order from the counter before waiting for your food in the warm dining area upstairs. We ordered the Pide- a huge traditional bread boat filled with cured meat and cheese topped with a fried egg.
You can also get a slice of fresh-baked honey cake to go. Or make it a whole meal with an order of thick Georgian meat soup dumplings.
This is a must-eat meal in Vancouver. A great stop for lunch and a coffee.
6. Samosas at all India Sweets and Restaurant
This restaurant is known for its crispy samosas. Grab a few to-go for a good mid-afternoon snack.
7. Butter Beef and Fried Chicken at Phnom Pehn
If I was forced to choose a single favorite restaurant in Vancouver…Phnom Pehn would be it.
I’ve been to Cambodia twice. & It didn’t really go well either time. I never felt like I was able to unearth the good Cambodian food. Certainly, nothing THIS phenomenal. This restaurant nails Cambodian food and does decent Vietnamese food in a simple family-style setting. Just walking in I was smacked with the smell of garlic and the warmth from the busy stovetops.
They are world-famous for their Butter Beef (a rare/raw beef dish with their tangy signature sauce and piles of fried garlic and cilantro) and crispy fried chicken wings w/lemongrass sauce. They might just have been the best asian-style chicken wings I’ve ever had. For the best Southern Fried Chicken I’ve ever eaten, check out my foodie guide to the USA.
This is a must-eat meal in Vancouver. It typically takes 40-1 hour to secure a table for dinner. But it’s worth it.
8. Hand-pulled cut noodles with cumin Lamb & salt fried chicken from Legendary Noodle
A love a teeny restaurant. A love a restaurant that carefully handcrafts its noodles to order even more. We added the side of salt fried chicken to our order because it’s part of the lunch special. The milk tea was just okay, however.
9. Pineapple buns and Milk Tea from El Lido
If you crave milk tea THIS is the place to be. This spot is technically in Richmond, not Vancouver, but it’s close enough.
10. Fish & Chips from Pajo’s Fish and Chips
Another Richmond favorite. This spot was on our list and we didn’t make it. So much to eat and so little time. But so many people recommended it, I feel confident passing it on.
11. Guu with Garlic (Japanese food)
This is a traditional Japanese Izakaya serving up the best small plates of Japanese drinking food I’ve ever had. Sit on floor mats around small wooden tables or at the bar facing straight into thier open kitchen and watch every delicious dish pass you by.
You know a restaurant is delicious when it’s serving up dishes like Mayo on pizza, cold slices of raw beef, salmon neck, various organ meat, and pork cheeks to happy hungry customers. Order the Beef Tataki & the Scallop Pizza off thier everyday menu (+ throw in a few items off the daily rotating menu).
This is a must-eat meal in Vancouver. Perfect for a fun dinner or even a late-night meal after some drinks.
12. Ramen from Ramen Danbo
Vancouver is known for Japanese food. Specifically, sushi. Notice I didn’t include a single sushi joint on this list, however. (Mostly because I don’t know sushi well enough to inform your sushi decision.) But when it comes to spicy pork belly ramen done in the Fukuoka-style you can’t beat Ramen Danbo.
I love that you can personalize everything about your ramen here. From the richness of the broth to the softness of the noodle. Be sure to add the spicy picked vegetables and get an extra order of noodles when your’s starts to run low to sop up all that delicious broth.
The only reason that this ramen shop doesn’t make my must-eat top 5 list is that this is a chain that also has shops in Vietnam, Japan, Australia, and a handful in the USA. You’ll be able to savor this ramen elsewhere if need be.
13. New Town
Chinese Bakery in Chinatown. Enough said.
14. Hawkers Delight
Malaysian & Singaporean food!! Traditional, tasty, & cash only so come prepared. Definitely grab some chicken and rice or a pile of fried kuey teow (spicy) with some delicious roti.
I ate my way through the island of Penang in Malaysia and LOVED every second of it.
15. Neopolitan Style Pizza from Honeybee
Piled with scoops of mozzarella cheese with thin hand-shaped crusts served from the bread truck outside this pizza joint looked delicious. We spotted the pies walking home from Phnom Pehn so we didn’t stop in but…next time.
Bonus: Pineapple Pilsner from Storm Brewing
No list of must-eat meals in Vancouver could be complete without a few brews. Vancouver’s commercial district is filled with breweries. This unassuming garage with a yeasty smell and beer served in plastic stamped cups was my favorite. Just don’t expect your typical brewery ambiance. This place is grungy and no frills.
Looking for more iconic eats? Check out our entire guide on the best budget-friendly USA eats.
Vanlife in Vancity
We visited Vancouver while in our DIY campervan following a cross-country USA trip and a few weeks in the Baja Peninsula of Mexico. We found Canada, in general, to be extremely van-friendly compared to the US and had no problem overnight parking in the city.
For more Van-dwelling info or tips on how to build your own campervan check out our vanlife page.
You’ll be hard-pressed to eat ALL these delicious dishes on a single trip to Vancouver but if you really put your mind to it…it’s possible. Let me know what dishes you think I should add to my list of Must-Eat meals in Vancouver in the comments.
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