Restaurant Graveyard

The ever-evolving Restaurant Graveyard series looks back at the countless, long-shuttered establishments that helped to propel Vancouver’s food and drink forward. May they never be forgotten!

Restaurant Graveyard / Fraserhood

Remembering a Charming Fraserhood Restaurant That Was Doomed From the Start

It is a cruel facet of the human experience that sometimes young, well-loved restaurants close before their time...

Restaurant Graveyard / South Granville

A 20-Year Fine Dining Legend Enters Vancouver’s Restaurant Graveyard

For much of West Restaurant's nearly 20-year run, the Toptable icon stood astride Vancouver's hospitality scene like a colossus.

Restaurant Graveyard / Downtown

One Hundred Years Ago, This Was Vancouver’s Most Elegant Cocktail Bar

"In the dying wet hours, there was no way to get close to the bar. The supply of beer ran out, and the bartenders served only straight drinks..."

Restaurant Graveyard / Gastown

Remembering the Beautiful, Short-Lived Gastown Restaurant That Never Sold Flowers

Despite some positive reviews and a very good looking design by Craig Stanghetta, Blacktail Florist didn't last two years.

Restaurant Graveyard / West Side

Kerrisdale Restaurant Shutters After 14 Years of Deliciousness and Skulduggery

Senova started out as a critically-acclaimed Iberian eatery but after an ownership change would slowly devolve into irrelevancy.

Restaurant Graveyard / Main Street

There’s a Special Place for Ping’s Cafe in Vancouver’s Restaurant Graveyard

This short-lived Japanese yoshuku-style comfort food restaurant was a little ahead of its time in Mt. Pleasant.

Restaurant Graveyard / Downtown

Remembering the Elegant Weirdness of Yaletown’s Long-Shuttered Elixir Bistro

The first (and very likely last) Vancouver restaurant to ever screen a live feed of its dining room above its washroom urinals.

Restaurant Graveyard / Gastown

This Promising Vancouver Restaurant Closed Long Before it Should Have

Despite good reviews, a solid drinks program and a very interesting menu, The Abbey didn't last two years in the old Wild Rice address.

Restaurant Graveyard / Fraserhood

The Worst-Named Restaurant in Vancouver Has Closed After 14 Months

Escobar, so named after the murderous Colombian drug Pablo Escobar, earned its special place in Vancouver's Restaurant Graveyard.

Restaurant Graveyard / Gastown

Remembering a Prolific Restaurateur’s Counter-Service Experiment in Chinatown

Sean Heather launched this small coffee and sandwich shop (cheffed by Lee Humphries) at 75 East Pender St. in May, 2010.

Restaurant Graveyard / Main Street

The Mt. Pleasant Restaurant That Got to Live Two Very Different Lives in the Same Address

There were two visions for Habit Lounge, the first launching (bright and minimalist) in 2005 and the second (dark and moody) in 2008.

Restaurant Graveyard / Kitsilano

Remembering the Short-Lived, Seafood-Focused Wildebeest Cousin Near Kits Beach

The 36 seat 'Supermarine' didn't last long, shuttering in the summer of 2016 just one year after it opened at 1685 Yew Street.

Restaurant Graveyard / West End

Remembering the West End Pub That Gave Vancouver British Sunday Suppers in Miniature

The Fat Badger was well known for its friendly pints, scotch eggs, fish and chips, rarebits and miniature Yorkshire puddings.

Restaurant Graveyard / Gastown

Remembering One of the Most Beautiful, Romantic Restaurants Ever Built in Gastown

The romantic 40 seater was opened by first timers Alice Wu and Johan Friedrich on Valentine's Day in 2015. It lasted just three years.

Restaurant Graveyard / Main Street

When a Veteran Four Seasons Chef Opened a Comfort Food Joint on Main Street

In this week's edition of Restaurant Graveyard, we remember and inter Chef Wayne Martin's casual experiment, Crave on Main.

Restaurant Graveyard / Chinatown

The Modern Chinese Restaurant That Suddenly Made Vancouver’s Food Scene Interesting

Wild Rice was a fixture on the edge of Chinatown, pairing Modern Chinese food with cocktails and wine from 2001 to 2014.

Restaurant Graveyard / Gastown

The Sprawling Patio That Helped Spark Gastown’s Restaurant Renaissance

Closed in September of 2017, this neighbourhood icon enjoyed an 11 year run with its sprawling patio overlooking Maple Tree Square.

Restaurant Graveyard / Gastown

This 100+ Seat Establishment in Gastown Was Inspired by Vancouver’s Beer Heritage

Today we remember Sean Heather's Bitter Tasting Room, interring it for all eternity in Vancouver's Restaurant Graveyard.

Restaurant Graveyard / Gastown

This Seafood-Focused Wine Bar Lasted Six Years in Gastown

Today we remember Cork & Fin (and its freshly shucked oysters), interring it for all eternity in Vancouver's Restaurant Graveyard.

Restaurant Graveyard / Downtown

Though an Inspiration to Young Cooks, This Tiny Vancouver Eatery Didn’t Last

Open from 2015 to early 2017, Latab was a short-lived gift to local foodies from chef Kris Barnholden and wine pro Eryn Dorman.

Restaurant Graveyard / Strathcona

Remember This Short-Lived Little Vegetarian Wine Bar on the Edge of Chinatown?

Today we inter the tiny, 20 seat vegetarian restaurant known as The Parker into Vancouver's Restaurant Graveyard.

Restaurant Graveyard / Main Street

If It Was Still Around Today, This Mt. Pleasant Eatery Would Probably Be Killing It

The 30 seat "Cafeteria" lasted two years at 2702 Main St. (now Burdock & Co.), featuring an eclectic menu with no dish exceeding $20.

Restaurant Graveyard / Gastown

The ‘Nouveau Dim Sum’ Concept in Gastown That Closed Before it Should Have

This interesting eatery on Powell St. (its name a portmanteau of "bamboo" and "buddha") now lies in Vancouver's Restaurant Graveyard.

Restaurant Graveyard / Gastown

This Gastown Wine Bar Was Named After a Stressed Out Animal Suffering a Nervous Breakdown

Opened in 2010 by the owners of nearby Salt Tasting Room, the Spanish-inspired 21 seat 'Judas Goat' lasted 3 years in Blood Alley

Restaurant Graveyard / Downtown

The Short-Lived ‘Modern Canadian’ Restaurant That Should Have Succeeded But Totally Flopped

Brian Fowke and Tim Keller's sprawling, 150-seat Metro restaurant boasted a great design and a tourist-magnet location, but barely lasted a year.

Restaurant Graveyard / Strathcona

The Odd Little Strathcona Eatery We Really Wish Was Still Around

Dunlevy Snackbar opened in 2010 and transitioned from coffee and baked goods to cocktails and Korean pancakes. It closed in 2015

Restaurant Graveyard / Commercial Drive

Remembering the East Van Cafe That Was Magic for Little Kids and Their Parents

Kids were encouraged to run guiltlessly, joyously amok at this memorable (if often outrageously loud) counter-service cafe off The Drive.

Restaurant Graveyard / West Side

The Excellent West Side Restaurant Vancouver Somehow Let Slip Away

Daniel Boulud's DB Bistro Moderne opened in the midst of the 2008 financial meltdown and closed to the frustration of many in 2011.