Metro Vancouver Restaurant News thread

[s211]

Originally Posted by officedweller

The CBC doesn't seem to allow any meaningful signage.
The small Popeyes/Triple O's blade signs were barely noticeable.

Probably because it wasn't meaningfully bilingual.

[kikin]

noticed the Blenz on Seymour near Robson is gone and there are now "coming soon" signs in the window for:

BLOOM BAKERY AND CAFE
VANCOUVER NEW 24/7 CAFE OPENING SOON

lots of 24 hour choices along Robson now, very good to see

[Glow Fun City]

Originally Posted by kikin

noticed the Blenz on Seymour near Robson is gone and there are now "coming soon" signs in the window for:

BLOOM BAKERY AND CAFE
VANCOUVER NEW 24/7 CAFE OPENING SOON

lots of 24 hour choices along Robson now, very good to see

Excellent! Definitely need more late night places

[SpongeG]

Crumbl is opening a third location and it will be in North Vancouver at 1550 Marine Dr.

[jollyburger]

Tim Hortons to build or renovate 480 restaurants across the country

Tim Hortons announced Friday that Canadian restaurant owners are investing $270 million, in addition to Tim Hortons corporate investing an additional $130 million, in a plan to build or renovate 480 restaurants across the country.

Nationally, 280 Canadian restaurant owners are investing in 400 renovations, with another 60 Canadian restaurant owners investing in 80 new locations. There are 1,500 Canadian restaurant owners who own and operate 4,000 Tim Hortons restaurants from coast to coast.

Brighter, more beautiful restaurants: Guests want to visit and team members want to work in nice restaurants. With better lighting, layouts and design, renovated restaurants are more welcoming spaces for everyone.
Improved restaurant layouts: Better layouts allow team members to serve guests faster and more accurately.
Celebrating our Canadian heritage: As fixtures in communities for more than 60 years, it’s important to reflect and celebrate Tims Canadian heritage and community connection. Canadiana and our commitment to supporting youth through Tim Hortons Foundation Camps is woven throughout the updated design.
A standout baked goods showcase: Tim Hortons restaurants sell the most baked goods of any QSR in Canada. At the heart of each restaurant is a beautiful baked goods showcase that shows off our delicious donuts, cookies, Timbits, muffins and more.
Improved digital ordering and pick up: Many guests choose to order using the mobile app or kiosk vs at the register. Renovated restaurants make it more clear how to order digitally on site or where to pick up mobile orders.
Upgraded kitchen equipment: To ensure that guests always have the best food and drinks, served hot and fresh, renovated restaurants upgrade key pieces of equipment.

https://retail-insider.com/retail-inside...vate-480-restaurants-across-the-country/

[jollyburger]

Time Out Vancouver chefs share a sneak peek of their menu highlights

For Vij, Peacock also shines a light on his flagship restaurant, Vij’s, and a chance to showcase the restaurant food, including chicken korma with pickled chilies, a Vij’s classic, and a samosa chaat salad with beets and candied walnuts. Salt fish curry is from a recent cookbook he wrote with his life partner Jennifer Muttoo. A two-month delay in Time Out’s opening placed Vij in the “good to be busy” position of opening Peacock just 12 days before opening another venue at the FIFA Fan Festival site.

When Time Out courted another star chef, Rob Feenie, his response was an “easy yes,” he says.

“This is fun for me. From the way I’ve been treated from the start, it’s first class. It’s good for the people involved and it’s good for the city.”

In other cities, some have complained of high prices at Time Out Markets but … hmmm. At Feenie’s Burgers, all six burgers will be made with a customized blend of wagyu beef from Two Rivers, with a base price of $13.99. Add another patty for $3.99.

He’s keen for his Hawaiian burger.

“I ate it as a kid growing up in Burnaby. It’s just caramelized pineapple with teriyaki sauce, a four-ounce wagyu burger, tomato, cheese, lettuce, Hobb’s pickles, and my special sauce.”

The most la-di-da is the Le Croc burger, with half a pound of wagyu, foie gras, and mushrooms and a nod to the one on the lunch menu at Le Crocodile by Rob Feenie. The artisanal burger milk buns are made by Fife Bakery and the fries are crinkly because “I just like ’em,” he says. “They stay crisper.”

And there are a couple of hotdogs “custom-made by Two Rivers,” he says. They’ll be between “very, very good Filipino-style buns specially made by my friend Maj (Yee) at Goldilocks Bakeshop.”

Her stall, Makaam, is more casual than Baan Lao but she’s still obsessed with going the distance to make it special. Makaam means tamarind in Thai, and you’ll find it in the tamarind pad Thai, wrapped in organic omelette, and topped with creamy aged tamarind water buffalo Gouda that she developed with Academy Farms in Langley. “We’re the only ones making it,” she says. “I wanted my menu to be modern, artisanal Thai food and I wanted to work with different local artisans.”

For another dish, she collaborated with a baker to make a coconut ash brioche pita in which she stuffs wild salmon or local chicken green curry and serves with hand-cut taro fries. Other dishes include stir-fried holy basil with crispy fried egg with water buffalo or seafood. For tom yum noodle soup, she uses fresh rice noodles and sustainable seafood.

Other dishes to get excited about at Time Out Market include Japanese comfort food like wagyu broth udon, okonomiyaki and oshizushi from the award-winning Kishimoto.

Lunch Lady, a Bib Gourmand restaurant, offers exciting Vietnamese dishes, like steak luc lac (wok-seared beef marinated soy and oyster sauce) and garlic fried noodles.

And Michelin-recommended Pidgin melds French, southeast Asian and Japanese cookery in “irreverent, inventive, alive” ways.

The Top Chef Canada 2024 winner, Chanthy Yen, crafts modern Cambodian dishes at Mee Bar like rice noodles topped with charcoal grilled meat and seafood, and Cambodian style chicken wings with lime and Kampot pepper.

https://vancouversun.com/life/time-out-vancouver-chefs-menu-highlights

[SpongeG]

'Premium' Taiwanese tea brand opens first Canadian store in Richmond
From floral-based tea to matcha and fruit smoothies, this Asian tea brand has expanded to Canada.
Valerie Leung
May 27



A Taiwanese tea brand has entered the Canadian market, starting with a location inside a Richmond mall.

Unique Green Tea has soft open inside CF Richmond Centre, across from SportChek, on Wednesday (May 27).

The brand was founded by Taiwan's drink group Sharetea in 2024 and is described as a "new-generation premium tea brand," according to UG's website.

"The brand embodies the philosophy of 'health, simplicity, and self-love,' offering a selection of sugar-free, low-calorie pure teas that highlight the authentic flavours of carefully sourced ingredients."

It further claims that each drink uses 100 per cent whole-leaf teas and floral blends, and is prepared with "AI brewing technology" in seven seconds.

...

https://www.richmond-news.com/food-and-d...t-canadian-store-in-richmond-bc-12333491

[jollyburger]

Miku Richmond has closed less than four months after opening

After opening its doors in February 2026, Miku Richmond has quietly closed.

While a formal announcement has yet to be made by the restaurant, a representative from Aburi Restaurants Canada confirmed the news with Dished.

“We understand the Miku-branded restaurant in River Rock Casino Resort has closed. Aburi Restaurants Canada, which is the owner of the ‘Miku’ brand, ceased involvement in this location on or about May 15, 2026. Aburi is not and has never been the lessee of this location,” shared Aburi Restaurants Canada.

“Aburi remains committed to delivering the exceptional dining experiences our guests have come to expect. We invite you to visit us at our other Vancouver locations and look forward to welcoming you soon,” added the restaurant group.

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/miku-richmond-closed

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by jollyburger

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/miku-richmond-closed

That's weird.

[officedweller]

Franchise arrangement gone wrong?

[jollyburger]

Originally Posted by officedweller

Franchise arrangement gone wrong?

At least something else exciting is coming

Considering they managed to grab the Gordon Ramsay "franchises" it seems odd they would have a problem with Miku. The interior looks like they turned some meeting room into the restaurant.



https://www.richmond-news.com/food-and-d...-closes-its-river-rock-location-12364604

[officedweller]

Miku said they were not the lessee of the space - implying that there was a third party who leased space from the casino (and the casino itself was not the franchisee).
That third party may just reopen the sushi restaurant under a different name.
The franchise agreement may have had minimum revenue or payments to Miku or other terms that the franchisee could not meet, leading to termination.

[jollyburger]

Originally Posted by officedweller

Miku said they were not the lessee of the space - implying that there was a third party who leased space from the casino (and the casino itself was not the franchisee).
That third party may just reopen the sushi restaurant under a different name.
The franchise agreement may have had minimum revenue or payments to Miku or other terms that the franchisee could not meet, leading to termination.

In that post, she claimed the Richmond outpost is a franchise location run by the same owners as another Richmond Chinese restaurant that alleged had owed employees money, and that her own wages were delayed three times and tips were withheld.

https://nomsmagazine.com/miku-river-rock-richmond-closure/

The building permit was for Karakoi Izakaya Ltd and the phone number connected to it was hiring front of staff for The North Bistro/K Squared Mansion on No 3 Road.. that also abruptly closed in January

https://www.richmond.ca/__shared/assets/buildingreportnovember16202578035.pdf

https://nomsmagazine.com/customers-pissed-off-richmond-buffet-runs-away-money-northbistro/

[officedweller]

Sometimes Franchise Agreements also allow the Franchisor to step in and take over the operation of the venture if the Franchisee defaults (including advance Landlord consent to assignment of the lease if the situation arises).
In this case, Aburi doesn't appear to want to do that.

[jollyburger]

Originally Posted by officedweller

Sometimes Franchise Agreements also allow the Franchisor to step in and take over the operation of the venture if the Franchisee defaults (including advance Landlord consent to assignment of the lease if the situation arises).
In this case, Aburi doesn't appear to want to do that.

Franchisee might be reopening as Koi

High-end Japanese restaurant opening soon at Richmond River Rock Casino. We are committed to delivering an authentic high-end Japanese dining experience at Fine Dining standards!

We are committed to delivering an authentic high-end Japanese dining experience at the highest Fine Dining standards. We source only the finest ingredients — premium seafood flown in fresh daily, A5-grade Japanese wagyu, and the best seasonal local produce. Every dish is crafted with precision and artistry, from our signature Aburi-style sushi to delicate sashimi and charcoal-grilled specialtie

https://www.86network.com/employers/koi-richmond/about

Seems like that was the original plan before Miku got intertwined in it. Daily Hive in 2024

Food and beverage offerings are in the process of being overhauled, including a new dedicated bar on the gaming floor, recent renovations to the buffet with à la carte offerings, and the opening later this year of the new KOI restaurant by restauranteur Michael Zhang, who is also behind Kanae, Yakiniku, and K Squared Mansion. This restaurant will be the resort’s most modern and elegant fusion dining experience.

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/river-rock-casino-resort-upgrades-20th-anniversary

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by officedweller

Miku said they were not the lessee of the space - implying that there was a third party who leased space from the casino (and the casino itself was not the franchisee).
That third party may just reopen the sushi restaurant under a different name.
The franchise agreement may have had minimum revenue or payments to Miku or other terms that the franchisee could not meet, leading to termination.

A little foolish of Miku to hand over the reputation of their brand without a lot of thought apparently. And that space looks awful, as said more like a meeting room.

[RedArbutus]

[QUOTE=jollyburger;10606906]At least something else exciting is coming
/QUOTE]

Not just something exciting.....Something Exciting! And Soon!