One of Vancouver's top hotel restaurants just got a new chef — here's what to expect
The team over at Botanist has received its fair share of accolades over the years, including being named on the list of North America’s 50 Best Bars. So when a restaurant goes through a shift in leadership, it’s natural that some may be concerned about what changes will come to the dining destination. Thankfully, we’re here to report that Botanist continues to shine under the leadership of new Executive Chef Amanda Healey.
Healey takes over the role from Hector Laguna, who had been with the restaurant since it opened in 2017. Much like Botanist, Healey has seen her own fair share of accolades over the years.
Executive Chef Amanda Healey (Jamie-Lee Fuoco/Botanist)
She’s worked in some of the world’s most celebrated kitchens, most recently as sous chef at Oncore by Clare Smyth, which has earned and maintained a three-Chef Hat rating (which is Australia’s highest culinary distinction). Prior to Oncore, she worked at Quay under Peter Gilmore and as executive chef at Mount Mulligan Lodge (a luxury resort in Australia which was named one of the 50 Greatest Luxury Hotels on Earth by Robb Report in 2025). Locally, she’s worked in several kitchens, including Hawksworth Restaurant and the farm-to-table Royal Dinette as head chef.
“I’ve been fortunate my entire career to have worked with some of the world’s most talented chefs, learn from them, and be inspired by their vision,” said Healey when she was appointed executive chef earlier this year. “Vancouver is one of the most memorable places I’ve cooked because British Columbia offers such exceptional access to seasonal ingredients and fresh seafood. Returning to lead a restaurant like Botanist, which so deeply respects the West Coast, is an opportunity to reconnect with the region and create menus that reflect both my experience and the ingredients found here.”
So it’s safe to say we weren’t the least bit worried when we stopped by Botanist for dinner the other night.
Interior of Botanist (Marco Ovies/Dished)
The room still has the same swanky, modern look to it, with its low lighting, plants (it is called Botanist, after all), and open kitchen with plenty of jars of pickled goodies on display. Service was also the same exceptional level that we have come to expect from the award-winning establishment.
We opted to sample the tasting menu, and the kitchen sent us a couple of extra goodies from the regular menu (talk about perks of the job).
Our meal started with Asparagus and Elderflower — poached green asparagus with “brew Creek” elderflower pickled pear and hollandaise. This was one of those dishes that almost looked too good to eat (key word being almost). The slightly bitter asparagus perfectly balances itself out with the pool of creamy hollandaise.
Given how renowned Botanist is for its cocktails, naturally we had to do some sampling of the beverage program. The Beekeeper was an easy favourite, made with Canadian 100 per cent rye whisky alongside honey, lemon, candy cap mushrooms, and yellow chartreuse.
We’d be remiss if we didn’t mention the wine program here too. The terroir-driven collection — overseen by Head Sommelier Matthew Jacobson — includes wines from regions like France, Italy, and Canada, with a focus on B.C. Our waitress for the evening was particularly excited about a lovely pinot noir from a Penticton winery named Little Engine with notes of strawberries and rose petals.
With drinks officially taken care of, we moved on to our bread course, consisting of a lovely long-peppered brioche mini loaf made especially for the restaurant. This was quickly followed by a pasta titled Lobster and Caviar.
Nova Scotia lobster tortellini was served with Meyer lemon and topped with a portion of osietra caviar. Obviously, with a pairing of lobster and caviar, this dish was delicious, but the team also nailed that perfect al dente cook on the pasta.
Lobster and Caviar (Marco Ovies/Dished)
For folks looking to stray from the tasting menu, the Linguine and Truffles are an easy recommendation. Not only is the dish stunning, with slices of truffles floating on a bed of parmesan velouté, but it had a gorgeous, rich taste to it (and made a perfect dish to dip your bread into).
Our last savoury dish of the night was the Beef, Peas, and Horseradish, consisting of P.E.I. Blue Dot beef striploin, peas, horseradish, and bone marrow jus. We were also presented with the Lamb and Gnudi off the regular menu. Perhaps even better than the Alberta lamb loin and ricotta gnudi were the little bites of lamb pancetta on our plate.
Beef, Peas, and Horseradish (Marco Ovies/Dished)
Lamb and Gnudi (Marco Ovies/Dished)
Now we’re already pretty familiar with Botanist’s dessert game, having attended its seven-course dessert-for-dinner event last year, so we weren’t surprised when we were presented with equally delicious and fresh dessert courses to end our night (who could possibly complain about having sorbet and ice cream at the same meal anyways?).
The Orchards served as a refreshing way to bridge us between the worlds of savoury and sweet with its roasted stone fruit sorbet. At the same time, the Strawberry and Lemon Verbena leaned fully into the dessert course with a strawberry lemon verbena granita, chamomile namelaka, and strawberry milk ice cream. Then, in typical Botanist fashion, the team brought out a chef’s selection of confections to round out the meal.
Strawberry and Lemon Verbena (Marco Ovies/Dished)
At the end of the day, we’re happy to report that Botanist is still going strong under Healey’s leadership. New dishes like the Lobster and Caviar and Lamb and Gnudi keep things interesting, but still respect the legacy that Botanist and Laguna have helped cultivate over the last nine years. We’re excited to see where Healey takes the restaurant next.
Botanist
Address: 1038 Canada Pl., Vancouver
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