Six months after its Michelin nod, this Vancouver restaurant opens up about the impact
When you think of food awards, one of the most popular and highly sought-after ones is from Michelin. Whether it’s receiving a Michelin Star, Bib Gourmand, or just a recommendation, making it into the Michelin Guide is a big deal for restaurants across the world.
In October, Vancouver hosted its third Michelin Award ceremony, where it revealed its 2024 selections for the Vancouver Guide. Among these were two new restaurants: Sushi Masuda, which walked away with a Michelin Star, and Gary’s, which received a Bib Gourmand.
But does making it into the Michelin Guide actually make a difference? We spoke with Gary’s co-owner, Bailey Hayward, six months after making the Michelin Guide about the changes they’ve noticed since making the list.
What is Gary’s?
Gary’s is a relatively new restaurant in the Vancouver dining scene, opening in October 2023. In a previous interview, Hayward told Dished that Gary’s menu is inspired by the “simplicity of modern British cuisine and classic French technique, but there are no limits.”
In 2024, Gary’s was listed as one of the receivers of a Bib Gourmand, a distinction named after Bibendum (the friendly Michelin Man and official company mascot for the Michelin Group). According to Michelin’s website, this is “a designation given to select restaurants that offer good quality food for good value — often known as personal favourites among the inspectors when dining on their own time.”
“It’s easy to be won over by this convivial neighbourhood spot, which owes its easygoing charms to the combined efforts of partners Bailey Hayward and Mathew Bishop (who oversee the service and the kitchen, respectively),” said Michelin.
This easygoing charm stems from Gary’s roots, which Hayward told us started as a little dinner series in her house, affectionately named after one of her friend’s nicknames.
“We knew we wanted people to feel like they’d walked into our lives or stepping into our home, and we wanted people to feel comfortable like you were just going to a friend’s house,” said Hayward.
This might be why Hayward received a nod at the Michelin awards, with her receiving the Vancouver 2024 Service Award.
Gary’s advertises simply as “a nice place,” which Hayward said is meant for everyone, meaning diners and staff.
“From the diner perspective, to be able to come to eat a plate of simple food that also supports the local economy and local agriculture, those were things that were really important to us.”
As for how much of the food served comes from local sources, Hayward said it’s “as much as possible.”
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Receiving a Bib Gourmand
When it comes to making it to the Michelin Guide, Hayward said it was never their main focus.
“I think for us, doing something that felt true and authentic was our number one priority,” said Hayward. “But any award and accolade is good not only for us but also for our team. It feels more so a cherry on top to be recognized.”
In fact, Gary’s did not expect to be invited to the award ceremony at all.
“Because we were so new, obviously we were hopeful that maybe we’d get invited, but obviously we would have understood if we hadn’t. We were essentially babies with only one year under our belt. So it was super unexpected.”
Additionally, Hayward added that the award was even more surprising since the team doesn’t have PR or marketing.
“It’s just us and organic growth and people liking and supporting what we’re doing. So I feel like that is really encouraging for a small independent restaurant that’s young, run by young restauranteurs as well.”
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Results of a Michelin nod
And while Gary’s had been doing well before Michelin, the effects of the accolade were immediate.
“To put it in perspective, 24 hours after Michelin, we booked 500 reservations, and this is a 36-seat restaurant,” said Hayward. “We’ve just been fully booked essentially every single night since Michelin.”
Hayward said that while weekends had always been busy for Gary’s, following the Michelin announcement, the restaurant’s weekdays were incredibly busy.
“Maybe we did 40 to 50 covers on weekdays, whereas now it’s just like every night is like a Friday or Saturday, which is obviously incredible. We’re so grateful to have had so much attention on Gary’s in our first year or so of being open,” said Hayward.
After Michelin, Gary’s was also named one of Air Canada’s Best New Restaurants, increasing the restaurant’s popularity. Then, Gary’s booked over 400 reservations during the Dine Out Vancouver festival alone. Dished was among those 400 reservations and can attest that it is definitely worth the hype.
And it’s not only the locals visiting Gary’s; people from far and wide are travelling to visit the restaurant.
“We definitely noticed an increase in people coming from outside Vancouver,” said Hayward. “I think a lot of people pay attention to who is on the Michelin Guide that resides in Vancouver, and then those are the restaurants that they’re most excited to try.”
Another change Hayward said the team has noticed is the general excitement of visitors to be dining at Gary’s.
“People are taking Instagram reels, and they’re just genuinely excited to cross off a restaurant from the Michelin Guide, which has been super sweet to get to witness people so excited. Maybe this is the first time they’ve ever gone to a Michelin-awarded or recommended restaurant before,” said Hayward.
But as for how things have changed internally, Hayward assured us that it’s business as usual.
“I think a lot of times, people get some recognition and maybe their path changes at that time. But for us, we’re just really happy with where we’re at and what we’ve been building now that we’re a year and a half or so in,” said Hayward. “Maybe we tightened up a little bit, and the team has now been with us longer, so there are small changes that I don’t think would be necessarily visible to an outside eye.”
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Why Michelin is important
If the proof wasn’t already in the pudding regarding the impact that making the Michelin Guide has had on Gary’s, Hayward reiterated how great it is to have Michelin in Vancouver.
“I’m sure it comes with its challenges in a different way for different restaurants, different distinctions, and whatnot, but I think just overall, it’s so positive,” said Hayward. She also said that it has opened two more positions on Gary’s team to hire and has given everyone job security with how busy it’s been.
Additionally, Hayward said making the Michelin list is also incredible for staff and their future endeavours, especially when it comes to their resumes.
“If someone decides to leave here, it’s a good thing to be able to take with them something that’s recognized on a global scale.”
However, Hayward said she would like to see Michelin expand outside of Vancouver into the surrounding areas.
“Much like Ontario, they’ve gone all the way down to St. Catherine’s,” said Hayward. “So I think it would be worthwhile for it to go beyond just Vancouver city limits.”
“I think it would be incredible to get people that live in Vancouver to venture to different parts of the province, possibly to explore other places that maybe they haven’t been before.”
Gary’s
Address: 1485 W 12th Ave., Vancouver
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