Biggest takeaways from the first-ever Michelin Guide Vancouver selection

Whether you’re a food connoisseur who has reservations at the city’s hottest restaurants every weekend, or you’re simply a casual fan of your local under-the-radar ramen shop, chances are, Michelin’s arrival in Vancouver piqued your interest.

Dished was live at the inaugural reveal on Thursday night, and the energy in the room was palpable. It’s not often you get such an incredible collection of culinary talent in one room, especially out of their aprons.

The well-deserving winners seemed largely ecstatic as they headed on stage to be a part of this historic moment in Vancouver’s food and beverage scene.

There was a lot going on and a lot to soak in. This culinary distinction has a ton of history, and to be honest, a lot of secrecy, which we guess is kind of the whole point.

It’s certainly been interesting to guess where the super-sly Michelin inspectors were going to land with their picks for the Vancouver guide.

Here are our main takeaways from the first-ever Michelin Guide Vancouver selection.

Recommendations Galore

We love a good list of solid dining spots and certainly agree the 40 recommended restaurants on Michelin’s list are worth a visit. According to Michelin, a recommendation means an establishment is serving up “simply a good meal.”

This means the recommendations aren’t quite at the Bib Gourmand level, but they are up there in terms of quality. It’s nice to see the Michelin love extend to such a large number of local restaurants, and we’re sure the nod will have them see a boost in diners.

Some Surprises

Boulevard Kitchen & Oyster Bar was surprisingly left out of the guide. Executive Chef Alex Chen is widely known as a big name in the industry and his accolades precede him.

This restaurant specifically comes to mind when one thinks of elevated dining in Vancouver, and they do a fantastic job in our opinion. So it’s a blow not to see Boulevard listed.

The same goes for Tojo’s, another highly regarded spot in town. Also, Cioppino’s Mediterranean Grill landed as a recommendation, another one that seemed to go against general predictions for starred restaurants.

Is the math “mathing?”

The Bib Gourmand award is all about “great food at a great value.” According to Michelin, that means patrons would spend $60 or less on two courses and a glass of wine when dining at the Bib winners.

We are huge fans of the Vancouver winners in this category; however, we’re not sure we’d coin some of the spots on the list affordable, necessarily.

Our overall takeaway? Probably the same as everyone else’s: this culinary guidebook coming to Vancouver will change things for the industry — and certainly for the winning restaurants — in the immediate future and long run.