Here's what happened to the former home of Vancouver's first solo dining ramen restaurant
Over the last two years, the restaurant space at 433 West Broadway, Vancouver, has seen a lot of change.
Originally, the spot was the home to Vancouver’s first-ever solo dining-focused ramen joint, Ramen One. Here, a booth surrounded an enclosed kitchen, with partitions between each seat that could be folded in if you want to dine with friends.
Additionally, it was also the home to 404 Coffee, a cafe that operated through the takeout window attached to the building, serving Asian-inspired coffee and drinks.
On May 18, Ramen One shared the news that it would be closing its doors and that 404 Coffee would be taking over the space, turning it into 404 Coffee Lab.
The new cafe offered a very similar solo dining concept to Ramen One, offering those who might want to get some work done without distraction or prefer not to interact with others a space to hang out. However, those looking for a more communal space are in luck, too, as the other portion of the restaurant features no dividers, allowing you to sit with your friends.
404 Coffee Lab officially opened its doors on May 30, but now, just five months later, it looks like another new concept has taken over the restaurant space.
Oishinoya, a restaurant concept from the same team behind Pokey Okey, softly opened on Oct. 29.
The restaurant is also tailored towards solo diners, but with a new ordering system. You place your order at a touch screen kiosk, receive a ticket for your order, choose your seat, place your ticket in the designated spot on the table, ring the doorbell, and someone will take your ticket and prepare your food, serving it through the same tiny window. Instructions are very clearly provided at the restaurant, so don’t worry about memorizing the process.
The fast-casual Japanese eatery is best known for gyudon (stewed beef rice bowls) alongside other fan-favourite dishes like katsu and karaage. A location in Richmond is planned to open in a new food hall alongside a Pokey Okey location and Nonbiri Cafe, which was described as “a whimsical Japanese cafe with a Vancouver twist.”
But don’t worry if you were a fan of 404 Coffee, because its signature drinks are still being served out of the takeout window on the side of the restaurant.
- You might also like:
- Singer-songwriters Paula Cole and Sadie B. Hawkins spotted at Vancouver restaurant
- Metro Vancouver grocery store wins gold at Canadian Independent Grocer of the Year Awards
- Vancouver restaurant listed as number one in Canada at Chinese Restaurant Awards
This stretch of West Broadway has been tricky for many restaurants lately. The Greek recently closed its location in the area, citing the repeated delays to the Broadway subway project as the reason why.
Heritage Asian Eatery, which operated in the same area as The Greek Broadway, also cited construction as the reason for its closure.
When construction initially began in 2021, it was anticipated that the new SkyTrain would be ready for its first passengers by late 2025. Since then, the project’s completion was delayed until early 2026, and then delayed again until 2027.
Oishinoya
Address:Â 433 W. Broadway, Vancouver
Still hungry? Discover Dished Vancouver on TikTok