RIP List: 62 notable Vancouver restaurant closures we saw in 2023

The restaurant industry is a fickle one, so while we know that some eateries inevitably need to close their doors, we never want to see them shut for good.

Some of these spots were revived with a new concept, while others sadly closed permanently.

Starbucks — Gastown

A prominent location for the famous coffee chain quietly closed its doors in Gastown earlier this year.

As of January 1, 2023, the brand’s 199 Water Street location had its windows and door papered up. Now, this location is a Lee’s Donuts outpost.

Side Hustle Sandwiches

 

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What used to be Eight 1/1 Restaurant Lounge became Side Hustle Sandwiches, which has operated at the 151 East 8th Avenue address since May 2020.

The sandwich shop closed its doors in early 2023.

Delrios

 

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Chances are if you grew up in South Surrey, you’ve probably been to (or even worked at) Delrios at one point or another.

The family-style restaurant, located at 1669 128th Street, had been a staple of the community for decades.

Katsuya

 

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Katsuya, a brand known for its “fusion katsu” offerings, has closed its only Vancouver location at 1471 Robson Street.

The restaurant had its final day of service on January 22, marking the end of Katsuya’s presence in the city.

Rendezvous Restaurant

This family-style restaurant is located in Chilliwack and stopped operations after 21 years of business.

Rendezvous Restaurant thanked patrons for all the support and let them know that January 28, 2023, would be its final day of service.

Pepper Lunch

The restaurant franchise, which coins itself as “The Original Japanese DIY Teppan Experience,” has stopped operations at its former 2323 Cambie Street location.

Pepper Lunch posted a note for patrons on its door signalling the closure.

Bentoya

The 500 Robson Street joint, which was known for serving up donburi, noodles, and appetizers, offered its final day of service last week on March 17.

In a message posted on the restaurant door, owners thanked patrons for their support and loyalty over the last decade.

Grade A Restaurant

Grade A Restaurant opened up at its 1175 Granville Street location back in 1984, but earlier this year the restaurant announced its permanent closure via a note attached to its door.

“We opened the doors of Grade A Restaurant in 1984 so it is with great sadness that we announce our closure on March 14, 2023,” the note reads.

Chewies Oyster Bar — Coal Harbour

 

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The family-owned oyster house, known for southern cuisine and good times, posted a statement sharing the initial closing info in March.

The restaurant cited challenging decisions in the form of limiting lease options as the reason for this move. Chewies said it had been notified it had 60 days to vacate its #110-1055 West Hastings Street address.

Kent’s Kitchen

In mid-March, Dished shared the unfortunate news that Kent’s Kitchen, a beloved Vancouver spot for affordable Chinese food, would be closing its doors in April.

During a brief phone call with the restaurant, Dished was able to confirm that the 232 Keefer Street eatery would officially be closing on Sunday, April 30.

Nada Grocery

Nada, the city’s first package-free grocery store, closed its doors at the end of April.

The 675 East Broadway business first opened back in 2018. Nada launched with tons of buzz after a crowdfunding campaign helped successfully bring the project to life.

Supper Suppermoment

 

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Richmond’s Supper Suppermoment, a casual and comforting spot for Hong Kong-style eats, announced its closure earlier this spring.

Sciué (all locations)

All of this brand’s Vancouver locations are marked as permanently closed, according to Google.

BierCraft UBC

 

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Another one of BierCraft’s last remaining locations has now shuttered permanently.

“We will be closing the BierCraft UBC location as of May 1 to make way for a new concept in Wesbrook Village,” the post on BierCraft’s Instagram page explains.

La Bottega di Mangia

The 1155 Pacific Boulevard business first opened back in 2021. It was brought to us by the folks behind local (and now-shuttered) Italian restaurant Mangia Cucina & Bar at 2211 Manitoba Street.

Chimec Vancouver

 

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Some sad news came in the spring for fans of Chimec Vancouver, as the fried chicken joint suddenly called it quits.

The West End destination, located at 835 Denman Street in Vancouver, shared the news with patrons in May.

Buckstop

 

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The West End’s Buckstop, a local favourite for BBQ and cocktails, announced that it would close for good after 10 long years.

Aperture Coffee Bar

 

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Aperture Coffee Bar, which has operated at 243 West Broadway for the last 10 years, has closed its doors.

Old Bird

Main Street’s Old Bird which served recognizable Asian street food favourites, has now permanently closed.

The eatery opened in 2020, but after a little over three years of serving the community, it is saying goodbye.

Bel Café Kitsilano

 

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Bel Café, which is operated by David Hawksworth of the Hawksworth Group, permanently closed its Kitsilano location.

The 1780 West 3rd Avenue spot served coffee, artisan teas, pastries, gourmet sandwiches, and more. This location officially closed on Sunday, June 4. You can still visit the Bel Café location at 801 West Georgia Street.

La Taqueria Hornby

 

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The much-loved mini-chain known for its tacos, burritos, and beyond confirmed the news to Dished, saying the lease at the 586 Hornby Street space was ending and it was time to focus on future launches for the group.

Buttermere Patisserie

 

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Buttermere’s owner and head pastry chef, Jamie Tung, made “the difficult decision to temporarily close” in order to head home to Taiwan to spend time with family.

This much-loved sweet spot’s last day of operation was on June 10, 2023.

Win Win Chick-N (Main Street)

 

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We never like to see a crispy fried chicken concept fly the coop (aka Vancouver), but we’re sad to say Win Win Chick-N has done just that.

The brand known for serving up locally sourced hand-breaded chicken has confirmed to Dished that its 8197 Main Street outpost has closed.

Buro Coffee (Robson Street)

 

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Sad news for one Vancouver-born coffee chain, as Buro closed one of its last remaining downtown Vancouver locations.

Buro’s original location at 356 Water Street closed sometime last year before being replaced this spring by a new concept called Cafe Monaco, and now its Robson Street spot has also shuttered.

KFC (602 Clarke Road)

The Lower Mainland has just lost one of its oldest KFC locations, as the 602 Clarke Road spot permanently closed.

Dished received a tip and a photo from a reader that shows a sign pasted to the location’s door. The notice says that after more than 50 years, this KFC is now closed.

Spring Garden Chinese Seafood Restaurant

Spring Garden Chinese Seafood Restaurant, located at 832 12th Street in New West, has closed.

In a note shared on the restaurant’s website, owners Calvin, Janice, and Andy share that, after 14 years of cooking for the community, they have “sold the restaurant. New Westminster will soon enjoy a new restaurant.”

Whitewood Coffee

 

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The minimalist Oak Street spot was known for its specialty coffee and baked bites like Belgian Liege Waffles and toasts.

“It is with mixed emotions that we announce the closure of our shop effective on 29th June 2023. Over the years, it has been our privilege to serve the community and provide you with great coffee and food,” the coffee shop shared in a post on its Instagram account.

Mangia Cucina

 

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Vancouver is down a much-loved cozy spot to dine and drink. Mangia Cucina has shared that it has officially closed its doors.

The Manitoba Street eatery, which operated out of a red, converted heritage home, made the announcement earlier this summer.

Trove Desserts

 

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In a YouTube video shared by owners Karli and Julia, Trove explained the reasoning behind the decision to close the bakery portion of the business.

12 Kings Pub

 

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12 Kings Pub said it is “with a heavy heart” that June would be its final month open.

Aside from its mouth-watering wings and delicious local craft beer, 12 Kings Pub was a spot for sports fans to watch UFC, boxing, and pro wrestling.

Buddha Chay

 

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When Do Chay’s Yaletown location closed its doors at the end of 2022, another plant-based Vietnamese eatery quickly set up shop at its former address: Buddha Chay.

Around six months later, that business announced it would be departing from the 1269 Hamilton Street space as well.

Blenz (Commercial-Broadway SkyTrain station)

One of Vancouver’s most identifiable stops for coffee on a major commuter’s route has quietly closed.

The Blenz location was entirely cleaned out, with only a note on the door with “Sorry! We are closed” as an explanation.

Toby’s Social Pub

 

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Toby’s Social Pub, a popular destination for drinks and food on the North Shore, closed at the end of June.

In an email to Dished, the pub told us that the lease would not be renewed at its 1378 Main Street location due to the inability to reach an agreement with the owners of the Harbourview Centre.

Deep Cove Brewers & Distillers

 

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Longtime North Vancouver business Deep Cove Brewers & Distillers has an update for patrons: it’s actively searching for a new location.

The 2270 Dollarton Highway establishment shared that after a decade at that outpost, it was unable to renew the lease due to “complications with the building.”

JJ Bean (Woodward’s)

Vancouver-based coffee roaster and cafe chain JJ Bean closed one of its notable locations downtown.

Located at 146 West Cordova Street, JJ Woodward’s shuttered on July 31.

The Pinkavo Cafe

 

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The Pinkavo Cafe has officially wrapped up operations. The 20534 Fraser Highway spot first opened back in 2020.

Kokomo (Chinatown)

 

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The 611 Gore Avenue location opened in 2017. Since then, Kokomo’s opened outposts in Kitsilano, Edgemont Village, and Port Moody.

The original Gore Avenue location’s last day of operation was July 28. But Kokomo recently opened a new location in East Vancouver.

The Meat Up (Vancouver)

 

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This Vancouver destination for Beijing-inspired BBQ fare has wrapped up operations.

The 7994 Granville Street spot for meat and vegetable skewers shared the news with Dished, saying its final day of operation would be Friday, July 28.

Coho Eatery (White Rock)

 

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A short-lived eatery concept in White Rock said goodbye this year.

Coho Eatery, a food hall by the same folks behind Coho Commissary, was home to three different food concepts over the last several months before it stopped operations.

Browns Social House — Ironwood

 

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Browns Social House closed one of its longtime Metro Vancouver locations this year.

The Ironwood location in Richmond, located at #1020-11660 Steveston Highway, held its last day on Saturday, August 19.

Zephyr Cafe

 

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In a Facebook post on June 29, Amanda Jane Desjardins shared, “The Zephyr Cafe will be closing permanently at the end of September.”

“Our landlords have made little attempt to negotiate a reasonable rent increase for us to be able to stay on Cleveland Avenue, and have made it pretty clear we are not what their vision is for downtown Squamish,” she added.

The cafe’s final day of operation was September 25.

Burnout Cafe

 

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Burnout Cafe, which is run by The Narrow Group (the same folks behind Slim’s BBQ, Uncle Abe’s, and The Narrow Lounge), was a cafe on East Hastings Street that was known for its unique location and ample parking space for motorcycles.

Cotto Enoteca Pizzeria

The restaurant, founded in 2012, appears to have closed sometime in June or July.

Dished confirmed with the restaurant that it did, in fact, close, though it did not provide a reason for the closure.

Nox

Coal Harbour’s new contemporary Italian restaurant has quietly closed. A source close to the restaurant confirmed to Dished that the eatery stopped operations sometime in the summer.

Dished has reached out for more information on the future of this space/concept.

SeaHouse Restaurant

After operating for several years, SeaHouse Restaurant closed its doors. The restaurant was known for its pizza, pasta, and occasional live jazz night.

Nukid Cafe and Bakery

Located at 1660 Robson Street, the Korean-style bakery was best known for its twisted donuts in a variety of flavours like yuzu, s’mores, peach yogurt, and more.

It also served other cafe staples like Americanos, matcha lattes, and London fogs. The cafe had only opened last year.

Chef Hung Taiwan Bistro

Downtown Vancouver is down a spot for comfort food. It appears Chef Hung has quietly shuttered its Smithe dining concept, Chef Hung Taiwan Bistro 990.

The restaurant is completely papered up, signage is down, and it’s marked as permanently closed on Google as well. This eatery opened back in winter 2022.

Paddlewheeler Pub

Paddlewheeler Pub, located at the River Market within sight of the World’s Tallest Tin Soldier, announced its closure on Facebook on Tuesday, October 3.

In the social media post, the pub announced it found itself “victim to rising inflation and government taxation.”

Union Market

This longtime family-run Vancouver grocer has closed. Union Market in Strathcona shuttered after its final day of business on October 31.

Wa! Curry

Wa Curry closed near the end of September.

The Aburi Restaurants brand announced the closure on Instagram, saying that it’s closing the Japanese-style curry eatery to “focus on upcoming new openings and continue to build in-house offerings at Aburi To-Go and Aburi Market.”

Gram Cafe (multiple locations)

 

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The Aberdeen Centre and Amazing Brentwood locations were removed from the malls’ directories and marked as “Permanently Closed” on Google.

Sockeye City Grill

 

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After over 20 years, Sockeye City Grill has closed, adding it to the growing list of restaurant closures this October.

La Catrina Mexican Tacos

The location opened in 2016 and served a wide variety of tacos and other Mexican favourites like quesadillas and burritos.

While nothing has been formally announced by the restaurant, Catrina’s Instagram bio now says “permanently closed.”

Minoas Greek Taverna

After 37 years of serving the Burnaby community, family-run restaurant Minoas Greek Taverna is officially closed. However, the restaurant shared it will be replaced by a Mexican restaurant in the near future.

Turquoise Goat

Beloved board game cafe Turquoise Goat took to Facebook to announce its closure. The restaurant opened just last year and was known for its extensive list of board games as well as specialty drinks and eats.

Kam Ding Seafood Restaurant

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With files from Daryn Wright and Marco Ovies