Dished Neighbourhood Gems: Vancouver's Kensington-Cedar Cottage
Vancouver is home to some amazing gems, longstanding classics, and under-the-radar establishments when it comes to stellar food and beverage.ย
We’re doing the digging for you by highlighting the best local destinations to check out in each city (if you havenโt already).
Here are our Dished Neighbourhood Gems for Kensington-Cedar Cottage.
Encompassing what feels like a few distinct areas in East Vancouver โ including a stretch up Victoria Drive, down Kingsway, and down to Trout Lake โ the Kensington-Cedar Cottage neighbourhood is diverse and not easily packaged up.
It’s perhaps this refusal to be defined and contained that makes this area such a great place to live, work, and, especially, to eat.
Combining the two historic neighbourhoods of Cedar Cottage (north of Kingsway to Broadway, between Clark and Knight Streets and Nanaimo Street) and Kensington (south of Kingsway to 41st Avenue, between Fraser and Nanaimo Streets), this area has a huge cultural and demographic mix, making it one of Vancouver’s most ethnically-diverse neighbourhoods.
The stretch of Victoria Drive from 33rd Avenue to 44th Avenue in particular is a bonafide foodie destination in Vancouver, and if you don’t already know about how great the restaurants are up here, you’re about to find out.
From some of the best Vietnamese in the city to dosa-central, this area is just waiting to be discovered.
There’s no way we could mention them all, but here are some of our favourite food and drink gems in Vancouver’s Kensington-Cedar Cottage neighbourhood.
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Classic Vietnamese Banh Mi: Banh Mi Saigon
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There are some places that always have a lineup of people waiting to grab some food, and this is one of them. Banh Mi Saigon specializes in Vietnamese Banh Mi, of course, but the prices are fantastic and the sandwiches are perfection. This spot also does drinks like Vietnamese iced coffee and desserts like Chรจ Thรกi.
Address: 5397 Victoria Drive, Vancouver
Phone: 778-379-9992
Famous fish cake noodles: Bun Cha Ca Hoang Yen
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A local’s favourite, this restaurant recently relocated to a bigger location in order to accommodate its influx of customers. It’s especially known for its fish cake noodle bowls, but also serves other Vietnamese dishes like pho, Bรบn, salad rolls, and salt and pepper chicken wings.
Address: 5155 Victoria Drive, Vancouver
Phone: 604-321-2711
Northern-style pho: Cafe Dang Anh
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This gem specializes in Northern Vietnamese food, which has a few distinctions from Southern Vietnamese โ in terms of pho, Northern-style uses wider rice noodles, has a clearer broth, uses chicken or minced rare beef, and uses much more green onion and black pepper. Cafe Dang Anh is a truly solid choice for Vietnamese in the city, let alone the neighbourhood.
Address: 1C9, 5186 Victoria Drive, Vancouver
Phone: 778-379-7977
Butter beef rice: Viet Mama Cafe
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This spot serves authentic, family-style Vietnamese food, with specialty dishes including chicken salad, beef carpaccio, mango sticky rice, and butter beef rice. The restaurant is super casual inside, and also offers take-out and delivery options, making it a fantastic spot to hit up for some quality but affordable food.
Address: 5118 Victoria Drive, Vancouver
Phone: 778-988-9257
Every kind of dosa imagineable: House of Dosas
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Open every single day until 3 am, this spot for dosas is a Vancouver legend. Order literally anything here and you’ll be satisfied, with dosa offerings ranging from eggplant alu, mattar paneer alu, butter chicken, lamb vindaloo, paneer masala, and so many more. House of Dosas offers delivery too, but sitting at a table and having the giant sheet of dosa brought to you is a near-spiritual experience.
Address: 1391 Kingsway, Vancouver
Phone: 604-875-1283
Nyonya Chicken Curry: Shiok Singaporean Cuisine
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This spot just opened a second location in Burnaby, but this is its OG spot. Head here for fantastic Singaporean cuisine, including Nasi Lemak, Laksa, Nyonya Chicken Curry, Mee Siam, and drinks like Teh Tarik and Bandung.
Address: 1716 Kingsway, Vancouver
Phone: 604-423-3838
Late-night fried chicken: Duffin’s Donuts
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You can’t talk about this area without mentioning legendary spot Duffin’s Donuts, which offers everything from yes, donuts, to fried chicken to a huge menu of sandwich offerings. Pre-pandemic this spot was open 24/7, and while now that’s only the case on weekends (the rest of the week it’s open until midnight), it still remains a favourite for late-night bites.
Address: 1391 East 41st Avenue, Vancouver
Innovative Vietnamese coffee: Hem 377
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Relative newcomer to the neighbourhood, Hem 377 is a Vietnamese coffee shop modeled after the owner’s experience of her hometown of Saigon. Not only does this spot have the little plastic chairs that you’d often see dotting the cafes in Vietnam, but it also offers modern takes on street food (like its bahn mi bowls) and refreshing coffee options, including a pandan drip and ube iced latte.
Address: 5026 Victoria Drive, Vancouver
Phone: 604-423-5026
Plant-based Vietnamese: Chau Veggie Express
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This is the second location for this local plant-based eatery, which also has a spot on Granville Island. Stop here for delicious, veggie-forward Vietnamese dishes, with names that inspire wellness, including the Golden Temple Soup, Tropical Rainstorm Bowl, and Diving for Pearls Soup. Bonus: this spot has a bottled vegan Vietnamese coffee!
Address: 5052 Victoria Drive, Vancouver
Phone: 604-568-9508
Turmeric fish with dill: Hร Nแปi Old Quarter Restaurant
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Sister spot to Vancouver favourite Mr. Red Cafe, Hร Nแปi Old Quarter Restaurant’s menu differs slightly as it focuses more on Northern Vietnamese cuisine. Head here for some truly incredible dishes, including cha ca ha noiย (tumeric fish with dill) and a variety of bun dishes. This spot also serves a great Vietnamese egg coffee.
Address: 5207 Victoria Drive, Vancouver
Phone: 604-327-6789
Ube cheesecake: Hapag Ihaw-Ihaw Restaurant
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This non-descript spot on Victoria Drive is a must-try for fans of Filipino cuisine. On the menu, youโll find BBQ pork skewers, crispy pata, miki, and chicken inasal. Plan to leave room for dessert, too, as Hapag also serves a leche flan, buko pie, and ube cheesecake that is definitely worth sticking around for.
Address: 5432 Victoria Drive, Vancouver
Phone: 604-428-0097
Baklava: Kamo Bakery
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Head here to fill up on a huge variety of Middle Eastern pastries, from baklava to sesame cakes to breads and other sweets. This place is definitely an under-the-radar spot for pastries in the area and is not to be missed.
Address: 5552 Victoria Drive, Vancouver
Phone: 604-566-6001
Fried chicken and Jjigaes: Sumi Korean
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For comforting Korean food, head to this spot. Sumi has a range of menu offerings, including Tteokbokki, fried chicken, Jjeegaes, and Dupbaps. It’s one of the few Korean restaurants in the area but and is definitely worth checking out.
Address: 5628 Victoria Drive, Vancouver
Phone: 604-620-9235
Soy-based Cantonese dessert bowls: The First Dessert
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With more than 50 kinds of Cantonese-style dessert and snack offerings, this spot is a hidden gem for dessert. Go for one of The First Dessert’s Thai series, with a Thai milk tea base, grass jelly, and black pearl, or opt for a steamed egg with milk and papaya. This spot definitely caters to those with a hankering for something just a little sweet, so don’t expect to be overloaded with sugar here.
Address: 5857 Victoria Drive, Vancouver
Phone: 778-522-5857
If you have a neighbourhood gem in or around the city that you want to shine a spotlight on, let us know at [email protected].ย
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