The Halibut was EXCELLENT. Credit to the kitchen, servers and management, it was great. Alberto and Joey made our first experience a complete success for my wife's Birthday. Highly recommend! read more

Visiting Vancouver after an Alaska cruise. Stopped in on Sunday evening. We had no reservation but were seated quickly. Server staff was attentive and available. We ordered cocktails that were made perfectly. Bruschetta was delicious, followed by entrees of Spaghetti Carbonara. Servings were amble! Lovely evening and great find! read more

Gluten free gnocchi were top notch. Great atmosphere, service and food. If we come back to Vancouver this is definitely on our list.

I have walked & driven down Robson St hundreds of times passing Zefferelli's! I wondered why I never went in!? Well after last nite - I'll be going back more often than not to make up for lost time!!! This joint is fabulous! Located on Robson St., between Thurlow & Bute, this location is prime central to all the action on the number #1 High Street of Vancouver! Zefferelli's is on the second floor via a flight of stairs - you get to work out before you eat! Not sure if there's an elevator. This restaurant gets very busy & loud. Huge wine selection offered here. I ordered a Cosmo & was very happy! The host was very pleasant & our server fantastic! She made great recommendations! A month ago I met a friend I had not seen for some time. We talked food of course! I told him about how I have found a love for duck meat lately - but that the last 2 times I'd had it at another restaurant, it was rather salty! He told me how he & his sister had first gone to Zefferelli's & his sister had ordered the Roasted Duck. She loved it so much that she got up from her table, walked into the kitchen & hugged the chef! That hooked me in - & it was celebration bday for me at Zefferelli's on this Friday nite - of course I ordered the Duck! The black sauce that came on it was so tasty - the Duck cooked to perfection!!! We also had Chicken Marsala & the special - Crab & Lobster Ravioli. Dinner was so delightful, delicious & superb!!! I wanted to walk into the kitchen & hug the chef!!! Highly recommend a visit to Zefferelli's!!! read more

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Haven't been to many pasta places that I've enjoyed in Vancouver - usually they're too bland or the taste gets repetitive after a while. But I was impressed by Zefferelli's. They served us fresh bread that was so pillowy and delicious, paired with some raw tomato sauce on the side - a combination I've never tried before. Although it's not something I'd try on my own, it still tasted great. I ordered the Parmesan eggplant and spaghetti carbonara (since most people were raving about it). The eggplant was covered in tomato sauce and cheese, a little bit like a lasagna. It tasted pretty good, but nothing too unique - just eggplant and Parmesan. I'd still eat it again though. The spaghetti was the star, though. I have a problem with pasta places where they taste the same after a few bites and I don't want to eat it anymore. But the carbonara was fantastic; they do al dente well. They really brought out all the flavours from each ingredient and balanced them all out together nicely. I'd definitely order it again, and I'm not even a carbonara person. I also tried my friend's veal pasta (she substituted the pasta with gnocchi). The gnocchi had soft yet chewy texture, and the veal was amazing. So tender and soft and flavourful. So good. Glad to say I've finally found a good pasta place in the city! Would come back again. read more

Zefferelli's - Carbonara. - Italian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

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Came here for my bf's birthday and left rather disappointed. I called them in advance to let them know about the special occasion in which they said they would do something special. We had the linguine, mussels, and smoked salmon pizza all which I felt were rather mediocre. The pasta was on the dry side and the mussels were very salty. At the end of the meal, the server brought out a piece of tiramisu with a candle on it for my bf. While I thought it was a nice surprise, I later saw on the bill that they charged me full price for the dessert - talk about giving us something special (aka nothing). Had I known I was going to be charged, I would've taken him somewhere else since neither of us like tiramisu. That left a bad taste in my mouth since many other restaurants give complimentary desserts for special occasions. While I would've given the restaurant 3 stars, two stars for the less than stellar "special" treatment. Won't be going back. read more

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Food is a far cry from authentic Italian cooking- we had a margarita pizza, mussels in tomato sauce and Spaghetti Carbonara. Mussels were delicious in a sweet tomato sauce. Margarita Pizza had way too much cheese, and it was a cheep tasteless cheese. The carbonara was prepared with cream, which is not authentic Italian at all. Overall food was ok, but not memorable. Service was attentive. We will not return. read more

Originally put off by the entrance up the stairs and sceptical of this place but I ended up really liking the pasta. I had the crab linguini with roasted peppers and artichoke and loved it! You also get free house bread with cold marinara sauce which was yummy. Also we had to ask what the food station in the middle of the restaurant was. Turns out it's an appy you have to order and then you can go up to grab food from it. read more

Zefferelli's - Crab linguini with roasted peppers and artichoke. Sooo good!! $19.50 - Italian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

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Cute cozy place tucked upstairs off Robson St. The portion of pasta was very generous and maybe it was too much :). Mussel was very fresh and pasta was delicious. read more

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An upstairs Italian restaurant with a pleasant window seating. Good complimentary bread with marinara sauce is provided. Food seems to be on the expensive side here though. ----- Linguini Crab: served with roasted peppers, artichokes, pesto, and cream ($22.95). A huge quantity, roughly a small potful of pasta! I probably managed to finish a third at best. But I favor quality over quantity, for the entrée tasted bland to me. I also discovered a little blue piece of plastic in my pasta. As for the components of the dish, it's hard to tell how much crab there actually was because it was shredded into tiny bits. A decent amount of peppers and artichoke at least. I found their spin on pesto intriguing: minced basil instead of the typical blended pesto sauce. ----- Chicken Parmesan: served with spaghetti alio-olio ($26.95). I was surprised this cost more than a seafood entrée. The chicken breast was cooked well and I liked it more than the Linguini Crab. ----- read more

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Amazing food, and service and the give you judge portions, also loved the tiramisu. Had such great service they even packed our left overs for us! read more

Fantastic casual Italian restaurant, great service and food, reasonable prices. Chicken livers appetizer is to die for. It is located on a second floor, give them a try! read more

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Came here on a Tuesday evening and I was not disappointed. The atmosphere was cozy and inviting, and in a great location to my hotel. Now on to the food which is hands down the best spaghetti carbonara I have had in years. It was authentic, simple, and 10/10. Our waiter, Nick, was friendly and attentive. He gave us some great tips on trivia nights in the area, which my friend and I were wanting to check out. So if you see this Nick or someone could pass this on to him...we placed fifth in trivia and unfortunately no Brooklyn 99 questions! Already planning my next trip to Vancouver and Zefferelli's is number one on my places to visit again! Highly recommend to anyone in the area! read more

I went to Zeffirelli's upon reading all the amazing reviews this place had. One person even said they traveled like an hour just to eat here. Of course, I'm like dang I really have to try this place now! With much excitement, I went with my boyfriend and we were seated immediately which was nice, but it was really hot because there was no a/c running. The bathroom was even hotter, it felt like a sauna. I'm not even exaggerating it was HOT in there. Our server gave us the menu which we took some time to look over and nothing really caught my eye like "oh yes, I have to have this". We ended up getting a shrimp appetizer which was okay. It was salty like the boiled shrimp water was still on the plate type of salty. The sauce and fixings however were actually pretty good once you get past the salt water. I think it was the best thing we had there. As our main course we almost ordered the crab pesto pasta. However, right before we finalized the order, I used the restroom. That's where I passed this black board with their daily specials on it. I saw a lobster crab ravioli and I was like omg yes that's the one I definitely want to try, but it wasn't on the menu, nor was it mentioned by the server that it even existed. I asked a girl there if I was able to order it and she's like yeah your server should've told you about that and I was like no.. I didn't know we could. I'll probably get that then! I think she ended up talking to our server because he started talking about it to my boyfriend that was sitting down after I came out of the restroom. So we got the ravioli and unfortunately it was just not that good. I don't know why, but the crab kind of tasted like it had freezer burn and it was fishy not in a good way. I love seafood with all my heart, but this was just not it. I have nothing against the server or any employees, it's easy to forget to mention things and he was friendly. Everyone else appeared to have enjoyed their meal, so maybe it was just us ordering the wrong things on the menu. In my personal experience, I wish I had gone elsewhere the taste of the food mixed with the heat made it not so great for me. If you go though, you might have a completely different experience and enjoy it as much as the other people in these reviews. This was just me sharing my experience. read more

The place is very well furnished and gives a good atmosphere. Our waitress was very prompt in checking in on us and giving us everything we needed. I had their Penne con Salsicce. The sauce was very filling - there were chunks of meat and tomatoes to bite into, and the dish was so big I was full after half and had leftovers for the next day! All in all, I had a very pleasant experience with no complaints, and I will likely dine here again. read more

Zefferelli's - Penne con Salsicce (with a healthy amount of parmesan and pepper on it ;P) - Italian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

Wanted to find authentic Italian food and found it here. Sat near kitchen and watched expert work of putting beautiful food out and large portions. The manager made sure everyone was taken care of as she was expedited food and checked on tables to greeting at the door. Waitress, Becky, has great sense of wit and we enjoyed our interactions as well as wonderful service. Favorite was the olive and anchovy crostini, but all the pasta was cooked to perfection. read more

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One of my favorite Italian go-to's @zefferellis_vancouver. I always have the best times when I come down here for Italian, amazing atmosphere, beautiful setting and sophisticating service-- Last night I enjoyed their; Panfried Garlic Prawns- cooked with white wine, lemon & butter -- save some of that bread they offer you in the beginning cause trust me, you'll be using that bread to soak up all that amazing juice from this appetizer . Penne Michelangelo- chicken, sun dried tomatoes, peas & cream- this was such an amazing touch, it was light yet still creamy with bursting flavors from the sun dried tomatoes. Penne con Salsicce- Italian sausage, roasted red peppers & tomato sauce: loved the traditional taste and aroma of tomato sauce this had to it plus it had a bit of kick to it too! PS-- their pasta portions are HUGE! We both had to pack the half of it home . (@foodaliciious) read more

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Small, cozy restaurant tucked away downtown - with great vibes and attentive and friendly service. Free bread with marinara dip, which was fluffy and fresh, and a nice surprise. I had the lobster ravioli which was delicious! The sauce was rich and tasty, but It wasn't too salty and the pasta was cooked perfectly. I'm gf had the linguini vongole and she loved it. I definitely enjoyed the place and will definitely be coming back! read more

Zefferelli's - Lobster ravioli. - Italian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

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What a great choice I made for dinner!! I didn't even research on the place! I literally stumbled right next to it and was curious. I'm thankful I made this decision. As I walked up the stairs, I was brought to my seat where I felt like I was in an intimate setting with people talking low but music pretty loud. The place looked like a library in a living room with all the wines perfectly placed in rows on shelves. M.J. Was my waiter and he did an excellent job from start to finish. He made sure I was comfortable and right at home. He checked on me whenever I needed something and always came back for refills! He's an excellent waiter and deserves all the credit. I ordered their special spaghetti carbonara which had authentic pepper white cream sauce, sautéed onions, crispy pancetta, and an egg yolk on top! This has to be the best pasta I've had all year so far. This was the one! And for $19 it's totally worth it. I'm definitely recommending this place to everyone I know! read more

Zefferelli's - Carbonara - Italian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

Always come here every time we want Italian food in Vancouver. Service is always great. Highly recommend these dishes: chicken parmesan, clams linguine, crabs linguine. Their tarimisu is really delicious. Always make a reservation, or you may not be able to get in. read more

Amazing food with even better service. The energy was great and was perfect for date night for my boyfriend and I.

I never have been to Zefferelli's and no intention to try it with any reason. On my day off and went to Robson so early. My mom was quite hungry and went there for early lunch. They opened at 11.30am and we were the only customer there. The waitress was attentive and friendly. However, we were quite disappointed for the food. Grilled chicken green salad - The chicken diced too small and salad not fresh, the salad sauce was bland. Spaghetti al Ragu - Poor meat quality and not favorable. Just a simple dish, I can make it much better than that one! It's really sad, we took a few bites and could not even finish it. We have to somewhere for afternoon tea later. read more

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First time here and it was wonderful!! Had the Chicken Parmesan which was awesome! The spaghetti that comes with it is incredible, loved the garlicky flavor with the chicken. Hubby had Spaghetti Ragu and was extremely happy with his meal. Generous portion sizing as well. read more

We went to Zefferelli's for my husband's birthday and it was amazing. We had made a reservation for 6pm on a Saturday - but we were ready to eat earlier than that so we showed up when they opened at 5pm and got a great seat by the window. My husband had the osso bucco and I had the chicken parm and they were both spectacular. By the time we left around 6pm the entire restaurant was packed. I can see why - the food is fantastic. read more

I honestly haven't had such delicious filling pasta in a while! (Comparing it to places such as Italian Tomato/Italian Kitchen/Trattoria) So it would be unfair to compare Zefferelli's pasta to places like CinCin, Cioppinos, or La Terraza, where they serve a small pasta dish as a second or third course so I'm categorizing Zefferelli's as a casual pasta sort of restaurant rather than fine Italian. First of all, I would say that their pasta is much better than Italian Tomato's/ Italian Kitchen's /Trattoria's (and Anton's, according to my friend) since they use very fresh ingredients and high quality pasta. They also do not skimp on the main ingredients as our dishes had tons of bacon, peppers, italian sausages etc. The overall meal was very delicious and we couldn't actually finish everything so we had to pack our dishes to go. My friend recommended the penne con salsicce to me and it was absolutely delicious! The tomato sauce perfectly complemented the thinly sliced italian sausage, which was very high-quality and delicious. The spaghetti carbonara was also amazing and we loved how they gave us so much extra Parmesan cheese (the shredded kind!) on top. It was also really nice how they served their complimentary bread with a delicious tomato sauce rather than butter! Anyways, our experience was great at Zefferelli's but because their portions are fairly large and their pastas are very heavy, I would probably only come here occasionnally when I'm seriously craving pasta. read more

Zefferelli's - Penne Con Salsicce - Italian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

The best spaghetti pomodoro I've ever had!! The pasta was perfect and the sauce tasted so fresh and delicious. The service was great. Definitely will return when visiting Vancouver again in the future. read more

I think I found my new favorite Italian restaurant in Vancouver. This little gem of a restaurant is semi-hidden, upstairs, overlooking Robson Street, between Thurlow and Bute. My party of three was lucky enough to snag a window street for dinner here the other night. By 6:30pm, the place was already full (thank goodness we had reservations). The walls are lined with wine bottles, and we liked the traditional old-world decor of dark wood paneling, open bar at the front and chalkboard menus mounted on high. Nice looking antipasto bar/island, too. This place has all the trappings of a traditional Italian restaurant. All that was missing was the red and white checkered table linens and Frankie singing background music. Our server was super (I think his name was Rick). He must've refilled our friend's water glass five times without being asked. Amazing attention to detail (especially considering how busy the place was). The food was capital-A Amazing. Hubby had the chicken Marsala. My friend, a pasta dish with sausage (I forget the name). They loved their meals. I had a daily special: pan-seared trout with vegetables. Wow, it was so good. The fish was wonderful, and the vegetables were some of the best I have ever had. Dessert was the vanilla gelato with espresso and it was as good as it sounds. We found the prices quite reasonable for the quality and quantity of the food. Most pasta dishes are $20 or under, and the daily specials are usually $25 or under (except for those with prime rib, or other costly meats). The only issue we had was the volume of noise. We practically had to yell across the table to be heard, it was SO loud in the restaurant. I'm not exaggerating. I'm not sure if it had to do with the acoustics here, but man, it was louder here than in any restaurant I had been to. If this place could work on somehow buffering the sound volume here, it would really serve them well. read more

My wife and I had an amazing meal at Zefferelli's. The service and the food were both five star. We ordered the arugula salad and the pesto linguini with crab! We thoroughly enjoyed both. The portions were great so we were able to share the plates. The ambiance at the restaurant is nice as well. I liked how it is on the 2nd floor with a nice view. On top of all the goodness: I left my hat and the owner mailed it to me in LA with no questions asked! I was floored at the kind gesture but not surprised given our experience! Thank you!! read more

I reserved a table for 10 at 6pm to celebrate my birthday. When we got to the restaurant 4 of my party has arrived including myself. I was told that I had to wait at the door for the rest of my party before I could be seated I was not informed this before I made the reservation. It was a Friday night and since the restaurant was located in the heart of downtown there was a lot of traffic so the rest of my party did not make it on time at 6pm for the reservation. As we were standing for 20 minutes at the door we noticed that their was another party of 10 but only 2 of the members were at the restaurant but they were seated immediately when they came in. While my party of 4 out of 10 has been standing at the door for 20 minutes. So I asked the manager why we were not seated before the other group. Instead of deescalating the situation as we were unhappy with the way we were treated she began to lecture us and threatened us that she could of just " no showed" our reservation (even though 4 of my party has been standing at the doorway for 20 minutes). At this moment precisely 6:25pm the rest of my party has already arrived while she continued to lecture us in front of the entire restaurant. I have never experienced this level of customer service before from a well known restaurant. If the restaurant was packed full of people waiting to be seated then I would understand why our table was given to another group. But the restaurant had a lot of empty seating in fact but yet we were still not seated. It could be the fact that my group was younger in age (21-27) all of East Asian decent so were not treated as equal to the other guests in the restaurant. I have been to this restaurant before and loved the food but I will never stand to be discriminated against. We will not be coming back and definitely will be sharing our experience. read more

Our meal started with some really nice Italian bread and butter. I thought there would be olive oil and vinegar as other restaurants. The waiter was really attentive and replenished our bread and water. For an appy, I got the steamed mussels. The tomato and cream sauce was really good, very flavourful, a good balance of tartness and sweetness, and the mussels were also plump and juicy. I used the bread to soak up all the nice sauce. My partner got the crab linguini. I was expecting more whole pieces of crab, but it was a like minced crab meat. The pasta was a bit bland, even with the parmesan offered. I got the daily special, the prawn linguini and it was such a disappointment. There were only 3 prawns! The flavour was fine, better than the crab linguini. Both pasta portions are large and we took about half home. My experience was a bit of a mixed bag. The service was good, I wasn't sure if I ordered the wrong things. For downtown, the price was okay. I might come back to try other dishes. read more

We had a group of 20 for our friends birthday and this would be the first time for all of us. We called to book a reservation for 8pm on a Sunday night. It's a small place located on top of Cactus Club on Robson. Very easy to miss since there's just a very small sign outside. It was pretty busy when we got there but unfortunately our tables had to be split because of the limited space they had. Once everyone arrived, we got complimentary bread with marinara sauce. It was very cold! Would've been nice if the bread was toasted. We took a look at the menu and ordered some drinks first. My friend ordered a margarita and it was way too salty. We all took a sip and it tasted like salt water. Also got a couple double vodkas with ginger ale and coke/rum. The soda was very diluted and made our drinks taste watered down. We had to wave our server down because we were waiting for almost another 30 minutes to order. Don't forget, we all arrived by 8:15pm and it's already 9pm. The second table received their food first and my table waited around 45mins to an hour. I understand the table I was in had more people and they wanted to serve our food at the same time. But we were all very hungry people. We finally got our food just before 10pm (they close at 10pm). I can't speak on behalf of everyone but I can say that the portions are good to share between two people. Majority of us didn't finish our pasta and got it packed up. The quality is alright. Everything had a lot of sauce but not much flavour to it. Quantity is definitely worth your money especially for Downtown Vancouver. Overall I'd give the food 3/5, service 3/5 and ambience 4/5. It's a nice place but would recommend for a date night, not so much for a big group. read more

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Loved great service and ambience. Food was delicious and classically Italian. There's a long stairway to get to the dining room but the food is worth the climb! read more

Good ambience. Easy to get a table during peak hours. Food was okay. Not the best Italian food I have had. There are better Italian places in town such as Glowbal. I would however add that the food quantity was a lot. read more

Zefferelli's - Italian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

Stumbled upon this place when our previous dinner plans fell through. So glad we did though because this meal was definitely better than what we were originally going to get! Great atmosphere, quick and polite service and tasty food. Servings were generous and plated nicely. They give complimentary bread and marinara which is always a bonus. Our waitress was so sweet too which was refreshing. Definitely would recommend to a friend visiting Vancouver. If we ever come back to Vancouver we will return here for a meal. read more

Zefferelli's - Carbonara pasta - Italian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

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Zefferelli's is tucked away upstairs and is in a very cute location. It is a little bit of a walk from the other restaurants but not too bad at all. Our service was amazing!! Our waitress was super attentive and checked up on us frequently. She recommended wine and dishes for us and was very helpful. The only reason this place got 4 stars from me is because the food was not good imo. The wine was amazing, but the food was a little too dry and bland. I like my Italian food with a lot of sauce and this did not have that unfortunately. Decently priced for amount of food you get and for the wonderful service. However, the food is not going to wow you away. read more

The pasta here is amazing. I had the carbonara and it was so good, definitely recommend checking this place out if you're looking fo some great Italian food. read more

Excellent food wonderful service highly recommend anytime you are in Vancouver. We were totally spoiled by the staff and the food was wonderful so was the atmosphere. 5 stars read more

Great food ! Awesome menu! Service was not to my standard but it was okay! I would recommend!! Want good Italian food! This is your place! read more

Zefferelli's - Italian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

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My friend brought me here, actually, to try something different. We're hesitant because Robson Street restaurants tend to be overhyped tourist traps. We should've trusted our instincts. Not sure how there are so many higher ratings. Friends, perhaps? The lack of detail in those should tell you something...like padding the ratings to compensate for the more candid reviews. UPDATE ***Requote from an older review by staffer on Google: "Don't trust the 5 star reviews. Most of them are paid reviews from Mr. Boitson (the manager). Trust me I was a staff here." Well, well...keep this in mind.*** The "experience" started with the host? owner? whatever...a squat gruff construction worker with his "best" shirt on to start the tone of the meal. My first thought was "is this a money laundering front owned by the mob? Or did I walk into a heist and the actual host is somewhere tied up in the back?". (For Simpson's fans: if Moe Szyslak ran a mob-run pasta place.) Classy start. The food along with other aspects didn't help sway those musings. Seating was a bit crammed. Trying to cram as many as possible to get those volume sales, I gather. It felt like a nice...um... cafeteria in that respect. Service was middling, not bad but not the best, really. Not sure if we can still blame covid for the wait anymore these days, and the waitstaff we had seemed as disinterested in being there as we did. Wondered whether this mob place was holding their family captive, given the way our waiter pushed hard to sell drinks and extras. While waiting for the food, I went to the restroom. They say the condition of the restroom tells you much about the sanitary conditions of the kitchen. Let's say that I had legitimate concerns because the bathroom was not the cleanest. When our food did arrive (really, how long does it take to find a can opener?), we gave it the benefit of the doubt. In retrospect that was rather generous on our part as... I don't know...maybe the people who left good reviews think bulk "fresh" pasta out of a Costco is fancy, but this wasn't much different from what a supermarket would have as far as quality. Not as bad as canned food, but hardly something to wait that long for. Upscale cafeteria food? No...wouldn't say "upscale". All the free bread in the world didn't hide that this was a turn & burn kind of joint. I think I'd feel embarrassed if I made this a special occasion or date destination. and wondered whether this was popular with people who didn't know how to boil water; not much that's unique or special here that you couldn't make at home. Uneven reviews should have been the tip-off. And the pictures you see from other reviewers actually made the food look "better" than it was, if you can believe it. Didn't stay for dessert. Was afraid it would be something from a Safeway. Again, hard to think this wasn't a front for money laundering versus being an actual restaurant. One review suggested Cin Cin next door, and we should've listened. So should you. read more

Four of us visiting from Colorado ate here at the beginning of our vacation in BC and Alberta. While on our sightseeing through BC to Alberta and back, we all looked forward to having dinner here after returning to Vancouver. The second dinner was as good as the first for all of us. Food, service and ambiance all right on. Highly recommend it. read more