14 Vancouver restaurants that big-name celebrities have visited and loved
From Pedro Pascal to Jeremy Allen White, these Vancouver restaurants are celebrity-approved spots.
Jeremy Allen White with Joe Fortes chef. Right: Hilary Swank picking up takeout from Vij's.
On the hunt for the best restaurants in Vancouver? Well, take it from these celebs — we have lots to choose from.
If you're new here, it's important to preface that Vancouver is colloquially, and rather adoringly, known as Hollywood North. And with good reason. We've served as the backdrop for cult classics like Happy Gilmore, John Tucker Must Die, She's the Man, Deadpool, Juno, and, for my "hoa hoa hoa" season Zillennial girls, Twilight: New Moon. And that's all before we even get into our embarrassingly long résumé of TV shows.
All this to say, it's hardly shocking that our restaurants get their fair share of A-list visitors. So whether you're a die-hard celebrity fan or just a food enthusiast, I've rounded up some of the biggest-name stars who've recently dined in Vancouver and exactly where they went.
Joe Fortes
Price: 💸💸💸💸
Cuisine: Seafood / Steakhouse
Address: 777 Thurlow Street
Why You Need To Go: Joe Fortes is less a restaurant and more a Vancouver institution at this point — the type of place you go if you want oysters in a gorgeous room that smells faintly of generational wealth.
Recently, stressed-out-pretend-chef Jeremy Allen White dined here while filmingThe Social Reckoning (sequel to The Social Network). The restaurant has also reportedly hosted Elijah Wood, Nas, and Jim Treliving
Lunch Lady
Price: 💸💸
Cuisine: Vietnamese
Address: 1046 Commercial Drive
Why You Need To Go: It shocks me not at all that John Mulaney, Zach Galifianakis, Nick Kroll, Fred Armisen, Mike Birbiglia, and Jason Mantzoukas have good taste. Which is why they chose one of my favourite local restaurants to dine at during their visit here for the Great Outdoor Comedy Festival.
Sula Indian Restaurant
Price: 💸💸
Cuisine: Indian
Address: 1708 Davie Street
Why You Need To Go: I love Sula's, and it seems like that's something (probably the only thing) Priyanka Chopra Jonas and I have in common. Sula's new Davie location has quickly become a downtown favourite, and if it's good enough for international royalty-adjacent celebrity culture, it's also good enough for your Friday night comfort-food meal.
Desi Indian Lounge
Price: 💸💸
Cuisine: Indian
Address: 1355 Hornby Street
Why You Need To Go: In what can only be described as a coordinated Vancouver-Indian-food press tour, Priyanka's husband Nick Jonas was also spotted at local Indian restaurant. (If my inside scoop is correct, the Jonas Brothers were in Vancouver filming Camp Rock 3 — because I guess two entire movies about teenagers written by boomers that burst into song wasn't quite enough in this economy?). Nevertheless, I'd never heard of this spot, so it's good for the brothers for putting it on the map.
Vij's
Price: 💸💸💸
Cuisine: Indian
Address: 3106 Cambie Street
Why You Need To Go: Sticking with the theme (who knew Vancouver was a celebrity Indian-food hub?), Hilary Swank was spotted picking up takeout from Vij's. A real "celebrities, they're just like us" moment.
To nobody's surprise, Hilary has excellent taste: Vij's is a Vancouver institution that practically deserves heritage status.
Zarak by Afghan Kitchen
Price: 💸💸💸
Cuisine: Afghan
Address: 2102 Main Street
Why You Need To Go: Owen Wilson was spotted dining at Zarak in lazy golf dad attire, which somehow feels exactly right for a restaurant this effortlessly cool.
Warm, moody, and one of Main Street's most beloved dinner spots, if Owen's "wow" was going to lead him anywhere in Vancouver, it's nice that it was toward Zarak's mantu dumplings and beautifully spiced kebabs.
Tojo's
Price: 💸💸💸💸
Cuisine: Japanese
Address: 1133 W Broadway
Why You Need To Go: A Vancouver classic with bona fide culinary legend status. Tojo's is where you go when you want sushi that feels like an event. Also, apparently, where Hayden Christensen goes when he's in town.
Full disclosure: I don't know much about Star Wars, but if fans can take comfort in the fact that Anakin Skywalker trusted the omakase, you probably can too.
Minerva's
Price: 💸💸
Cuisine: Greek
Address: 2411 West 41st Avenue
Why You Need To Go: I refuse to enter into the weeds of Blake Lively drama, but Ryan Reynolds, unto himself, is a sort of Vancouver institution. Having grown up here, I'd be remiss not to mention his self-proclaimed favourite restaurant "in the world" — Minerva's.
Cozy, Greek, family-friendly, and dripping with nostalgia, it's the place where all of us Kerrisdale kids went for dinner after soccer practice and loved every time.
Little Bird Dim Sum
Price: 💸💸
Cuisine: Chinese
Address: 2958 West 4th Avenue
Why You Need To Go: Seth Rogen keeps coming back, which is the highest endorsement possible from a Vancouver-born food loyalist.
Honey's Doughnuts
Price: 💸
Cuisine: Bakery / Doughnuts
Address: 4373 Gallant Avenue
Why You Need To Go: Deep Cove's Honey's is one of the most low-key celebrity hotspots in the region. The doughnuts are offensively good, and none other than Kate Winslet agrees, claiming during a red carpet interview at TIFF that she "pines" for Honey's Doughnuts. I promise this is worth the trip to Deep Cove.
Lee's Donuts
Price: 💸
Cuisine: Doughnuts
Address: 1689 Johnston Street
Why You Need To Go: Seth strikes again. Lee's is a Granville Island essential and, yes, one of the few doughnut places that can actually go toe-to-toe with Honey's (aside from a midnight Krispy Kreme run, of course).
The fact that David Chang and Seth featured it in their Netflix series only confirmed what locals already knew — Lee's is a top doughnut contender.
Blue Water Café
Price: 💸💸💸
Cuisine: Seafood / Pacific Northwest
Address: 1095 Hamilton Street
Why You Need To Go: Michael Bublé being spotted at Blue Water Cafe feels painfully obvious and not all that thrilling. Polished, classic, basic, and just the right amount of Yaletown fancy, it's exactly where you'd expect one of the city's most beloved exports to be enjoying a solid seafood dinner.
Rodney's Oyster House
Price: 💸💸💸
Cuisine: Seafood
Address: 1228 Hamilton Street
Why You Need To Go: Melissa Fumero from Brooklyn Nine-Nine, alongside the show's Director of Photography Rick Page were spotted at Rodney's Oyster House and she gave her stamp of approval on an Instagram post that said "Enjoyed some amazing oysters, chowder, & lobster rolls with Rick Page today. That's the post."
If Amy Santiago approves the oysters, the rest of us don't need to do any further due diligence.
Phnom Penh
Price: 💸💸
Cuisine: Cambodian / Vietnamese
Address: 244 East Georgia Street
Why You Need To Go: Actor Jimmy O. Yang shouted out Phnom Penh, being one of the first celebrities whose taste actually aligns with a boots-on-the-ground local Eastside gem. He's seen here enjoying "amazing Cambodian, Hu Tieu." In this post, he also shouts out Kissa Tanto, Saku, Golden Paramount, and Keefer Bar.
The opinions expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Narcity Media.