Vancouver Magazine
February’s Best Food Events in Vancouver—Where to Dine This Month
The Review: It Gets Emotional at Chef Chanthy Yen’s Touk
Sliding Doors: Restaurant Openings and Closures this Winter 2026
These Are the Wines That Blew Us Away Last Year
Your Booze-Free Guide to Vancouver’s Best Sips in 2026
The Best Beverages Our Editors Drank in 2025
So Fun City Calendar: 18 Things to Do in Vancouver in February 2026
Feeling Lucky: 6 Ways to Celebrate the 2026 Lunar New Year in Greater Vancouver
Protected: Family Matters: Building Brighter Tomorrows in Vancouver
Indulge in a Taste of French Polynesia
Beyond the Beach: The Islands of Tahiti Are an Adventurer’s Dream
Snowmobiles and Fondue Might Just Be the Perfect Whistler Night Out
Audi Elevates the Compact Luxury SUV
Charmed, I’m Sure: Where to Find Unique Charms for Your Necklace and Bracelet in Vancouver
Personal Space: Alison Mazurek and Family Know How to Think Small
Where to find a great meal in a casual setting.
A bowl of nham ngeaw (tomato soup piled high with pork ribs, vermicelli, mustard greens, fried garlic and red cotton tree flowers) from gold winner Fat Mao Noodles will surely have your dining partner pulling a Chappell Roan and asking if it’s “casual now”—because even though this category is celebrated for laidback eats, these restaurants take being chill very, very seriously. From the simple but delicious mapo tofu to the glorious braised duck noodles, Fat Mao’s Chinatown and Downtown locations consistently serve up hot bowls of balanced brilliance dreamed up by chef Angus An (our 2025 Chef of the Year).
Multiple locations fatmaonoodles.com
Just a few blocks away from this noodle shop’s downtown digs is silver winner Chinatown BBQ, an unfussy neighbourhood gem known for—you guessed it—kickass barbecue. The barbecue pork is a classic that’s just as good out of a takeout box, but for the full feel-good lazy-Susan experience you’ll want to dine inside the cozy room splashed with vintage art and abuzz with regulars. And, while we’re celebrating casual eats in this category, Chinatown BBQ’s more glamourous dishes also deserve a nod: for a showstopper, order the Chef’s Secret recipe barbecue goose two days in advance.
130 E Pender St. chinatownbbq.com
In fact, you’ll also want to plan ahead a bit to grab a pie at bronze winner AJ’s Brooklyn Pizza Joint—if you haven’t been, you can spot this restaurant from the consistent lineup of pizza-hungry patrons sheltering from the rain under East Broadway awnings. Once inside, it’s obvious why so many are willing to wait: it takes the team three days to make the doughy foundation of these massive pies. Diners choose from New York, Sicilian style or deep-dish Detroits, and it’s tough to go wrong. Actually, with the spirit of a Brooklynite, we’ll give it to you straight: the Roni Detroit is elite. Crispy pepperoni curled into cups tops this thick legend of a dish, and the cheesy corners that lace artfully up around the crust are an architectural marvel.
325 E Broadway ajsbrooklynpizzajoint.com
La Grotta del Formaggio 1791 Commercial Dr. lagrottadelformaggio.com
Skewers 26 Powell St. skewerspitabar.com
Find more of the best Vancouver restaurants on our list of 2025 Vancouver Magazine Restaurant Award winners.
The editorial team at Vancouver magazine is obsessed with tracking down great food and good times in our favourite city on earth. Email us pitches at [email protected].
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