Presented by National Bank of Canada, our partner in Tastet’s pan-Canadian expansion, this list brings together some of our favourite addresses for a business lunch in Vancouver.
Finding the right spot for a business lunch in Vancouver comes with its own set of constraints. The table has to be booked, the room has to allow a conversation at a normal volume, and the kitchen has to keep the courses moving so everyone is back at their desk before two. Most of the city’s working lunches unfold within a few blocks of Burrard Street, between the office towers of the downtown core and the Coal Harbour waterfront, where the view of the North Shore mountains helps set a meeting at ease.
Within those limits, the choice goes well beyond the classic expense-account steakhouse. Downtown Vancouver has seafood dining rooms that showcase the catch of the Pacific coast, Japanese restaurants where a lunch set arrives quickly and in good order, and Italian rooms where a plate of pasta and a glass of British Columbia wine suit a client lunch as well as a team celebration. Gastown and Yaletown sit within a short walk of the financial district, for the days when a change of scenery helps the conversation along.
This list gathers the restaurants our Vancouver team turns to when a client lunch, a first meeting with a new partner or a team celebration is on the calendar. Each entry explains what makes the place work for a working lunch: the pace of service, the layout of the room, the dishes that hold up well across a negotiation, and the options for a private or semi-private table.
A few practical tips before you book. Weekday lunch service is less common than dinner service, and hours shift with the seasons, so confirm with the restaurant before sending the invite. Reserve early for groups of more than four, and ask about private rooms if the discussion calls for discretion. And if the meeting runs late into the afternoon, our list of the best happy hours in Vancouver covers where to continue the conversation over a drink.
Our Vancouver recommendations are developed in collaboration with Michelle Sproule of Scout Magazine, bringing together Tastet’s editorial approach and her deep knowledge of the local food scene.
Sushi Hil
Chef Hilary Nguy spent nearly two decades making sushi, starting at Temaki Sushi in Kitsilano, before opening this Mount Pleasant restaurant in 2022. It has since earned a Michelin Bib Gourmand and took gold in the Japanese category at the 2026 Vancouver Magazine Restaurant Awards. The room is small and bright, with blond wood and sushi-themed murals, and the counter is the seat to ask for. The fish is chosen with great care: Kagoshima aji with ginger and scallion, aka isaki with orange, otoro, ikura, and A5 wagyu nigiri seared just enough to warm it. At midday, the chef’s daily lunch set brings soup, a seasonal vegetable, chawanmushi, sashimi, nigiri and maki in one sitting. It is an ambitious choice that stays efficient: the sets keep the meal focused, and the relaxed room lets the conversation flow.
Vancouver
Hy's Steakhouse & Cocktail Bar
Hy Aisenstat opened this Hornby Street dining room in 1962, and it has kept its old-school character ever since. The main floor is still panelled in dark wood, candles and wall sconces keep the light low, oil portraits hang on the walls, and white linen and carpet soften the noise. Servers toss Caesar salads tableside, Canada Prime steaks come off the charcoal grill, and many regulars order the cheese toast without opening the menu. Upstairs, a later renovation added a series of library-style dining rooms. For a business lunch, Hy’s offers a dedicated lunch menu, quiet tables and polished service a few blocks from the financial district’s towers, a good fit when the setting should signal that the conversation matters.
Vancouver
Miku Vancouver
Miku brought aburi, sushi seared with a flame, to Vancouver in 2008, and it remains the dish to order. The restaurant sits at the foot of Granville Square beside Canada Place, and its window tables look straight out over the harbour, sometimes at a cruise ship tied up at the dock. The signature aburi salmon oshi pairs wild sockeye with jalapeño and the house Miku sauce, while a pressed prawn version is finished with lime zest and ume. The kitchen works mostly with Ocean Wise seafood and adds a few French and Italian touches to its Japanese cuisine. Besides the dining room, there is a full sushi bar, a lounge and a private dining room. The address is easy to reach from anywhere downtown, the service is attentive and the menu is broad enough to suit every guest at the table, while the harbour view gives everyone something to talk about as the menus come round.
Vancouver
Pourhouse Restaurant
The Water Street building dates from 1910. Pourhouse has kept the brick walls, wood pillars and Douglas fir ceilings. The room is built around a 38-foot bar made from reclaimed Douglas fir, with antique-style furniture and a patio facing toward the Gastown steam clock. The menu leans on burgers: the Gastown Double stacks smashed brisket-and-chuck patties with American cheese, bacon and caramelized onions, and the Crispy Portabello swaps in a harissa-barbecue mushroom patty. Scotch eggs, lobster mac and truffle tots round out the menu, and the cocktail list gets plenty of attention. Pourhouse is a relaxed option that still looks smart. The bar suits a quick one-on-one, and the dining room has space for a small team.
Vancouver
Caffè La Tana
Caffè La Tana is the sister of Pepino’s Spaghetti House next door, run by the team behind Savio Volpe, and it is modelled on an Italian alimentari. The room is dressed in green, with tiled floors, fox-print wallpaper, marble brought over from Italy, an ornate ceiling medallion and vintage shelves stocked with dried pasta, tinned tomatoes, oils and Italian biscuits. Fresh pasta is rolled, cut and filled at a table in full view. A few pastas rotate each day, served next to cacio e pepe and Pepino’s spaghetti and meatball, with burrata, albacore tuna or a kale salad to start. The weekday Pranzo Veloce is the reason to come. The three-course menu is designed for a quick midday meal, and the room is lively without being loud.
Vancouver
Au Comptoir
Two French expatriates opened Au Comptoir on West 4th Avenue in the fall of 2014, with the idea of an all-day Parisian bistro. The centrepiece is a tin bar built in France. Skylights brighten the room, the front windows fold open to the street in good weather, and the chatter comes as much from the staff as from the guests. The service is warm and slightly formal, the way it is in Paris. At lunch, the menu sticks to bistro classics such as steak frites, salade niçoise, croque-madame and a tarte fine with comté. For a business lunch in Kitsilano, Au Comptoir works because the room runs at a steady pace and the classic menu means no one has to study it. Ask for a seat at the bar for a one-on-one, or a table for a small group.
Vancouver
Delara Restaurant
Bardia Ilbeiggi worked as an aerospace engineer before cooking in Paris, Copenhagen and two well-known Vancouver kitchens. In 2021, he opened Delara a few doors from Au Comptoir. The room gets plenty of natural light and is decorated with blue accents, lattice screens and paintings by local Iranian artists. The Persian cuisine balances sour, fresh and rich flavours, with dried lime, yogurt and barberries, lots of herbs, nuts and seeds. A meal often starts with sesame-dusted sourdough flatbread, a roasted carrot tahini and a lentil-walnut dip, followed by charcoal-finished meats, tahdig and lamb shank braised in pomegranate molasses. Delara offers a bright and calm room. A shared spread of dips and flatbread also eases the first minutes of a new meeting.
Vancouver
Mott 32 Vancouver
Mott 32 takes its name from 32 Mott Street in New York, an address tied to the beginnings of that city’s Chinatown. The Vancouver outpost sits at the base of the Arthur Erickson-designed tower on West Georgia, inside the Paradox Hotel. The decor nods to the Hong Kong flagship, mixing New York industrial style with Chinese details: a large main room, comfortable booths, a terrace overlooking downtown, and themed private rooms by designer Joyce Wang. The menu is mainly Cantonese, with dishes from Beijing and Sichuan. Close to the office towers, Mott 32 adapts to every kind of business lunch: a booth for two, the dining room for a team, and private rooms when the conversation calls for discretion.
Vancouver
THE LOBBY LOUNGE & RAWBAR
The Fairmont Pacific Rim calls its lobby lounge the city’s living room, and the space lives up to the name. It is large and open, with a double-sided fireplace, a long marble bar and a stage for live music in the evening. The RawBar menu is modern Japanese, built largely on local salmon and steelhead. The signature salmon motoyaki roll brings together wild sockeye, steelhead, avocado and cucumber under a warm motoyaki sauce, and braised local octopus or a bowl of miso soup round out the sushi and sashimi. Plates are small and easy to share. The lounge offers a lighter, less formal option than a full meal. The seating is comfortable, the harbourfront address is easy for visitors staying downtown, and a few rolls suit a meeting that runs long.
Vancouver
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Photography by @hyssteakhouse
