Chez Céline: the neighbourhood bistro where the St. Lawrence team lets loose

It all started with a question asked in the kitchen. David Lawson, sommelier, and Margaux Herder, sous-chef, two long-standing pillars of St. Lawrence, wanted to open their own restaurant and were asking their boss for advice. JC Poirier had no desire for a second establishment. “I told myself: either I lose them to someone else, or I start looking for opportunities.” He found the space on Fraser Street, made an offer, bought the restaurant that was there, and Chez Céline opened in May 2025, with the two former employees as co-owners.

The mandate, this time, is the opposite of the mother ship. “It’s clear this isn’t fine dining. I’m not here to chase Michelin stars,” says the chef. He wanted a neighbourhood restaurant you can come back to several times a week, easier on the wallet, with simpler, more accessible cooking, the kind Margaux Herder wanted to do. David Lawson, for his part, spent years at Joe Beef in Montréal and was looking for the same thing: a room where people have fun, with solid, no-detour cooking.

The chef sums up the difference in two words: fun dining. The products are the same as at St. Lawrence, quality ingredients from small producers, and so is the way of working. What changes is how they are handled and presented. “It’s more generous, less precious on the plate. More indulgent.” Where St. Lawrence serves each guest their own plate of classic French, Chez Céline sets the dishes in the middle of the table to be shared, which, in his view, matches the way Vancouverites prefer to eat.

A few dishes have already become habits. The pork chop, served with a maple and apple cider sauce. The ricotta raviolo, whose egg yolk runs into the cream when you cut into it. The poutine, gravy and cheese curds, which the chef defends without false modesty: “We do make a pretty good poutine.” And the maple crème caramel (incredible !), which has never left the menu. Around them, the menu plays the bistro classics with a Québécois accent: croque-monsieur croquettes, grilled T-bone with peppercorn sauce, and a soft-serve machine, served with lemon olive oil. Weekend brunch, meanwhile, brings out the terrine de campagne, the mustard and farmer sausages with gigante beans.

In May, during a slow stretch, the team launched a Saint-Hubert-style roast chicken promotion. Its success exceeded expectations, to the point where they are seriously thinking about opening a rotisserie. The formula returns in the fall for four to six weeks, from September to October, on weekdays. 

The bar is in David Lawson’s hands, with a focus on British Columbia natural wines, local beers and a non-alcoholic selection. The 52-seat room, designed by Dara Dammann Poirier, mixes white bubble tile, marble tabletops, glass pendant lights and shelves of bottles and cookbooks, with teal and red accents. The crowd is younger than at St. Lawrence, and so is the mood. For J-C Poirier, the real satisfaction lies elsewhere: having helped two members of his team bring their project to life. 

Written by Fabie Lubin
Photography by Hakan Burcuoglu

Updated on October 14, 2026

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