Richmond, British Columbia, right across the Fraser River from Vancouver and a two-and-a-half-hour drive from Seattle, is a culinary destination of its own, home to the Vancouver International Airport, the continent’s largest Asian night market, and hands-down some of the best Chinese food in the world outside of China. With 73 percent of the population boasting Asian heritage, Richmond’s culinary landscape is an exploration of the traditional and hyper-regional foods of its largely Chinese and Taiwanese residents. But it’s also an apex for Canada’s young Asian-Canadian chefs building off the traditional toward something completely their own.
Options range from high-end Chinese imports to low-key nooks in strip malls and overlooked food courts. Easily forgotten amid the many Chinese gems are other eateries well worth a visit, including an Armenian bakery, a world-class chocolatier, and an offbeat brewery producing whimsical beers. Eating here is an immersive experience not to be missed, as there’s no better place to get a taste of the past, present, and future of Asian cuisine in North America. Here, then, are Richmond’s most essential stops.
Editor’s Note: Eater is not updating international maps at this time given disruptions to global travel during the COVID-19 crisis.
Prices per person, excluding alcohol:
$ = Less than $10 Canadian dollars (Less than $7.50 USD)
$$ = $10 - $20 Canadian dollars ($7.50 - $15 USD)
$$$ = $20 - $30 Canadian dollars ($15 - $22.50 USD)
$$$$ = More than $30 Canadian dollars ($22.50 USD and up)
Jay Friedman is an expert on Asian cuisine in Seattle and the Pacific Northwest. He is a regular contributor to Eater Seattle and aggregates his writing on his Gastrolust website.
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