September is bringing a solid lineup of food events to Vancouver, from chef collaborations and special tasting menus to dinners putting BC ingredients front and centre. If you’re looking for a reason to try somewhere new, or just want an especially good meal, there are a few dates worth saving. Here are some of the food events happening around the city this month.
Desi Indian Lounge Himsagar Tasting Experience
From September 10 to 12, Desi Indian Lounge will donate 50% of sales from its Himsagar seven-course tasting experience to Summerland fire relief efforts. Executive Chef Bal Ajagaonkar’s menu follows a culinary journey from Kashmir to Kanyakumari, with each course inspired by a different region of India. The dinner includes wines from Summerland’s Silk Scarf Winery and Lightning Rock Winery, selected by sommelier Katya Movsesian. The experience is $85 per person.
Canadian Culinary Pop-Up Dinner at PICA
The Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts will host a Canadian culinary-focused pop-up dinner on September 3. The evening will feature a special menu centred around Canadian ingredients and cooking. Additional menu and booking details are available through PICA.
Fanny Bay Oyster Pop-Ups
Fanny Bay Oysters will appear at two Vancouver-area pop-ups in September. Master shucker Hannah Nguyen will serve fresh oysters and seasonal selections at Grape Vibes at The Boxcar on September 3 from 4 to 8 p.m. A second Sunday Shucking Pop-Up takes place at Copperpenny Distilling Co. in North Vancouver on September 13 from 2 to 7 p.m., with oysters served alongside a special menu of gin-based drinks.
Casa Real Winemakers Dinner at Black+Blue
Black+Blue Vancouver will host a Casa Real Winemakers Dinner on September 29 at 6 p.m. Hosted by winemaker Sebastián Labbé, the intimate five-course dinner celebrates the return of the Chilean wine and includes a vertical tasting of Casa Real, along with an advance taste of the 2023 vintage. Tickets are $175 per person.
Chez Céline Rotisserie Chicken Dinner
Chez Céline will open reservations during the week of September 14 for the return of its Rotisserie Chicken Dinner, with bookings beginning October 13. Available at 5 p.m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, the Québécois-style dinner features Rossdown Family Farms chicken with crispy frites, classic coleslaw, gravy and a grilled potato bun. Reservations are highly recommended.
Tenute Calì Winery Dinner at Sopra Sotto
VanWineFest will present a special Tenute Calì Winery Dinner at Sopra Sotto on Commercial Drive on September 17 from 6:30 to 10 p.m. The multi-course dinner will feature wines from Sicily and Tuscany with dishes including albacore tuna crudo, scallops, leek and mushroom risotto, porchetta and tiramisu. The event offers an early taste of the Vancouver International Wine Festival, which returns March 6 to 13, 2027.
Le Grand Brunch at Honey Salt
Honey Salt will serve Le Grand Brunch over the Labour Day long weekend from September 5 to 7, from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. The $52 per person experience begins with a sharing tower of deviled eggs, smoked salmon, seasonal fruit, banana madeleines, peach crumble tartlets and Nanaimo bars. Guests can then select an entrée such as Avocado Toast, Eggs Benedict, Grilled Chicken Cobb Salad or Pacific Rockfish Fish & Chips, along with one beverage. A minimum of two guests is required.
Science World After Dark
Science World’s After Dark: Science of Sleight, Magic Edition takes place September 2 from 6 pm to 10 pm. The adults-only evening features performances by Vancouver magicians, along with demonstrations examining the science behind misdirection, perception and illusion. Guests can visit the Puzzles & Illusions gallery, experiment with physics in Eureka and learn a sleight-of-hand trick. Tickets are $39.99.
A Taste of Canada at PICA
Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts is kicking off the month with an A Taste of Canada Pop-Up Dinner on September 3. The four-course dinner is chef-led and student-executed, with a menu focused on ingredients from BC and the Pacific Northwest.
The evening starts with fresh bannock and cultured local honey butter, followed by a duck confit croquette with pickled BC blackberries. Other courses include BC mussels with smoked bacon and cider, Montreal-smoked BC bison with celeriac rémoulade, and pan-roasted Pacific lingcod with sweet corn velouté. Dessert is a tarte fine aux pommes with BC cider caramel, honey crème fraîche and toasted oat crumble.The dinner runs from 6 to 9 p.m. at PICA’s campus at 1515 West 2nd Avenue. Tickets are $89 per person, plus tax and gratuity.
SUYO con Amigos x Folietta
For the latest SUYO con Amigos dinner, SUYO Modern Peruvian is teaming up with Folietta’s Chef Bobby Milheron for an eight-course dinner on September 10.
Chef Ricardo Valverde and Milheron will take turns presenting courses that bring Peruvian and Italian flavours together, with wine and cocktail pairings included. The dinner is part of SUYO’s ongoing chef collaboration series, which brings different chefs together for one-night-only menus.
There are two seatings, at 5 p.m. and 8 p.m., with 40 seats available at each. Tickets are $269 per person, including wine and cocktail pairings, tax and gratuity.
Torafuku x Cafe Malabar
Two Vancouver and Victoria restaurants are coming together for a two-night collaboration at Torafuku.
On September 14, Victoria’s Cafe Malabar will take over the restaurant for Kadal Amma: Mother of the Sea, a 10-course dinner inspired by Kerala’s Malabar Coast. The menu uses Pacific Northwest seafood and ingredients alongside the restaurant’s Kerala cooking, with plenty of spice, smoke, fermentation and coconut. Tickets are $125 per person, plus tax and gratuity.
The following night, September 15, Torafuku and Cafe Malabar will collaborate on Where the Tides Meet, a seven-course dinner combining the restaurants’ different approaches. The menu includes dishes like galbi wagyu beef tartare, vattayappam with beef roast and chili chamanthi, Manila clams with Thai basil and chili, and a truffled egg hopper with foraged mushroom pacha masala.
Tickets are $105 per person, plus tax and gratuity. Wine pairings are available for an additional cost on both nights, and cocktails will be available à la carte. Both dinners take place at Torafuku at 958 Main Street.
L’Abattoir x Savour the Wild
On September 21, L’Abattoir is teaming up with Savour the Wild for a one-night-only dinner centred around the flavours of the Pacific Northwest.
The 10-seat dinner brings together L’Abattoir Executive Chef Jasper Cruickshank, Savour the Wild Chef Colton Armstrong-Ashley and Bar Manager Alexa Gervais. The menu will make use of ingredients including geoduck, wild mushrooms, bull kelp, ramps and sea asparagus, with cocktails inspired by seasonal botanicals and coastal flavours.
Some of the planned dishes include albacore tuna tataki with bull kelp and onion dashi, charcoal-grilled octopus with mushroom BBQ glaze, Parisian gnocchi with lion’s mane mushrooms and preserved ramps, and preserved peaches with crème fraîche and fig-leaf granita.
The dinner starts at 7:30 p.m. and costs $225 per person, excluding tax and gratuity. With just 10 seats available, this one is definitely one to book early.