Kavita and Chef’s Choice Seafood Restaurant receive Bib Gourmands, while four restaurants join the guide’s Recommended selection.

Vancouver has its first two-Michelin-star restaurant. AnnaLena, chef Michael Robbins’s Kitsilano tasting-menu restaurant, has been promoted in the Michelin Guide’s 2026 selection, announced Tuesday (Oct. 6).

The new edition includes 72 restaurants across 23 cuisine types: one with two stars, 10 with one star, 16 Bib Gourmands and 45 Recommended restaurants. Kavita joins the guide with a Bib Gourmand, while Chef’s Choice Seafood Restaurant moves from Recommended to the same distinction.

There are changes elsewhere, too. Jay Nok, Jeju, Niwa and Peya are new to the Recommended list, and Barbara moves from one star to Recommended, and seven restaurants appearing in the guide’s previous online selection are absent from the new release.

AnnaLena reaches two stars

At AnnaLena, at 1809 West 1st Ave., the promotion recognizes Robbins’s contemporary, globally influenced cooking and seasonally changing tasting menu. Two stars signify excellent cooking worth a detour.

Michelin’s inspectors highlighted the precision and depth of flavour in dishes such as Sungold tomatoes with house-made XO sauce and caramelized buttermilk infused with Thai green curry, and fresh pasta with charcoal-roasted asparagus and a wine sauce finished tableside. Those examples describe the inspectors’ experience — the restaurant’s seasonal menu changes.

The guide also praised the service, cocktails and wine pairings in a room that delivers fine dining without white tablecloths or a formal atmosphere.

Kavita earns recognition for food and service

Kavita, at 250 West 3rd Ave., receives two forms of recognition this year: a Bib Gourmand for its cooking and Michelin’s Outstanding Service Award for general manager Yash Shah. Bib Gourmands recognize good food at good value.

Speaking ahead of the announcement, chef-owner Tushar Tondvalkar says he hoped recognition would introduce more diners to Kavita while preserving what makes the restaurant personal.

“I hope it changes who discovers us, but not what happens when they walk through the door,” he says.

His cooking draws on Mumbai, where he grew up, and the coastal food traditions of Malvan, while working with B.C. produce, seafood and seasons. Preparations such as paneer saag with locally foraged stinging nettles illustrate that connection between Indian culinary traditions and ingredients found here.

“That relationship between where I come from and where I cook now has become a big part of my voice as a chef. I do not think Kavita would be the same restaurant somewhere else,” Tondvalkar says.

Chef’s Choice Seafood Restaurant, at 955 West Broadway, is the other new Bib Gourmand recipient. The Cantonese restaurant was already Recommended by Michelin. This year’s distinction recognizes value as well as the cooking. Together, the additions bring Vancouver’s Bib Gourmand count to 16.

Four new Recommended restaurants

The new Recommended entries give diners four more places to explore:


Jay Nok, 127 West 2nd Ave.: modern Thai cooking in Olympic Village.
Jeju, 540 East Broadway: modern Korean cooking with a family story connecting Vancouver, Tofino and ingredients sourced from Korea. Its menu includes dishes such as wagyu tartare with gochujang and Korean pear, alongside fried chicken and silken tofu stew.
Niwa, 1875 Powell Street: chef Darren Gee’s ingredient-focused East Vancouver restaurant, which also appeared in Air Canada’s 2025 Best New Restaurants Top 10.
Peya, 2101 East Hastings Street: a new Recommended entry whose drinks program also receives recognition through Chris Enns’s Exceptional Cocktails Award.

A Recommended listing means a restaurant merits inclusion in the guide, without receiving a star or Bib Gourmand.

The pressure of keeping a star

Burdock & Co and St. Lawrence both retain one star this year. For their chefs, Michelin recognition has brought new diners and greater expectations.

Andrea Carlson, chef-owner of Burdock & Co, said the guide has helped introduce the restaurant to a wider audience.

“The Michelin brand has brought more international diners and food-savvy people. It has been a positive trend,” she says in an interview ahead of the announcement.

That visibility comes with pressure, but also room to develop the restaurant’s tasting menus.

“Maintaining brings mild anxiety that we’re still hitting the mark, but it has also given us licence to really dial in the style of food journey we’re passionate about taking guests on through our tasting menus,” Carlson says.

At St. Lawrence, chef-owner J-C Poirier said recognition brought visibility beyond Vancouver and pride for the team. The restaurant remains rooted in Quebec and classic French cooking.

“When people come to a Michelin-star restaurant, expectations are naturally higher. That can create some pressure, but ultimately our job is still the same: cook great food and make people feel welcome,” he says ahead of the announcement.

What changed in the selection

Barbara remains in the guide as Recommended, having held one star in the previous selection. AnnaLena’s promotion and Barbara’s change bring Vancouver’s total to 11 starred restaurants, compared with 12 in the online selection recorded before the announcement.

Seven previously listed restaurants do not appear in Michelin’s new selection: Bar Gobo, Bonjour Vietnam Bistro, Café Medina, Dynasty Seafood, New Mandarin Seafood Restaurant, The Lobby Lounge & RawBar, and Wildlight Kitchen + Bar.

Wildlight recently announced it will close on Nov. 28, 2026. The release does not give reasons for the omissions, and absence from the guide does not itself indicate a restaurant has closed.

Five Sails is absent from the 2026 selection, a surprising omission given chef Alex Kim’s immense talent and the numerous other accolades he and the restaurant have earned.

Vancouver’s 2026 Michelin results

Two stars: AnnaLena.

One star: Burdock & Co; iDen & QuanJuDe Beijing Duck House; Kissa Tanto; Masayoshi; Okeya Kyujiro; Published on Main; St. Lawrence; Sumibiyaki Arashi; Sushi Hyun; Sushi Masuda.

Bib Gourmands: Anh and Chi; Chef’s Choice Seafood Restaurant; Farmer’s Apprentice; Gary’s; Good Thief; Karma Indian Bistro; Kavita; Little Bird Dim Sum + Craft Beer; Lunch Lady; Magari by Oca; Motonobu Udon; Phnom Penh; Seaport City Seafood; Song (by Kin Kao); Sushi Hil; Vij’s.

Michelin also announced four individual awards:


Exceptional Cocktails: Chris Enns, Peya;
Sommelier: Mark Taylor, Bacchus;
Outstanding Service: Yash Shah, Kavita; and
Young Chef / Culinary Professional: Vish Mayekar, Elem.

The release also introduces Michelin’s Mindful Voices platform, an editorial initiative for sharing ideas and practices from across hospitality.

For the full restaurant selection, visit the Michelin Guide Vancouver.