Johnny Spero and Andrea Carlson are teaming up for a botanical, micro-seasonal tasting menu, beginning with a joint sourcing trip to Salt Spring Island.
Vancouver food lovers have a rare dinner landing on Main Street next month.
On Tuesday, Aug. 11, acclaimed U.S. chef Johnny Spero will join Burdock & Co chef-owner Andrea Carlson for a one-night-only collaborative tasting menu.
The dinner is part of the Salty Magazine Dinner Series, created by chef and publisher Geeta Bansal to bring notable culinary figures together for special collaborative events. Bansal is the founder of Salty Magazine, an independent print and digital publication featuring chefs, producers and other voices from the international food community.
Priced at $195 per person, the dinner brings together two chefs with a shared interest in regional sourcing, micro-seasons and botanically driven cooking.
A new chapter on Whidbey Island
Spero’s background includes leading José Andrés’ experimental Minibar in Washington, D.C., competing on Netflix’s The Final Table and earning a Michelin star at his former restaurant, Reverie.
He moved his family west nearly 10 months ago and is now executive chef of Passage at The Inn at Langley on Whidbey Island, Washington. The Burdock dinner will be his first culinary collaboration since relocating to the Pacific Northwest.
“Collaborations have always been a huge part of what I do,” Spero said. “I have friends in Seattle and a ton in California who have reached out, but this is the first one since I moved to the Pacific Northwest.”
When Bansal suggested Burdock & Co, he was immediately interested.
“When Geeta asked about Burdock, I said absolutely,” Spero said. “They seem to have a similar ethos to how we operate. It’s all about the dining experience and the sourcing relationships.”
He was also drawn to the Vancouver restaurant’s distinct identity.
“The menu is truly unique,” he said. “It doesn’t seem to be a carbon copy of anything else.”
Rather than simply presenting separate dishes in the same kitchen, Carlson and Spero are building the dinner through shared experiences and exploration.
Before cooking together at Burdock & Co, the chefs plan to travel and dine on Salt Spring Island. Carlson will introduce Spero to local growers, including Jane Squier of The Garden, who grows more than 40 types of citrus.
“We will have an opportunity to dine and travel together to Salt Spring Island,” Carlson said. “I’ll be introducing him to Jane Squier and to other unique local growers. This will strengthen the collaborative nature of the event.”
A collaboration rooted in Pacific Northwest ingredients
Carlson believes the two chefs already share a culinary language.
“Johnny has a stellar reputation in the U.S. and abroad,” she said. “He seems like an engaged and creative chef who has limitless curiosity.”
She also sees similarities between Spero’s early work at Passage and her own approach at Burdock & Co.
“I can see from Chef Johnny’s very brief time at Passage that he is embracing all the bounty of the Pacific Northwest and is inclined to speak the same food language as I do at Burdock,” Carlson said. “Very botanically based and micro-seasonal.”
For Spero, the Salt Spring Island trip is also an opportunity to become more connected to his new region.
“I’m interested in exploring things that aren’t as commonly talked about,” he said. “Collaborations allow me to meet new people in the region and find new resources.”
O’Rourke Family Estate and Peak Cellars have been announced as the dinner’s official wine partners, with optional wine pairings available for $95. Both Lake Country wineries focus on cool-climate wines, including chardonnay, pinot noir and riesling.
Event details
When: Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026
Where: Burdock & Co, 2702 Main St., Vancouver
Cost: $195 per person, excluding tax and service. Optional wine and non-alcoholic pairings are available.
Reservations: Available through OpenTable
A fixture in Vancouver’s food and hospitality scene for decades, Cassandra Anderton tells the stories of the chefs, producers, and places that define our city. She is the publisher and editor of Good Life Vancouver and a member of the B.C. chapter of Les Dames d’Escoffier and Chefs’ Table Society. Whether she’s exploring B.C. ‘s wine regions or scouting the best new table in town, Cassandra’s work is a love letter to the “good life” in the 604 and beyond.