Great Wall Mongolian B.B.Q — Restaurant in Vancouver

Did you know that a danish (pastry) is called a viennese in Denmark? Furthermore, "Edmonton Pizza" should be the name of a very popular Canadian pizza chain if the name were supposed to mean something. Checking out the origin of Mongolian barbecue, without doing scholarly research (ha, ha, ha) reveals that this type of food preparation originated through the efforts of a Taiwanese businessman in Taiwan. Yikes! Still, it was exactly the freshly prepared meat, vegetables & sauces that drove me first to Denman street, then to Davie street, & finally to Kitsilano to the Great Wall Mongolian B.B.Q. Mongolian barbecue is now extinct in Vancouver BC's West End! Anyways, first there was a little mixup regarding our table. There were other people who had snuck in there. The waitress explained that the other people had come before me. After realizing that she was not a native English speaker It became clear that there had been a miscommunication. The waitress led to another table, & all was well. Lining up, selecting meat, vegetables and meat for my bowl was the easy part. But where was the sauce menu? So, I tried a little of this & that, & it was ok. A sauce menu is helpful though. My dinner companion was slightly smaller & younger than me; they chose three different kinds of noodles, & a sauce. More learning ensued, as I realized I had to place my bowl next to a number. Choosing the same number at the counter near the grill as my table number was a mistake, because the number scheme for the bowls was different than the table number scheme. A request was made for us to sit down, & then it became clear. The amusing spectacle of seeing my assortment of veggies, meat, noodles & sauce prepared in front of my eyes was being taken from us! What? Wasn't this the funnest part of the Mongolian barbecue? Our bowls of food were brought to our table (the second bowl 15 minutes after the first one). Actually, the funniest part was when watching the "Mongolian grill chef" of ANOTHER restaurant use a long chopstick to "accidentally" swirl the dinner of one of the patrons onto the floor. I wondered: "Had the patron insulted the chef"? Not so funny for the patron, even though an apology was offered. NOW back to the GWM BBQ. The food was here at the Great Wall was acceptably delicious. It was great when the cashier said that since my dinner companion had only consumed two small modest bowls made up of mostly a sprinkling of three noodle types, & one sauce, that she the cashier would charge only a reduced rate for their meal. The other good part was that she spoke to me in an attentive & caring tone when she asked me how the dining experience had been. The cashier demonstrated clearly, that service goes a long...

I wish I could write a better review, as I genuinely enjoy the food at this restaurant. Unfortunately, I had a terrible experience with the hosting and service. I went for the all-you-can-eat option, which I usually get in two portions. However, the host — a woman with an aggressive and unfriendly attitude — approached me and told me I couldn’t have two bowls at the same time. I explained politely that I was paying for the all-you-can-eat option, but she raised her voice even more and insisted that I had to finish one round before getting another. I was shocked by her tone and behavior. I felt like I was being policed rather than served, even though I was a paying customer. To make matters worse, she continued speaking loudly about me in her own language — which I partially understood — and it was clearly not respectful. After working a 12-hour shift, I didn’t have the energy to escalate the situation, but her behavior ruined what should have been a relaxing meal. Later, she came to my table again with a mocking expression and said, “Make sure you finish your food — if there’s any left over, you’ll have to pay for it.” That was the final straw. When I went to pay, she threw a small puff in front of me and said, “Your dessert,” in a sarcastic tone. I felt humiliated and disrespected in front of others. Before leaving, I spoke to the cook — who seemed to be the person in charge — and told her that whatever good reputation this place had was completely overshadowed by the host’s behavior. Sadly, I won’t be returning as long as that woman continues working there. And I suggest if anyone else has the same experience please share...

Definitely delicious comfort food. They have been out of the delicious hot bread lately.

JUNE 16, 2025 EDIT: I'm absolutely disappointed in this restaurant. I have been coming here for years and I introduced this restaurant to my friends and family. Our recent interaction with the restaurant service and the server was appalling. After not finishing our food, we asked the server for containers as we have done many times in the past. She said, "I will give you a container, but next time, finish your food or don't take so much food if you can't finish it." We were dumbfounded by her words and asked her to clarify what she meant. And, yes, she meant exactly that!!!!

So here we are paying for our food and we have no right to take our food home? I pay for my food, and it is my business what I do with it and how much of it I eat. Our portions are controlled by the bowl, and we fill our bowls as they were designed. I understand if this was a buffet style restaurant where you have unlimited access to food, but it is not. So, the restaurant has no right to dictate how much of the food in that bowl that I am paying for, I finish, and how much I take home.

We will not be coming here anymore, nor will we be recommending this...