Vij's — Restaurant in Vancouver

Ever had mice as company for dinner!!!

I had high hopes for my visit to Vij's, especially after it was recommended by our concierge.

However, our experience turned out to be a significant disappointment, primarily due to hygiene issues that marred what could have been an enjoyable evening.

Let’s start with the positives: our server was fantastic. They were attentive, friendly, and made an effort to ensure that we were taken care of throughout our meal. Unfortunately, even the best service can’t overshadow significant problems in a dining establishment.

The ambiance was average — nothing to write home about, but it was functional enough for a dinner. The food itself was decent, earning a 3/5 for me; I’ve had better Indian cuisine.

However, the real issue arose when we spotted mice scurrying around the dining area and on the bench seating itself. This is completely unacceptable in any restaurant, and it left us feeling physically sick. We voiced our concerns and expressed our unwillingness to pay for the meal under such distressing circumstances. To our dismay, we were told that we still had to pay because we had consumed food. When we asked to speak to Chef Vikram, a celebrated chef, we connected with him on the phone (Kudos to the manager for making this possible after our relentless ask). His explanation that the mice came from the entrance felt like a weak excuse —but Im not a resturautier or a pest expert so can't comment on this validity.

However, I do find that VCH needs to tighten and better regulate and address the front entrance loophole, especially in a city like Vancouver where food safety should be paramount.

Bottomline- we did not want to get into a protracted discussion/agrumet and paid our "food" bill. (PS, we already paid the waitress cash tip well before we had the conversation with Vikram- as it was not her fault).

Soon after thr telephonic exchage with Vikram, his floor manager said he would comp our drinks (we insisted not but he was far too embarrassed- how the conversation and the evening unfloded so he flet he had to step-up).

Btw before I conclude , while we were waiting for Virkam to call back, my colleague further inquired from staff about the last health inspection .... we were told it was conducted in the last six months.

However, his quick check on Vancouver Coastal Health’s website revealed that the last inspection was, in fact, on November 21, 2023 (is it possible VCH website is not updated). I would like to give the benefit of the doubt, but this discrepancy is quite concerning and suggests a lack of transparency.

Overall, I would rate this experience as follows: 4/5 for our server's excellent service, 3/5 for the food, and 1/5 for the customer experience with the manager and leader. As for hygiene, they deserve a resounding zero. I cannot recommend Vij's based on this weekend’s experience; there are far better Indian restaurants in Vancouver.

In summary, while we wanted to have a delightful meal, we walked away feeling frustrated...

Vij’s gave my family and I a beautiful dining experience. We sat in the rooftop patio, which is full of charming little details, like the bracelets strung onto the tree branches, the rice bag pillowcases, and the bar where you can see your drinks being made. The staff team worked very efficiently to attend to every table. I didn’t ever feel that we were left waiting for too long to place an order and our water glasses never ran empty. Everyone was really nice, and our main waiter was very knowledgeable about the whole menu and offered suggestions when we needed them. Vij himself was making the rounds and checked in with us a few times. I tend to ramble describing food in reviews, but nothing I say will really do justice to this. The food is served family-style, meant to be shared. The total before tip for the three of us was about $180. I think this was a competitive price for the experience we had. There were complimentary snacks delivered to our table shortly after we were seated: papri and pakoras. Our waiter mentioned that we could have the kitchen “order for us”, which sounded like fun, but I had a few specific dishes I wanted to make sure to try, so we chose our own menu. For appetizers, we ordered the rockfish cakes on coconut curry and chickpeas in star anise date masala, and for mains, cauliflower black chickpea cakes in tomato fenugreek curry and lingcod in green onion coconut curry. The appetizers and mains both came with naan and the mains came with jeera rice. For dessert, we had the mango kulfi and coconut kneer. We all each had a cocktail too (the Vieux Delhi for me, and others had a G&T and a Cambie Sour). I can’t pick a favourite dish (or drink) - even though there were dishes I was more drawn to based on my personal favourite flavours, everything was executed perfectly in its own way. The concept is unique from other upscale Indian restaurants - the food is essentially Indian but the experimentation with the flavours reflects the influence of Vancouver’s culinary culture. The spice level varies with each dish but is generally pretty moderate; on average, things were between a “mild” and a “medium” level at most Indian restaurants in North America, so I can’t see the spice level being too high for anyone unless you have a severe intolerance. For those who like spicier food, the lack of kick is compensated for by the richness of the other spices. I would highly encourage fans of Indian cuisine and/or fine dining to just go and give them a try if you’re interested in a new experience for Indian food. I’m always inclined to try as many places as possible which means I don’t often make return visits to places that are out of my way, but this is a place I would definitely visit again to try more...

I don’t leave many reviews but felt compelled to leave one due to the questionable (memorable?) experience I had. We had reservations for 7 pm. By 7:20, I was a bit tired of standing so we took a seat at the bar and had complimentary chai and complimentary snack that they serve to their guests. I was appreciative of this. You can see by my photo time stamp of the snack that it was taken 22 minutes after the 7pm reservation (you can also tell the pic was taken at the bar because the lighting in the pic is much brighter than the other two pics taken in the dining area). We didn’t get seated for a while after, perhaps 730. No big deal, I understand at times that places can get busy and things get held up. Once we got seated, we ordered some starters, a side, and a couple entrees. The server was very pleasant and helpful and so were the wait staff. The starters arrived at 7:58 (28 min after seating), no big deal and they were quite tasty. After eating them, we waited quite a while for our entrees (veg thali and beef curry). Time stamp of beef short rib curry is 50 min after receiving prawn starter. Our entrees were room temp at best. My date made a comment and the owner arrived and mentioned they don’t get started on the entree until after the starter is served. I do think 50 min to get the entree to our table after serving the starter is excessive but I didn’t want to debate about that. He graciously returned the thali and returned with a hot one in less than 5 minutes. Towards the end, my date expressed his displeasure that we had reservations at 7, didn’t get seated for 30 minutes, food service was too long, and that the food was not hot and that the beef was dry. In my limited experience in the customer service industry, it’s best to just let the wookie win as they say. No point in arguing, just leave it be. Unfortunately, the owner brought the hostess to our table and said that we only waited 20 minutes, not 30 and called my date a liar, which escalated things because no one wants to be called a liar. I don’t blame the hostess for saying 20 minutes, she deals with a lot of customers and it was busy, how is she to remember every detail. None the less, my snack pic shows 7:22 and we didn’t get seated for at the very least 5 minutes later. I’ve never been so mortified in my life to see an owner of a restaurant calling a customer a liar 😭 which is why I was prompted to write a review showcasing time stamp of pics to prove our wait time. Needless to say, we won’t be back and I know Vij is happy that we won’t be :( Left 2 stars for the hostess and wait staff for having to witness the uncomfortable debate between the owner...