Vij's

We (2 people) had a reservation for 7 pm on October 20,2023. When we entered the restaurant the entryway was full of people (12+) with reservations all waiting to be seated. As we waited several more arrived. We were not seated until approximately 7: 30 pm. I feel the restaurant took far more reservations than they could reasonably handle. The dining room is VERY dark and it was impossible to read menus without the aid of cell phone flashlights. As we looked around the large room there were at least a dozen tables all trying to read menus with cell flashlights. We waited at least half an hour for drinks after ordering. After requesting more water, we waited so long my daughter was about to get up and grab the water jug herself. We ordered an appetizer to share along with two mains to share. The appetizer, winter squash with a curry sauce was delightful. The two mains (a fish dish and a lamb dish) arrived an hour after ordering and were average at best.
All in all, wait time to be seated, the very dark room, poor service and lack lustre food all contributed to our decision to never return.

The kitchen smoke and frying smells were all over the place in our section which was between the bar and the kitchen, our waiter was kind of passive-aggressive, there is no chicken Breast in entire Indian cuisine menu! Food was average,

We dined indoors. Good food and service. We had 2 appetizers (jackfruit, egg plant in yogurt) ; they were good, but didn’t blow us away. I had lamb and loved it. Ambience is OK. We’ll be back.

Our journey here started with a recipe from the WSJ… ten years later we finally made the pilgrimage, and it was beyond our expectation. The food, ambiance and staff were excellent. We didn’t get to try everything on the menu, but everything we had was top notch. Thanks to Vij and his team!

This was overall fine, but more disappointing than excepted. The service was shockingly slow and busy, and a lot of customers were visibly angry, but I’ll give an extra two stars for Mr. Vij (the owner and celebrity chef, who works there) ‘s energetic personality and his love for food. The atmosphere is fantastic and I personally loved the presentation. As for the food, we took lamb chops and Bengali chicken curry. I personally loved the lamb chops (their speciality), which were really flavorful and smoky. As for the Bengali curry, it was overall bland for me, but children may like it more, as Mr. Vij says. Overall the food just needs a bit more for five stars, but this restaurant is a great experience.

Extremely well serviced restaurant with amazing Indian food. The food is not your typical Punjabi food, which is really refreshing. Great vegetarian options!

At the insistence of friends, we visited Vij’s restaurant yesterday. Our friends indicated it was the best Indian food they’ve ever had. In fact, if you Google this (which, obviously you have), you will notice that it is rated as or among the best Indian restaurants in Vancouver. The food is excellent, but is spiced to a North American palette. I call that smart business, but for me, it was a tiny bit disappointing being used to spicy foods. Absolutely come for the food but what makes this restaurant really special is the extraordinary level of service. We were greeted upon our arrival like old friends. The host make sure we were comfortable in a shady spot up on the top floor patio as it was a hot day. Cold water was brought immediately and we were served by several people; the bartender, the server, a member of the kitchen staff
(who brought complementary appetizers), a food runner, and yet another server. ALL of these individuals made us feel like we were the most important customers they’ve ever had. I was having trouble figuring out which one of them was the owner. But that mystery was soon solved, because it wasn’t long before the owner, Mr. Vikram Vij, looking every bit the part of a proud Indian chef, came along to make sure that we were comfortable. After the amazing food arrived, Vikram came back and asked the following question: “how do you like my food? “ He didn’t say “how’s the food… He said, how do you like MY food? ” Now that’s the kind of personal commitment and ownership that is missing at most of today’s dining establishments. There’s no person behind the food - that is certainly is not the case here. My only regret is that we live at the other side of the country, meaning that my next visit to Vij’s will sadly be sometime in the future rather than my preferred next weekend.

We had the lamb popsicles and the kale, jackfruit, cauliflower in coconut curry. We found the flavors of the main dishes that we ordered nicely balanced however we found issues which made us feel, at the end of our meal, that it simply wasn't worth it and it's just totally overhyped.

1.) The free pakoras were dry, chalky and tasteless. They didn't come with a chutney. But they did come with a cracker with a smidgen of tamarind sauce. Honestly, I could do without the free pakora, it didn't improve my overall experience and made me nervous about the main course.

2.) The lamb dish came with two small cutlets, and the cauliflower "starred" in veggie dish. While I do enjoy cauliflower, charging what they do for what was like maybe three florets cut in halves was criminal. Honestly, the serving sizes are not "family style". It was closer to tapas style servings at double the price. It's simply insulting for anyone who has sense of the value of things in general. Also, I found some cauliflower pieces overcooked, and others, quite crunchy. Pick a beat!

3.) Food was lukewarm when it arrived. Not okay for this establishment which wants to exemplify an elevated dining experience.

4.) Our drinks came after the main course. Another no-no.

Definitely not returning.

Far from real Indian food. I wish I would have gone to a traditional authentic Indian restaurant instead!

Vij’s is completely worth the hype! The food is unlike any Indian food I’ve had before, in the best way possible. We started with potato and red pepper samosas and the portobello mushrooms in porcini cream curry. Wow! Both good, but the mushrooms were incredible.

For the entrees we had the beef in kalonji cream curry, like the most tender pot roast, but in a deeply spiced sauce. Perfect with the naan and basmati rice served on the side. We also had the cauliflower and black chickpea cakes in a creamy tomato fenugreek sauce. Like amazing veggie meatballs!

The wonderful chef and owner Vikram Vij came by the table twice to chat and make sure the food was perfect. The whole staff was great! Highly recommend!

Very disappointing meal here. Food was some of the worst Indian I have ever had. I’m shocked at the other reviews. Stay away

If you wanted authentic home style cooked food, I would recommend this place! Greg, our host, was outstanding with his level of service and explaining our options, and making recommendations. We were vegetarian and found the food less fattening compared to regular Indian food, and the food tasted delicious. Kudos to Vik Vij! I also tried his Gin and the Red Wine. Both were spot on!

We went as a group because we had heard some great things. We were very disappointed. It was a very pricey place and the quantity was very little. I am not sure if I could recommend this place to anyone.
Service was top notch and the atmosphere was amazing. Naan and rice were great…. But all the other dishes needed something more.

I brought my family here for dinner to celebrate my son’s 10th birthday. We have Vij’s cookbook and my 10 year old loves to help us cook from it.

I came with high expectations because of all the great reviews and our previous good experience over a decade ago. The host was very friendly and helpful but it was all downhill from there.

First of all, no acknowledgement of my son’s birthday (I mentioned this in my seat booking). Then we were given complementary appetizers but only 4 pieces for our group of 5. I had to ask for extra which they did give with an apology. We noticed most other tables were getting complimentary chai and we patiently waited to be offered some ourselves for more than half the meal until we finally just asked for it and then finally got some.

The food was maybe a 6/10 at best. Portions were small. We ended up having to order an extra dish when we realized there wasn’t enough. Ordered the pakoras which were rather bland. We got the kale and jackfruit curry, chicken curry, goat curry, fish curry and lamb popsicles.

We were told the naan and rice were complimentary with the meal but were given 4 pieces of naan for 5 people and had to ask for more. When we asked for a second piece each we were given funny looks and our food got cold by the time we got it.

By the time dessert time came around we had had enough just wanted to get out of there as we just did not feel welcome.

We left feeling very unsatisfied. Needless to say we won’t be going back.

Very cool space! I wish the food were better. Just okay. Nothing memorable. Naan was soggy. Curries were bland.

The food is expensive for what you get. The ambience is very nice, but $14 for a very small portion of coconut rice pudding? Exorbitant.

The food is high quality, but also small portions and not even as flavorful as your typical hole-in-the-wall Indian. This place was definitely not worth the hype.

It’s more 3.5 than 3, but not quite a 4 star experience. Service and atmosphere was good, and the lamb popsicles we ordered were great, but for 31$, it was a small portion size. I understand that it’s not a North Indian restaurant with the creamy dishes, but my main concern is with the quantity. In Indian culture, we ensure everyone has had enough to eat, and that’s not how I felt at all at Vij’s. The quantity of naan and rice brought out for our meal was insulting. Overall, the quality of food was good, but I was still hungry once the meal was over ($100+ for two people) and got some food elsewhere after.

Great ambience for a spl evening. Cocktails were unique n good. Complimentary starters were great and so was the food

Fabulous authentic tastes. Allergy aware. Friendly, efficient service. Looking forward to visiting again.

Food quality is superior. Wonderful flavors and textures. Service is fantastic, and Owner walks the room and checks in on diners. It is a dimly lit large dining room and is VERY noisy. Not a place to hold meaningful conversations. Overall, our family was very happy with the experience.

Absolutely amazing! Flavors are just mind blowingly good. The lamb popsicles are the best lamb I have ever had. The spices are all about flavours not just heat. The drinks.wow so tasty and refreshing

Also the staff was fantastic!

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 of the menu.