Initially presented as a daytime eatery as an off-shoot project from Vancouver's wildly popular plant-based "cheese" maker Blue Heron, Soil, an experimental vegan restaurant, has shuttered after just about six months.
A carrot “lox” toast at Soil. Photo by Lindsay William-Ross/Vancouver Is Awesome
Soil's last day of service was Sunday, June 2.
A statement shared earlier in May on social media indicates that Soil's closure is due in part to a desire to grow Blue Heron more.
"We have big goals for Blue Heron, and getting into a larger manufacturing site, being able to do cross Canada distribution, and finally being able to open our online shop are top priorities that need our deep focus now," the restaurant explained.
Soil, which opened in late November 2018, was known for their fully plant-based menu showcasing innovative techniques, minimum food waste (a daily soup was made making use of food scraps), and of course plenty of Blue Heron non-dairy cheese.
A grilled “cheese” sandwich at Soil using Blue Heron plant-based cheese.
The restaurant served lunch and dinner, and also hosted collaborative dinners and events in their small Main Street eatery, which had previously been the plant-based Friendly Snack Bar.
"This first iteration of SOIL was never intended to be the only nor final version, and the concept is part of a much larger idea that will, hopefully, one day, be realized," elaborated Soil on Instagram.
The Soil idea, however, is not fully going dark. Blue Heron says they plant to continue the "brand and concept as mobile entity, hosting workshops and other pop up events, while we deepen our focus on Blue Heron's imminent growth."
