Over the span of a few weeks you readers submitted picks for your favourite shining lights of our great (er, awesome!) city.
From your favourite local politician (Major Kennedy Stewart) to your favourite pet store (Tisol), the categories run the gamut. These are the best of the best, as dedicated by you.
Please support these local businesses, and take care of each other.
Bob Kronbauer
Publisher and Editor-in-Chief, Vancouver Is Awesome
ART & CULTURE
LOCAL POLITICIAN
- Kennedy Stewart
- Don Davies
- John Horgan
NEIGHBOURHOOD
- Kitsilano
- Mount Pleasant
- West End
TOURIST ATTRACTION
- Stanley Park
- Granville Island
- Jack Chow Insurance Building
PUBLIC ART
- Olympic Cauldron
- A-maze-ing Laughter
- Vancouver Mural Festival
EAT & DRINK
BAKERY
- Purebread
- Breka Bakery & Café
- COBS Bread Bakery (Tie)
- Maxim's Bakery (Tie)
BRUNCH
- Café Medina
- Yolks
- Jam Cafe
BEST BURGER
- White Spot
- Vera's Burger Shack
- Romers' Burger Bar
BEST FOOD DELIVERY SERVICE
- DoorDash
- Uber Eats
- Skip The Dishes
CHINESE RESTAURANT
- Sandy La Chinese Restaurant
- Peaceful Restaurant
- Szechuan Chili Restaurant
COFFEE SHOP
- JJ Bean
- 49th Parallel Café
- Bean Around the World
- Cafe Artigiano
CRAFT BREWERY
- 33 Acres Brewing Company
- Parallel 49 Brewing Company
- Granville Island Brewery
DESSERT
- True Confections
- Thierry Chocolates
- Thomas Haas
FINE DINING
- Hawksworth Restaurant
- Seasons in the Park
- Blue Water Cafe
FOOD TRUCK
- Tacofino
- Chickpea
- Japadog
GREEK RESTAURANT
- Stepho's Souvlaki Greek Taverna
- The Greek by Anatoli
- Maria's Taverna & Minervas Restaurant
ICE CREAM/GELATO
- Earnest Ice Cream
- Rain or Shine
- La Casa Gelato
INDIAN/ SOUTH ASIAN RESTAURANT
- Vij's
- Sula Indian Restaurant
- Tasty's Indian Bistro
ITALIAN RESTAURANT
- Cioppino's Mediterranean Grill & Enoteca
- Pepino's Spaghetti House
- Ask for Luigi
JAPANESE RESTAURANT
- Miku Restaurant
- Minami Restaurant
- Applause Japanese Restaurant
KOREAN BBQ RESTAURANT
- Chosun Korean BBQ Restaurant
- Sura Korean BBQ Restaurant
- Kook Korean BBQ Restaurant
LATE NIGHT EATS
- Breka Bakery & Café
- The Naam
- Lucy's Diner
LATIN AMERICAN RESTAURANT
- Cuchillo
- El Camino's
- Havana Vancouver (Tie)
- Sal y Limón (Tie)
MIDDLE EASTERN RESTAURANT
- Nuba
- Jam Jar
- East is East
NEW RESTAURANT (OPENED IN 2021)
- Chupito (Tie for #2)
- Maxine's Cafe & Bar (Tie for #1)
- Alimentaria Mexicana (Tie for #2)
- Giovane Bacaro (Tie for #2)
PATIO
- Mahony's Tavern
- Tap & Barrel
- Joe Fortes Seafood & Tap House
PIZZA
- Via Tevere Pizzeria
- Pizza Garden
- La Ruota Pizzeria
SEAFOOD RESTAURANT
- Blue Water Cafe
- Joe Fortes Seafood & Chop House
- Rodney's Oyster House
SPANISH/ TAPA RESTAURANT
- Bodega on Main
- Como Taperia
- España Restaurant
SPORTS BAR
- Shark Club Sports Bar & Grill
- Boston Pizza
- Red Card Sports Bar + Eatery
TACO
- Tacofino
- La Taqueria Pinche Taco Shop
- Sal y Limón
THAI RESTAURANT
- Sawasdee Thai Restaurant
- Sala Thai
- Bob Likes Thai Food (Tie)
- Maenam (Tie)
VEGAN RESTAURANT
- MeeT
- Chickpea
- CHAU Veggie Express (Tie)
- Heirloom (Tie)
VEGETARIAN RESTAURANT
- The Naam
- MeeT
- Heirloom
LIFESTYLE & SERVICES
APPAREL
- Lululemon
- Eddie Bauer
- Aritzia
ARTS & CRAFT SUPPLIES
- Michaels
- Opus Art Supplies
- Urban Source
AUTO REPAIR
- M & N Auto Repairs
- Tremblay Motors
- Canadian Tire
BABY/CHILDREN'S STORE
- West Coast Kids
- Babes on Fourth
- Toys R Us
BARBERSHOP
- The barbershop
- Big Bro's Barbershop
- TopGun Barber
BIKE SHOP
- Ride on Bikes
- Reckless Bike Stores
- Our Community Bikes
BRIDAL STORE
- Bisou Bridal
- Bello Wedding World
BUTCHER
- Windsor Quality Meat
- Columbus Meat Market
- Beefway Meats (Tie)
- Rio Friendly Meats (Tie)
CAR DEALER
- Brian Jessel BMW
- Mercedes
- Regency Toyota
CAR SHARE
- Evo Car Share
- Modo
- ZEROCAR
CAR WASH
- Shine Auto Wash
- M & J Car Wash
- Oasis Car Wash
CATERER
- Savoury City Catering
- Emelles Catering
- The Lazy Gourmet
CHARITY
- Covenant House Vancouver
- BC Children's Hospital Foundation
- BC SPCA
COBBLER
- The Quick Cobbler
- Kim's Shoe Repair
- Both Feet on Main
CONTINUING STUDIES INSTITUTION
- Langara College
- Vancouver Community College
- University of British Columbia
COOKING CLASSES
- Dirty Apron
- Gourmet Warehouse
- Vancouver Community College
DRY CLEANER
- Busy Bee
- Fletcher's Cleaners Ltd
ETHNIC FOOD STORE
- T&T Supermarket
- Persia Foods
- Jasmine Halal Meats & Mediterranean Foods
EYEWEAR STORE
- Hi-Care Vision Centre
- Bailey Nelson
- Fyidoctors
FLORIST
- Flower Factory
- Celsia Florist (Tie)
- Queen Bee Flower Shop (Tie)
FUNERAL HOME
- Kearney Funeral Services
- Amherst Funeral & Cremation Services Inc. (Tie)
- Mount Pleasant Universal Funeral Home (Tie)
FURNITURE AND DECOR STORE
- Structube
- Parliament Interiors
- IKEA (Tie)
- The Cross Decor & Design (Tie)
GARDEN STORE
- Hunters Garden Centre
- Figaro's Garden
- Southlands Nursery
GAS STATION
- Esso
- Chevron
- Petro Canada
GIFT SHOP
- Pacific Arts Market
- Bird on a Wire
- Giving Gifts (Tie)
- Welk's General Store (Tie)
GROCERY STORE
- T&T Supermarket
- Save on Foods
- Donalds Market
HAIR SALON
- Suki's
- Chura Hair Salon
- East Vanity Parlour
HARDWARE STORE
- Rona
- Home Hardware
- Home Depot
HEARING CLINIC
- NexGen Hearing
- Vancouver Hearing Centre
- Connect Hearing
HOME APPLIANCE STORE
- Trail Appliances
- Coast Appliances
- Home Depot
HOME RENOVATIONS
- Home Depot
- Home Renovations
- Garage Door Depot
HOTEL
- Fairmont Vancouver
- The Westin Bayshore
- Fairmont Pacific Rim (Tie)
- Pan Pacific Vancouver (Tie)
INSURANCE BROKER
- Jack Chow Insurance
- BCAA (Tie)
- Westland Insurance (Tie)
JEWELLERY
- Blue Ruby (Tie for #1)
- Tiffany & Co. (Tie for #1)
- Bijoux Birks (Tie for #2)
- Leah Alexandra Jewellery (Tie for #2)
KITCHENWARE STORE
- Gourmet Warehouse
- Ming Wo
- Welk's General Store
LANDSCAPING
- Elemental Gardens
- Great Canadian Landscaping Company (Tie)
- Sprout Landscapes (Tie)
LASER AND SKIN CLINIC
- Vancouver Laser & Skin Care Centre
- Arbutus Laser Centre
- Skin Technique
LAWYER
- Russell G. Lew
- Taylor and Blair LLP
- Krista Simon - Hammerco Lawyers LLP
LIQUOR/ WINE STORE
- BC Liquor Stores
- Legacy Liquor Store
- Liberty Wine Merchants
MEAL KIT DELIVERY
- Fresh Prep
- Hello Fresh
- Goodfood
MORTGAGE BROKER
- Niki Cuthbert - Ask Niki Mortgages (Tie for #1)
- Vancity (Tie for #1)
NAIL SALON
- Pure Nail Bar (Tie)
- Modern Nails (Tie)
- Joyride Beauty Salon
OIL CHANGE
- Mr. Lube + Tires
- Destination Mazda (Tie)
- M & N Auto Repair (Tie)
PET STORE
- Tisol
- PetSmart
- KORNA Natural Pet Supplies Ltd. (Tie)
- MrPets (Tie)
PLUMBER
- Hillcrest Plumbing & Heating
- Milani Plumbing, Heating & Air Conditioning
- Papa Plumbing Heating & Drainage Ltd.
PRIVATE SCHOOL
- St. George's School
- Crofton House School
- York House School
REALTOR
- Rod Chow
- Michelle Yu
- Becca Auld
SENIORS CARE SUPPORT SERVICES
- Ace Personnel Domestic Services Inc.
- Nurse Next Door
- Vancouver Coastal Health - Home Support
SENIORS RESIDENCE
- Blenheim Manor (Tie)
- Louis Brier Home & Hospital (Tie)
- Opal by Element
SHOE STORE
- Gravitypope
- Browns
- Fluevog Shoes
SHOPPING CENTRE
- CF Pacific Centre
- Kingsgate Mall
- City Square (Tie)
- Oakridge Centre (Tie)
SPA/ BEAUTY THERAPY
- Spa Utopia
- Sabai Thai Spa
- Willow Stream Spa at Fairmont Pacific Rim
TOY STORE
- Toys "R" Us
- Kaboodles Toy Store
- Granville Island Toy Company
TRAVEL AGENCY
- Travel Best Bets
- Flight Centre
- Expedia Cruises Center
VETERINARIAN
- Atlas Animal Hospital & Emergency Vancouver
- The Granville Island Veterinary Hospital (Tie)
- Yaletown Pet Hospital (Tie)
VINTAGE/ CONSIGNMENT STORE
- Value Village
- Front and Company
- Turnabout
WEDDING VENUE
- Stanley Park
- Brock House Restaurant
- Heritage Hall (Tie)
- Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden (Tie)
HEALTH & WELLNESS
ACUPUNCTURE
- Jenny Abel Acupuncture
- Jill Truscott - Local Health Integrative Clinic
- Kitsilano Community Acupuncture
BEST AT HOME WORKOUT EQUIPMENT
- PowerBlock
- Peloton
- Fitness Town
BEST WORKOUT APP
- Peloton
- Down Dog (Tie)
- FitOn (Tie)
CHIROPRACTOR
- Dr. Bradley Yee - C.A.R.E. Clinic
- Broadway AT Yew Chiropractic & Massage
- Dr. Alexa Dykun
DENTIST
- Family Dental Care Kitsilano - Dr. Harry Sangha Dentistry
- Strathcona Community Dental Group
- Aarm Dental Group
DENTURE CLINIC
- Northwest Denture Clinic
- Kerrisdale Denture Clinic (Tie)
- Inspire Dental Group (Tie)
FERTILITY CLINIC
- Olive Fertility Centre
- Grace Fertility Centre (Tie)
- Dr. Elena Fenske (Tie)
HEALTH & FITNESS CENTRE
- Trout Lake Community Centre
- Equinox (Tie)
- Fitness World (Tie)
HEATLH & WELLNESS STORE
- Finlandia Pharmacy & Natural Health Centre
- Body Energy Club
- Alive Health Centre
LASER EYE CLINIC
- Lasik MD
- Marpole Optometry Clinic
- Pacific Laser Eye Centre
MASSAGE THERAPY
- Spa Utopia
- Nicole Scott, RMT - Local Health Integrative Clinic
- Sabai Thai Spa
NATUROPATHIC CLINIC
- Local Health Integrative Clinic
- Dr. Elena Fenske
- Dr. Vanessa Lindsay
NUTRITIONIST
- Jordan Bruce Wellness
- Kelsey Ellis - Healthy with Kelsey
- Ready to Nourish
OPTOMETRIST
- FYidoctors
- Raymond Chow - Keefer Place Optometrist
- Mount Pleasant Optometry
ORGANIC PRODUCE STORE
- Whole Foods Market
- Greens Organic and Natural Market
- Choices Market
PHYSIOTHERAPIST
- Total Therapy
- Tall Tree Physiotherapy & Health Centre
- Kelvin Physiotherapy Clinic
SPIN STUDIO
- Spin Society
- Cadence Cycling Studio (Tie)
- Method Cycling (Tie)
- Ride Cycle Club (Tie)
WALK IN CLINIC
- Viva Care Medical Clinic
- UNA Medical Clinic
- Yaletown Medical Clinic
YOGA STUDIO
- Oxygen Yoga and Fitness
- YYoga
- Open Door Yoga
OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES
URBAN HIKE
- The Seawall
- Pacific Spirit Park
- Stanley Park
BEACH
- Kitsilano Beach
- Jericho Beach
- Spanish Banks Beach
PUBLIC GARDEN
- VanDusen Botanical Garden
- Queen Elizabeth Park
- Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden
OFF-LEASH DOG PARK
- Spanish Banks
- Trout Lake
- Queen Elizabeth Park
BIKE TRAIL
- Stanley Park
- The Seawall
- Arbutus Greenway
RUNNING TRAIL
- Pacific Spirit Park
- The Seawall
- Stanley Park
PLACES
BEST OUTDOOR PLACE ON A RAINY DAY
- Stanley Park
- Granville Island
- Pacific Spirit Park
FAMILY OUTING
- PNE/Playland
- Science World
- Stanley Park
DOG WALK
- Pacific Spirit Park
- The Seawall
- Spanish Banks
STAYCATIONS
BEST HOTEL
- Westin Bayshore
- Fairmont Pacific Rim
- The Sylvia Hotel
BEST TV SERIES
- Game of Thrones
- Ozark
- Riverdale
FAVOURITE SKI HILL
- Mt Seymour
- Cypress Mountain
- Whistler Blackcomb
