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Ridiculously named Vancouver restaurants

snacky_cat

By snacky_cat
in Western Canada: Dining

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snacky_cat

snacky_cat

Posted
Posted

To commemorate the passing of everybody's favourite oddly-named Vancouver eatery, I thought I would start the weird-names thread. What better way to honour our fallen ghetto-flavoured soup joint, and to find its successor as Restaurant-as-Punchline.

So chime in with your favourite strange restaurant name. Might as well open it up to oddly-named dishes too.

I'll start. Tony's Beef Noodle on Cambie around 41st. The only thing that would make it worse would be calling it Tony's Beefy Noodle. Maybe they could only afford so many characters for the sign.

Jenn

"She's not that kind of a girl, Booger!"

kurtisk

kurtisk

Posted
Posted

I used to work at a place in the early '90s that was in the current Tapastree spot. It was a seafood restaurant and it was called Flipper's. It was also my second worst restaurant job of all time.

Ducky

Ducky

Posted
Posted

I have always loathed, and refuse to patronize, restaurants the name of which includes the name of an animal that is not on the menu.

eg.

Frog and Firkin, Smoking Dog, The Jade Rabbit, Elephant & Castle, Flamingo Grill, Le Crocodile, Bearfoot Bistro, Octopus's Garden etc

I also avoid all restaurant with terminally cute names.

eg. A Kettle of Fish, Dem Bones, Death by Chocolate, My Big Fat Greek Cafe, Sushi Q, The Rebellious Tomato, Cloud 9 etc.

Call me old fashioned.

Mooshmouse

Mooshmouse

Posted
Posted
I have always loathed, and refuse to patronize, restaurants the name of which includes the name of an animal that is not on the menu.

eg.

Frog and Firkin, Smoking Dog, The Jade Rabbit, Elephant & Castle, Flamingo Grill, Le Crocodile, Bearfoot Bistro, Octopus's Garden etc

Call me old fashioned.

In the case of the latter three, I'd call you silly for missing out on some wonderful dining experiences, all for the sake of a name. :raz:

Joie Alvaro Kent

"I like rice. Rice is great if you're hungry and want 2,000 of something." ~ Mitch Hedberg

Ducky

Ducky

Posted
Posted

A man has to have a few principles - and these have served me well.

I once knew a girl called Gladys. But not for long. I believe it was the right call.

baconburner

baconburner

Posted
Posted
To commemorate the passing of everybody's favourite oddly-named Vancouver eatery, I thought I would start the weird-names thread. What better way to honour our fallen ghetto-flavoured soup joint, and to find its successor as Restaurant-as-Punchline.

So chime in with your favourite strange restaurant name. Might as well open it up to oddly-named dishes too.

I'll start. Tony's Beef Noodle on Cambie around 41st. The only thing that would make it worse would be calling it Tony's Beefy Noodle. Maybe they could only afford so many characters for the sign.

Hi

This is not the name of a restaurant but I got a real chuckle out of a sign in front of a Nanaimo fried chicken place that proudly said

"Try our Terminal location"

Cheers

Baconburner

mamacat

mamacat

Posted
Posted

It's not a Vancouver restaurant, just a rather a tacky TV commercial yet I chuckle each time I see "Sam 'n Ella's Chicken" with the aforementioned Sam and Ella standly forlornly in the window of their deserted restaurant. Lovely play on words!

chef jeff

chef jeff

Posted
Posted

I get all annoyed at the bad Thai restaurant names that somehow use the word "thai" in a sentance.

thai away home

thai one on

etc.

maybe there could be a thai sports bar called "thai game"

s&m dinner club called "thai me up, thai me down"

"Thai that yellow ribbon 'round the old oak tree"

the possibilities are endless.

also, there used to be a restaurant on Kingsway out by Metro Town called Foody-Goody. The name says it all!

chef jeff

chef jeff

Posted
Posted

Before we took over the space that is now Aurora, it used to be a chinese reataurant called Gou Bouli. Not sure if that spelling is correct, but I was told it meant something like "the dog doesn't care"

if that's not odd enough for ya...

ghillie

ghillie

Posted
Posted

I was always partial to a chinese restaurant I passed daily that was named Tin Chew, now lo longer extant. Always made me shudder thinking of foil wrapped takeout where you threw the contents away and ate the wrapping.

kontemporary

kontemporary

Posted
Posted

I like O-Kee Wonton House on Granville Street. I can't figure whether they did that on purpose or not.

One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well.

Virginia Woolf

jBo

jBo

Posted
Posted

I've never been to Vancouver, but there used to be a restaurant in Jacksonville, FL named "Yings Chinee Takee Outee". :laugh:

Thanks for letting me butt in.

"I cook with wine ... I sometimes put it in food."
Daddy-A

Daddy-A

Posted
Posted
Not sure if that spelling is correct, but I was told it meant something like "the dog doesn't care"

Ummm ... I think the dog might care if the chef was standing behind him with a cleaver ... :shock:

Octopus Garden

Don't they serve Tako (octopus) at Octopus Garden?

After one inning, the score is Vancouver:1, Ducky:0 :laugh:

Wasn't there a place on Main near Pender called Fuk Yew? In Portland, we're just blocks away from "Miso Happi".

A.

hopkin

hopkin

Posted
Posted (edited)

The Ordinary Cafe

Dennis adapted the french term 'cafe ordinaire'. Translated I find it awkward since I find his food far from 'ordinary'. Had some great meals there.

Edited by hopkin (log)

Alistair Durie

Elysian Coffee

shelora

shelora

Posted
Posted

Gone but not forgotten places in Victoria:

Pina's Grocery Store

A Touch of Greece - always made me laugh.

Never did make it to Rong's Restaurant - I think I made the right decision!

And the classic Portland restaurant, Hung Far Low. Its a beaut!

sanrensho

sanrensho

Posted
Posted

Stupidest name ever for a restaurant: "Sushi Boy."

Also, I found out that there is a "Nagano Sushi" in Kelowna. For those that know, Nagano Prefecture is in the middle of Japan. So this is the equivalent of "Prairie Seafood House."

Now, there is a remote possibility that someone named Nagano owns the aforementioned restaurant, but I still wouldn't associate sushi with Nagano anything.

Baker of "impaired" cakes...
sanrensho

sanrensho

Posted
Posted
What about "Sushi Bang" on W. Broadway?

Mind-meld moment! That was the first place I thought of. For some reason, I was thinking it was "Sushi Bomb," but Google didn't turn up anything.

The restaurant names in Chinese and other non-English languages don't bother me at all, just like I don't giggle when I hear a foreign word that sounds unflattering in English (he said, "Fuk!" giggle giggle). I work in a foreign language too often to get a kick out of that stuff.

Poor English renderings of foreign language restaurant names are much worse, especially when it involves butchering the English language.

Baker of "impaired" cakes...
kontemporary

kontemporary

Posted
Posted (edited)

Not really a restaurant, but I do love ordering "Fukien Fried Rice" at Chinese restaurants too :laugh:

Edited by rêvasser (log)

One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well.

Virginia Woolf

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