East Pender Street, Vancouver

Vancouver’s Chinatown is an exciting place where the old and modern come together. The areas of East Pender Street and the rectangle formed by Pender, Main, Keefer, and Gore streets are a true paradise for shoppers keen on all things Asian. Here, alongside locals perpetually searching for specialty ingredients for dinner, you will find the young and hip crowd checking out independent stores. The variety of things on offer is enormous, spanning from ginseng to green teas, fine embroidered linen, silk robes, exotic fresh produce, plus traditional Chinese tableware and cooking utensils.

The area is also noted for the abundance of natural pharmacies and herbalists, as well as numerous restaurants and smaller eateries serving freshly-made Asian delicacies: from moon cake to roasted duck. When it comes to steam buns, the best place to get them in Chinatown is New Town Bakery. The joint serves a variety of 13 different steam buns, ranging from $1.65 to $3.30 apiece, filled with pork, chicken, beef, sweet custard, sweet lotus paste, and egg yolk.

Speaking of modern, a number of cool new stores lining East Pender Street, west of Main, really break the Chinatown mold, offering skateboard decks, vintage clothing, cocktail sets, and club wear. A special mention deserves the something-for-everyone Bamboo Village, at 135 East Pender Street. The shop is specialized in all things bamboo – from furniture, paper lanterns, and worship supplies to Maoist memorabilia, Chinese folk art, and home decor.

The emerging neighbourhood between Main Street and Carrall Street is also home to many notable businesses, such as Kissa Tanto, Umaluma, Propaganda Coffee, Bao Bei, Aubade Coffee, and others. Paired with a bunch of mixed-use development projects completed in recent years, this creates one of the fastest-growing and most dynamic neighborhoods in Vancouver.