St. Lawrence

St. Lawrence is the restaurant of chef and owner Jean-Christophe Poirier, who grew up in Quebec and brings the food of his home province to a dining room on Powell Street, in an area the restaurant's awards place in Gastown. The restaurant describes its cooking as a meeting of classic French cuisine and Québécois food culture, and Poirier calls his style rustic haute country cooking. It has held a Michelin star since 2022, and the team won the Michelin Guide's Vancouver Service Award in 2025.

The menu is a seasonal table d'hôte that changes every week, opening with canapés. A few house classics return each September and October. Dishes the Michelin Guide has singled out include crispy pig ears glazed with maple syrup and spices, and a savoury éclair filled with duck liver mousse. Heartier courses have included charcoal-grilled duck with chou farci and wheat berries. Maple appears again at dessert, for example in a maple St-Honoré with Chantilly and caramel. Sauces are delicate and sweetness is used deliberately, giving food that the Michelin inspectors describe as refined but rich.

Drinks follow the same theme. Cocktails are built on French spirits, and the wine list concentrates on France. The kitchen sits close to the dining room, and the room is described by the restaurant as elevated yet approachable, which makes it suit a special occasion without feeling stiff. It works best for couples and small groups who want a long, unhurried dinner.

St. Lawrence opens Wednesday to Sunday from 5pm to 10:30pm and is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. Reservations are made through the restaurant's own booking page, and subscribers to its monthly newsletter are told when new dates are released, which is the most reliable way to secure a table. Pets are not allowed, and the room is air-conditioned.

If you cannot get in, Poirier's sister restaurant, Chez Céline, offers a more casual French menu with dishes such as escargots, poutine and a large pork chop. Chez Céline is a useful fallback for a group, while St. Lawrence itself is best kept for a planned evening, as its weekly menu and set format reward an unhurried meal with matched French wines.