The release of the Michelin® Guide Vancouver has elevated the city's reputation as a global dining destination and recognised the fresh produce that makes British Columbia's cuisine so special.

The star-level dining experience in Vancouver was described as “intimate, personal, and good value for money” by Michelin's chief inspector for North America, who made reference to the beautiful fresh produce in British Columbia.

This is the food experience that extends to every corner of British Columbia. Home to innovative chefs, passionate growers, award-winning winemakers and 'the 100-Mile Diet'* British Columbia has some of North America's most fertile land and sea. This, coupled with a mild climate and long growing season, enables BC farmers to cultivate a vast range of products including Fraser Valley wine, duck and berries; Gulf Island lamb, cheeses and tofu; wild Pacific Salmon, fresh lake trout and even locally brewed sake. British Columbia's multi-cultural society brings culinary influences, and tastes, from around the world, which take flight in BC's restaurant kitchens, where innovative chefs meld European training, international (primarily Asian) tastes and the wealth of local produce to define a regional cuisine. From caribou to chanterelles, artisanal cheese to micro-brewed ale, the local fare is rich and varied and the restaurants cosmopolitan, vibrant, affordable, and, in many cases, blessed with mountain and ocean views.

Here's how to sample the best of British Columbia dining:

Vancouver beyond the stars
The very first MICHELIN guide to Vancouver launched with eight one-MICHELIN-star restaurants and 12 Bib gourmands where – according to MICHELIN – “you can expect sublime, beautifully-plated contemporary, Japanese, French, and Chinese fare utilising Vancouver's bountiful seasonal, local ingredients.” This variety, value and use of fresh produce is prevalent throughout Vancouver's food offering with options to suit every pocket. The city's influential Asian population ensures it is one of the best places to sample regional Asian, particularly Chinese, cuisines. Options range from chic formal restaurants to weekend dim sum haunts and cheap and deliciously cheerful noodle bars. For the ultimate in Asian fusion fast-food try 'Japadogs' - Vancouver's original food cart serves massive hotdogs topped by seaweed flakes, miso-mayonnaise and other Japanese-inspired accompaniments.

Don't miss a foodie exploration of Granville Island Public Market where you can taste creamy, briny sea urchins harvested fresh, or the wildly unattractive – yet delicious – gooseneck barnacles hand-harvested by First Nations fishermen on Clayquot Sound. The First Nations influence runs throughout BC's local cuisine and many restaurants serve delightful smoky cedar plank salmon, candy glazed with maple syrup. Vancouver's only indigenous owned and operated restaurant Salmon n' Bannock is an ideal location to explore First Nations culinary traditions.

Follow the dumpling trail in Richmond
Richmond is where the Far East meets the Canadian West Coast. With over 400 Asian restaurants and a world-renowned Asian Night Market, Richmond's authentic food and cultural experiences are special. Richmond's Night Market is the largest in North America with over 70 food stalls where you can sample sublime crab meat noodles, BBQ squid, ramen, Japanese poutine and sushi. The best way to explore Richmond's food scene is by guided food tour. Try the new Authentic Asian Eats tour from Vancouver Foodie Tours or follow the self-guided Richmond Dumpling Trail for the most delectable dumplings this side of town.

Sample Whistler's farm-to-table fine dining
Just two hours from Vancouver and its star-studded eateries is another dining hot spot: Whistler. This legendary ski town is also home to several of the provinces – and the continents - top restaurants. Whistler chefs take advantage of the bountiful farmland just 25 minutes north in Pemberton Valley, incorporating seasonal produce and organic meat into mouth watering menus that are constantly evolving. Executive chef James Walt helped pioneer the “eat local” movement with the Araxi Longtable Series, an outdoor dining experiences held each summer at North Arm Farm. Other top tables can be found at Alta Bistro and Il Caminetto. Wild Blue Restaurant + Bar is Whistler's newest fine dining experience opening this winter season, where the focus is on elevated Pacific Northwest cuisine, sustainable seafood, and local ingredients.  

Wine and dine In the Okanagan
With 86% of the province's vineyard acreage, the Okanagan Valley is British Columbia's premier grape-growing region. The wine — produced by over 180 wineries in the area — came first, followed by a parade of talented chefs, attracted by the region's agricultural bounty and lush scenery. The sunny climate makes alfresco dining a natural here and many winery restaurants have terraces overlooking lakeside vineyards. Don't miss Naramata Inn - led by top Canadian chef and Okanagan-born Ned Bell. Ned is known for his commitment to seasonal, sustainable menus and his outgoing personality. The restaurant offers a next-level hyper-local dining experience. Other treats include Quails' Gate Winery – Old Vines restaurant, known for its seafood and farm-to-table approach and the unique Korean and Italian fusion found at Gather Restaurant. Alternatively, those embracing plant-based food will be in their element at Frankie We Salute You. Chef Brian Skinner is a Canadian Culinary Champion on a mission to make plant-based eating tasty and inspiring for everyone. For a full guide to eating in Kelowna see the Local Flavours Guide (tourismkelowna.com).

Eat fresh on Vancouver Island
Vancouver Island is bursting with wineries, organic farms, fisheries and talented chefs. Salmon, caught wild and served rare, features in many menus. It's a staple in the local diet — served seemingly every way and everywhere, from formal dining rooms to burger joints, dockside fish and chip vendors to sushi bars. Watch out, too, for lesser-known local seafood, such as Vancouver Island oysters, spot prawns, sablefish, ling cod and halibut cheeks. Coastal spots, especially Tofino and Sooke, are good places to try such uniquely British Columbian seafood. Try 'Wolf in the Fog' in Tofino, whose menu is inspired by a love of fishing and foraging in its ocean backyard or head to Fisherman's Wharf in Victoria for the freshest seafood, straight from the boat.

British Columbia's capital city, Victoria, claims to have the second highest number of restaurants per capita in North America (after San Francisco) and is the self-proclaimed brunch capital of Canada. See the Victorian Brunch Guide for the most up-to-date spots. Many restaurants source their ingredients, from wine to duck to artisanal cheeses, from the nearby Cowichan Valley and Saanich Peninsula, an area blessed with sunshine, fertile ground, wineries and organic farms. From the intimate and funky 'Stage' restaurant, with its French menu that changes daily depending on the produce, to the Songhees Food truck that offers a modern take on traditional indigenous cuisine, the food in Victoria is original, fresh and bursting with flavour.

Great finds aren't limited to BC's breadbaskets and wine regions. Travellers will find foodie treasures elsewhere, from fresh sushi and home baking in Prince Rupert to innovative "Inland Cuisine" in the Kootenay Rockies where menus flaunt slow cooked elk, bison, boar and sockeye salmon. And everywhere, you'll hear the dining mantra of "fresh, local, seasonal and sustainable," and meet chefs and diners keen to make the most of BC's lush local bounty.

Explore British Columbia's foodie stars on a brand new BC Culinary Connoisseurs itinerary with North America Travel Service (www.northamericatravelservice.co.uk  / 0333 323 9099). The 13-night fly-drive itinerary travels from Vancouver to the Okanagan and returns via Whistler and includes direct international flights, 13 nights accommodation, car rental and seven culinary experiences: Granville Island Food Tour and 'Behind the Scenes' Brewery Tour in Vancouver; a 'Taste, Savour And Indulge' Winery Tour and Dinner Cruise in Kelowna; a Monte Creek Ranch Winery Tour in Kamloops; and a 'Finer Things Culinary Tour' and 'Salmon Bake by Jeep' tour in Whistler. Prices start from £3,425 per person, based on two adults sharing, travelling in May 2023. Add a 4-night Vancouver Island extension for more food adventures.

For more information on dining and culinary tours in British Columbia please see: hellobc.com

Notes to editors

For press enquiries and images please contact Vicky Brabin at Destination British Columbia's UK Press Office at KBC PR and Marketing on +44 (0) 1825 746682 Ext. 201 or email vicky.brabin@kbc-pr.com  

For more information on the first ever MICHELIN guide to Vancouver see the press release here: https://michelinmedia.com/c0/first-michelin-guide-vancouver-features-eight-stars/

* The 100-Mile Diet started in Vancouver, when two local journalists, Alisa Smith and James MacKinnon, aghast that the average North American meal travels 2,414 kilometres (1,500 miles) from farm to table, set a personal challenge. For a year they would eat or drink nothing raised further than 161 kilometres (100 miles) from their Vancouver apartment.