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Located in Kitsilano, Chivana's world inspired cuisine combines the best in Asian and European cooking techniques. Hand crafted martinis and cockails sipped in a warm art deco decor completes this ambient, dining experience.
Went to Chivana's last month for a birthday party. Prior to that I was trying to organize a work party event and received wonderful service from owner Tobias on the phone. Some things conflicted and we have to find another venue. I was glad I got to try Chivana's out at this b-day party though. Unfortunately, Tobias was not there that evening.
I have mixed feelings about this place - don't know where to start. Just a warning, if you plan to get drunk - be careful. It's on the second floor and the stairs are a little tricky, especially if you're tipsy.
I ordered some appies. Tried the spicy "pork & veggie" wonton, but couldn't eat it because of shellfish allergies. First thing I saw after biting into it was pink shrimp. Luckily, I spat it out in time. My other's carribean chicken was very nice, especially the coconut rice and the sauce. Very yummy. I just wished they were a little more careful - I wouldn't assume seafood in a pork and veggie wonton.
A weird thing was they don't serve you drinks. You have to go up to the bar to order them. Considering it was more a restaurant than a bar, I found that to be a little inconvenient. But on the other hand I understand how difficult it can be to settle tabs at the end of the night.
They had a shooter special 4 for $10 - Really good deal, except there was only one shot to choose from. The Jolly Rancher - guess what everyone ordered lots of that night?!!
I may return, but probably more for dinner than a party. I just have to be careful to ask what's in their food!
I am actually really surprised to see such good reviews.
I have tried a great deal of the menu since I have a friend who comes here every year for their birthday. Its empty and large so its a good place for a party.
the food is not BAD (inedible) but its so mediocre, come on!
Even their fried food tastes mediocre at best, crappy at worst.
There is absolultey no reason to go here for a meal, but for drinks, go for it!
Service: not bad, sometimes bitter but whatever.
Once, the manager came looking for me when my bill had been placed near my seat and I didn't see it since I was talking to someone. Having worked in bars and restaurants (fine and casual) all through my adolescence, I was stunned by this classless and tactless behavior. You do not chase people down and say 'pay now' because it makes you seem like trash.
Really, don't go here, there is nothing authentic or valuable about the menu at all.
A group of us went to Chivana on a Friday night, drawn there by the promise of a live DJ and a funky atmosphere. When I arrived, I was dissappointed to find neither. In fact the place was virtually empty, which is kind of scary at 7:30 on a Friday night.
We were seated in a nice booth in the corner and brought our menus. Pretty soon after being seated I started to feel that there was something a little off about the service, the manager behind the bar looked like she would rather be somewhere else and our server brought our friend a Manhattan made with Johnnie Black (after looking it up in a book).
On to the food....I had a hell of a time trying to decide what to order. The menu seemed all over the place. I finally settled on a veggie stirfry, although our server could not tell me what kind of sauce would be used.
When the food arrived I was pleasently surprised, it was really good! The veggies were cooked perfectly and the garlic black bean sauce was great (not too overpowering).
All in all, it felt like this place had just opened and there were a few kinks to be worked out. I think it has great potential, as the food was solid.
I think with a little effort this place could be a great local night spot for Kits.
We tried this upbeat Kitsilano hideaway last Friday and were kind of disappointed. The room was empty for 730 dinner reservation, the service was weak to say the least, and we couldn’t help to feel that something was just missing.
The food quality was great! Fresh, well presented, and very tasty. Unfortunately when the service flat out sucks, the food tends to take a backseat. I think perhaps they are just a young restaurant, still needing to find their niche. If they ever do I may give them a second chance.
Having read the previous reviews on this restaurant, I more than expected to see an empty restaurant... which we did. No biggie though... the food reviews are what kept me from walking out the door.
Service was fantastic (as it should be in an empty restaurant). The waitress was cheerful & upbeat.
The food was fantastic as well! My dinner partner & I ordered the Steamed Seafood Basket for 2, which included crab legs, prawns, scallops, mussels, veggies & rice wrapped in a mojito leaf). It was delicious!
We both would definitely return!
This should have been for August 28th. I came here for drinks after dinner. There was a fundraiser so a $3 cover charge was needed. I've been here a couple of times. Sometimes there isn't a cover charge. Most of the time they do have events going on - like huge birthday parties. They gave me this weird bracelet (the long, white plastic ones that act as handcuffs). This wasn't very smart. I ended up scratching my own face with it. Service was great. I didn't really have to wait too long for the bartender. Drink prices were decent - I think $6 for a regular shot. Music was pretty good. There is also a heated patio. No smoking allowed though. I would definitely come back. One more thing, I came here a year ago to try their sangria and I remember it being horrific, so don't order it.
Overall this was a nice restaurant. The menu is lacking a bit of diection as we were not entirely sure what the theme was. The food was good and portion size was good. The really strange thing was that it was 7:30 on a Thursday night and we were the only table in the restaurant which was a bit uncomfortable. I would go back just for the sangria.
Went here for a large get together on the weekend, we had reservations for about 30 people, which they said they could handle. First problem we noticed when we walked in, they don't have square tables so their solution was to put together 8 round tables in two row. If you've ever tried to eat at a bunch of round tables lined up you know how much of a pain this can be.
The decor is interesting, I think the best way to describe it is it feels like you're in somebody's house. I don't mean this in a bad way because it feel like you can really settle in there and feel comfortable, but it doesn't really feel like a place of business. Has a bar on one side, the patio on the other, then couches and booths on either end and tables on the floor.
Food was decent, which is the description for 2 stars hence the rating. Nothing spectacular, I ordered 3 tapas for $24. Beef skewers, chicken skewers, and chicken wings. Mashed potatoes that came with the skewers were cold and lumper but the beef was tender. Chicken skewers weren't very flavourful but the dipping sauce was. And the wings were just very vinegary. My favourite part of their menu was they had Granville Island Winter Ale on tap still, one of my favourites.
Biggest complaint? They crank up the music pretty loud at 10pm, which would be fine but they have terrible terrible speakers. The music just becomes distorted noise and it's not even enjoyable.
All in all I wouldn't go out of my way to come here, but if a group of friends wanted to get together and they said let's meet at Chivanas I wouldn't object. There are better places to eat, and better places to drink, so I can't see myself coming here on my own.
I've been here a few times in the past, and used to come here with my husband for the comedy nights. The food has always been terrible, almost everything is greasy and deep fried! not to mention really overpriced and poor quality. There used to be a couple of really friendly girls that worked there over christmas and new years, but they're long gone. On weekends the place is always too loud, with some bad DJ.
whenever someone tries to make fusion food, i'd raise an eyebrow. this is because i've had bad expereiences in the past from chefs creatively mixing dishes together and gettin a pile of bad tastin crap. but this was not that, s/he was actually did it by takin hints from both worlds rather than slamming two flavours together.
the red wine in the Sangria could be a bit stronger - didn't hv a chance to try other drinks
I was there when the restaurant was actually full because it was part of the Jazz fest and I guess people were there to see the live act. Well, I had a horrible experience there that night. Let me summarize:
1. The kitchen was extremely slow. (Some other diner asked the waitress why his meal was taking so long..her response? "Well others are waiting just as long.." Yeah, nice response.
2. When the food came, it was really bland, boring and awful. We had a larger party so we were able to order almost everything on the 6 menu item. Ok so the halibut, the salmon, the chicken all came with the EXACT same sides (1/2 tomato, 1 scoop of so-called risotto, 2 corn slices and 2 pieces of some veggie) and the protein all looked as if they were just cooked and had some sauce slapped on it. The risotto it came with didn't even look like risotto..it was like dry mushy rice that was crusty on top..disgusting. My friend commented that it tasted like socks.
3. There was a misunderstanding between our party and the restaurant and when we brought it up with the owner, he was rude, condescending and arrogant.
Needless to say, we will never go back. The funny thing is that some of our friends rented out the restuarant for a large party before. It was bad then but we thought we would give it one more chance. Well, we finally learned our lesson and for sure we will be telling every single person we know to never ever step foot in there again.
The food I tryed was appetizers but I was hungry so they tasted good. It's hard to get the servers attention when you need something but that was on a busy night. Drinks are expensive but it's a classier place so....
What I liked best was the way the place looked, it has a nice little strip of patio outside, and inside they have candles, nice wood tables, and a few little booths at the end of the bar. I would go again just because it's a nice place to relax and have a drink listen to some music. (different on each night). Also its a little hideaway, you can't even see it from the street unless you look for it.
I usually eat here a few times every year and love it. I stumbled across the reviews on dinehere.ca and couldn't believe it. The food is excellent and i like the sharing food options. The prices are reasonable for the west side. (I've been to many restaurants in the neighbourhood where a $20 meal leaves me hungry which is not the case here!) I haven't ordered anything i didn't like. I have also recommended it to various people all who have had nothing back good things to say and have continued to go there again and again after their first visit.
This place is a little hidden secret... its quiet during the week but gets busy on weekends (normal...)
Go and try it and give it a chance and im sure you will enjoy it!!
The other reviews here don't do Chivana justice. This is my first review and I usually haven't done them in the past but I think something needs to be said here.
My fiance and myself have been coming on regularly for just under a year and absolutley love everything about it.
I moved here from Toronto and have to say there aren't too many places in town that really hit that dinner lounge feel like Chivana does. The room is dark with candle lit tables and has a romantic cozy atmosphere to it.
First lets start with the food. Sometimes we've come in for just some appies late at night, or dropped by for dessert and drinks and just had a small birthday dinner with a few friends.
The menu has changed a few times over the past year, seasonally according to the server, but I still seem to find a favourite dish everytime I go.
The food is always fresh, great plate presentation and tastes amazing.
We started off with a 3 bowl appetizer combo of mini fish and chips, mushroom and goat cheese pate and these incredible crab rice paper rolls. You get quite a big selection to choose from to make your combos.
For our main course, which I had last time and is my favorite dish, I had the Beef Tenderloin while my fiance had the Duck Breast. For the quality and what you get on your plate the prices here are very reasonable.
We always go all out for dessert when we go to Chivana and order the dessert platter which is 4 of the desserts from the menu and include my favorite a parfait and home made ice cream.
If I have one small complaint it's that the wine list isn't quite big enough. If your into martini's you won't have a problem finding one you like, the list is huge.
The service has always been friendly and as good as it can be based on what night you might go. One time we went and the place was packed so the waitress could only do so much. We had to wait a little longer than normal for our first course so the owner sent over a round of shots to our table of 4. Nice touch.
On other weeknights we've gone and it's been pretty quiet but the food is just as good and the service even better because they get to concentrate just on a few tables.
Later on in the night on Fridays and Saturdays, which is when we usually try to go, a DJ starts playing and the room changes into a pretty happening little bar.
All in all it's one of our favorite places in town.
| 1. | Maria's Taverna (27 m) |  |
| 2. | COBS Bread (34 m) | |
| 3. | Terra Breads (58 m) |  |
| 4. | McDonald's (73 m) | |
| 5. | Browns Socialhouse (78 m) | |
| 6. | Mandala Iki Asian Bistro (90 m) | |
| 7. | Take 5 Cafe (106 m) | |
| 8. | Whole Foods Market (107 m) | |
| 9. | Hi-Nippon Japanese Restaurant (113 m) | |
| 10. | Starbucks (119 m) |
