Giardino Restaurant

The story

Crafted with passion, served with love

A Tuscan Table in the Heart of Vancouver

Giardino is restaurateur Umberto Menghi's return to the heart of Vancouver — a Tuscan-inspired fine dining room on Hornby Street, steps from the site of his beloved original Il Giardino. Recognized by Gambero Rosso in 2025, it carries the weight of a long Italian-dining tradition in the city while feeling entirely its own.

The room makes an immediate impression. Vaulted ceilings, wooden beams, Tuscan tiles, and hand-painted artwork are designed to evoke the granaries of old Tuscany — spaces where food was sacred and carefully kept. The symbolism is deliberate: every ingredient matters here. A Florentine-styled courtyard and sidewalk patio front the restaurant, and a seasonal outdoor garden patio brings fresh flowers and lush greenery to the experience when the Vancouver weather allows.

The Kitchen's Range

The menu draws confidently from the Tuscan and broader Italian canon, with West Coast ingredients woven in throughout. Starters span Carpaccio of Beef Tenderloin with rucola and Parmesan shavings, Fried Breaded Mozzarella di Bufala with tomato arrabiata, and Prosciutto di Parma paired with Parmigiano Reggiano and olives — alongside fresh West Coast oysters and Pacific Ahi Tuna with avocado.

Pasta and gnocchi anchor the middle of the menu in the way they would in any serious Italian kitchen: Spaghettini Carbonara tossed with guanciale and fresh Pecorino, Linguine alle Vongole in white wine garlic broth, Baked Cannelloni alla Fiorentina filled with ground veal and spinach, and a classic Lasagna al Forno with beef ragù and béchamel. For those avoiding gluten, both gluten-free pasta and gnocchi options appear.

Main courses lean into the grill and the oven with equal confidence. Wild BC Salmon, Oven Roasted Pacific Sablefish with horseradish crust, Seared Jumbo Alaskan Scallops, and Grilled Rare Hawaiian Ahi Tuna sit alongside a Hand-Cut Grilled Provimi Veal Chop, Roasted Spring Rack of Lamb with herb crust and bean cassoulet, Seared Venison Loin with Chianti reduction, and the showpiece Grilled 38 Oz Porterhouse Fiorentina for two — sliced off the bone and finished with arugula and Parmesan shavings, a nod to the Florentine tradition that gives the restaurant much of its identity.

Recognition and Occasion

Gambero Rosso's 2025 recognition places Giardino among a small group of Italian restaurants outside Italy that the guide considers worth seeking out — meaningful validation for a room that takes its Tuscan cooking seriously. Whether the occasion calls for the garden patio on a warm evening or the warmth of the beamed interior, Giardino offers the kind of dinner that earns a second visit.