Some news from the Wildlight kitchen ✨
First, Chef Warren Chow. Three years of MICHELIN recognition, a Young Chef Award, and a kitchen culture that became something genuinely special. Warren brought a standard of care and creativity to this restaurant that shaped everything we are. We are deeply grateful for everything he gave to Wildlight and to the people in it. Wishing him well in everything ahead.
With Warren’s departure, we are proud to announce Tim Hui as Wildlight’s new Executive Chef.
Tim has been here since the beginning, and anyone who has spent time in this kitchen has seen what kind of leader he is. Patient, exacting, generous with his knowledge. As sous chef he became a mentor to the cooks around him long before the title ever changed.
His path to this kitchen took nineteen years. It started at fifteen as a dishwasher, worked through stations in some of Vancouver’s most demanding kitchens. Five years at the Shangri-La’s Market by Jean-Georges shaped his technical foundation. Time under Chef Spencer Watts at Bistro Pastis shaped something less tangible but equally important: a belief that the process of cooking should be as alive and curious as the food on the plate.
What he brings to the menu is a philosophy rooted in the food that raised him. Growing up partly in Nassau, Bahamas, where his father was a hotel chef, Sunday meant tables full of dishes from every corner of the world brought by expats from dozens of different countries. That early understanding of how food connects people sits at the centre of everything he cooks. Classical technique, deeply personal flavour memory.
Vancouver’s culinary scene is going to know his name. We already do.
#WildlightVancouver #ExecutiveChef #TimHui #YVRChef #VancouverDining
Ridolfi Mercatale Brunello di Montalcino 2017 Riserva.
Ridolfi is a young estate by Tuscan standards, founded in 2011 on the northeast slope of the Montalcino hill. The position matters. Higher altitude, clay soils threaded with marine fossils and weathered sandstone, an orientation that preserves acidity even in hot years. 2017 was a hot year. The wine doesn’t show it.
100% Sangiovese, hand-harvested. The Riserva only gets made in the best vintages from the best parcels, then spends nearly five years in large Slavonian oak barrels before any bottle ageing begins. That’s patience by any measure.
Smoke on the nose first, then licorice, brambly dark fruit, tart cherry. The acidity keeps it honest, lifting everything through a long finish. There’s leather, a little earthiness underneath. Weight without heaviness. A Brunello that earns its complexity slowly, over years, and rewards you for waiting.
Available by the bottle.
#WildlightVancouver #BrunelloDiMontalcino #ItalianWine #Ridolfi #YVRWine
As I step away from Wildlight in my role as Executive Chef, I find myself reflecting on what has been one of the most meaningful and rewarding chapters of my career.
Building a concept from the ground up and watching it grow into the restaurant it is today has been an incredible journey—one that would never have been possible without an extraordinary service and kitchen team behind it. Through the highs, the challenges, and the unforgettable services, thank you. Thank you for believing in the vision, for showing up every day with passion and dedication, and for giving so much of yourselves to this project.
To our guests, thank you for your continued support and trust throughout the years. It has been a privilege to cook for you and share in so many memorable moments.
And finally, thank you to the Pattison Group for believing in this one-of-a-kind project and supporting us along the way.
As Wildlight moves into its next chapter, I do so with complete confidence that it will continue to evolve, thrive, and become even greater.
With gratitude,
Chef Warren Chow
Billecart-Salmon Le Rosé. The house that started a category.
Same family behind the Réserve Brut, different approach. In 1970, Billecart-Salmon released this and essentially created luxury rosé champagne as a category. Before this, it barely existed as a premium offering.
The difference is in the method. Instead of blending only white wines, they add about 7% still red Pinot Noir from old vines in the Montagne de Reims, hand-sorted three times. That red wine brings colour, structure, and shifts the entire profile towards something more vinous. You taste the wine behind the champagne. Wild strawberry, raspberry, citrus zest. Pale salmon colour, fine persistent bubbles.
The blend is roughly 45% Chardonnay, 30% Pinot Noir, 25% Meunier with 40% reserve wines. They’ve dropped the dosage over the years to Extra Brut, making it drier and more refined. The fruit stays brighter, the finish cleaner. A must-try.
Available by the bottle.
#WildlightVancouver #BillecartSalmon #RoséChampagne #VancouverDining #YVREats
Hamachi crudo, reworked for spring.
Raw yellowtail from cold Pacific waters, sliced clean. Black vinegar emulsion coats the fish with deep, almost smoky acidity. Chili cucumber brings heat that builds slowly, refreshing before it burns. Koji mayo adds fermented umami, thick and savoury against the lean fish. Crispy ginger breaks sharp and warming between bites. Fresh shiso leaves finish it, aromatic and bright, cutting through everything that came before.
Japanese technique, West Coast fish. The flavours layer without crowding. Each bite shifts between rich and sharp, soft and crisp.
#WildlightVancouver #HamachiCrudo #SpringMenu #YVREats #VancouverDining
The carpaccio is back, lightly reworked for spring.
Brant Lake Wagyu sliced thin enough to melt on your tongue. Koji mayo coats each piece with fermented umami, almost sweet but savoury underneath. Tempura maitake leaves break crisp against the soft beef, earthy and delicate. Pickled red onion and shimeji mushrooms bring the acid to cut through the beautiful richness.
A guest favourite from the past, back with sharper focus.
#WildlightVancouver #Carpaccio #BrantLakeWagyu #YVREats #VancouverDining
Vegetable Medley Linguine. New for spring.
The pasta is brass-extruded semolina, which gives it a slightly rougher surface than most commercial pasta that just slides around in sauce. This kind grabs it, holds on.
This lends itself well to mantecatura, that Italian emulsifying technique where you toss everything together in the pan with starchy pasta water. Sauce and pasta become one thing instead of two separate components sitting next to each other.
Spring shines through with shishito peppers, roasted corn still sweet. Parmesan cream, fresh herbs. The mantecatura pulls it together.
If you love seafood, add prawns and bay scallops.
#WildlightVancouver #SpringMenu #PastaSpecial #SeasonalCooking #YVREats
Negroni Sour. Empress Elderflower Rose gin, Cocchi Americano Rosa, Esquimalt Rosso vermouth, Antica Formula, Italian bitter blend, Arbutus Amaro No.4, citric grapefruit juice, egg whites, orange bitters, hibiscus salt float.
Aman created this for Negroni week in 2024. It was supposed to be a limited feature but it was such a hit, so we had to keep it.
He took the Negroni, a drink that can be intimidating in its bitterness and strength, and made it approachable. The sour format softens the edges. The egg whites give it that silky foam finish. The grapefruit brings citrus brightness that balances the amaro and vermouth.
If you’ve never been a Negroni person, this might change that. Still bitter, still complex, but easier to meet halfway.
#WildlightVancouver #NegroniSour #CraftCocktails #VancouverBars #YVREats
The afternoon shift. When the light comes through and the room opens up.
We’re open straight through from lunch to dinner, but the hours between have a different energy. More space, easier pace. The afternoon light moves across the floor, shadows tracing patterns through the space, across tables, along walls, shifting as the day moves. The bar’s pouring, the kitchen’s cooking, happy hour runs from 3 to 5. You can settle into the dining room or take the covered heated patio, all-weather, your call.
This is when you have room to breathe. Pick your table, order what you want, stay as long as you like.
#WildlightVancouver #HappyHour #VancouverDining #AfternoonLight #YVREats
Crispy Humboldt Squid.
Deep-fried squid noodles, light and crispy. Dashi emulsion for umami, greens mix for freshness, squid ink vinaigrette bringing brine and depth. Pickled radish cutting through the richness.
Warren and Tim are playing with textures here. Crispy, creamy, fresh, pickled. Japanese flavours grounding a dish that could easily go heavy but stays balanced instead.
Order it. Share it. Or don’t.
#WildlightVancouver #CrispySquid #VancouverDining #SmallPlates #YVREats
And that’s the full lineup.
These are the final chefs joining us for Hot Chefs & Cool Jazz 2026, each bringing their own station, their own style, and their support for Culinary Team Canada.
We couldn’t have asked for a better group to stand behind us as we head toward the Culinary World Cup in Luxembourg.
See you there. Tickets in bio 👨🏻🍳👩🏻🍳
#HotChefsCoolJazz #CulinaryTeamCanada #ChefLineup #VancouverFood
