Cottage Bistro

For owner Eugene Dong, Cottage Bistro began as "a challenge."

“At first especially,” he notes with a smile. “Because my first language isn't English. I didn't have any Western culture when I came to Canada. I remember when we started: I didn't know how things worked. I'd mostly worked in the kitchen. And I had to learn a lot to be serving in the front, in another language. I was a chef. I'd never been the bartender, or the floor manager. There was so much I didn't know.”

Nonetheless, under his ownership, the restaurant has been a Cedar Cottage staple for nearly 20 years, first as a simple blues bar, and then evolving into a hub for Asian Fusion cuisine and live events of all kinds; everything from music to stand-up comedy to poetry and story readings. Today, Cottage Bistro has a live event virtually every night, with jazz every Monday, and its famous Roots and Blues Jam (which has been running for 16 years) every Saturday afternoon.

“At first, almost every night was blues,” Eugene recalls. “Then, later on, we added other types of music: rock n' roll, country, folk, original stuff, jazz. Now, we've got standup comedy, poetry, readings, storytellers... and it's all been very successful. I feel very lucky to be in Vancouver. People have supported our situation and helped to make it better.”