Pastries and baos hold a vital place in Chinese family life. With their round shape and fillings, they traditionally symbolize luck and prosperity. Chinatown is full of fantastic bakeries and cake shops for you to sample both traditional and cutting edge pastries. Here are a few of our favourites.

MELLO
223 E PENDER STREET 604-423-3556 

Beautifully handcrafted donuts—filled with luscious curds or dark chocolate— have a justifiably fervent social media following. But it’s not just about good looks, these donuts have real substance. The strawberry and cream donut is pure joy, bright with fruit and lush with soft whipped cream, they are the handheld strawberry shortcake of your dreams.

BA LE SANDWICH
633 MAIN STREET 604-662-8108

Ba Le Sandwich has been serving gorgeous banh mi sandwiches for over 30 years in Vancouver. The secret to their success is their incredible house made bread— crackling crusted with a tender fluffy interior that rivals the best French baguettes (‘Ba Le’ refers to Paris). The signature lemongrass pork banh mi is superb and their vegetarian options sing with spice and sharp pickled vegetables.

SUN FRESH BAKERY
245 KEEFER STREET 604-688-3868 

Sun Fresh buzzes with activity throughout the day with customers picking up traditional Chinese steamed breads and buns or perhaps a bowl of congee to go for lunch. Their mochi pancakes filled with red bean, custard, or fresh squash, have wonderful chew and pull—and heat up to a puffy crispness in a toaster oven at home.

KAM WAI DIM SUM
249 E PENDER STREET 604-683-2333 

Serving the growing Chinese community for almost 30 years, Kam Wai is now one of the largest wholesalers and distributors of dim sum in the province, much of it made at their Chinatown storefront. Come by and pick up a pack of frozen shumai and nab one of their tender fresh steamed char siu bao—full of carefully sliced BBQ pork and dressed in a perfectly balanced sauce.

SABA FOODS YEMENI RESTAURANT
509 MAIN STREET 604-358-0566 

Chinatown has always welcomed new immigrants of all types, looking for a place to showcase their foods and find a sense of home. Saba not only serves a wide range of Middle Eastern salads, kababs, and grilled meats but their desserts and pastries are unlike anything most people have seen. The Cream Kanufa is a superb blend of shredded pastry and warm gently set cream, reminiscent of a fleeting custard. The baklava selections feature premium crisp nuts and buttery pastry that steers away from over-sweetness