Restaurant in Vancouver, Canada
Classic French, accessible price, easy to book.
Le Crocodile is the most accessible entry point into serious French dining in Vancouver: $$ pricing, an easy booking, and a kitchen that has regained momentum under Rob Feenie's influence. The 265-bottle wine list, ranked by Opinionated About Dining in 2024, makes it a practical first choice for a special occasion dinner without the cost of the city's $$$$ options.
A two-course dinner at Le Crocodile runs in the $40–$65 range per person before wine, which puts it at the more accessible end of Vancouver's fine-dining spectrum. For that price, you get a renovated room with blond woods and welcoming banquettes, a French kitchen that has been operating in this city for over four decades, and one of the more carefully assembled wine lists in the country — 265 selections, 4,500 bottles in inventory, with particular depth in France. The booking is easy. If you want a serious French meal in Vancouver without the commitment of a $$$$ tasting menu, Le Crocodile is the most logical place to start.
The recent evolution here is the story. After 41 years under founding chef Michel Jacob, Le Crocodile passed to chef-owner Aidan O'Neal, who brought in Rob Feenie — the mind behind the late Lumière, widely considered one of the strongest fine-dining restaurants Vancouver has produced , to reshape the kitchen. A renovation followed: more natural light, a lounge area, a refreshed feel without a wholesale reinvention of the room. The menu change has been similarly deliberate. Classic dishes like foie gras terrine, Dover sole, veal escalopes with morel sauce, and Alsatian apple tart remain on the menu, preserved out of respect for a 41-year track record and a loyal regular clientele. What has shifted, incrementally, is the technique and sourcing behind them: lighter sauces, stronger produce, and Feenie's characteristic habit of threading Asian influences into classically French structures. Sake and maple-marinated sablefish from the Lumière years has returned with a koji butter sauce. The result is a kitchen that feels like it is finding its stride , familiar enough for longtime regulars, interesting enough for first-timers who want to understand why this address has mattered.
For special occasions, the room now works better than it has in years. The post-renovation atmosphere lands somewhere between formal and relaxed , the kind of space where a business dinner and a birthday celebration can coexist without either feeling out of place. Service is described as sharp, and with a general manager doubling as wine director (Gabriella Borg Costanzi), the floor has genuine depth. The wine list's France-heavy selection and $$ pricing means you can drink well without a painful bill , corkage is $50 if you bring your own.
Le Crocodile's menus show seasonal thinking most visibly in the dishes that sit outside the protected classics. The lamb saddle printanière , with red pepper, eggplant, and black garlic , points to warmer months. Dishes featuring seasonal mushrooms or ingredient-driven accompaniments will shift with what is available. If you are visiting specifically for the Feenie-era additions rather than the legacy dishes, spring and autumn tend to be the most interesting windows for this style of French-influenced cooking, when the produce is at its most expressive and the kitchen has the most to work with. The classics, naturally, are available year-round.
Hours run Tuesday through Saturday from 5 pm, with Friday and Saturday service extending to 11 pm. The restaurant is closed Sunday and Monday. If your calendar is flexible, a Friday or Saturday booking gives you the most relaxed pace and slightly later last-seating options.
Opinionated About Dining ranked Le Crocodile #427 among North American restaurants in 2024, up from a recommended listing in 2023, and #545 in the 2025 rankings. The 2024 placement, in particular, reflects the restaurant's recovery of form under new leadership. Google reviews sit at 4.6 from over 1,700 ratings, which for a restaurant of this price tier and tenure signals consistent execution rather than occasional brilliance.
Booking difficulty is rated Easy. Given the quality-to-price positioning and the post-renovation attention the restaurant has received, that accessibility is one of its clearest practical advantages over comparable Vancouver venues. Reserve in advance for weekend evenings, but mid-week tables are generally available with reasonable notice.
For a broader picture of where Le Crocodile sits among Vancouver's dining options, see our full Vancouver restaurants guide. If you are planning a full trip, our Vancouver hotels guide, bars guide, wineries guide, and experiences guide cover the rest of the city.
Among Canadian French restaurants, the closest points of comparison sit at higher price points: Alo in Toronto and Jérôme Ferrer's Europea in Montreal are the natural benchmarks. Internationally, Hotel de Ville Crissier in Crissier and L'Effervescence in Tokyo represent the upper tier of French-rooted fine dining for context. Closer to home, Tanière³ in Quebec City, Narval in Rimouski, and Restaurant Pearl Morissette in Lincoln each take different approaches to serious Canadian dining. Le Crocodile's combination of legacy and ongoing reinvention makes it a distinct proposition in this field , a kitchen in transition, moving deliberately, and at a price that removes most of the risk from trying it.
| Venue | Cuisine | Awards | Booking Difficulty | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Le Crocodile | French | Opinionated About Dining Top Restaurants in North America Ranked #545 (2025); WINE: Wine Strengths: France Pricing: $$ i Wine pricing: Based on the list\'s general markup and high and low price points:$ has many bottles < $50;$$ has a range of pricing;$$$ has many $100+ bottles Corkage Fee: $50 Selections: 265 Inventory: 4,500 CUISINE: Cuisine Types: French, European Pricing: $$ i Cuisine pricing: The cost of a typical two-course meal, not including tip or beverages.$ is < $40;$$ is $40–$65;$$$ is $66+. Meals: Lunch and Dinner STAFF: People Wine Director: Gabriella Borg Costanzi Sommelier: Alex Cook, Miles Grover, Janelle Jirau Chef: Aidan ONeal General Manager: Gabriella Borg Costanzi Owner: Aidan ONeal, Peter Lawrence; After the 16 years in the culinary wilderness that followed the loss of his legendary fine-dining establishment, Lumière, Rob Feenie is back. Rather than start something new, though, last summer he took over local institution Le Crocodile from his one-time mentor, founding chef Michel Jacob. A substantial renovation ensued; the refreshed dining room features more natural light, blond woods, welcoming banquettes and a lounge area. The initial makeover of the menu was more tentative, out of respect for Le Crocodile’s very successful 41-year run, and a fear of offending the regulars who helped that happen. The foie gras terrine, diminutive Dover sole, veal escalopes with morel sauce and Alsatian apple tart were all deemed (and, for now, remain) sacrosanct. Increasingly, though, there are signs of what made Feenie’s cooking so brilliant in his Lumière days. Sauces have been getting lighter, products better, and Asian influences more prevalent (as with the bluefin with white miso, yuzu, chili and cucumber ice). Some Lumière standards (like sake and maple-marinated sablefish) are back with new accompaniments (koji butter sauce, seasonal mushrooms). Other dishes — like a seafood medley (lobster, scallop, shrimp) with yuzu butter, or the lamb saddle printanière with red pepper, eggplant and black garlic — show that despite the layoff, Feenie’s instinct for bright, harmonious simplicity is very much intact. Service is sharp and the wine list extensive. HE’S BACK and Le Crocodile is back —something’s feeling RIGHT in this world. Lanita Layton; Opinionated About Dining Top Restaurants in North America Ranked #427 (2024); Opinionated About Dining Top Restaurants in North America Recommended (2023) | Easy | — |
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A quick look at how Le Crocodile measures up.
Dress one step above casual. Le Crocodile operates at the $40–$65 per person range for a two-course dinner and has received a post-renovation refresh with blond woods and welcoming banquettes — the room signals polished comfort rather than formality. A collared shirt or neat blouse fits the tone. Jeans are fine if they're clean and dark.
The restaurant has just come through a significant transition: after 41 years under founding chef Michel Jacob, it is now run by chef-owner Aidan O'Neal, with Rob Feenie's culinary influence in the mix. Some long-standing classics — foie gras terrine, Dover sole, veal escalopes with morel sauce, Alsatian apple tart — remain on the menu, so first-timers get both the heritage and the newer direction. Booking is rated Easy, so you don't need to plan weeks ahead, but the post-renovation attention means that's worth confirming closer to your visit.
The venue data doesn't include a documented dietary policy, so check the venue's official channels at 909 Burrard St #100 before booking. The current menu spans French and European cuisine with dishes built around fish, meat, and classical sauces, which means vegetarian and vegan guests may have limited options — worth clarifying in advance rather than assuming flexibility.
Go for dinner. Le Crocodile opens Tuesday through Saturday evenings only, with Friday and Saturday running until 11 pm, so dinner is effectively the primary format. The restaurant is closed Monday and Sunday, and there is no lunch service listed in the current hours. Friday or Saturday night gives you the most time at the table.
Yes, at the right price point. A two-course dinner lands in the $40–$65 range per person before wine, which is more accessible than most Vancouver fine-dining rooms. Opinionated About Dining ranked it #427 in North America in 2024, giving you a credible credential to anchor the occasion. The renovated dining room — banquettes, natural light, a lounge area — suits celebratory dinners without requiring the commitment of a full tasting-menu format. For a larger group wanting a private room, confirm availability directly with the restaurant.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
