Paulies Kitchen

The house wine we ordered did not come before the waitress came back to take our food order. I asked what happened and she said they only had one bartender. Hmm is he just not very good at pouring wine? Finally the stressed out manager brought our drinks. The special chicken parmagain was dry and tuff ‚(came faster than drink order). Our table took a long time to be cleared for us to be seated initially. It was just left dirty. No hostess to help. This was about 8pm on a thursday night. Ps why does the bill say distellery bar and kitchen, no longer Paulies Kitchen?

Made a reservation for 4 in the lounge. Showed up on time, first hostess says to us «someone from your party called and changed the reservation from 4 to 6 so we can only seat you on the patio» I replied, no one from my party has ever been here before and I know for a fact that none of them called here to change it I thought it was quite the story. Then they offered to sit us outside (even sat one of my friends outside had to text her to let her know we were at the bar) then we will move you inside when a table becomes available. I said no we would like to be in the lounge like we asked when we called and made the reso so they sat us at the bar. The manager came and told us they don’t take reso’s after 7 pm and who ever took our reso should not have. Then we walk into the lounge area and there are large signs on the tables saying «reserved for 7 pm» when I mention this to the manager he tells me they are a table of 20 and they put down a 1,000 deposit. Hmmmm he did offer to buy my first drink which was nice and told me he «runs a tight ship» as the manager. Then a server comes by with food and asks us if we ordered it! Hahaha so we get our table he did offer us one infront of the fire place but it did not have proper seating for eating so we declined and waited for the next table. So we finally get our table I decide to order a shooter for the table in lieu of a late birthday cheer for one of my friends at the table. So I order 4 of one listed on the menu it says $ 5 each but then we were told sorry but those are $ 7 each it was a misprint… Hmmmm strange so I said why would it say $ 5 so she talked to her manager and they offered us 4 for the price of three how nice! The server was doing the best she could, had the chicken parmesan kinda bla make it better at home. As a local I will go there for a drink but will not recommend it to anyone. Manager was pretty cocky as well.

First entering the restaurant, I inquired how long the wait would be for 10 people, the hostess told me approximately 35 minutes. Ok great, we’ll try out this place. They told me there was an opening on the patio. 2 small tables (and I mean SMALL) to cram 10 people there. No thanks, it wasn’t 10 tiny people but everyone was tall.
45 minutes later no avail. I asked them again how long the wait would be around or to check if they had forgotten about us. They told me they can’t give me an estimate anymore. What? How long do you expect me to wait? I could have gone somewhere else if you had told me it would be an hour wait. They said that I refused to sit at the patio and they had to wait on seating in the bar area for my party. No. I did not refuse the patio. I refused sitting at the 2 small tables and I am sure I was clear on that.
Another man wearing a suit (perhaps manager) came over and I expressed my concern to him. His facial expression and body language were cold and he acted as if he could care less. He told me that the seating in the bar area was self seating so they could not give me an estimate for time. What? Why are there reservations then, tell me please.
Finally, waiting for a total of an hour +, they had a table for us at the patio. The patio was cute, but the heaters were a constant on an off so it was either really hot or too chilly. They did provide blankets but it wasn’t a comfortable feeling overall.
I had the daily special of the veal meatball pasta, and a side of buffalo mozzarella. The pasta was alright, nothing really special about it. I had asked the waitress about the details of the cheese and she told me it was imported from Italy (which is the kind I was looking for). Trying the mozzarella, the texture was not that great, it was a lot harder than I enjoyed. The taste was not bad though. Waitress service was decent.
Overall experience? I would definitely not go again.
Mediocre food, frustrating night.

When you book a table for 20, you expect that when you arrive not 14. But that’s just what we got. «Sorry, the table that was supposed to clear didn’t», really? That was you plan? You were counting on another group to fulfill ours? What kind of backwards planning is that.
So what we got was a night of constant shuffling, worrying, being squished closer and closer as they tried to squeeze more stools at our table to «make it work».
Let’s talks service. 30 mins amongst this clustermuck was what it took for the server to ask me if I want a drink, and only after being prompted by someone else. The whole night it was a mess. One server for 20 ppl, good call.
Food? Who cared at this point. The Kitchen Leftovers salad was excellent, and the Meetball Flatbread I ordered came with little to no cheese. I sent it back, it came with some dried parmesan sprinkled on top. Are you kidding me?! Just look at the picture. They forgot someone else’s order. Drinks were just ok, I ordered a double vodka soda and had to try really hard to see if I could taste the vodka. I could go on, but why bother.
This place has so much potential of it weren’t for management and service incompetence at an epic level. Take a pass if you have a large group.

We heard the menu had changed so we stopped by for brunch this morning. Our expectations were not very high given some of the reviews. We were greeted by a very friendly hostess and seated right away. Our server was very friendly and attentive during our visit and was very patient with questions (even when the table next to us asked if the prices were US or Canadian dollars).
She suggested we order the meatball hash which was a great choice. Very different from your typical brunch item but a refreshing change. The meals were served promptly and were indeed very tasty. To top it off brunch was only $ 10. Good choice for something different in yaletown.

Paulies Kitchen is a genuine italian americano new york style feel right in the heart of yaletown. This is a brand new restaurant in the good old yaletown district that has a unique style menu with good sized portions for your buck. Unlike many of the other italian places in yaletown they took the snobby and posh out of a 5 star restaurant and gave it a homey kind of comfort with the look of a classy upscale joint. The down right gorgeous chandelier in the centre of the Distillery side really brings the place together, while the huge centre table on Paulies side makes you think family style (as very popular trend that is now making its way into Vancouver like Salt). The sitting in front of the kitchen I find is a very interesting concept and while maybe I was a little weary at first I was completely taken back when I was met with friendly smiles from the kitchen staff, whom all seem to have a love of food.
Like every new restaurant there is obviously always a few kinks to work out but the natural calm and talent of the front of house put you at ease. Once you try the food and drink menu you quickly forget that its a new place. I sincerely recommend either the 3lbs whole forno brick chicken (although beware of the size I got a half and wasn’t able to finish). Its juicy, full of flavour and butchered in their very own kitchen a rare thing to find these days as most kitchen staff does not usually butcher their own meat. If your not ready to take on something so big I would also recommend on their beef and veal meatballs with the fanastic white beans, both not only full of flavour but has good texture and beautiful balance. Its nice to see the care and time they take in their menu and cocktail list. If your not so hungry believe me you wouldn’t want to miss out on their cocktail menu. Designed with making the booze right from the Distillery (which unfortunately is not in fully function order yet but I was told we would have fresh Gin and Vodka by August hopefully) their cocktails are made fresh to order and they heavens NOT from the sugar bar gun. I tried 4 or their house cocktails and was extremely impressed when I found my bartenders actually making my drinks. If I would to recommend something it would either be the Screaming Viking or Fabulous Baker. Let Stirling, Alfred, DJ, Nico make you a drink and I promise you wont be disappointed.
I have a feeling this new swanky place will become an easy favourite especially once they have the Distillery fully up and running. Happy Eats and Treats to be had at Paulies Kitchen and Distillery.

We wandered into Paulie’s after a awesome second day in Vancouver. Matt was our server and his recommendations were spot on. Good drinks suggestions. The smashes were great. Give them a try. The pastas were amongst the best in my 40+ years. Total bill for 2 meals plus 2 drinks each = $ 75. So great.

Had the pleasure of stopping by Paulies this morning for their recent brunch offering. Upon entry, the New York style décor circa 1930’s with the extra long bar, brick walls, chandeliers and matching music. The kitchen is an open concept which allows a full view of their chefs in action.
The hostess was polite and acknowledged our arrival with a friendly smile and warm welcome. After seating us, the server was prompt with a drink order (coffee to start). The menu it’s a nice selection of breakfast standards with an Italian influence. (Meatball Benedict, salami omelette) Also, may I note, that all entrees are $ 10. If it’s a cocktail your craving, there is no shortage here as it is attached to the Distillery. All the standards are present with some house specials. It goes on with barrel aged and in house bottled selections as well. As mentioned they make their own spirits.
I ordered the distillery breakfast which is a classic bacon and eggs. The thick cut bacon was one of the best I’ve tasted. I had to ask the chef where he sourced it from. He informed me he personally visited farms locally and choose one in Abbotsford. He then insisted I try the back bacon and sent a side to the table. The smoke and flavour was excellent. He then went on to tell me the eggs are free range (which was pretty obvious from the flavour of the eggs).
Just to summarize, impressive decore, great service, excellent ingredients and expert execution. No frills, just a solid breakfast and $ 10.
Get here before the word gets out or you’ll have to wait.

Food is okay at best but ordered a glass of the house red. It came to $ 19. Server did not give me a heads up or anything, just decided to give me a paulies size Pinot noir at a ridiculous price.
Overall not the greatest experience. Previous instances have been rough with service always being a weak point.

Risotto mozzarella fritters — pretty tasty! You get 5 decently sized fried risotto balls resting on a bowl of tomato sauce, peas inside and topped with aioli.
I like the set-​up here, there’s a big communal dining table, outdoor patio seating, booths, bar seating. Thought the food was reasonably priced as well for Yaletown.
Had the arugula, pear, goat cheese flatbread and it was pretty good. A bowl of pork cheek as well with thoughtful skewers for the 4 of us to share.

Where to start on Paulies…
I decided to trek in here even after all the less than stellar reviews, and maybe I should start giving my fellow Unilocalers their dues by listening to their opinions a bit more closely.
Enter Paulies — Friday night at about 6pm and the weather was fairly nice so the patio was open. Was said patio full? Not by a long shot. First observation upon walking in to the dimly lit restaurant was that it was waaayyyy over staffed! There were WAY too many servers, hosts and bussers milling around seemingly without much to do. It looked really unprofessional, not a good first impression. As there was just the two of us (and plenty of seats outside) we asked the hostess to seat us on the patio. She informed us, in a rather annoyed/​rude tone, that the patio was full… Interesting. LOTS of open seats and LOTS of idle servers = full patio? Hmmm… Having worked in the industry, I can understand when there is only one server running a section and thus you aren’t able to seat it but this didn’t seem the case at all here.
We reluctantly accepted a booth a long the side wall, which was teeny. I did however enjoy the little black and white historical photos of Vancouver on the walls. Our server took a few minutes coming over, but apologized profusely and let us know it was only her second week on the job so she was still learning. She was an absolute pleasure, I wish I could remember her name! Really, she and the dessert at the end of the meal (stay tuned for that bit) are the only reasons I didn’t give Paulies one star. Our server was courteous, prompt and not overly attentive which I really like.
I, unlike many others, was un-​phased by the lack of beer and wine. It is a distillery folks! Not a regular full serve bar. Nothing to be griped about there. We ordered the one beer they had on tap and picked a relatively ok bottle of red for our meal.
We ordered the croustinis that come with different types of spread on them. I had specifically asked if they were heated prior to serving as I was wondering if they were made to order or just mass prepped and stuck in the fridge. The server told me they get heated before they are brought out, sadly this wasn’t the case. The bread was EXTREMELY tough, like way beyond what a croustini should be. It was so stale it cut the roof of my mouth! Not impressed. Our pasta mains were bland and the pasta was way under cooked — both things really surprised me as there was a HUGE group of servers and kitchen staff casually chatting about sex/​other inappropriate things around the open plan kitchen. If there is that many people on staff and it is not screaming busy, I was hoping for WAY better quality. They are supposed to be an italian pasta place right?
We decided to order a few cannolis to go and be on our way. The server highly suggested we try the olive oil gelatto… I was suspicious but decided to give it a go anyways. Realistically, it is vanilla icecream topped with high grade extra virgin olive oil and sprinkled with course ground salt. Taste wise, it was PHENOMENAL. I have tried to recreate at home but have been unsuccessful, so maybe it wasn’t as simple as I had originally thought.
Coles notes: atmosphere and food sucked — big time. over priced and highly disappointing. Service was great, but I do not think I would return here. I’d much rather head down a few doors to the Yaletown Brew Pub.

Part of the Yaletown Brewery, and their marketing shows, in a good way of course.
Comes in 2 sections, the lounge is my favourite b/​c of its comfortable booth seating, european styling décor, and good theme music in the background on a Sunday.
plenty of flat screens all around, so a great place to watch a game next time.
Food-​wise, a pretty terrific value at $ 10 pastas for lunch! normally $ 15 – 18 for dinner.
Ordered the penne chicken in a tomato sauce, nice taste. Not as good as Yaletown L’antipasto or Incendio but it’s up there.
Extra star for its unique washroom format, a communal sink area, with individual booths labelled for men/​women.
Again, classic fixtures, flooring throughout, it’s worth the action to come for eye candy I presume for the weekend evenings.

What can I say that hasn’t been said?
Service was crazy slow, but, friendly… Clearly understaffed. My Spaghetti was undercooked… Seriously, how do you undercook Spaghetti at an italian restaurant?

A great spot for weekend bites and drinks. We’ve been there a couple of times and enjoyed our visit both times.
This new place is a very unique open concept design with Italian various foods to choose from, decent prices, and very cool bar. I highly recommend this place for casual food and drinks, to stay away from pretentious Yaletown crowd.

This place is a bastardization of Italian /​Italian American food. Starting off like that may seem harsh but if this place would’ve invested some money in quality ingredients and teaching the chef how to now screw up the ingredients, it would be much better.
The meatballs where bland.
The risotto was dry rice with sauce on it… and no you should not have to put sauce on risotto to fix it.
The pasta was overcook to the point of being mushy.
The wine list is not really a list and of the slim selection our first two choices were unavailable.
This is one of the worst restaurants I have ever been to. They seriously need to start over and focus on food instead of finishes.

Without the patio, I’d give it 2.5 stars.
The menu isn’t great. Expensive cocktails and bland meatball-​heavy dishes.
This is another Yaletown style over substance establishment.

Great drinks on a great patio. My awesome server Ella recommended the NY sour for me. So good…

Décor: Classy. A little bit of throwback 20s settled in a nice and large space in trendy Yaletown.
Patio: A+! Lots of room and great for people watching. Perfect amount of sun and shade.
Location: Great marketing to have 3 MJG establishments in a row… between Paulie’s, The Distillery, and YBC they take up the whole block!
Food: Decent. Nothing to write home about, lots of pasta. Lots of (meat)balls. Naked balls as an appy? No ball mixing? Genius! And no I’m not being rude… just read the menu!!!
Service: Agreeing with most of the reviews this far… maybe they are just going through growing pains, but if plan on having a large patio open during the lunch hour, you probably should be more prepared, both at the front of the house and in the kitchen.
I’m up for a revisit soon, though!

MJG has done a fantastic job on their venture.
I love the vibe of this place– the décor makes me feel like I’ve travelled back into the dirty 30s. The extremely unique cocktail list and the fantastic food go hand in hand.
I’d definitely come back for the left over salad, fried provolone, and home made pastas.
Mom would approve of me hanging out at this bar :)
Great venue for a girls’ night.

A nice sweet outdoor setting under the candy stripe awning inside a long table eatery style table in the middle of room as the main indoor dinning, (a great table space to meet new friends) a row of leather booths that seat only two run along the wall and the ever so popular kitchen bar seating as well.
We expected a better menu with this classy style setting. Heroes sandwiches, build your own meatball and pasta dish, flatbreads & traditional pastas They share the same kitchen and menu as «The Distillery Bar» a sister bar brasserie right next door. (
) This is another Mark James landmark establishment in the old Mini dealership space, few doors down from the Yaletown Brew Pub.
5 stars for ambience & décor
3 stars for service & poor menu