Anar Persian Kitchen

Fifteen years of charcoal, saffron and family tables in North Vancouver.

Reserve a table View the menu

A pomegranate cut open beside three skewers on a grill

The short version

The Tabrizi family has run this room since 2010, and one of us is here every night we're open. The charcoal grill by the back wall is lit at four o'clock, and everything that comes off it — koobideh, joojeh, barg — is skewered by hand that afternoon. The room on Lonsdale seats forty-eight, the tables are close enough to hear the grill, and we still pour the tea ourselves.

Open since
2010
Seats
48, plus 10 on the patio
Grill
Real charcoal, every service
Rice
Steamed daily, saffron on top

Weekend brunch

Saturday and Sunday, 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. This is the meal Persian families eat slowly: hot bread from the oven, feta and walnuts, honey and clotted cream, and a pot of tea that keeps coming back full.

  • Nan-o-panir

    Warm barbari bread, sheep's-milk feta, walnuts, mint and a handful of basil. The table starts here, always.

  • Adas polo omelette

    Eggs folded through lentil rice with dates and cinnamon. A Tabrizi family invention, and the reason some people queue at 8:50.

  • Haleem

    Slow-cooked wheat and lamb, sweet with cinnamon and sugar. Sundays only, and it goes before noon.

  • Sarshir with honey

    Thick clotted cream and mountain honey, spooned onto hot bread. Order one for the table and watch it disappear.

We hold a few brunch tables back for walk-ins, but weekends fill early. Book a brunch table if you're coming with more than four.

Guest favourites

  • Chelo kabab koobideh

    Two skewers of seasoned ground beef and lamb over saffron rice, with a grilled tomato and a knob of butter.

  • Joojeh kabab

    Chicken marinated overnight in saffron, lemon and onion, then grilled until the edges char. Bone-in or boneless.

  • Ghormeh sabzi

    Herb stew with lamb, kidney beans and dried lime, simmered four hours. The dish our regulars measure us by.

  • Fesenjan

    Chicken in ground walnut and pomegranate — dark, sour and sweet at once. Anar means pomegranate, so we take it seriously.

See the full menu

Catering across the North Shore

We cook for birthdays in Lynn Valley, weddings at the Pipe Shop, Nowruz gatherings and Tuesday office lunches on Esplanade. Platters of kabab and rice, trays of stew, salads and bread, tea and pastries — delivered hot, set up with chafing dishes, or dropped at the door if that's simpler.

  • Family celebrations

    Birthdays, engagements, Nowruz and memorials. Twenty guests to two hundred, with rice counted properly.

  • Weddings

    Full Persian service with sabzi polo, kabab platters and a sweets table. We'll walk your venue with you first.

  • Office lunches

    Individually boxed or family-style trays, delivered to North Vancouver and downtown by 11:45 a.m.

Read about catering

Visit us

1284 Lonsdale Avenue, North Vancouver, BC V7M 2H6 · (604) 987-3142

Monday
Closed
Tuesday – Thursday
5:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.
Friday
5:00 p.m. – 11:00 p.m.
Saturday
9:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m., 5:00 p.m. – 11:00 p.m.
Sunday
9:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m., 5:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.

Parking and transit

Two hours of metered parking on Lonsdale, and a free lot off West 13th Street behind the block after 6:00 p.m. The 230 and 232 stop at Lonsdale and 13th, one minute from the door. From the SeaBus, the R2 RapidBus takes about eight minutes up the hill.

We've been coming for our anniversary since the second year they were open. Mina still remembers which table we sat at.

Dana R., Upper Lonsdale

Come sit down

Book a table for tonight, or tell us about the party you're planning. Either way, someone from the family will answer.

Reserve a table Ask about catering