City seeks restaurateur to revive Chinatown Plaza's Chinese dining anchor
The vacant Floata space offers an $18-seat dining hall and opportunity to catalyze economic revival in a struggling mall.
The day's top stories, food & events — every morning at 7. Unsubscribe anytime.
Vancouver is searching for a restaurateur to operate a Chinese restaurant in Chinatown Plaza, hoping the right operator can anchor a revival in the mall that has struggled with high vacancy and declining foot traffic.
Floata Seafood Restaurant, a 30-year mainstay where political parties hosted fundraisers, closed its doors in October 2025 after its lease expired. The restaurant occupied an 18,000 square-foot space on the third floor. The city has since posted a request for proposal seeking a new operator and a separate RFP for property management and merchandising services.
Chinatown Plaza currently has 13 of its 33 commercial units vacant. "Chinatown Plaza has experienced high vacancy rates and diminished foot traffic over the past two decades due to neighbourhood decline, competition from other Asian commercial areas, public safety challenges and an aging local community," the RFP stated. "The situation deteriorated further during COVID in 2020 and has not recovered."
In June 2021, Floata manager Brian Yu told Business in Vancouver that business had dropped 50 per cent or more since May 2020, with six people dining in the 800-seat hall on an afternoon check.
The city said Floata's lease ended due to unresolved financial arrears, needed major renovations, and lack of tenant response when the city proposed renewal. The city has owned the plaza since March 31, 2006.
The RFP requires any interested restaurateur to invest a minimum of CAD$2 million in capital improvements. The restaurant must serve high-quality Chinese cuisine with full-service dim sum, lunch, dinner, and large-format banquet services. The vacant space commands a minimum monthly gross rent of CAD$70,000.
Jordan Eng, president of the Vancouver Chinatown Business Improvement Association, said interest exists in the opportunity. "With appropriate investment and leadership, the restaurant premises can serve as a catalyst for renewed economic and community development in Chinatown," the RFP noted.