Century Restaurant and Bar is housed in the ‘Century House’ heritage building in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, which was built as a bank in 1911. The building’s classic turn-of-the–century design is what inspired the Latin theme. Classic features such as barrel vaulted ceilings, original Victorian chandeliers, and a marble staircase are mixed with leather suede banquets, modern stained glass light fixtures, and a stylish bar. What was once the old vault room is now an intimate private VIP room. The menu is described as ‘bringing Latin ingredient to a contemporary French table’. The menu offers the choice of a half or full sized portion, allowing for the customer to experience a variety of main dishes. Century is one of the few spots in Vancouver to offer a restaurant and bar lounge under one roof.
The building is located at 432 Richards Street in Downtown Vancouver. It is steps away from Waterfront Station, a major transit hub which serves as the Downtown Vancouver terminal for various TransLink operations such as SeaBus, West Coast Express, SkyTrain and buses.
Century House was built in 1911 for the Canada Permanent Mortgage Corporation. The building was designed by J.S.D. Taylor, a Scottish architect. Canada Permanent operated at Century House until 1951. Since then, it has been home to an insurance company, a trade school, an antique store, a restaurant and a book store. Century House is a Class A heritage building.
The whole exterior is solid granite, except for two beavers and lighthouse (not a medieval tower) cast in concrete which crown the buildings.
Since then the location has seen its fair share of transformations. The location’s pedigree is unparalleled, having hosted Vancouver’s best restaurant (as voted by Vancouver Magazine) twice. Both times, the city has made this location the hottest restaurant in the city.
Famous quotes containing the words century, house, restaurant and/or bar:
“The general who advances without coveting fame and retreats without fearing disgrace, whose only thought is to protect his country and do good service for his sovereign, is the jewel of the kingdom.”
—Sun Tzu (6th–5th century B.C.)
“Shall I still be love’s house on the widdershin earth,
Woe to the windy masons at my shelter?
Love’s house, they answer, and the tower death
Lie all unknowing of the grave sin-eater.”
—Dylan Thomas (1914–1953)
“A restaurant with candles and flowers evokes more reveries than the Isle of Bali does.”
—Mason Cooley (b. 1927)
“Think ... before the words—the vows are spoken, which put yet another terrible bar between us.... I call upon you in the name of God ... to be sincere with me—Can you, my Annie, bear to think I am another’s?”
—Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849)