The waitress Queen Linda was super helpful! she found us a real hotel and good food and coffee. Us Americans got lost and she helped us!
Not many of these Mom and pops Diners Left. This is a must for lunch. Food is great.
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This is a small but quite popular diner/cafe located in Olympic Village, right by 2nd Avenue. The atmosphere is very casual, and they don't have printed menu: everything is written on the board. They have a breakfast menu that's served till 11:00, a lunch menu consisting of burgers, sandwiches, and various Western/Asian/Mexican plates, and a specials menu that rotates daily. I had their Argo Plate and Chicken Chilli Con Queso. Both dishes were quite tasty; the price was a bit higher for a diner, but still reasonable. The service was quite casual; the food comes reasonably fast and the staff were fairly friendly but generally leaves you alone. All in all, this is definitely worth checking out.
P.S. The staff asked me if I wanted soup, and I turned it down because I thought that it was going to cost extra (and I was too shy/scared to ask). But apparently, after checking their website, the soup is complimentary with their meals. So if the staff asks you, don't be like me and turn it down.
Argo Plate ($17.95):
4/5
This was from one of their specials menu, which rotates daily. It consists of short rib, bacon wrapped pork tenderloin, and roast lamb, and is served with mashed potatoes and vegetables. I found the lamb to be a bit tough and chewy; the pork was quite tender and well seasoned however, and the shortribs were tender and flavourful. The mashed potatoes were also very tasty, and were smooth, creamy and flavourful.
Chicken Chilli Con Queso ($14.95):
4/5
This consists of a thick stew-like chicken with cheese, and is served with either fries or rice. The stew was thick and very flavourful, and had a nice bit of spice. The chicken was tender and juicy (I think they used dark meat, which in my opinion is always superior to white), although I did find it to be a bit underseasoned on its own.
Summary:
Food: 4/5
Price: 4/5
Service: 3/5
Overall: 3.5/5
Recommendations: Chicken Chilli Con Queso
Where are the menus? Plastered all over the walls...so don’t ask for one. :-) Remember to look at the specials. So many delicious options. Today we chose the lamb shank (yes...at a diner), pork lion and seafood stir fry. Including a soup, lunch is totally worth $15.95. The servers are super friendly. Wasn’t going to have dessert after such a big meal, but when the server said the cherry pie had just cooled and I was gonna have the first slice....I was sold. It was fabulous and flaky. Argo is definitely the place to go if you are in the area.
I’m so ashamed..lived here most of my existence and I finally tried out this place for dinner. I pass by here a gazillion times as it’s part of my bike route during the summer months too. But wow this place blew me away with every thing that touched my palette. Was originally an old style German restaurant turned east meets west diner, Argo serves up so many irresistable creations from chow mein to duck confit (this was featured on “You Gotta Eat Here”). As their tagline goes: “Downtown food, at an East Van price.” This is soooo right!
Love going to Cafe Argo. The food is so well done without the need for gimmicks or snobbery. Will be back there soon for that Spanish Omelette...haunts me how good it is!
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When you walk in the door of the Argo café, you will feel like you were walking into a 1940s era diner. Booths with tables covered in arborite and seats with vinyl fabric on them. This place looks like the set of a Guy Fieri episode.
And then in the night time it turns into a restaurant that serves steak and lobster, pork tenderloin or Louisiana seafood pasta.
A menu designed each Thursday and Friday around what the chef has available and is fresh and in season. Very cool concept.
Tonight I started with a couple duck spring rolls. The spring rolls had a serious amount of duck! Wow! Very crispy and tasty and not greasy whatsoever.
Next was a small cup of soup that came with my main course. A fish chowder which was good. Not too thick.
For my main course I chose the sirloin steak with a peppercorn sauce and a lobster. Yep, steak and lobster!
The steak was very flavourful and didn't need a shake of salt. Tender meat with a nice seared crust and cooked just a shade past medium rare.
The lobster was very cool. A strong flavour of lobster that didn't need a side of butter.
The frites were also a hit. Cut in house with a mandolin and then double fried. Wonderful thin fries.
Highly recommended and I will definitely return!
Argo Café has been hiding on Ontario street until we started discovering the neighbourhood, thanks to the Olympics.A cash only diner owned and ran by famous chefs that make delicious fresh food at half the prices restaurants they worked at prior would have charged.Excellent service, tasty fresh food, decadent home made desserts and five flavours of milkshakes.They were so gracious to create a combo vanilla mocha milkshake. Thank you.
A hidden gem!
My dinner started with lobster dumplings and deep fried pickles - amazing! Next dishes duck confit and BBQ pork tenderloin. Moist and delicious! Would love to come back and try their lunch menu.
Argo Cafe was featured in the Food Network’s You Gotta Eat Here. The outside looks pretty run down and the inside is similar but it’s a busy local diner. Their daily specials change everyday and you can find them on their website. There weren’t any booth seats left so we sat at this counter here. The diner is small so there were a lot of things stashed at the counter.
Precious little for vegetarians here, folks.
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Good Food at Great Price. Ate there today after seeing them featured on 'You've Tot To Eat Here'. Diner is small and divey looking but brings you back to the 'old day's' - not a bad thing if you like nostalgia. Food did not disappoint, was decently presented and delicious. Hubby had duck salad which wasn't even on today's daily special but owner was very accommodating. Good tender duck chunks and dressing was just enough, not drenching the fresh crisp varied lettuces and mango. I had the seafood pasta with rose' sauce which was quite good although it seemed a little strange that the sauce was white and they threw in some red pesto? that when I mixed it up, gave me the rose' sauce. We ordered a smoked chicken penne pasta with spinach and mushroom sauce to go as well for our son at home and it was equally delicious. For the price, the portion is very good compared to more expensive restaurants. We shared a vanilla milkshake which was awesome, not too thick and not too watery and just the right sweetness - reminiscent of an old fashion milk shake. We bumped into some friends there who also was there for the first time and they agreed the food was great and they would be back too. Would highly recommend and we'll definitely be back to try the vast array of 'fine' food they serve for such a small 'hole in the wall' type place.
UPDATE (March 2022): Argo Cafe has renovated and it is better than ever! The food remains some of the best in town, but the inside is now elevated for a great diner experience. Photos included.
Argo Cafe is one of Vancouver’s hidden gems!! A must-go for weekday lunch or weekend brunch. As a brunch regular, my favourite dish on the menu is Con Queso Eggs - it is to die for. The pancakes are a close second, though (sooo fluffy). Linda & the whole team at Argo are lovely people who make everyone feel welcome. I guarantee you that anything made off the comfort food style menu will be fresh and delicious.
Amazing! Have been wanting to try this place for years and it did not disappoint. Ordered the burger after reading reviews and it really was a tasty burger! We also ordered the chow main, chicken con queso dishes and tried both of the daily soups (carrot ginger and seafood chowder). Everything was delicious. Love the old school diner feel. Food came quickly and service was really friendly and super efficient. Highly recommend.
My husband and I recently tried Argo Cafe after a friend recommended it. It did not disappoint! Each meal comes with a soup to start (very interesting concept to start your breakfast/brunch!) We both got the Scotch broth which is lamb based. It was such a delicious soup! You are missing out if you don't order this soup (if you like lamb, of course!). My husband got the chicken and waffles and I got the eggs and queso dish. Both were delicious! We even got a dessert of the hazelnut brownie cake which was really tasty as well. The staff were very friendly and welcoming. We have no complaints at all. We will definitely be coming back because it's just so good! It seems like a bit of a hidden gem in the city. The visit is worth it just for he Scotch broth soup!
Argo is a great little hole in the wall in an area that is quite over saturated with chain restaurants. An office crowd comes around lunch time so make sure you grab food outside of peak hours if you can. Really great service, unfortunately I did not catch my servers name. I would highly recommend the Chowmein- it comes with some unexpected bites, just make sure you’re not allergic to anything! The soup rotates, the seafood soup was quite good too!
Argo always delivers with high quality ingredients and creative dishes. It's got casual diner vibes but you can get fancy and delicious dishes like duck confit and short rib benedicts. Both of which I recommend. The mix of chill unpretentious atmosphere and great food is so wonderful and welcoming.
This cafe offers a wide variety of dishes and our sirloin steak was a very tasty example..there is a spacious patio area, the service is super friendly and the prices are very reasonable…
It's a hole in the wall with enjoyable food and better than Lucy's East side Diner. Too bad it is not 24 hours.
The floor has been redone as well as the upholstery.
Its been ages since i have been back to the Argo. I forgot how amazing the Argo Burger is. Argo does not do quantity over quality. They have mastered the art of both! Good job and I will of course be back.
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