Deafined

**Deafined will be closing doors on November 26^th, so make your trip there if you’re still interested in trying out this restaurant.**
I was a fan of their sister restaurant — Dark Tables and decided to stop by before closing.
The décor of this restaurant is quite unusual. As I walked up the stairs, I see an open bar, two lounge areas on either side of the restaurant and an open space sparsely filled with tables for two or four. This outlook reminded me more of a bar/​lounge/​clubbing venue. I stood at front for about a good minute or two before I was acknowledge and was told by, I assume the manager, to pick any seat I’d like.
As I sat down, I was greeted by our server with the use of hand gestures and a menu was placed on the table. Instructions on how to order were written on the first page and on our table was a tiny metal bucket with flash cards educating us on keywords from the Lebanese cuisine. Among the flash cards were pictures of how to signal thank you, done, the bill, to eat, and to drink. For every item on the menu, a picture of how to order that item was shown. We had fun playing around with the use of sign language. Our server was very nice and confirmed our order each time before putting it in.
We decided to get two appetizers, one main and two desserts to share. We ordered:
–Makali (3/​5-​$ 9): Fried cauliflower served with Tahini. Upon reading the reviews of how good these were, we opted to give them a try. For $ 9, I’d expect some really good cauliflower or a large portion, but it was neither. It tasted like fried cauliflower which could use some more seasoning or more of the tahini sauce which tasted pretty good.
–Watermelon and Grilled Halloumi (2/​5-​$ 11): Halloumi, according to wiki, is semi-​hard unripened brined cheese made from a mixture of goat’s and sheep’s milk. I’ve never had halloumi before and thought this would be a good opportunity to try. This dish was served with slices of watermelon and grilled halloumi alternatively and on the side there was an arugula salad drenched in vinaigrette and topped with some pomegranate seeds. This dish was a fail. The watermelons were tasteless, the halloumi was overly salty, salad didn’t help as it was drenched in vinaigrette which made the dish very acidic. Totally not worth $ 11.
–Lamb Burger (3.5/5-$ 19): Before entering the restaurant, you’d see a board saying that they serve the best lamb burger you’ve ever eaten. Was the lamb burger the best I’ve eaten? No. It wasn’t even a burger. It was a size of a slider. It was marketed to be mint and pistachio crusted but I found no trace of pistachio but did tasted some mint. However, the highlight of this dish would be the batata potatoes that came with the burger. They were the BEST potatoes I’ve eaten. Very well season, fried to perfection and served at the right temperature and in good bite size pieces.
–Mascarpone Ice (5/​5-​$ 11): Of all the unusual ice cream flavors I’ve had, this is the best one! I’m not joking! It was rich and creamy. Not overly sweet and the blended well with the pistachio, honey and fig jam that was sitting at the bottom of the bowl. It tasted even better with the one raspberry that it came with. Wish I had more of those. And this… was a generous portion. I had about 5 mini scoops of them. More than enough to satisfy my ice cream addiction.
–Rosewater Sorbetto (4/​5-​$ 8): Not as good as the mascarpone ice cream but still one of the best sorbets I’ve eaten. I normally don’t like sorbets but this one had rosewater and I’m a fan of rose flavored eats. I love how the rose flavor was brought through in the sorbet. It was not topped with fresh berries as marketed but it didn’t mattered to much as it didn’t give off the same effect as it did with the mascarpone ice cream. It, however, had freeze-​dried (?) rose petals which added crunch and sourness to the dish. I could definitely see myself craving for this during a hot summer day. It had a super refreshing touch and gives of an immense cooling effect. Perhaps not the right season to order this.
The potatoes and the dessert stood out the most to me. If they weren’t closing down, I could see myself going back for just desserts and the potatoes. Everything else was not really up to par and the price for portion was off. I felt bad for our server, she seemed to be the running the floor all by herself which two ladies behind the bar weren’t doing much. This was probably why our meal took 2 hours to finish, which to me usually isn’t a big deal except it was extremely cold in there.

Before catching a live music show in Kitsilano I came here with a couple of friends for dinner on a clear Sunday fall evening.
Upon arrival, I noticed the flowery tiles on the stairs that perfectly fit the type of cuisine this joint offers up. The interior was very minimalistic with lots of open air and space between tables. We were seated by the window that offered up great views of the street and kitchen alike.
Our server greeted us in sign language and the cute cards on the table were quite informative on how to communicate. She was very friendly and helpful when we asked about a couple of menu items. I found the experience quite new and interesting.
We shared a yogurt dip that was accompanied by pita breads that were store bought so not impressed by that. The yogurt itself was quite thick and delicious.
For my main dish I ordered the chicken Tawook, where the chicken was marinated and cooked to perfection. The skewer was accompanied by side of couscous garnished with parsley and pomegranate seeds. This was the highlight of my meal!
Overall the food and service was good and I’d recommend this place, when looking for a healthy Mediterranean inspired dining experience.

Our first time at Deafind was November 6^th, when we learned that unfortunately the restaurant will be closing November 26^th. The food and service was absolutely top-​notch, and I was sad that Deafind will be closing, not only because of the great food, but because the servers will now be thrust back out onto a difficult job market for hearing-​impaired folks.
The food is Lebanese, so it’s Mediterranean. Everything was immaculately seasoned and prepared. My husband spent the whole meal «mmmm-​ing». We shared the lamb shank and 3 appetizers: the roasted cauliflower, beet caviar, and the potatoes. OMG everything was so good. I’d give up poutine for those potatoes.
We are super-​busy people, but we are going to go back one more time before it closes. The only reason I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 is that I didn’t find the atmosphere to be great in terms of layout… it had a bit of a cafeteria feel to it. I would have chosen 4.5 stars if that was an option.
I hope the owner considers reopening elsewhere with the same concept and food. This place would fit in perfectly with the other quirky restaurants on Main Street.

The food alone is worth coming for, and on top of it this restaurant has created employment for deaf and hearing impaired servers. We came in a group of 4 and ordered 3 appetizers (baba ganoush, patata harra (seriously the best potatoes I’ve ever had) and makali –friend cauliflower with tahini, delicious) and 2 mains (chicken breast kabob with lemon orange couscous and mediterranean rataouille, hearty and flavorful) to share — every dish was delicious and very generous portions as well, it was slightly more than 4 of us could finish. The Mascarpone ice cream with figs is soo good and came with 3 scoops, more than enough for all 4 of us to share!
And we learned some sign language! It was a great experience with excellent service & food, and a great way to expose and educate people in a comfortable, fun environment to the challenges faced by people who are hearing impaired and deaf. Each menu item is identified by a number or letter for which you sign to order. If you’re not comfortable with the signs, there are pens and paper on every table for you to write questions, etc. Highly recommend.

Big fan. Came by for dinner after a recommendation by my sister and her girlfriend. The place is a little discrete, being above street level, but the broad tiled staircase and bright modern décor and open feeling left a positive impression straight away. We ordered the cauliflower to share and I got the steak. So good. Like, so good. My girlfriend worked at Nuba for years and years but I found the food at Deafined to be superior. The potatoes were very flavourful, the steak thick and tender, and the cauliflower! I especially liked the cauliflower.
But what really stands out is the service and the experience. Wait staff is deaf or hearing impaired, so the each menu item is designated by a simple ASL sign. They try make it as easy as they can but, not knowing any ASL, I found it tricky at first but very much worth the effort. I don’t normally come into contact with deaf people in my day to day so it was a very enlightening and very positive experience. At the end of the meal the server came by to ask if we wanted to learn a few extra words, which was fun.
Highly recommended.

Pleasantly surprised. The roasted cauliflower was well seasoned and roasted to a perfect golden brown. Could be better than Nuba’s signature cauliflower dish. The lamb burger came with a freshly made patty with a delicious pistachio mayo that complemented it well. The potatoes were fried and had a tangy spicy sauce drizzled over top. Together with the parsley, it was the most unforgettable combination. They lost a star because they didn’t tell us getting a second dip for our bread is an additional charge.
Great experience in using sign language. Staff were overall on top of service.

Honestly, seeing all the 5 star reviews made me wary about whether or not they were fake reviews. But I read reviews from several sites and all of them were equally impressive.
My friend recommended this place after I declined to go to some other places due to reviews or because they were booked for the time we wanted (I’m picky — not gonna lie).
We arrived to an empty restaurant. There were only 2 tables in the entire place and one party had just left. I definitely thought «FFFFFFFFFFFFFF this is going to suck!». We got to choose any table we wanted and we were immediately brought some carafes of water. We were also given a rundown of what the restaurant is about, how to communicate with the servers etc, and given some menus.
Feelings/​thoughts: I felt like I was making fun of people with hearing disabilities being in that restaurant, signing the number/​letter of the alphabet for my food items, thanking them via ASL and also having a note pad to write stuff down. I was honestly conflicted.
We ordered some drinks, the server showed us what she jotted down to make sure it was correct etc. Then we ordered our entrees and same checking in.
The food arrived and it was DELICIOUS. My steak was amazing. This was the best steak I’ve had all year — no joke. My last delicious steak was at Wildebeest (and don’t even get me started about what a joke Black&Blue was). It was well seasoned and cooked perfectly. The potatoes were amazing. My partner jokingly said those should be a stand alone item and I informed her that it is on the menu as an appy! So good and the broccolini was good too. Wouldn’t change a thing on that entrée — bring me 2 more please. Honestly cleaned my plate and left nothing behind. My friend enjoyed the lamb shank and my girlfriend liked her ratatouille (I had some and the cous cous pearls were tasty!). The complimentary sampler dish of hummus wasn’t my cup of tea but the crispy pita that it came with was so good and I wish thy had given us more. Skip the regular pita and see if you can score more crispy ones.
Tip: since I wasn’t a fan of the hummus, my recommendation is try the freebie one and then order the appetizer one if you like it.
The marscapone ice cream with pistachio crumbs and honey with some berries on it was delicious. I reluctantly shared this dish even though it was too good to have to share it: D
I think the reason it’s empty is because the signage is easy to miss, it’s on the last commercial block of trendy West 4^th so no one expects anything on that last block. It’s also not street level so people can’t see in.
Take my advice: COME HUNGRY AND GO UPSTAIRS. This place doesn’t disappoint. Thank me after you’ve eaten so much you had to unbutton your pants discreetly.

Awesome food. Awesome service! We will be back! Love love love the lamb burger and the batata harra are so moreish!

After seeing this in the media and on Facebook many times, I finally had the opportunity to drive up to Vancouver, B.C. for a late lunch at DeaFined as a belated birthday celebration. My friend and I had a server named Judy who was pleasant and friendly. We enjoyed talking with her. I loved the décor of this restaurant. Very modern and chic looking.
My friend and I both ordered the lamb burger with balata. Very delicious. I LOVED the side, balata – the spices and/​or sauce that they used on the baked potato slices was SO good. They were the best that I’ve ever had for baked potato slices. Seriously. I kept on raving about it to my friend several times during our visit.
My friend also ordered their dessert: Mascarpone ice cream. Upon arrival, I was surprised to see how lovely it was put together and how delicious/​light it was. I normally hate figs but I really enjoyed the few bites of this dessert.
This is a lovely place to visit and I am thrilled to have a Deaf restaurant near me. All of the servers are Deaf/​Hard of Hearing and use American Sign Language (ASL). The food/​drink items have certain letters/​numbers next to them for you to sign to the servers. They also have note/​pen on the table and a little guide to read through about what their restaurant stands for and some signs to learn.
I’m returning back soon as I can. I was very, very surprised to see how empty the restaurant was during our visit. We were informed that it was packed/​busy when they first opened, but things have slowed down. During our visit, it was just two of us inside the restaurant the entire time. There were 2 – 4 people sitting outside on the patio. I decided to leave this review to spread the word about this wonderful restaurant so more people can come. For those who are hearing and/​or don’t know sign language, please don’t feel scared off with the fact that everyone signs; it’s actually pretty easy to order your items. This is a very unique place with yummy food; you have to check it out!

Decided to give it a try, and I really love it. Best place to eat. It’s really cool that you can sign language in the restaurant. Will come back next time. :)

We used a groupon for a shared appetizer, 2 entrees and a shared dessert on Aug 1/​15, and we were completely blown away by the level of service and quality of food served. We truly enjoyed the spice flavors from the roasted potatoes, Mediterranean seasoned steak, roasted almonds on the juicy roasted lamb shank and we even got an extra bowl of ice cream dessert for free. The restaurant is spacious and clean. Definitely would return with or without a groupon!

First time we come here on our vacation from Los Angeles and I never thought about middle eastern style food. Those are totally AMAZING!!! So delicious!!! Patio is so nice to sit out under the sun. I recommend u to go check that restaurant out because we will come back for sure!!!

Amazing! I was a little concerned that the concept would be better than the food, but I was WRONG! The food was out of this world delicious. I got the steak and batata, the meat was perfection and the potatoes that come with it, fabulous. As a person who knows ASL, it was a real treat to order and converse in sign language; but, I feel that a person who didn’t sign could easily transverse the language barrier with the papers on the table and the menu is easily laid out and numbered. I hope this gem survives, and we’d love another Deafined in the states.

Stopped by on a Saturday for a nice drink and some apps on the terrace /​patio. Great service, good food and loved the restaurant concept! Definitely will be going again for a lunch

We went for dinner and did not have a great experience (4 adults and a baby). There was a smell of garbage wafting from downstairs while we were seated on the patio. The service was friendly, but it was VERY slow. We brought our baby and there is NO WHERE in any of the washrooms to change a child, not even a countertop. We enjoyed the hummus and potatoes, but none of us were thrilled with our entrée. The menu was very highly priced for the taste.
We thoroughly enjoyed Dark Table and we’re hoping for another great experience. It didn’t happen at Deafined.

I went on Friday, May 29^th with my friend who is visiting Vancouver. Wow! what a great experience! Food was delicious and staff was super friendly. I will absolutely go again!

Came with great expectations but I was let down. I was prepared that the food would be mediocre but at least the experience would make up for it. However, didn’t get to communicate much with the servers in sign language, as most of what we do is by simply point to the menu. And the restaurant was so quiet. I think we were the only table expect for the big group of 20.

Fun experience, staff super friendly and the potatoes for starters are great! A few errors in the order, but that was just part of the fun experience. The menu is missing ingredient details, but again, just a start up problem I am sure they will correct