In early February, beloved Main Street eatery Pizzeria Grano announced that it was ending dine-in service—leaving many Vancouverites concerned over a future without its plant-based pizzas and Italian desserts. The pizzeria is still open for takeout, though, and plans to marry its existing food program with the incoming restaurant.

This is just the latest pivot for the restaurant, which 10 moths prior, decided to add dairy to its menu.

Data released last month from Restaurants Canada suggests that 62 per cent of restaurants are operating at a loss or are barely breaking even. It’s not an easy time to operate a restaurant in Vancouver, let alone a plant-based one. Numerous Vancouver vegan establishments, from burger joints and ice cream shops to casual fare, have recently folded. 

For those trying to survive, pivots and changes are usually in order—and they often come with heated debates. Keyboard wars are re-igniting as some vegans are boycotting places like Grano, while others are staying loyal. 

Mitchell MacFarlane used to frequent Grano, but hasn’t gone back since cheese was added to the menu. He says he noticed numerous “anti-vegan” comments under the restaurant’s Instagram posts. 

“[Grano] was liking those comments. So, you’re liking the people who are bullying those who supported you before?” he says. “It felt very alienating.”

While utterances of “animal cruelty” or dairy cows being “victims” in these online debates can seem hyperbolic even to omnivores, MacFarlane believes animal byproducts entail violence. He started researching dairy’s ethical and environmental impacts while studying biology at university.

“To make sure cows are pregnant all the time, you need to artificially inseminate them—which is rape,” he asserts.

Pizzeria Grano general manager Katie Mantei says the Grano employee who was liking anti-vegan comments “knows that shouldn’t have happened,” and their actions do not reflect the business’ views.

When Grano was entirely plant-based, Mantei says they encountered people daily who would leave as soon as they realized that the pizzas were dairy-free. Rental increases and food inflation also encouraged the team to entice more clientele with cheese. After other attempts to attract more weekday customers, repaying its Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA) loan at the end of 2023 presented a hurdle Grano couldn’t overcome.

However, Mantei says, adding “animal flesh was never an option.”

Some vegans remain staunch Grano supporters. Marieta Jamett-Bois operated the Dirty Vegan Food Truck for two years during the pandemic and acknowledges the challenges that the restaurant faces.

“Vegan cheese was upwards of $30 more per case than dairy cheese,” she says. While the government subsidizes animal agriculture, vegan products remain pricey.

She frequently brings her “full-on Italian, meat-eating friends” to Grano, where they’ve had great conversations about veganism. 

Other vegans, like investment professional Naheed Gilani, encourage people to consider current financial pressures like increasing interest rates on mortgages and triple-net leases before they boycott a place they like. Still, Gilani resonates with impassioned vegans and disagrees with the way establishments like Heirloom Vegetarian have adapted. 

Heirloom introduced meat to its menu in November 2023. Co-owner William “Gus” Greer says they never bounced back after Covid lockdowns. Increases on an already hefty lease, dwindling customer budgets, and the “Cactus Club effect”—all chain restaurants now offering robust vegan options—were also factors. 

“We’ve always been pro-plant,” says Greer. “We’ve never been anti-meat.”

The menu alteration was not enough to save the business. The South Granville brunch and dinner spot announced in January that it will be closing after 12 years. 

Heirloom’s social media accounts have also attracted vitriol.

Greer says the accounts are run by “a star chamber of panelists.” One of those panelists replied to an Instagram comment by saying that they would “rather go out of business than serve vegan Nazis.”

Taking a decidedly gentler approach is Say Hello Sweets: another vegan business that is closing shop. Founder Naomi Arnaut’s pink-and-white ice cream truck hit the streets in 2016; she later opened her Quebec Street storefront in 2019, where vegans and non-vegans enjoyed “ice dream” sandwiches, fun-flavoured scoops, and affogato. Arnaut closed her doors last month.

“Things are much more challenging now than they were during the actual pandemic,” she admits.

But adding dairy was never a consideration for her. When she was just satrting out, she switched her recipes to all-vegan ingredients after attending an ice cream course at the University of Pennsylvania, where she was horrified by a tour of the campus barns.

“The dairy cows were separated from the calves, and you could hear the calves screaming,” she says. “It was very upsetting, so I completely changed the business plan at that point.” 

Now, instead of operating a brick and mortar, she is scaling up her wholesale offerings, planning a potential ice cream subscription program, expanding her freeze-dried ice cream line, and re-starting her cake service.

For vegan restaurants in this ever-expensive city, pivoting seems like it’s not just a good idea, but a necessary one.