AnnaLena Vancouver: Chef Michael Robbins and His Burger DNA
How the chef behind the Oakwood burger built Vancouver's first two-Michelin-star restaurant in Kitsilano, and where burgers still fit into his story.
AnnaLena Vancouver is a seasonal tasting-menu restaurant at 1809 West 1st Avenue in Kitsilano, run by chef and co-owner Michael (Mike) Robbins with co-owner Jeff Parr. On 6 October 2026 it became the first restaurant in Vancouver to earn two Michelin stars. It is not a burger restaurant. Its link to burgers is its chef: before AnnaLena, Robbins created the much-praised burger at The Oakwood Canadian Bistro.
This is a profile, not a dining review, so you will find no rating here. I built it from AnnaLena’s official FAQ, the Michelin Guide, North America’s 50 Best and Vancouver’s food press, and I checked every source on 10 October 2026. Looking for a burger tonight? Start with our guide to the best burgers in Vancouver. Curious why a two-star kitchen belongs in the city’s burger story? Read on.
AnnaLena Vancouver: key facts
AnnaLena opened in Kitsilano in March 2015. It serves a set tasting menu at $178 CAD per person and has held two Michelin stars since 6 October 2026.
- What it is: seasonal tasting-menu restaurant, announced in 2015 as “Modern Canadian comfort” with 65 seats
- Chef: Michael Robbins, owner and executive chef
- Co-owner: Jeff Parr, operations and general manager
- Opened: March 2015, in the former Kits Daily Kitchen space
- Address: 1809 West 1st Avenue, Vancouver, BC V6J 5B8, steps from Kitsilano Beach
- Michelin: one star in October 2022, two stars on 6 October 2026, a first for Vancouver
- Other rankings: No. 35 on North America’s 50 Best Restaurants 2026; No. 12 on Canada’s 100 Best 2026, the highest in British Columbia
- Price: $178 CAD per person for the tasting menu (as of October 2026), before drinks, tax and tip
- Burger link: the chef created the Oakwood Canadian Bistro burger, and AnnaLena has served burgers at anniversary events
Who is Michael Robbins? The chef behind AnnaLena
Michael Robbins is a Vancouver-born chef who co-owns AnnaLena and runs its kitchen as executive chef. The Michelin Guide still lists him as chef in 2026, and North America’s 50 Best describes him as owner and executive chef.
According to a 2016 Georgia Straight profile, Robbins cooked at Glowbal, Coast, Sanafir and The Oakwood Canadian Bistro before opening AnnaLena. I could not verify his exact years or titles at the first three, so I have left them out.
Robbins sees himself as more than a cook. “I don’t like just cooking food. I like the whole thing: I like the branding, the conceptualizing,” he told the Georgia Straight. You can see it on the menu itself: North America’s 50 Best notes that each course is written out in handwritten crayon.
The name is personal. AnnaLena joins the first names of Robbins’ two grandmothers, Anna and Lena, as Scout Magazine reported when the project was announced in January 2015.
Mike Robbins’ Oakwood burger: the chef’s burger pedigree
Before AnnaLena, Mike Robbins was the opening executive chef of The Oakwood Canadian Bistro in Kitsilano, and he is known for creating its burger. That burger is why his name still comes up when Vancouver talks burgers.
The Oakwood opened in 2011 at 2741 West 4th Avenue, about 1.6 km west of today’s AnnaLena, under owner Mike Shea. The Georgia Straight recorded its menu as offering “AAA burgers with buttermilk-fried onion and smoked cheddar”. AAA is the Canadian beef grade just below Canada Prime. Fried onion for crunch, smoked cheddar for depth: on paper, it is the bistro burger I would have ordered first.
Robbins handed the Oakwood kitchen to Ryan Murphy in 2014, the year before AnnaLena opened. The owner announced the sale on 1 May 2019, and the Oakwood closed that year. The original Oakwood burger is gone. You cannot order it anywhere today.
Map of Kitsilano, Vancouver: AnnaLena at 1809 West 1st Avenue (marker) and, about 1.6 km west, the former Oakwood Canadian Bistro at 2741 West 4th Avenue, where Mike Robbins created his burger (closed in 2019). (Map: © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL)
Does AnnaLena serve a burger?
No: AnnaLena has no regular burger on its menu. It serves a set tasting menu with no à la carte dishes, and I found no source confirming a burger on today’s menu.
Burgers have still turned up on special occasions. For the restaurant’s second birthday, on Monday 13 March 2017 from 5pm, Robbins made 100 of his signature burgers, first come first served, with beer from 33 Acres Brewing, according to Scout Magazine.
33 Acres Brewing published a description of an AnnaLena anniversary burger: a beef patty on a house-made sesame seed bun, with house-made dill pickles, sprouts, aged white cheddar and umami mustard, served with crispy fries. Bottles of 33 Acres beer were $5 CAD. A kitchen that bakes its own bun and cures its own pickles for a one-night party is telling you how seriously it takes a burger.
A cheeseburger with fries, shown for illustration only: AnnaLena’s anniversary burger paired a beef patty with a house-made sesame bun, dill pickles, aged white cheddar and umami mustard, served with crispy fries. This is not AnnaLena’s burger. (Photo: TheCulinaryGeek, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr (https://www.flickr.com/photos/72949902@N00/5076301075))
Not every anniversary was a burger party. For its third, on 13 March 2018, AnnaLena served a six-course “greatest hits” menu at $84 CAD per person, plus $54 CAD for the wine pairing, with no burger on it (Scout Magazine).
AnnaLena Cheeseburger 2050: the burger-inspired tasting course
Cheeseburger 2050 is a deconstructed, burger-inspired course that has appeared on AnnaLena’s tasting menu: raw tartare, cheese and tallow-caramelized onion instead of a patty in a bun. It is a past or seasonal dish, not a permanent fixture.
The dish has changed over time, and sources describe different versions:
| Source | Date | Description of Cheeseburger 2050 |
|---|---|---|
| The Infatuation | Review dated 19 September 2025 | A trio of mimolette velouté, wagyu tartare and tallow-caramelized onion |
| North America’s 50 Best | Listing checked October 2026 | A past dish of elk tartare with tallow-caramelised onion and cheeses |
Both versions keep the same idea. The beef, the beef fat, the sweet onion and the melted cheese of a cheeseburger are pulled apart and rebuilt as fine-dining bites. From the chef who made his name in Kitsilano with a bistro burger, I read it as a wink at his own past. For me, it is also the best argument that AnnaLena belongs on a burger site.
Beef tartare, the raw base of AnnaLena’s deconstructed Cheeseburger 2050 (wagyu in 2025, elk in an earlier version). Shown for illustration only: this plate is from Bardot Brasserie in Las Vegas, not from AnnaLena. (Photo: T.Tseng, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Prime\_steak\_tartare,\_sauce\_verte,\_egg\_yolk,\_gaufrette\_potatoes.jpg))
AnnaLena two Michelin stars: Vancouver’s first two-star restaurant
AnnaLena is the first restaurant in Vancouver to hold two Michelin stars, a promotion announced on 6 October 2026 and reported by Daily Hive and CTV News. The Michelin Guide page now shows two stars.
The first star came on 27 October 2022, in the inaugural Michelin Guide Vancouver. AnnaLena was one of eight one-star restaurants that night, alongside Barbara, Burdock & Co, iDen & QuanJuDe Beijing Duck House, Kissa Tanto, Masayoshi, Published on Main and St. Lawrence. Some 2026 coverage dates the first star to 2024. Destination Vancouver and BNN Bloomberg both confirm 2022.
The Michelin inspectors sum up the style: “You won’t find white tablecloths or a formal atmosphere at AnnaLena, but you will find one of Vancouver’s most polished — and delicious — dining experiences.” Michelin also gave sommelier Reverie Beall its Michelin Guide Vancouver 2024 Sommelier Award.
AnnaLena timeline: from Oakwood to two Michelin stars
Fifteen years separate the Oakwood’s opening from AnnaLena’s second star. Each date below comes from the sources listed at the end.
| Date | Milestone |
|---|---|
| 2011 | The Oakwood Canadian Bistro opens on West 4th Avenue with Robbins as opening executive chef |
| 2014 | Ryan Murphy succeeds Robbins at the Oakwood |
| January 2015 | Robbins and Jeff Parr announce AnnaLena: “Modern Canadian comfort”, 65 seats |
| March 2015 | AnnaLena opens in the former Kits Daily Kitchen space |
| 2015 | Named to enRoute’s Top 10 Canada’s Best New Restaurants |
| 2016 | Enters Canada’s 100 Best at No. 43 |
| 13 March 2017 | Second birthday: Robbins makes 100 signature burgers |
| 13 March 2018 | Third anniversary “greatest hits” menu: six courses, $84 CAD |
| 2019 | The Oakwood Canadian Bistro closes after its sale is announced on 1 May |
| 27 October 2022 | One Michelin star in the first Michelin Guide Vancouver |
| 2023 | No. 9 on Canada’s 100 Best |
| 2024 | Reverie Beall wins the Michelin Sommelier Award |
| September 2025 | The Infatuation reviews the tasting menu, including Cheeseburger 2050 |
| May 2026 | Debuts at No. 35 on North America’s 50 Best Restaurants |
| 2026 | No. 12 on Canada’s 100 Best, the highest in British Columbia |
| 6 October 2026 | Promoted to two Michelin stars, a first for Vancouver |
Timeline of Michael Robbins and AnnaLena, 2011–2026: the Oakwood opens (2011), AnnaLena opens (March 2015), first Michelin star (27 October 2022), No. 35 on North America’s 50 Best (May 2026) and the second star, a first for Vancouver (6 October 2026). (Chart: Burger Breton, data from the Michelin Guide, Destination Vancouver, Scout Magazine and the Georgia Straight)
Local recognition came early. The Georgia Straight Golden Plates named AnnaLena best new restaurant and Robbins best chef. On Canada’s 100 Best, the ride was anything but smooth: No. 43 (2016), 83 (2017), 34 (2018), 97 (2020), 41 (2022), 9 (2023), 20 (2024), 10 (2025) and 12 (2026).
AnnaLena’s rank on Canada’s 100 Best, 2016–2026 (inverted axis; lower is better): 43, 83, 34, 97 (2020), 41 (2022), 9, 20, 10 and 12 in 2026, the top spot in British Columbia. (Chart: Burger Breton, data from Canada’s 100 Best via Wikipedia, cross-checked with Scout Magazine)
When AnnaLena entered North America’s 50 Best, Robbins put it this way: “I don’t know if we deserve this, but we earned this.”
AnnaLena tasting menu price, hours and booking
The AnnaLena tasting menu costs $178 CAD per person as of October 2026, according to the official FAQ, and dinner takes two to three hours. Drinks, 5% GST and tip are extra, and wine pairing prices are not published.
| Practical info | Details |
|---|---|
| Address | 1809 West 1st Avenue, Vancouver, BC V6J 5B8 (Kitsilano) |
| Hours | Tuesday to Sunday, 5:00pm to 9:00pm; closed Mondays |
| Price | $178 CAD per person for the tasting menu (October 2026), plus drinks, 5% GST and tip |
| Length | Plan 2 to 3 hours |
| Reservations | On Resy, opening 30 days ahead at 9:00am Pacific |
| Same-day bookings | By phone at +1 778-379-4052 |
| Cancellation | $100 CAD per person within 48 hours |
| Late arrival | 15-minute grace period |
| Dietary limits | No fully vegan, celiac, butter-free, egg-free, kosher or halal menus; one dietary request per party |
AnnaLena practical info as of October 2026: tasting menu $178 CAD per person plus drinks, 5% GST and tip; open Tuesday to Sunday, 5pm to 9pm; Resy bookings open 30 days ahead at 9am Pacific; $100 CAD per person late-cancellation fee. (Table: Burger Breton, data from the AnnaLena official FAQ (checked 10 October 2026))
Older reviews quote lower prices, such as $149 CAD in The Infatuation’s September 2025 review. Budget with the official FAQ figure. For two people, that is $356 CAD for food alone, before tax, drinks and tip.
Check the dietary policy before you book: it is strict. If someone in your group is celiac or fully vegan, AnnaLena says it cannot accommodate them.
Downtown Vancouver and the West End at dusk, seen from Kitsilano Beach: a walk here before AnnaLena’s first 5pm seating is the classic way to start dinner in Kitsilano. (Photo: Adam Jones, Ph.D., CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dusk\_View\_of\_Downtown\_and\_West\_End\_from\_Kitsilano\_Beach\_-\_Vancouver\_BC\_-\_Canada.jpg))
Where AnnaLena fits in Vancouver’s burger scene
AnnaLena belongs to Vancouver’s burger story through its chef, not its menu. Robbins made his name in Kitsilano with the Oakwood burger, and his two-star kitchen still plays with the cheeseburger in dishes like Cheeseburger 2050.
My take: book AnnaLena for the tasting menu and the occasion, not for a burger. At $178 CAD a head before wine, it is a celebration dinner, and the dietary rules mean you should read the FAQ before you open Resy. For a burger you can order any night, our Vancouver burger guide is the better starting point. Touring British Columbia? Add our best burgers in Victoria, BC guide to the trip.
Heading east? Our Canada coverage continues with the best burgers in Toronto, the best burgers in Montreal and a practical guide to A&W at Ottawa’s Rideau Centre. Browse every city on the Burger Breton restaurants hub.
AnnaLena Vancouver FAQ
Who is the chef at AnnaLena in Vancouver?
Michael (Mike) Robbins is AnnaLena’s owner and executive chef. He co-owns the restaurant with Jeff Parr, who runs operations as general manager.
How many Michelin stars does AnnaLena have?
AnnaLena has two Michelin stars. It earned its first star on 27 October 2022, in the inaugural Michelin Guide Vancouver, and its second on 6 October 2026.
What is Vancouver’s first two-Michelin-star restaurant?
AnnaLena, in Kitsilano, is Vancouver’s first two-Michelin-star restaurant. Michelin promoted it on 6 October 2026.
How much is the AnnaLena tasting menu?
The tasting menu is $178 CAD per person as of October 2026, according to AnnaLena’s official FAQ. Drinks, 5% GST and tip are extra.
How do you get a reservation at AnnaLena?
Reservations open on Resy 30 days ahead at 9:00am Pacific time. For same-day tables, call +1 778-379-4052. Cancelling within 48 hours costs $100 CAD per person.
Does AnnaLena serve a burger?
Not on its regular menu. AnnaLena serves a set tasting menu. Burgers have appeared at special events, such as the 100 signature burgers Robbins made for the restaurant’s second birthday on 13 March 2017.
What is the Cheeseburger 2050 at AnnaLena?
Cheeseburger 2050 is a deconstructed, burger-inspired tasting course. The Infatuation described it in 2025 as mimolette velouté, wagyu tartare and tallow-caramelized onion. North America’s 50 Best describes a past version with elk tartare, tallow-caramelised onion and cheeses.
Where did Michael Robbins cook before AnnaLena?
Robbins cooked at Glowbal, Coast, Sanafir and The Oakwood Canadian Bistro, according to the Georgia Straight. He was the Oakwood’s opening executive chef in 2011 and created its burger.
What does the name AnnaLena mean?
AnnaLena combines the first names of Michael Robbins’ two grandmothers, Anna and Lena.
Can AnnaLena accommodate vegan, gluten-free or other dietary restrictions?
Only partly. The official FAQ says the kitchen cannot serve fully vegan, celiac, butter-free, egg-free, kosher or halal diets, and it considers only one dietary request per party.
How I built this profile
This profile is not a dining review and gives no rating. I compiled it from official and published sources, cross-checked them against each other and checked each one on 10 October 2026. Sources disagree on three points: the tasting menu price, the date of the first Michelin star and the ingredients of Cheeseburger 2050. In each case I used the official or most widely confirmed figure and say so in the text.
Sources
AnnaLena official site and FAQ (annalena.ca). Michelin Guide, AnnaLena listing. Daily Hive and CTV News on the 2026 two-star promotion. Destination Vancouver and BNN Bloomberg on the inaugural 2022 Michelin Guide Vancouver. North America’s 50 Best, AnnaLena listing. Scout Magazine: opening announcement (14 January 2015), second-birthday burgers (2017), third-anniversary menu (2018) and North America’s 50 Best (29 May 2026). Georgia Straight: Michael Robbins profile (9 March 2016), enRoute best new restaurants 2015 and the Oakwood Canadian Bistro closure. 33 Acres Brewing on the AnnaLena anniversary burger. The Infatuation, AnnaLena review (19 September 2025). Wikipedia, used only to cross-check Canada’s 100 Best rankings. All checked on 10 October 2026.
