Kirin Sushi Restaurant

What Kirin Sushi Restaurant does

Kirin Restaurant is a privately-held, multi-location fine Chinese dining establishment operating in Greater Vancouver, British Columbia since 1987. The company runs three restaurants — Downtown Vancouver (1172 Alberni St), Richmond (Three West Centre on Westminster Highway), and New Westminster (350 Gifford Street, branded as Starlight) — with a combined seating capacity of 940 guests and 94 banquet tables. The core offering is Northern Chinese and Cantonese cuisine featuring handcrafted dim sum, premium seafood dishes such as abalone and lobster, and signature items including Peking Duck and Roasted Suckling Pig. The business operates a traditional dine-in model complemented by a strong banquet and event hosting vertical covering weddings, corporate functions, birthdays, and community events with pre-set customizable menus. Pricing for banquet offerings ranges from approximately $63-$70 per person for abalone/lobster set menus to $888-$2,688 per table for premium set menus.

The company generates revenue through four streams: dine-in restaurant service, banquet and event catering, seasonal retail products (Chinese New Year puddings at $19.98-$20.98, handcrafted Dragon Boat rice dumplings), and restaurant gift cards with a $25 minimum. A sister company, Kirin Fine Foods, extends the brand into frozen Chinese food products distributed via T&T Supermarket in BC and online at kirinfinefoods.com with options for store pickup or home delivery. The company also operates a sub-brand called Shang Noodle House at the New Westminster location. Marketing is conducted primarily through organic channels — a website, Facebook, and Instagram — supplemented by seasonal promotions tied to Chinese cultural festivals and a long-running community partnership with S.U.C.C.E.S.S. and Vancouver Coastal Health for multilingual mental health Help Lines established in 2002.

Leadership is anchored by a chef team with deep Hong Kong institutional pedigree. Group Executive Chef Allen Liu (joined 1989) was a guiding force in the 'New Era' Cantonese cuisine movement in 1980s Hong Kong. Deputy Group Executive Chef Charles Ngau brings experience from renowned Hong Kong institutions including The Green Garden, Lee Garden, Fook Garden, and Hon Lung Kwok. Head Chef Kin Ming Tam (joined Richmond in 1998) is known for knife mastery honed at Maxim's Group. The company has earned multiple recognitions including Top 20 Restaurants in Vancouver (Gourmet Magazine, 1996), Lifetime Achievement Award (Vancouver Magazine, 2012), and Outstanding Restaurant of the World (Travel Holiday).

Name

Kirin Sushi Restaurant

Website

https://kirinrestaurants.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1987

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Kirin Restaurant operates three fine Chinese dining locations across Greater Vancouver since 1987, serving Northern Chinese and Cantonese cuisine, dim sum, seafood, and banquet events, complemented by a frozen-food retail sister brand Kirin Fine Foods.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Chinese Fine Dining Restaurants

NAICS

Restaurants and Other Eating Places (72251), Food Service Contractors (72231)

SIC

Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810)

akta.pro primary industry

Ethnic & Regional Cuisine Restaurants (THAFACAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Ethnic/Regional Prepared Meat & Seafood Meals (e.g., Asian, Latin, Mediterranean) (AFANAFAJ)

Keywords

• Chinese fine dining
• Cantonese cuisine restaurant
• Dim sum service
• Banquet event catering
• Frozen dim sum products

Headquarters

HQ city

Hammond

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Restaurant Dining Service: Traditional dine-in restaurant service across three locations serving lunch and dinner. Revenue from individual customer meals including dim sum, à la carte items, and specialty dishes. Lunch service on weekdays and weekends, dinner service nightly.
2. Banquet and Event Catering: Wedding banquets, corporate functions, birthday celebrations, and other special events. Pre-set customizable banquet menus available. Venues accommodate 22-40 tables depending on location.
3. Frozen Foods Retail: Kirin Fine Foods sister company produces frozen dim sum and entrées sold online and at T&T Supermarkets in BC. Extends restaurant quality cuisine to retail/home consumption.
4. Gift Products: Restaurant gift cards (minimum $25 purchase), seasonal gifts including handcrafted rice dumplings for Dragon Boat Festival and CNY puddings for Chinese New Year.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Kirin Restaurant operates three Chinese fine-dining locations in Greater Vancouver serving Northern Chinese and Cantonese cuisine, handcrafted dim sum, premium seafood dishes (abalone, lobster, Peking Duck), and banquet/event hosting across 94 banquet tables. The Kirin Fine Foods sister company produces and retails frozen dim sum and entrées online and at T&T Supermarket locations. Adjacent offerings include handcrafted rice dumplings for Dragon Boat Festival, Chinese New Year puddings, and gift cards redeemable at all three locations.

Product overview

Kirin Restaurant is a multi-location fine Chinese dining establishment offering Northern Chinese and Cantonese cuisine across three Vancouver-area locations (Downtown Vancouver, Richmond, and New Westminster/Starlight). The core offering is the restaurant dining experience featuring handcrafted dim sum, premium seafood dishes, and specialty items like abalone and suckling pig. Adjacent offerings include banquet and event services for weddings and celebrations, Kirin Fine Foods frozen products for at-home dining, seasonal items such as Chinese New Year puddings and Dragon Boat Festival rice dumplings, and restaurant gift cards. The portfolio ranges from in-restaurant dining as the primary revenue driver to retail frozen products and catering services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• KirinFineFoods: Sister company producing frozen Chinese food products including dim sum, entrees, and specialty items for at-home dining

Products and services

• Kirin Restaurant Dining
• Banquet and Event Services
• Kirin Fine Foods Frozen Products
• Chinese New Year Puddings
• Handcrafted Rice Dumplings
• Restaurant Gift Cards

Quantifiable outcome

• EnRoute Magazine review: 'posh, comfortable and smoothly run with a vast range of choices on its multipage menu'
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• S.U.C.C.E.S.S.coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2002Partnership with S.U.C.C.E.S.S. and Vancouver Coastal Health to establish Help Lines in 2002, addressing urgent mental health support needs within the community. Help Lines offer confidential, culturally-sensitive telephone support in Cantonese, Mandarin, Korean, and Farsi-Dari languages. Dedicated trained volunteers answer calls 10am-10pm, 365 days a year, assisting callers locally and internationally.
• Vancouver Coastal HealthcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-founded S.U.C.C.E.S.S. Help Lines partnership in 2002 to provide culturally-sensitive mental health telephone support services to multilingual communities.
• T&T SupermarketsupportingChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorHandcrafted Rice Dumplings for Dragon Boat Festival are sold at T&T Supermarket locations in British Columbia, providing retail distribution for seasonal gift products.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Maxim's Group: Hong Kong-based hospitality and F&B conglomerate that trained Head Chef Kin Ming Tam. Comparable as a benchmark for Chinese fine dining scale and brand-building, representing the kind of multi-location, multi-format Chinese F&B operation that a growing Kirin could aspire toward.
• Din Tai Fung: Globally recognized Taiwanese fine dining chain famous for xiao long bao and dim sum with retail frozen products. Comparable as a premium Chinese dim sum brand that has successfully scaled both restaurant operations and a frozen retail line, representing an aspirational expansion model.
• Kirin Fine Foods (sister brand): Sister company of the subject producing frozen dim sum and Chinese entrées. Comparable as the retail/frozen product extension of the same brand, illustrating a model similar to other restaurant brands that have launched CPG lines (e.g., Din Tai Fung frozen dumplings).

Direct peers

• Sea Harbour Seafood Restaurant: Long-established Cantonese fine dining restaurant in Richmond, BC specializing in seafood dishes and banquet services. Directly comparable as a premium Cantonese banquet and seafood restaurant operating in the same Greater Vancouver market with overlapping customer base.
• Chef Tony Seafood Restaurant: High-end Cantonese seafood and dim sum restaurant in Richmond, BC. Comparable as a competitor for upscale Cantonese banquet business with similar menu focus (abalone, lobster, seafood specialties) in the same geographic market.
• Imperial Court Chinese Seafood Restaurant: Premium Chinese seafood banquet restaurant in Vancouver/Richmond. Comparable as a direct competitor for high-end Chinese banquet and seafood dining in the same metro area, serving similar clientele seeking luxury dining experiences.
• Sun Sui Wah Seafood Restaurant: Established Cantonese seafood restaurant chain in Greater Vancouver with multiple locations and banquet facilities. Comparable as a multi-location Chinese fine dining operator with similar banquet business model and overlapping target customers.

Emerging players

• Shang Noodle House: Listed as an additional DBA under the same New Westminster address as Kirin Starlight. Comparable as a sibling concept within the operator's portfolio, indicating experimentation with a noodle-focused, more casual format alongside the flagship fine dining brand.

Others

• T&T Supermarket: Largest Asian grocery chain in Canada and current distribution partner for Kirin's rice dumplings. Comparable as the channel through which Kirin's frozen/seasonal products reach consumers, and representative of broader Asian food retail that Kirin could partner with or expand into.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/KirinRestaurantGroup
• Instagraminstagram.com/kirinrestaurantgroup
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kirin-sushi-restaurant

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Kirin Sushi Restaurant