skip to main content

Vancouver’s Ovaltine Café reopens after successful online fundraiser

The exterior of Ovaltine Cafe in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside on Sunday December 17, 2023. (CityNews Image)

By Cole Schisler and Pippa Norman

Posted December 16, 2023 10:00 pm.

Last Updated December 17, 2023 4:31 pm.

An iconic café in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside has reopened after being damaged by a fire earlier this year.

The Ovaltine Café opened back up for business on Friday, welcoming customers for the first time since a fire set in the alley behind the café in May caused major damage.

The exterior of Ovaltine Cafe in Vancouver

The interior of Ovaltine Cafe in Vancouver

The interior of Ovaltine Cafe in Vancouver

Open Gallery 6 items

A GoFundMe page for the café has brought in just under $20,000 for the business, which has been open since 1942 and offers low-cost food for people living in the area.

The American-style diner features a strikingly unchanged, classic diner interior which has been seen in productions such as the X-files, Supernatural and I, Robot.

Submit a Correction

Accessibility Feedback

Top Stories

Remains found 17 years ago in Washington determined to be missing Mission teen

The Mission RCMP and the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office in Washington say remains that washed ashore in 2008 have now been determined to be that of a Mission teen who went missing 18 years ago. In...

1h ago

Coroner's inquest set for death of man in Tim Horton's

Dates have been set for a coroner's inquest into the death of a man in police custody inside a Tim Horton's in 2020. Vancouver police were called to the Tim Horton's on Main Street and Terminal Avenue...

2h ago

Golden Ears Park reopens following extensive storm damage

Outdoor enthusiasts will soon be able to reserve campsites at Golden Ears Park in Maple Ridge after climate impacts left the majority of the park closed for the winter. A press release from the Ministry...

1h ago

Trump backtracks on doubling steel, aluminum tariffs after Ford suspends electricity surcharge

U.S. President Donald Trump has backtracked on his move to double tariffs coming into effect on Wednesday on Canadian steel and aluminum to 50 per cent after Ontario Premier Doug Ford agreed to suspend...

2h ago

Top Stories

Remains found 17 years ago in Washington determined to be missing Mission teen

The Mission RCMP and the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office in Washington say remains that washed ashore in 2008 have now been determined to be that of a Mission teen who went missing 18 years ago. In...

1h ago

Coroner's inquest set for death of man in Tim Horton's

Dates have been set for a coroner's inquest into the death of a man in police custody inside a Tim Horton's in 2020. Vancouver police were called to the Tim Horton's on Main Street and Terminal Avenue...

2h ago

Golden Ears Park reopens following extensive storm damage

Outdoor enthusiasts will soon be able to reserve campsites at Golden Ears Park in Maple Ridge after climate impacts left the majority of the park closed for the winter. A press release from the Ministry...

1h ago

Trump backtracks on doubling steel, aluminum tariffs after Ford suspends electricity surcharge

U.S. President Donald Trump has backtracked on his move to double tariffs coming into effect on Wednesday on Canadian steel and aluminum to 50 per cent after Ontario Premier Doug Ford agreed to suspend...

2h ago

Most Watched Today

1:41

B.C. bans all U.S. alcohol at government stores

After pulling booze from “red states” last week, B.C. Premier David Eby now says all U.S. alcohol products will be removed from B.C. liquor stores. Jack Morse reports.

7h ago

2:11

Former BC Conservatives to sit as Independents in Legislature

Three former BC Conservatives MLAs say they will sit as Independents in the B.C. legislature. And as Monika Gul reports, they have not ruled out the possibility of forming a party should more members join them.

10h ago

1:56

Vancouver mayor under fire over leaked memo to ‘return’ Indigenous people out of Downtown Eastside

The BC Association of First Nations is calling upon Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim to abandon and apologize for what it says is a plan to relocate Indigenous residents in the Downtown Eastside. Kier Junos reports.

10h ago

2:13

Markets tumble after Trump stokes recession fears

Significant losses continued on the markets on Monday after U.S. President Donald Trump didn't deny the possibility of a recession. Business Analyst Kris McCusker looks at how bad the damage was and the wider recession fears.

1:32

'I feel terrible for the American people': Ford announces surcharge on energy exports to U.S.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced that a 25 per cent surcharge is now in effect for electricity exports going to the United States. The measure could cost up to $400,000 every day.