Vancouver restaurant that had licence suspended says it’s closed until further notice

One of the Vancouver restaurants that had its licence suspended by the city on Monday has posted on its Instagram account that it is closed until further notice.

Corduroy Restaurant in Kitsilano will not be allowed to reopen until April 20 after the city said it repeatedly violated provincial health orders to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

1:09 Vancouver restaurant that had licence suspended says it’s closed ‘until further notice’

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Owner Rebecca Matthews took to the Instagram account Monday to thank everyone for their support over the past few days.

“I  just wanted to pop in here and say ‘we are here, we are figuring things out, how best to move forward,” Matthews said in an Instagram story.

“The reason we did this was not to make a couple of extra bucks, or because we think we’re better than anyone else, we should open and everyone else to stay closed, it has nothing to do with that. It’s because things need to change.”

Matthews said they were given no notice when the last health order was issued and they want to be a voice for small businesses.

In a final update posted Tuesday, Matthews said something has come to her attention that requires all of her focus and the restaurant is closed until further notice.

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Vancouver police said a liquor coordinator and provincial health officers attended Corduroy Restaurant on Saturday and issued a full closure order.

But the restaurant remained open to diners when Global News attended Saturday night.

Video posted to Facebook on Saturday showed what appeared to be staff with Vancouver Coastal Health attending to speak with Matthews.

In the video, Matthews, who is unmasked and has an infant strapped to her chest, tells the inspectors she does not recognize their jurisdiction and that they are trespassing.

Diners at the packed restaurant then join in a chant of “Get out! Get out!” prompting the health officials to leave to cheers from the crowd.

1:07 ‘Get out!’: Crowd chants health inspectors out of B.C. restaurant breaking COVID-19 health order

Cordory Restaurant wasn’t the only one that had its licence suspended until April 20.

Suspension letters and Vancouver Coastal Health closure orders were also posted on the front doors of Gusto’s restaurant in Olympic Village.

On Tuesday, B.C.’s Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth said the province has pulled Corduroy Restaurant’s liquor licence.

— With files from Emad Agahi