Ionian Hospitality has an Italian café and restaurant in the works for Commercial Drive, while its Mediterranean tapas bar prepares to reopen nearby on November 6.
Morning espresso, a panino for lunch and Roman-style pizza later in the evening: that is the plan for Bar Tifo, a new Italian concept coming to the corner of Commercial Drive and Graveley Street.
The restaurant is the next project from Ionian Hospitality Group, the team behind Loula’s Taverna, Sopra Sotto, Claudio’s Ristorante and Pax Romana. The announcement points to spring or summer 2027 for Bar Tifo, with an exact opening date still to come.
What to expect at Bar Tifo
The idea takes its cue from Italian bars that welcome people throughout the day, starting with coffee and carrying on into the evening. A café area at the front will offer espresso, pastries, panini and pizza by the slice for takeaway.
Later, the focus will shift to small plates, Roman-style pizza and pasta, alongside wine, cocktails, imported beer and local craft beer. A patio is also planned, bringing some of that activity onto the street in Vancouver’s Little Italy.
Ionian also describes Bar Tifo as a sports bar, although details about that side of the concept have not yet been shared. The full menu, pricing and opening hours are still to come.
Pax Romana returns to Commercial Drive
There is more immediate news from the same group. Pax Romana is set to reopen on Friday, November 6, in a new space behind Loula’s Taverna, with its own entrance off the alley at Commercial and Graveley.
The original Pax Romana opened in 2023 and closed this past July ahead of the move. Head chef George Lesner and bar manager Prateek Balraj are returning, while artist Adeline Poufong has created a mural for the new room.
Lesner’s Mediterranean menu will mix returning dishes with new additions. The announced lineup includes patatas bravas with truffle Manchego and aioli, prawns with Calabrian chili and Livia bread, and rabbit with Iberian farrotto, roasted acorn squash purée and sobrasada. There will also be Basque cheesecake with fruit and rose Chantilly.
On the cocktail side, the Pax Negroni combines aged rum, Campari and medium cream sherry. The Pax Martini brings together gin, rose vermouth and fino sherry, while the espresso martini uses brown butter fat-washed dark rum.
Opening plans
Bar Tifo: Corner of Commercial Drive and Graveley Street, Vancouver. Spring/summer 2027 is the provisional opening window; the date has not been confirmed.
Pax Romana: Reopening November 6, 2026, behind Loula’s Taverna, with an alley entrance at Commercial and Graveley. Announced hours are Thursday and Sunday, 5 to 10 p.m., and Friday and Saturday, 5 p.m. to midnight.
