Cactus Club Cafe Downtown Vancouver exterior 2

Cactus Club Cafe is a Canadian-owned chain of premium casual

restaurants A restaurant is a business that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services. Restaurants vary greatly in appearan ...

that originated in North Vancouver,

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

. The chain has since expanded to 31 locations throughout Canada, with other locations throughout British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Ontario.

History

Cactus Club Cafe was founded in 1988 by two former Earls waiters, Richard Jaffray and Scott Morison. The partners started with a restaurant named "Café Cucamongas", which they sold in 1988 to fund the establishment of the Cactus Club. In 1996, the company expanded into

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

during a financially challenging time period. The organization continued to thrive and by 1998 the company expanded to 10 locations in British Columbia and Alberta. In 2005, Richard Jaffray bought out Scott Morison's interest in the business; Morison has gone on to establish Browns Socialhouse, a similar chain of Canadian premium casual restaurants. According to a 2019 legal judgement filed in the Supreme Court of British Columbia: "Mr. Jaffray owns 50% of the voting shares and other shares equal to a 35% interest. Earl’s Holdings Ltd. also owns 50% of the voting share and other shares equal to a 45% interest. Stanley, the Fuller Family Trust, Rockefuller and Cacthold own the balance of the other shares equal to a 20% interest but no voting shares." By 2008, Cactus Club Cafe had 19 locations in British Columbia and Alberta. That year, the company took on

Rob Feenie Robert Feenie is a Canadian chef based in Vancouver, British Columbia. Culinary career His interest in cooking began during a high school exchange program in Europe. He attended Dubrulle Culinary Institute (now part of The Art Institute of V ...

(the first

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

to win '' Iron Chef America'') as its executive chef and "food concept architect". Dishes created by Feenie are indicated on the restaurant's menus with "RF". By the time of their 25th year in business, the company had about 2,500 employees and 27 locations. In 2013, Matthew Stowe, a product development chef with Cactus Club Cafe, was named the winner of ''

Top Chef Canada ''Top Chef Canada'' is a Canadian reality competition television series and is considered one of the most prestigious culinary competitions in Canada. The show premiered on April 11, 2011, on Food Network Canada. The first season consisted of 13 ...

'''s third season. In February 2022, The Fuller Family acquired full control of Cactus Club Cafe from Richard Jaffray.

References

External links

* {{Vancouver Corporations Restaurant chains in Canada Restaurants in British Columbia Food and drink companies based in Vancouver Canadian companies established in 1988 Restaurants established in 1988 1988 establishments in British Columbia

History

See also

References

External links