Family Owned and Operated Restaurant
I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Bobzaa manager, Vash Vashist and learning more about this wonderful addition to Central Lonsdale in North Vancouver.
M: Bobzaa is a family owned business. What was the inspiration for the restaurant?
V: We have all worked in the restaurant industry in the last few years. One of my family members has been a chef for the past seven years, I have been a restaurant manager at different restaurants and have the front of house experience and my other family member has more of the fast food experience so we combined our skills and made it our goal to open Bobzaa.
M: How did you decide on the name for Bobzaa? What does it mean?
V: Initially, we just wanted to open a small bubble tea and pizza place. The name was decided before the location. Then we found this location, but it is pretty big for just bubble tea and pizza so we came up with other menu items as well.
The name Bobzaa is a combination of bubble tea and pizza.
M: Who in your family came up with the concept of a dessert cafe with bubble tea, Indian cuisine and brunch favourites? It’s so original.
V: It was a collaboration.
M: When did you open the doors to Bobzaa Dessert Cafe and Bistro?
V: We opened the doors to our restaurant in December 2022.
M: How did you decide on North Vancouver as the location? And why?
V: We live in North Van so we wanted our restaurant close by. Because it is a family business, we did not want to travel far. It’s just a 10 – 15 minute walk from here.
“We combined our skills and made it our goal to open Bobzaa”
M: Has the city and the community been receptive to Bobzaa?
V: It was hard because our goal was to open in three or four months and do the whole budget, but it took us seven months to get our restaurant license. It took forever because of COVID and we had several inspections. Every day we would wake up and go to City Hall to check the status on our license. They told us they did not know how long it was going to take because of COVID.
We invested everything and wanted to open now! We were working 24-7, day and night. It was hard to get the license.
M: Bobzaa collaborated with Nicole Hiebert, local promoter and artist and I for a Mother’s Day event. When will the next event be?
V: Well, we are planning. Nicole had the idea of a clothing swap. We want to do something different once a month so that’s our goal.
M: You also do private events. What do you provide and how long in advance do you need for customers to book the event?
V: We do all the decorations and everything if they choose to have it here at our location, we do full service. So they come here and just enjoy. If they book for their home, we do not decorate but we provide the catering service.
We need at least two weeks notice for customers booking an event.
M: What is your favourite item on the menu? For brunch, lunch and dessert?
V: For brunch I really like the waffles and for drinks my favourite is the Mango Frango. That is what I recommend to everyone. In food, I am a vegetarian, so I like the Potato Pizza. Also really good is the pesto and shrimp pizza. And for dessert, my favourite is the brownie. It’s vegan and gluten-free and you can’t even tell the difference when you taste it.
We only have one type of brownie and everyone has it. But no one can tell that’s it’s vegan.
It has been a long and difficult journey for Vash and her family to open the doors to their beloved Bobzaa. But they persevered and they did it! In the process of opening their North Vancouver restaurant, they have become experts in different industries; designed their own website, built their own tables and have done their own plumbing.
To order delicious dishes from their fusion infused menu, please visit their website and to stay up to date on their upcoming events, follow them on their Instagram page.
