Celebrated Commercial Drive restaurant abruptly closes following death of head chef

Bouquets of flowers can be seen outside of Oca Pastificio on Commercial Drive in Vancouver on July 14, 2023.

Bouquets of flowers have been dropped off outside of a popular and celebrated East Vancouver restaurant that abruptly closed following the death of its young co-founder and head chef.

Oca Pastificio, on Commercial Drive, shared the news by posting a brief tribute to Greg Dilabio Thursday on its Instagram. He was born in 1985.

"To the best one of us. The biggest heart. We love you," it says.

The restaurant opened in December of 2019, just months before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic which would wreak havoc on the hospitality industry and result in the closure of many decades-old establishments in Vancouver.

But Oca Pastfificio not only survived, it thrived. It doesn’t take reservations and lineups begin well in advance of its 5 p.m. opening on most days. It has made its way onto lists of the best restaurants in Canada and received a Bib Gourmand from the prestigious Michelin Guide.

All of the accolades note that one of the defining features of the restaurant was that visitors were able to watch Dilabio make and cut their pasta mere minutes before it landed on their table.

The 20-seat Italian eatery is described on the website as the vision of Dilabio and his long-time friend and partner Antoine Dumont, who both spent years working in other people's restaurants before opening their own. Their goal was to create "a cozy, comforting spot, serving honest, fresh, handcrafted pasta, based on local and seasonal ingredients."

Tributes to the late chef are pouring in online. Other businesses in the area are offering condolences and colleagues and customers alike are mourning the loss. The hundreds of comments on the Instagram post describe Dilabio as talented, passionate about his craft and kind.

The restaurant now displays a hand-written "we are closed" sign in its front window.