A veteran of Vancouver's food scene, Valeria Velazquez is striking out on her own.
She's behind Gina's, a new plant-based Mexican restaurant opening in Vancouver's Chinatown shortly, with a menu filled with tacos, tostadas, and snacks.
Velazquez says she wants to keep the menu simple to keep the focus on the venue, which "is meant to be a safe space for people in the queer community," she tells V.I.A. "Especially of those underrepresented groups."
While Gina's will be open to all, the goal is to offer space specifically for queer women, trans people, and other gender-diverse people.
"There are lots of spaces that are safe spaces for gay men," she explains. "But not a lot of spaces for queer women or trans people, so I wanted to provide a space for them."
She notes she was partially inspired by the Lesbian Bar Project, a U.S. campaign that aims to preserve lesbian bars, as many have closed.
Owners parents operate restaurants in Mexico
Velazquez's menu is inspired by where she grew up.
"My parents have restaurants in Mexico, so I always have had that as my goal," she says.
Velazquez moved to Vancouver about eight years ago and has worked at a variety of places, most recently Gary's. When she was creating a business plan for Gina's, she saw a glaring gap in the LGBTQ+ market.
"Being here, I saw a lack of space for queer people like me," she says. "Some groups do events here and there in different spaces, and there's the Birdhouse, but it's a limited scene."
So, with the support of her parents, she's opening Gina's in March, so long as everything goes according to plan.
"If I have the opportunity to, why not do this?" she tells V.I.A. "Not only for myself but for other people."
Replacing Salt
Gina's is moving into 227 E Pender St. in Chinatown, a space formerly home to Salt. Salt initially started as a tasting room in Gastown serving wine and charcuterie dishes.
It closed in 2021 and reopened in Chinatown.
Owner Sean Heather, who's also behind the Irish Heather, says Salt closed quietly in August 2024.
"It burned brightly for the first few months after re-opening and then fizzled out," he tells V.I.A. "At that time, our other business The Irish Heather, was ramping up and our time and effort was needed there."
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