The chequered floors of Vancouver’s Northern Cafe are warped, the only views are of nearby industrial warehouses, and diners waiting for a table must navigate the hazards of an active lumber yard. And yet the tottering restaurant, with its red vinyl booths and mismatched porcelain mugs, is so busy on a weekday morning that a scattered queue forms between pickup trucks and forklifts.
The rickety structure of the eatery, which sits above a hardware store, holds
