'A remarkable feat': Hy's Steakhouse marks 60 years in Vancouver

One of Vancouver's oldest restaurants is celebrating a milestone anniversary six decades in the making.

Hy's Steakhouse on Hornby Street has been serving its signature steaks, seafood, cheese toast, and cocktails in the city's financial district since the early sixties.

General manager Christopher Langridge tells CTV News that the secret recipe for its success is all in the pudding. Or rather, the service.

"We do the most tableside, more than any of the other steakhouses," he says. "That makes the guest experience way more interactive."

Neil Aisenstat, president and CEO of Hy's, also attributes its longevity to the star-studded list of guests who dined there in the restaurant's early days.

Aisenstat's father opened the restaurant in 1962 — a time when Vancouver's entertainment district was hopping with shows starring the likes of Tina Turner and Diana Ross.

One of Aisenstat's fondest memories is when Muhammad Ali would frequent the restaurant when he was training in North Vancouver.

"Muhammad Ali was here in 1972 … fighting George Chuvalo," Aisenstat says. "Every day he would come in with Angelo Dundee and have lunch at a certain table at the restaurant."

Aisenstat was just 12 years old at the time, but he recalls having a conversation with the prolific boxer.

"I told him I wanted to be an athlete and he looked at me and said, 'Be a thinker, not a stinker,'" he says.

Back in its heyday, prices on the Hy's Steakhouse menu looked a lot different.

"A 16-ounce filet mignon for $6.90," says Langridge.

Over the past 60 years in business, Hy's has dished out approximately 2.2 million steaks, 2.2 million orders of cheese toast and 1.2 million orders of Caesar salad.

Hy's signature dessert of bananas foster has also been enjoyed about 445,000 times throughout the restaurant's history.

"It's actually quite mind-blowing … I think it's quite a remarkable feat," says Aisenstat about the restaurant's success.

"All of the accolades belong to the staff and guests at Hy's for keeping us in business for so long."

With files from CTV's Jason Pires.