One of Asia’s most popular fast casual restaurants has landed here in North America, Pepper Lunch Canada is here! The DIY sizzling steak phenomenon is calling Richmond home to what will be the 1st of many locations here in the Lower Mainland with another set to open later this year in Downtown Vancouver. There are more than 350 Pepper Lunch locations Worldwide in Japan, China, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia, Thailand, South Korea and Australia. Diners cook their steak, meat of choice, and seafood to order on a special, patented hot plate created by Pepper Lunch founder, Chef and Inventor Kunio Ichinose. The cast iron hot plate is heated to 260 degrees Celsius in a matter of seconds using induction cooking technology and is sizzling hot at the table, you cook your food and decide when it’s ready. The hot plate maintains a temperature of around 80 Degrees for 20 minutes so your food stays warm without over cooking.
After walking in you order your meal and take a seat, your food is brought out to you and you can add one of Pepper Lunches MSG free sauces. Pepper Lunch Canada serves only Canadian Certified Angus Beef and local sashimi grade Pacific salmon in the restaurant and they insisted on MSG free sauce which had to be specially developed for the Canadian market. Flavor wise you can choose from a spicy soy or a honey garlic sauce and they use a umami butter to top the protein.
This is the signature Beef Pepper Rice ($8.95) (also available with salmon). With thinly sliced beef this doesn’t take to long to cook and as seen in the video above you want to mix everything together before eating. A lot of fried rice dishes I’ve had before the rice can be on the mushy side, this was totally different as they use a high quality Japanese short grain rice. The meat was really tender and it got a good sear from the hot plate, the rice also did a great job soaking up all those delicious juices and brownings from the meat.
Next up was the Kobe Style Beef Burger ($12.95). Unlike the rest of the entrée’s this is mostly cooked in the back and just finished at the table. Pepper Lunch doesn’t use any fillers in the Kobe patty so rest assured you’re getting 100% beef. They serve this with a sweet onion sauce which I really liked as it added a nice roundness to the beefy Kobe.
Moving on to the NY cut Angus Beef Steak ($25.95). After letting the steak cook for a couple of minutes and spreading that butter on it I dug right in, the meat was tender and juicy while not being overcooked. They serve some standard veggies with the proteins-corn,beans,carrots and bean sprouts which actually serve a dual purpose as you can put your meat in them when it’s done cooking so it doesn’t get over cooked.
Lastly I had the locally sourced sashimi grade Pacific Salmon ($10.95). This was one of my favorite plates of the day, the salmon was juicy and cooked perfectly (my Mom overcooked salmon as a kid and I hated it). What took this over the top for me was the honey garlic sauce, it added a nice sweetness that complimented the delicate salmon.
Overall I really enjoyed sampling some of the dishes at Pepper Lunch Canada, the concept is great and I think it’s going to do quite well in Richmond and Vancouver. In this age of unhealthy fast casual eateries it’s nice to see something healthy and flavorful enter the North American market. You can find out more about Pepper Lunch Canada here and their Richmond location opens March 14th, 2015.
**Disclosure-I was a guest of Pepper Lunch Canada, my food and drink was courtesy of the restaurant. I am not receiving any compensation for writing about my experiences and all opinions are 100% my own. Pepper Lunch Canada has not reviewed this post before publication.**
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