Pepper Lunch has their newest location in Vancouver on Cambie Street a block away from City Hall. I’ve been a fan of this place since they first opening up their Richmond location. This Japanese ‘fast-steak’ casual restaurant is popular all over Asia. I went to one in a Hong Kong food court, but I found that it wasn’t as good as these 2 Canadian location. This is most likely due to the sourcing of their ingredients.
I was invited for a sneak peek of the Cambie location.
The restaurant has 2 levels, but only the bottom floor is open. The owners said they would open up the 2nd level for private parties and special events. Their kitchen is open concept, so you can see right into the kitchen and observe how your meal is put together.
Here is the view from the other side. There’s not too many seats, so I would assume during peak times, there may be a bit of a wait. They can fit about 40 people on the main floor.
The menu has the same items as Richmond, so they have:
- Pepper Rice
- Premium Steak dishes
- Pepper Pasta
- Chicken and Salmon steak dishes
- Combos
- Kids Meals
- Dessert
- Drinks
They also have brown rice options for their dishes!
Genmai Cha is brown rice green tea with matcha. It comes in a prepackaged pouch.
You’ll need to do a bit of work, but thats ok since the tea is good. Since I’m a tea guzzler, I had to ask them a few times to refill my cup with hot water.
Beef pepper rice with added cheese and egg.
The dish is their best seller and you can’t go wrong with the added egg and cheese. When you mix it all together, it’s the perfect combination. We got this with the brown rice option.
Mix it all up so all the ingredients are well incorporated. Since the pan is piping hot, leave it in there to crispy up.
Kobe Burger with Egg was so good. Well spiced and had a good amount of cracked pepper.
Spread that brown butter on top and it’s ready to eat. It’s mostly cooked when it gets to the table, so you don’t have to cook it for a long time unless you want it really well done.
Scallop and Prawn Pepper Pasta was an item I haven’t tried yet. The pasta is topped with pepper, cheese, mushrooms and the seafood. The cream sauce is separate, so you have all the fun of pouring it into the skillet.
Look at that cream sizzle up when it hits the plate. Stir it up so the cream sauce coats all your noodles.
I found this dish ok, but I felt like it could have been more creamy or the noodles weren’t cook long enough.
Rib Eye Steak is 100% Canadian Certified Angus Beef, so you are getting the good stuff. We also got egg, corn and mashed potatoes added on. You will want to spread the butter on top and then cook both sides of the steak until its medium rare.
Once you are finished a bit of the dish, add the rice on the skillet to soak up the delicious sauce.
Steak is always best served medium rare. Or at least, that’s my preference.
Mushroom and Tofu Pepper Rice is the vegetarian option. You would mix up this dish as well just like the other ones. Since I’ve had the other pepper rice options, those who get this are really missing out on the beef, pork, chicken and salmon. It’s just not as good.
Salmon Pepper Rice is actually my favourite dish. The salmon they use is sashimi-grade, so you’ll be able to taste the difference. The corn is awesome too.
Make sure you don’t let the salmon overcook. We mixed it up quite quickly after it arrived on the table.
Mmmm Mmmmmm so good! I’ll always order this item.
I never realized they have Mochi Ice Cream for desserts. This was a surprise.
The flavours they have are:
- Vanilla
- Green Tea
- Black Sesame
- Mango
- Strawberry
- Red Bean
- Chocolate
We tried all but the chocolate flavour. I enjoyed the vanilla and black sesame ice cream mochi. The fruity flavours felt a bit artificial. Green tea was a bit mute. The skin of the mochi was thin and not too thick. The ice cream that lies inside was really a nice treat to end the meal. Great item for those who just need a small bite of something sweet after a meal.
Overall, its great to finally have a Vancouver location so close to Downtown. For those who haven’t been here before, you must try the Beef Pepper Rice or the Kobe Style Burger. Don’t forget to add an egg. The addition of the egg really pulls the dishes together.
We Rate Pepper Lunch: 
Address:
2323 Cambie St. Vancouver
Website:
http://www.pepperlunchcanada.com/
