The GOODS from Torafuku

Vancouver, BC | Torafuku is ushering in the winter months with some new additions to its lunch menu on November 15th, including a hearty new noodle soup and five cold side dishes inspired by the share plates served in many Taiwanese-style restaurants. Also starting this month, Torafuku will extend its opening hours to serve hungry clientele lunch and dinner from Tuesday through to Sunday, only closing on Mondays.

The Pan-Asian restaurant on the border of Chinatown, now in its fifth year of business, will add a warming Torafuku Beef Noodle Soup ($15) to the lunch menu, featuring thin noodles with a sake-and-soy braised beef shank, pickled mustard cabbage, bok choy, and a marinated soft-poached egg. “It’s coming up winter and getting cold,” explains Torafuku executive chef Steve Kuan of the choice to serve a new comfort food. “It’s a time when people want soups and noodles, and I loved eating beef noodle soup growing up.”

In addition, five new inventive rotating side dishes will be available at lunch: a kimchi yuzu tomato salad; a dish of braised lotus root with ricotta cheese, miso tofu, and spicy chili oil; a king oyster mushroom tempura; a dish of marinated eggplant with ginger garlic and gochujang chili sauce; and a house-made white kimchi. All of the small sides are vegetarian, and served cold. “It’s a completely new concept in our restaurant, but in Taiwan the sides are normally pre-made and placed on a shelf in the restaurant,” explains chef Kuan. “When customers go in, they help themselves and share at their tables; the restaurant counts the number of plates at the end.” Here, the small side dishes will be ordered a la carte to the table—Torafuku Style—for $3.75 each, $10 for three, or an I Want It All option of $16 for five.

These tasty new offerings will join the already popular lunchtime Awesomeness in a Bowl rice bowls, served with the restaurant’s signature kickass rice—cooked with sake, butter, dashi, mixed herbs, pickled cabbage, and a poached egg—and a protein such as fried chicken, pork belly ($12 each), or a half-and-half bowl of fried chicken and pork belly ($13). Also still available on the lunch menu is the Bun Me ($5), a warm Chinese steam bun with pulled pork, pickled cabbage, crispy shallots, and sweet chili bean paste; the Finger Lickin’ Crispy Chicken ( $11) with seven-spice mayo, thai chili, and crispy shallots; and the addictive Everyday I’m Brusseling (OG Version), a hearty vegetable dish brimming with Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, broccoli, crispy kale, parmesan, and lemon juice ($11). For diners ordering a main dish who want to round out their meal, a lunch combo add-on option of $4.50 gives a choice of one side dish and a non-alcoholic beverage.

Torafuku is located at 958 Main Street, and is now open from Tuesday through Sunday for both lunch (11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.) and dinner (5:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.).

ABOUT EXECUTIVE CHEF STEVE KUAN | Owner of Torafuku and its predecessor, Le Tigre food truck, chef Kuan launched Le Tigre with two business partners in 2012 and, four years later, co-founded Torafuku to further bring Asian street food–inspired bites to the masses. Chef Kuan, who trained at the Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts and has cooked under legendary chef Bruno Marti, worked the kitchen during Torafuku’s opening year and was executive chef by the restaurant’s second year in business. He took on the role of bar manager in 2018, developing Torafuku’s Asian-inspired cocktail list.

ABOUT TORAFUKU | Meaning “lucky tiger” in Japanese, Torafuku is nestled on the border of Vancouver’s historic Chinatown at 958 Main Street, offering elevated Asian cuisine by Le Tigre food truck owner Steve Kuan. Designed for sharing, the casual and inventive menu explores the borders of pan-Asian food with classical French and Italian influences. Dishes are playful in spirit and serious in execution, delivering vibrant interpretations of flavours traditionally found in Japanese, Taiwanese, Korean, and Vietnamese cuisine. Every plate features seasonal ingredients sourced straight from local farmers. For more information, please visit torafuku.ca.

Torafuku

Neighbourhood: Main Street

958 Main St.

778-903-2006

WEBSITE