New Asian Fusion eatery in Kamloops overcomes challenges of unpredictable restaurant industry
An Asian fusion restaurant recently opened on Kamloops’ North Shore with a menu full of Vietnamese, Japanese, Thai and South Korean dishes.
Owners Carl and Lia Kim have been working long hours, six days a week for the past few months, and despite some initial unexpected setbacks they opened the doors of Pantastic Grill on Jan. 2.
Starting a restaurant business is a tricky financial investment these days with rising food costs, unpredictable challenges such as staffing shortages, the need for costly repairs and the risks of expensive damage from crime.
Carl said financially surviving the first year in the business and building a customer base takes creative thinking, delicious food and great customer service.
“We’re getting to know this area and the people, and we have good neighbourhood businesses here, we’ve got a lot of help from the community,” Lia said. “I’m happy with the location.”
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Since starting the business, the water tank broke, the kitchen needed renovations and the electric furnace for the building broke down. It has taken a financial toll but Carl is seeing more customers coming in and is working to make the venture a success.
“Fortunately, people love our food, they’ve put a lot of good Google reviews and good comments in local Facebook groups,” he said. “One person comes in and then brings another person in, it’s how it works.”
Carl and Lia once owned a sushi restaurant in the Valleyview neighbourhood but sold it a few years ago in order to focus on spending quality family time while their kids were young.
“We’ve been eating, playing and travelling a lot, and now my bank balance is getting very small,” Carl said with a chuckle. “We decided let’s find a nice spot and go again. I have to get caught up financially, I have no option, I already started this.”
Lia graduated with a double major in culinary arts and baking in the United States where the couple was living until moving to Kamloops almost a decade ago.
The pair made a menu showcasing some of the most popular Asian cuisine, including Vietnamese noodle bowls, Korean style garlic bread and red Thai curry.
“We use grilled pork in our soups and sandwiches, we don’t have fried pork here,” he said. “Grilling takes more labor, it takes more cleaning, but it makes a big difference in taste.
"We have a sandwich with grilled pork and we put a side of extra meat. Starting out, we have to give a lot to the people and then later, in six months or a year, people will bring more people.”
He's offering delivery services himself now to avoid the costs of delivery service fees, which he said are high.
“Delivery services charge 23 per cent, it’s too expensive, so we do free delivery for orders within five kilometres and charge a 10 per cent fee for orders further away,” he said. “It’s a competitive industry and to survive, I have to come up with ideas like this.
“I will try everything I can, you have to be smart to survive in this business.”
Carl said he isn’t concerned about crime in the neighbourhood and came up with some ideas to lessen the risk. The front windows have bars over them, and cameras, motion sensors and an alarm system are in place.
“I thought about security, so there are two screens on the wall, one showing our menu and the other shows the back parking lot, so while a customer is eating they can see and check their car is secure,” he said.
Located at 273 Tranquille Road, Pantastic Grill is open from 11 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. from Monday to Saturday.
Go here to see the menu for Pantastic Grill.
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