A Japanese ramen chain is expanding in Metro Vancouver yet again, marking its third food court stall concept in a single year.
Yep, we’re talking about Kinton Ramen, whom we just spotted with coming soon signage at The City of Lougheed food court.
The signage is hard to miss. Two yellow panels, the chain’s logo in black, a row of ramen bowls, and the line the brand puts on everything: A BOWL OF HAPPINESS.
Whoever printed it was moving fast. The headline on the big panel reads COMMING SOON, with two Ms.
Kinton Ramen opened its first food court stall concept at Waterfront Centre downtown earlier this spring.
A Noms Magazine community member then spotted coming soon signage inside Coquitlam Centre’s food court over the summer.
This Burnaby stall is the third in that run, which turns what looked like a one-off experiment into an actual strategy.
No opening date appears anywhere on the hoarding.
The Waterfront stall is the template worth knowing, because it ran nothing like the brand’s sit-down rooms.
Orders go through self-serve kiosks, a digital screen shows the queue, and pickup runs on numbers rather than table service.
The interesting part is that the food court stalls used the brand’s unique two-layer takeout bowls.
Bowls come in two layers so the broth travels separately from the noodles and toppings, which is the difference between lunch at your desk and a bowl of porridge.
There was a grab-and-go onigiri case for anyone who could not spare the twelve minutes.
The menu mirrored the full restaurants, with pork, beef and chicken ramen plus the usual add-ons, thick or gluten-free noodles, extra toppings, sides and combos.
If Lougheed follows that playbook, expect the same quick-service setup rather than a dining room.
Kinton has been serving Canadians for more than 13 years, with rooms including Robson, Broadway and Burnaby, plus its newer moves into Coquitlam and Richmond.
A stall costs a fraction of a restaurant to open and plants the brand in front of captive mall traffic, which explains why three of them landed inside one year.
Kinton Ramen Lougheed joins other upcoming Burnaby food spots including Captain Boil at Gilmore, Toppings InfiniTea at Crystal Mall, and Yang’s Fook Kee.
For more new and upcoming food spots in Metro Vancouver, take a peek at our tracker here, and subscribe to our weekly newsletter here.
Address: City of Lougheed food court, 9855 Austin Road, Burnaby
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