Hidden Gems: Meet Brian Portman of Lemon Shark Poke

Today we’d like to introduce you to Brian Portman.

Hi Brian, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
The story begins with the dream of owning a business. We started looking at franchise business about five years ago and discovered Lemon Shark Poke. At the time they had just begun selling the franchise and only had a few stores open.

Although we had never run a restaurant before the concept of a Poke Bar was compelling. Poke is a traditional Hawaiian dish best described as sushi in a bowl. Poke allows the consumer to choose an endless amount of combinations of fish toppings and sauces. Lemon Shark is a very streamlined operation that doesn’t require the amount of cooking a normal restaurant requires.

We decided to move forward with the purchase of a Lemon Shark franchise for Salt Lake City in 2018. We selected an excellent location in the historic Judge Building at the corner of Broadway and Main St. Through an unfortunate series of events construction was on and off for two years. In March 2020, we were 90% complete and planning to open.

Then Salt Lake City experienced a significant earthquake which damaged part of the building causing another delay. While under this delay the Covid 19 outbreak began and everything shut down for the next year and a half. Finally, we got back on track, and construction was completed. We officially opened the store on March 25th, 2023 nearly five years after purchasing the franchise.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The road has not been smooth. There were significant delays during construction. The building itself is in the Salt Lake City historic records and requires a different set of permits with permission. The building manager insisted on a redesign of the layout. This caused months of lost time.

The construction company which was doing an excellent job also had communication issues with the building manager which further aggravated the situation causing more delay. Start, stop, start to stop for over a year. Normally a project like this should take less than 6 months. Then of course the earthquake caused damage to the building which stopped construction until the engineers cleared it.

Covid 19 locked everything down for one and a half years. We also had the summer of riots in which the front glass of the restaurant was vandalized. After the pandemic, foot traffic downtown had changed. The majority of companies went to a hybrid work arrangement reducing the physical presence of people downtown. On a positive note, there is a lot of housing being built and a lot of events, which should bring people back downtown. Almost five years after signing the lease before we were able to open.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Lemon Shark Poke offers the best Poke in the state of Utah. Poke is sushi-grade fish cut into small pieces. We serve our poke over rice, noodles, or greens with fresh veggie toppings and flavorful sauces. What really sets us apart is our fine casual experience. Starting with the food which is prepared fresh every day. Fresh tuna, salmon, and Krab paired with fresh fruit and vegetables give the diner an endless amount of combinations to build a bowl.

Diners may also choose one of our Signature Poke Bowls each of which offers a different flavor. We also offer hot food for those diners who may not want to eat fish. Bento Boxes are cooked to order and include some wonderful items like Garlic Furikake Chicken or Sticky Asian Pork Ribs. Small plates for those who want a flavorful snack.

What sets us apart from other Poke shops is our focus is not only on the freshness and quality of the food, but our diner’s experience; we hope to invigorate the mind and soul of each diner, we want each person who visits us to leave feeling healthy.

Pricing:

• One scoop Poke $11.95
• Two scoop Poke for $13.95 with a free premium topping
• Three scoop Poke $15.95 with a free premium topping and krab topping.
• Signature Poke bowl two scoops $13.95, three scoops $15.95.
• Bento Box $17.95 with a choice of salad and a side dish.

Contact Info:

• Website: Lemonsharkpoke.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lemonsharkpokeslc/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/lemonsharkslc/
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/lemonshark-poke-salt-lake-city-2
• Other: https://www.google.com/search?q=google+reviews+lemon+shark+slc&rlz=1C1RXMK_enUS1049US1049&oq=google+reviews&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUqBggAEEUYOzIGCAAQRRg7MgYIARBFGDkyBggCEEUYQDIHCAMQABiABDIKCAQQABixAxiABDIGCAUQRRg8MgYIBhBFGDwyBggHEEUYPNIBCDUxNjVqMGo0qAIAsAIA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#lrd=0x8752f51027206871:0xa5450a27c4b1403a,1,,,,