A steam kitchen built for the middle of a London weekday.
Steam Street exists because Chinese food in Britain is still treated as a fried, late-night indulgence. Steaming — the oldest technique in the Cantonese kitchen — gives you the same comfort without the grease, and it happens to be the most consistent way to cook at volume in a small city-centre unit.
Harrison Li
Harrison grew up in southern China, where a plate of steamed meat over rice was simply what you ate — quick, warming and entirely ordinary. Studying in London, he found the same food either absent or buried under a takeaway menu of fried dishes.
Steam Street is his answer: a tight menu of steamed mains built on real Cantonese pairings, cooked to order so every portion lands the same way, in a room that feels calm rather than transactional.
— Harrison Li, Founder
Founder-led, operator-built.
Harrison Li
Grew up eating steamed protein and rice as an everyday meal, studied in London at UCL and spent his time here watching Chinese food stay stuck in the takeaway category. Steam Street is his attempt to move it into the daily lunch rotation.
Shirash Pathirana
A career operator with senior multi-site experience at McDonald's, where consistency, throughput and labour discipline are the whole job. He owns the build of the kitchen model and the opening playbook.
- Former Wagamama chief executive
- Former Atis chief executive
- Multi-site London hospitality operators
Advisory relationships supporting the brand, operating model and growth plan.
What we stand for
Steamed, always
Every main is steamed to order. No deep fryer in the building, no oil-heavy shortcuts, no heat lamps.
Open kitchen
Steaming and prep in full view. If we would not show it, we would not serve it.
Real Cantonese technique
Marinades, timings and pairings drawn from home-style Cantonese cooking, translated for a fast-casual counter.
Speed without compromise
A tray in your hands in minutes. Fast is an operating standard, never a recipe decision.
Where we are
- Concept
Menu, format and the look and feel of the room developed and tested.
- Getting ready
Current stage. Recipes finalised, team building and launch list growing.
We are here - Site secured
Signing our first central London home.
- Fit-out
Kitchen build, front of house, brand fit-out.
- Opening
Soft launch, then full trading at site one.
- Sites 2 and 3
More London neighbourhoods once the first site is settled.
Come and see us
Press, partnerships, suppliers and future team members — we are always happy to talk ahead of opening.
Get in touch