One of Plant Based Heat owner Ralph Johnson’s earliest memories is about flavor.

“I was licking the cake bowl when my mom was making cakes, and I was 8 or 9 years old. The climax of her finishing that cake was when I could get the bowl and get my finger in it, so I could get that cake batter on my tongue,” Johnson said.

It should be no surprise then that, years later, Johnson would go on to develop flavorful recipes such as his Fye Junt burger with a hickory-smoked Beyond Meat patty topped with jalapenos, barbecue sauce and spicy mayo. The Fye Junt and many other flavorful meat-free versions of American standards are on the menu at Johnson’s vegan restaurant, Plant Based Heat, at 669 S. Highland St. 

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Plant Based Heat is one of 28 local restaurants participating in this year’s Memphis Black Restaurant Week, which started last Sunday and runs through Saturday, March 12. During the week, participating restaurants will offer nearly 100 specials at a discounted price. 

Johnson hasn’t decided what specials he’ll be offering yet, but he said customers can expect some surprises. 

“I’m pretty spontaneous, but I have some ideas in my head about what I might want to do outside of the regular menu,” he said. 

That regular menu is already quite large, offering a mix of meat-free burgers, vegan wings (which Johnson calls Vings), corndogs, fried oyster mushrooms, barbecue jackfruit and a Philly cheesesteak made with pecan meat, among other dishes. Johnson says his Plant Based Heat Classic burger and the Vings are his top-sellers. 

Johnson, a former radio personality and nightclub owner, opened Plant Based Heat in the summer of 2021, with a grand opening last Juneteeth. 

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While Johnson hopes Black Restaurant Week exposes even more Memphians to plant-based eating, he says about half of his current clientele are meat-eaters. His spot is next door to Crumpy’s Hot Wings, and Johnson says customers often visit both locations.

“We’ve introduced vegan food to so many people just through word of mouth. People are apprehensive to try things, but when someone you trust says, ‘Try this cauliflower; it’s good,” that word of mouth is more powerful than anything,” Johnson said. 

It was Johnson’s passion for food, coupled with an overall desire for better health, that led him to a plant-based diet. He said he’d always been a fan of vegetables, and he’d often enjoy vegan meats alongside his hot wings and turkey legs. But after watching the vegan documentary, “What the Health?” Johnson experimented with a raw food vegan diet for a month and saw immediate improvement in a sports injury that had been bothering him. 

Johnson started playing around with vegan cooking at his home in Atlanta during the lockdown period of the pandemic, posting recipes on social media. People were leaving comments about how good his food looked, so Johnson held some vegan pop-ups in Atlanta to share his dishes.

“Then I did some in Memphis, and people were like, when are you coming back?” he said.

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In fact, his Memphis pop-ups were so successful that Johnson decided to take the plunge and move back to Memphis to open a brick-and-mortar restaurant during the height of the pandemic. Johnson says there have been challenges, like being short-staffed and having a small kitchen, but he said, “It’s been really, really fun, and the city has wrapped their arms around us and showed their support.”

Now, Johnson says they’re considering an expansion, either with a new location in Atlanta or another in Memphis, and he’s looking to get some Plant Based Heat-branded products, such as his signature sauces, on store shelves.

“Every day has been a ride. It’s been a blessing for the last nine months now,” Johnson said.