Immigrant chef, West Coast husband behind essential Huntsville restaurant

While most of us are still asleep, Mayleen Epperson is already at it. She gets to Pacific Pearl Kitchen around 4 a.m. to do her two-and-a-half-hour process for boiling pork belly. Hard work. No shortcuts. No wonder Pacific Pearl Kitchen, which Mayleen owns and operates with husband Michael Epperson, quickly became an essential local restaurant in Huntsville, Alabama since opening in October. Located at Huntsville arts center Lowe Mill, Pacific Pearl’s menu boasts cuisine from the Philippines, where Mayleen grew up, and from Hong Kong, a favorite of Michael’s. From pancit, lumpia, chicken adobo and lechon kawali (crispy fried pork…