Sometimes all you think you need to feel better is some strip mall-quality Chinese takeout laden with MSG and comfort. If you're anywhere near Pasadena, however, you should ignore this instinct, and treat your taste buds to some gustatory fireworks at Yujean Kang's. Chef/owner Kang (for whom the restaurant is named) deftly fuses cuisine from all regions of China with a few Western influences in starters such as tea-smoked duck salad with black bean dressing or the chef's selection of dim sum. Favorite entrées include Chinese polenta with shrimp and mushrooms. Unlike your average Americanized Chinese eatery, Yujean Kang's also boasts a formidable wine list and ambitious desserts such as the mandarin orange cheesecake or the sweet red bean pancake served with vanilla ice cream. Full bar. Serving lunch and dinner daily.
Where the Locals Eat Rating
Best Chinese
Top 100 Restaurant, Los Angeles
"Its sheer novelty may have worn off years ago, but this elegant temple of Chinese cuisine remains one of greater L.A.'s most important – and gratifying – restaurants."
—Gayot
"Yujean Kang's is more an Asian-themed bistro than the usual nondescript neon-lit neighborhood Chinese restaurant. The crowd, in fact, comes from all over, not just Pasadena. Kang's elegant cooking is the main draw, as the setting is modest. ... The service is always good, and when Kang is in-house, you can count on having an excellent Chinese meal."
—Los Angeles Times
"Many Chinese restaurants put the word gourmet in their name, but few really mean it – or deserve it. Not so at Yujean Kang's, where Chinese cuisine is taken to an entirely new level. A master of fusion cuisine, the eponymous chef/owner snatches bits of techniques and flavors from both China and the West, commingling them in an entirely fresh way."
– Frommer's
How others rate Yujean Kang's
Zagat 2008
26 Food Rating (Extraordinary to Perfection)
Los Angeles Times
** (Very Good)
Frommer's
** (Very Highly Recommended)