Yujean Kang’s Asian Bistro mixes flavors of the Far East

Greer Wylder

The owners of South Coast Plaza were so impressed with acclaimed chef

Yujean Kang that they invited him to open the first Asian restaurant

in the mall.

His award-winning Old Town Pasadena restaurant was touted by an

L.A.-based poll as “the most exciting menu this side of Taiwan.” Now

he divides his time between two successful restaurants.

At South Coast Plaza, Kang chose not to duplicate Pasadena’s

Chinese-only menu. Here he plays with dishes, and the menu sports a

new Asian-inspired taste. He’s also broadened his repertoire of old

favorites, enhancing other selections with sushi and featuring

Beijing, Shanghai, Szechwan and Taiwanese favorites, along with a

sampling of Japanese.

Kang’s culinary background came from his mother. He learned to

cook at her Chinese restaurant near Berkeley. The rest is his own

creative genius.

The sleek South Coast Plaza restaurant was aptly designed with

crisp red and light-yellow ochre walls. There’s wood-stained sliding

panels and institutional gray-stained concrete floors. Pleated black

and natural bamboo shades encompass the contemporary bistro’s 30

tables. It lacks space for a sushi bar.

Kang’s focuses on extraordinary combinations, not on heaps of

food. The Asian cuisine is known for its mix of ingredients, always

fresh, never the same-old-thing. Kang prides himself on being able to

differentiate flavors; his sauces must have unique characters. A

shortcut in the kitchen is to repeat sauces, but that’s not Kang’s

style. He is careful with oils, and says tempura should be greaseless

when fried correctly. His staples are fresh fish, in-season

vegetables, pressed tofu, pungent garlic, ginger, premium veal loin

and a variety of noodles.

Surprises on the menu include the award-winning Chinese polenta

(it made the Los Angeles Times’ top 50 list), with prawns and

mushroom sauteed in a wonderful scallion and cilantro sauce ($12.95).

For dessert, try a warm red bean pancake with coconut sauce ($5.50).

Kang mixes authentic items not typically on menus: jellyfish,

tea-smoked duck, highly salted Korean-style roasted seaweed and

bonito flakes. He never uses flavor-enhancing MSG.

Fish is a mainstay on the menu, but there are also vegetarian,

chicken, pork, lamb, beef and veal choices. Especially worth trying

is the chef’s favorite golden trout, hang chow style, a whole

boneless golden trout sauteed with scallion, cilantro Thai chili,

garlic and baby bok choy ($23.95). Or, try the two delectable Chilean

sea bass choices; a Shanghai-style red braised version with roasted

garlic ($22.95); and the spicy Szechwan-style with garlic and spicy

soybean paste ($22.95).

Hot and cold Asian pastas are served at lunch only. All lunch

entrees are reasonably priced. They come with steam rice and choice

of nutritious miso (it’s reported to be rich in B vitamins and

protein), or wonderfully spicy hot and sour soup.

Kang is superior even with those hard-to-get-away-from Asian

dinner entrees, such as kung pao chicken with roasted garlic

($14.95); and Szechwan beef ($12.95) and chicken ($14.95). And his mu

shu pork is special; he sautes pork, pressed tofu, adds garlic,

chive, spinach and glass noodles, tops it all with an egg crepe and

serves it with Chinese pancakes ($13.95).

Homemade sorbets and ice creams are light and marry well,

especially after spicy dishes ($4.50). The mandarin orange cheesecake

makes a filling last course; it’s served with fresh fruit, raspberry

and passion fruit sauce ($6.50).

The sushi menu includes standard rolls: crunchy, California and

avocado; and specialty rolls -- dragon, New York and spicy tuna. Kang

describes them as gourmet sushi delicacies that focus on fresh fish

flavors. Cut rolls cost from $3.85 to $15; hand rolls cost from $3.60

to $4.75.

Kang has a substantial wine list, and says there’s a misleading

perception that wine doesn’t go well with Asian food. His special

wine-pairing dinners are debuting today at 7 p.m. He has invited the

proprietors of Stony Hill Vineyard’s Napa Valley to host.

The seven-course dinner, including dessert, is paired with

complimenting wines for $95 per person. Highlights of the meal are

the sauteed fresh julienne sturgeon with glazed walnut; sauteed fresh

loin of veal with garlic buds; a chopped Shanghai mustard greens

salad; and braised fresh black cod and chrysanthemum flowers

hang-chow style.

Some of the wines served include Gewurztraminer 1999, White

Riesling 2001 and Semillon de Soleil 1995. The price includes dinner,

wine, tax and service.

Lunch entrees cost from $8.95 to $12.95; rice dishes cost from

$7.95 to $10.95; vegetables cost from $7.95 to $9.95; tofu costs from

$8.95 to $12.95; dinner entrees cost from $12.95 to $18.95; chef’s

favorites cost from $15.95 to $23.95; and desserts cost from $4.50 to

$6.50.

* BEST BITES runs every Friday. Greer Wylder can be reached at

[email protected]; at 330 W. Bay St., Costa Mesa, CA 92627; or by

fax at (949) 646-4170.