Kang's Yujean Gourmet Chinese

Contributor

Citysearch

The Scene
The elegant, though slightly worn, dining room is reminiscent of a fine bistro, with brick-red walls, black-lacquer accents and white-clothed tables. Attentive servers don't miss a beat; water glasses are always full and meals are deftly distributed among the table. A mix of loyal locals and off-the-street diners avoiding the Cheesecake Factory line up almost every night.

The Food
Kang and his adept crew fuse traditional Chinese techniques with non-traditional ingredients, like Parma ham and Mediterranean calamari--the results are both appetizing and eye-catching. The rich enoki and black mushroom soup topped with a red bell pepper painting on snow-white meringue is as delicious as it is beautiful. Slippery dumplings stuffed with ground pork and doused in spicy-sweet chili oil are easy to devour and disappear far too quickly. Moist smoked duck gets the showstopper's treatment as it's deconstructed tableside, wrapped in paper-thin pancakes and beautifully matched with tangy hoisin sauce.