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"Committed to thoughtful ingredient sourcing since 2019, chef Chris Yang’s Alhambra restaurant has evolved from beef noodle soup beginnings through pandemic-era daytime fare to an evening dinner and wine service, and six years in it runs like a well‑oiled machine with a clear sense of its place in the San Gabriel Valley dining scene. The breezy, minimalist room shifts with the day: abundant natural light pours through windows and skylights in the morning, while vibey candlelight casts an inviting glow at night; it’s easygoing for solo diners, couples, and families, and even with the music dialed up it’s easy to hear tablemates. For brunch, the cornmeal mochi pancake is essential—a plate‑filling flapjack made from blue cornmeal and mochiko rice flour. Cold sesame noodles, a mainstay through all of Yang’s eras, use local pasta maker Leah Ferrazzani’s spaghetti slicked in a highly slurpable sesame sauce with cucumbers, pickled carrots, crushed peanuts, cilantro, and scallion; add homemade chile crisp for extra heat. Fans of Hainan chicken rice should try the clever Hainan fish rice with dry‑aged sea bass served over chicken fat rice enriched with chile butter, with ginger scallion sauce and pickled cucumbers alongside. For a playful pour, the “Mystery Glass of Wine” is a fun, affordable way to get a random splash of bubbles, orange, white, or red. Daytime can get busy, especially on weekends, so use the Waitlist feature on Yelp to put your name down before arriving." - Cathy Chaplin