Union Hmong Kitchen - Lake Street
Caterer · Carag
901 W Lake St, Minneapolis, MN 55408, USA
Highlights
Hmong fusion cuisine with bold flavors like smash burgers and pork belly
Hmong fusion cuisine with bold flavors like smash burgers and pork belly
"Chef Yia Vang has opened a second location of Union Hmong Kitchen at his Hilltribe space on Lake Street, formerly home to pop-ups Slurp, Mee-Ka, and Mov." - Justine Jones
"Mee-Ka, which serves Hmong American comfort food, is chef Yia Vang’s latest pop-up on the bustling corner of Bryant and Lake. Modest decor keeps the focus on dishes like nqaij tsaws — which pairs tender braised pork with mustard greens and roasted veggies — spaghetti with Hmong sausage meatballs, and a smash burger with funky fermented radishes and hot kua txob ranch. Add a drippy fried egg for extra richness." - Natalia Mendez
"There’s an intriguing cheeseburger on the menu of chef Yia Vang’s new pop-up, Mee-Ka. At first glance, it looks like a typical smash burger, its two thin patties blanketed with American cheese. But a first bite reveals its nuances: a tangy layer of fermented radishes, nutty flavor from toasted rice flour that’s mixed into the beef, and a smear of hot ranch sauce on the underside of the bun. Mee-Ka also features spaghetti and meatballs, pork katsu sandwiches, and more." - Justine Jones
"Yia Vang foregrounds Hmong flavors learned after immigrating to the United States, translating family recipes and cultural memory into competitive dishes that emphasize identity and nostalgia; his presence on the show helped introduce Hmong cuisine to a wider audience and underscored the emotional context behind the flavors." - Matthew Kang
"Started as a food truck, it was the narrator’s entry point into publicly serving Hmong food after years of cooking other cuisines; it helped him reconnect to family recipes and techniques and launch his public culinary career. The truck exposed him to both enthusiastic fans of Hmong cuisine and occasional anti-AAPI pushback, and he describes protecting his team by personally fielding complaints and standing between hate and his staff." - ByYia Vang, as told to Elyse Inamine
