The owners of Little Saigon have done a nice job of updating the interior with plenty of seating and a clean dining room. Unlike several of the Vietnamese restaurants in town, Little Saigon features a full service bar with daily specials.

Doughy Pork Goodness

The menu covers all the essential dishes expected at Vietnamese restaurants including several varieties of Pho, noodle dishes, and rice bowls. There are also some Chinese and Korean dishes as well as exotic smoothie flavors. On our visit one of the daily specials were steamed pork dumplings and being a person that finds it hard to pass up any pork containing food, we ordered some. For our main course I went with a Banh Mi sandwich and Steph ordered a noodle bowl with shrimp.

The pork dumplings were a doughy treat. Served with a sweet dipping sauce, they were quickly consumed. My Banh Mi was filled with thinly

The Banh Mi

sliced pork, cucumbers, cilantro and julienned carrot and was served on a generous half loaf of French bread. The meat was tender and well seasoned, while the veggies were crisp and fresh. My only complaint  was it seemed there could have been more sandwich fillings to compete with the thick loaf of bread. The noodle bowl was filled with thin rice noodles, stir fried veggies, and shrimp with crushed peanuts and a sweet and savory sauce topping it all off. The dish was simple yet satisfying, which is something that the Vietnamese cuisine excels at.

Noodle Bowl with Shrimp

Little Saigon is a solid and acceptable addition to the North Broadway dining scene. Since they are open seven days a week you can get your Vietnamese fix any time.

Chiang Mai has flown under my restaurant radar for quite some time, but finally at the behest of a trusted friend, we headed down south to Hillside and 31st Street to see what it was all about. Judging by the bars on the windows, which in my experience is a good indicator of food quality, I expected a good meal. Inside we were unexpectedly greeted by a spacious and tidy dining room with pleasing hues of purple paint adorning the walls.

Duck Curry: Better than Whiskey on a Cold Day

While Chiang Mai is primarily a Thai restaurant, their lunch menu (11am-3pm) encompasses highlights from several Asian countries including Vietnam and China. All lunch specials come with your choice of salad, soup or egg roll, plus dessert. One of my favorite cold weather dishes is Thai curry so I ordered a spicy bowl of the roasted duck curry (Gaeng Phet Pet Yang, $6.95). My wife went with the mild version of Mussman curry ($6.50). For our appetizers I had the soup, while my wife tried the egg roll.

Hearty Potato and Chicken Curry

The clear broth soup was simple, but satisfying. It consisted of sliced green onions, small rice noodles, and wonderful toasted garlic. The egg roll was small compared to some behemoths you can pick up at buffets around town, but it was fresh and enjoyable. The duck curry included bamboo shoots, cherry tomatoes, basil, and tender pieces of duck bathed in a wonderfully creamy and spicy sauce. Although I ordered it “spicy” it was not overpowering. This was some of the best curry I have had in Wichita. The Mussman curry was comprised of chicken, chunks of potato, and peanuts in another very good curry sauce. For dessert we each got a freshly fried round doughnut that was most excellent.

Baby Approved Doughnut

The service at Chiang Mai was superb. Our waitresses were very friendly and took an immediate liking to our 10 month old son. He had a fried doughnut in front of him before we even had drinks at our table. If you are in a hurry, ordering online from their website is an option.

http://chiangmaithaiks.com/

Hot Soup on a Hot Day

I doubt the interior here has been updated since 1990 and for evidence of this I submit the vintage cigarette machine that is proudly displayed in the dining room. Although devoid of smokes, it is a reminder of the good old days when anyone could buy cigarettes from a machine. Yen Ching’s dining layout is just as unique as the interior design. The main dining area consists of about 10 tables, but there is also a balcony type level with additional seating.

We went to Yen Ching during the noon hour and were presented with the abbreviated lunch menu. It consisted of about 15 of your typical Chinese dishes and a few appetizers. All of the lunch dishes come with egg drop soup, a salad, fried rice, and a crab rangoon. I decided to try the Shrimp Chow Mein, while Steph ordered the special of the day, which was a combination plate of Sweet and Sour Pork and Chicken Chow Mein. The egg drop soup and salad appeared quickly after we put in our order, but neither of us were impressed with the first course. The egg drop was ok, but it is tough to enjoy soup  on a 100 degree day. The salad was basically just some lettuce with an average ginger sesame dressing. We liked our appetizer order of eggs rolls better than the soup and salad, but they tasted a bit bland.

A Heaping Dish of Shrimp Chow Mein

Our main courses were much more enjoyable. Both dished contained generous servings of the main entrée as well as fried rice and a crab rangoon. I was very happy with the Shrimp Chow Mein dish. It had plenty of well cooked and fresh tasting shrimp, a good variety of stir fried veggies, a savory sauce, and wonton chips. Although I would have liked  more pieces of broccoli, the wonton chips made up for that shortcoming. They provided an extra crunch and were a unique addition to the dish.  The Sweet and Sour Pork was a hit with both of us. Besides the fried bits of pork, slices of pineapple and veggies were mixed in the dish. The Chicken Chow Mein was just as good as the shrimp, although if you are not a fan of dark meat, like Steph, you may want to steer clear of it. Last but not least, the crab rangoon. Unlike most rangoon, they were not overly sweet, but very creamy and rich. I could have easily eaten several more of them.

While we were not completely blown away by the food at Yen Ching, they still turn out a decent product. With a lunch menu ranging from $6-$9, it is a good value that will leave you rather stuffed.

The Famous Crispy Walnut Shrimp

Fusa is set up much like a mall food court, with several counters offering different cuisines. There is Chinese, Japanese, Mexican, sushi, pasta, burgers, and last but not least, Gelato to top it all off. If you have picky eaters in your group there should be something at Fusa that will satisfy their needs. Ordering was a no brainer for Steph and I, we went with the honey crispy walnut shrimp and the honey crispy walnut chicken. Both dishes came served atop a bed of steamed rice(fried rice available upon request), with plenty of shrimp/chicken. The honey walnut sauce, while not quite on par with the Kwan Court version, was still very good. Coupled with some decent fried shrimp and chicken it was a satisfying meal.

After finishing our lunch we walked to the back of the restaurant where the coolers of gelato( Italian ice cream) are located. Unfortunately there were many delicious flavors, so making a decision was rather difficult. I finally settled on pistachio and Steph was won over by the salted caramel. Our single serving cups were piled high with the creamy frozen treats. We were both pleased with our respective gelato, although it was not as good as Caffe Moderne’s.

A Heaping Cup of Caramel Gelato

If you are looking for a place where you can get your teriyaki chicken and quesadilla fix at the same time Fusa is a good option. Even if you’re not interested in multi-ethnic dining, the large gelato selection is worth checking out.

Inside you will find a small dining area that looks similar to many of the family run Asian restaurants around town. They are very proud of Malaysia as evidenced by the numerous travel posters that adorn the wall. Once seated our party was quickly served baskets of fried wontons and a delicious sweet strawberryish dipping sauce. It was a solid way to start off our meal. The menu is good sized for a small place and has something for everyone. If you are just looking for good ‘ol Chinese dishes they have those, you can get your Thai fix with some curries and Pad Thai, and they also offer Malaysian dishes.

Steph ordered a combination plate of Lo Mein with shrimp, chicken, and beef, while I opted for something called Chow Kueh Teow, which apparently is a “famous Malaysian” dish. The Chinese dishes on the menu are served with an egg roll and crab rangoon. Being a connoisseur of crab rangoon I thought Cafe Asia’s were just ok, but their egg roll was good.  When the main dishes came out, we were both greeted with a large amount of food.

How About a Big Dish of Chow Kueh Teow?

The Chow Teow was a tasty dish that consisted of wide rice noodles, sprouts, egg, and plenty of beef, chicken, and shrimp. The ingredients were coated in a brown sauce that was well seasoned, but not overpowering. The chicken and veggie Lo Mein did not disappoint either. The thick noodles were cooked perfectly with no mass of clumped up noodles that one can sometimes get when ordering Lo Mein. Once again they did not skimp on the various parts of the meal. The sauce was a bit on the bland side, but tasted much better than when Dillons drowns their Lo Mein in soy sauce.

After our experience at Cafe Asia, we decided it will become our new place for Chinese/Asian take out. So farewell Great Wall and Dillons, we will no longer need your services, except maybe when we have a crab rangoon craving. If you are in the mood for some type of Asian dish and lots of it, look no further than Cafe Asia.  If you didn’t already jump in the car immediately at the mention of fried wontons with dipping syrup then now is your time.

I attempted to take a picture of the hours of operation at Cafe Asia because it was the only way I would remember them. Unfortunately I took the picture with a phone camera, leaving much to the imagination. Here is my interpretation: Basically they are closed on Sunday and Monday, closed for lunch on Saturday and Tuesday, and then there is a break between 2:30 and 5 on the other days(Although it could be 4:30 or maybe 6pm?). During the week they close at 8pm, but on Friday and Saturday they don’t close till 9pm. Got all that? Just go around noon for lunch and around 7 for dinner and you should be ok unless of course its a leap year and then you’re out of luck.

Tell Me What the Hell This Says and Win A Prize

The menu has a decent selection of Chinese favorites, a couple Korean dishes, as well as “Noodle Creations”, and “Rice Creations”. On this visit I went with the almond chicken stir fry. The dish came heaped with fried rice and two mandu. Mandu are Korean dumplings, which in this case were filled with ground meat and fried. The almond chicken was very good. You could tell that it had been freshly made with vegetables and chicken that were cooked to the right doneness. The fried rice was good, certainly not overly greasy, but not quite as good as Manna Wok’s rice. There were several sauces offered on the table, so I decided to sample those as well. If you happen to have a stuffy nose I would recommend  the spicy mustard because it will clear you out in a hurry. The sweeter of the sauces went very nicely with the fried mandu.

If you are looking for good Chinese takeout, this is your place. Their cheap prices, made to order dishes, and that fact that they serve till 9 pm on most night makes this a good alternate to picking up some Lo Mein that has been sitting at Dillons for 3 hours.