<table border="0" align="right" width="260"><tr><td><img src="http://www.louisvillehotbytes.com/lettucewrap.jpg" border="1" align="right"></td></tr><tr><td>The lettuce wraps at Yang Kee Noodle (top) and I Ching Asian Cafe are similar, but Yang Kee provides more lettuce and goodies on the side. Photos by Robin Garr</td></tr></table>It's fast ... it's casual ... it's Asian!
(<b>Yang Kee Noodle, I Ching Asian Cafe, <i>Voice-Tribune</i>, July 12, 2007</b>)
If you like the fresh, healthy and enticing flavors of the colorful cuisines of East Asia, but feel a little wary about dining at ethnic eateries where the menu is printed in a language you can't speak, then fast-casual Asian dining may be just right for you.
Coming from the West Coast, as so many modern food trends do, this spreading development is largely carried by franchise chains like Pei Wei (P.F. Chang's little brother), Rice Boxx, Pick Up Stix Fresh Asian Kitchen, Chef Martin Yan's Yan Can and Tokyo Joe's.
Like the similarly swelling wave of "fresh burrito" chains, competition is keen in this niche, and the concepts are so similar that sometimes the only way to tell where you're dining is to look at the corporate logo.
None of the Asian chains have reached Louisville yet, but the concept is going strong in the East End, with two independent properties competing from shopping-center venues just a mile apart on Shelbyville Road.
Curiously enough, neither <b>Yang Kee Noodle</b> in Oxmoor Center (which opened in August 2003) nor <b>I Ching Asian Cafe</b> in Shelbyville Road Plaza (which opened in Lexington in September 2003 and Louisville last February) is a chain. But both operations neatly mirror the concept, and both clearly have expansion in mind.
Yang Kee Noodle's style is simple but not plain, heavy on shiny wood and bright white and dark blue colors with orange swatches that evoke Chinese calligraphy. I Ching's decor looks a bit more sophisticated, slick and upscale with pale wood and cool colors.
Like most of the genre, both restaurants channel diners past an oversize wall menu to a service counter where you order, serve your own drinks, take a table and wait for your dinner, which comes out promptly. The menus are similar too, featuring simple renditions of Asian dishes with Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese, Japanese and Korean flavors, with main dishes priced well under $10.
Full report on LouisvilleHotBytes.
