When Yang’s Kitchen opened in 2019, it had our immediate attention. The order-at-the-counter Taiwanese-ish restaurant in Alhambra was a breath of fresh air, serving delicious, creative food in a space that felt like the breezy, second-floor cafe of an upscale bookstore. We even put it on our Best New Restaurants Of 2019 list, enshrining our affection for this inventive neighborhood spot. Fast forward to today—with a year-long pandemic closure sprinkled in—and Yang’s is back with full dinner service, marking a new era for an operation that was previously daytime-only. With a well-curated natural wine list, thoughtful local sourcing, and a new lineup of profoundly original dishes, we can say with confidence that this is the most exciting version of Yang’s yet. If you had a chance to visit Yang’s in its early days, the stark white wood interior here will look familiar. There’s one big difference now, though: the letter boards that hang above the back counter no longer list the menu. That’s because Yang’s is now full-service (you’ll get the menus at the table) and also because one of the boards now highlights the local producers and farmers that Yang’s sources its ingredients from. The other highlights the restaurant’s commitment to sustainable food systems, paying employees living wages, and working with Zero Footprint, a non-profit that fights climate change through agricultural practices. It’s a level of intentionality and transparency that is not often seen in most big name restaurants, let alone a tiny cafe in the SGV. Head to Yang’s during the day and you’ll find a menu of straightforward dishes that are designed to arrive quickly and fill you up. Think “set meals” with rice, soup, soy egg, and a protein of choice like braised tofu or chicken thighs. There are also customizable breakfast plates and big helpings of cold sesame noodles (our go-to order when the summer heatwave hits). We love Yang’s for quick breakfast or lunch when we’re in the area, but come dinnertime, the place transforms into something else: a full-on dining destination that you need to put on your calendar as soon as humanly possible. During evenings at Yang’s, the lights are dimmed, soft indie music hums on the speakers, and friend groups huddle around tables ordering bottles of orange wine from Puglia at leisure. You’ll snack on decadent appetizers like creamy smoked fish dip with sesame sourdough from Bub & Grandma’s and fatty, aromatic pork ribs. And then there are the “Larger Bites,” a collection of dishes that aren’t just the best stuff on the menu, but are what elevates Yang’s into the upper echelon of LA’s food scene. Take the dan dan campanelle, a bowl of perfectly al dente noodles coated in a thick, savory peanut sauce, topped with mustard stems and crunchy chili crisp that balance out the rich sauce. Prawns sourced from a sustainable farmer in Downey are sprinkled with spicy Chinese BBQ spice, grilled until crispy, then laid over a bed of creamy millet and shrimp jus—a spicy, briny take on shrimp and grits. And then there’s the Hainan fish rice made with dry-aged barramundi—a dish so flavorful and buttery, we wouldn’t blame you if you sent a “sorry, but it’s over” text to every chicken you’ve ever known. As excellent as these highlights are, you also get the sense that this new version of Yang’s is only getting started. Dishes are still being added at dinner, specials rotate on and off, and the “let’s try this” spirit that pervades the kitchen means there will most likely be more break-up texts in our future.