Asian-ya

I finally fulfilled my curiosity of this little spot near our place in West L.A. called Asian-ya. This place has gotten 3.5 out of 5 stars out of 98 reviews on Yelp and some friends have told us that it was good. We actually tried to go here a few weeks prior but they were closed and we went to Ramenya instead. Asian-ya is really small, personable and cute. We were seated and serviced immediately. The restaurant is a mix of Korean and Japanese cuisine. We started off with pork shumai. My beau ordered the chicken, mushroom and tofu soon which is like a hearty soup served in a steaming hot bowl which resembles a miniature dutch oven. It's served with Korean sides and rice. I ordered the beef tan tan men which is a cream based type of ramen. They both were great flavorful choices. We had decided to eat here after running so my appetite was a bit reduced leaving me unable to finish my ramen, yet leaving him with a plentiful an hearty lunch for the next day. I think my biggest disappointment was the fact that the Korean sides didn't seem who be freshly plated. They seemed as if they had been pre-plated and placed in the fridge because the dish as well as the sides were freezing cold. I enjoyed our pics but I think any restaurant that's attempting 2 styles of food at once will either master one over the other or both will be mediocre. I personally found my ramen from Ramenya better. I realize they were two different types of Ramen but something about the whole experience was just different. Perhaps the lesson learned is that, I should never go out to eat after hard core exercise. This makes me willing to give Asian-ya another try to check out some other things on the menu. After looking at the website, Asian-ya's reference to Ramen-ya makes me think that these two places may be owned by the same family. The ambiance is definitely nicer than Ramen-ya but I'd have to order more similar dishes to say which is actually better. The hardest thing about living in L.A. is that you often resist the urge of going back to the same restaurant when you can try another one that's within a mile radius.

Korean sides

Beef Tan Tan Men

Chicken, mushroom and tofu soon