Howard Wang protege opens new restaurant in Lakeridge Village

Recently-opened Pan Asian Kitchen and Noodle brings a myriad of options to Lakeridge Village

Photography by Kathy Tran

Options are what Jarren Wang wants to bring to Lakeridge Village with his newly-opened restaurant, Pan Asian Kitchen and Noodle.

Ramen. Tangsuyuk. Dan dan noodles. The menu covers three East Asian cuisines: Japanese, Korean and Chinese, putting the “Pan” in Pan Asian Kitchen, which opened in December. With over 50 menu items available across a geographically varied offering, options abound.

Ramen is a new challenge for the Wang family, who owns the Howard Wang Family of restaurants. Chinese, however, has been their bread and butter since the opening of the original Howard Wang’s in Preston Hollow in 2005. Korean food has been a part of their story since Jarren’s father, Howard, grew up in Korea as a Chinese emigrant. It doesn’t hurt that his mother (who does all the vegetables for Pan) is Korean either.

“She’s very passionate about her culture, which she’s Korean,” Wang says. “She’s very proud of being from there and just all the food coming from her own culture, so she puts a lot of love into it.”

Howard is involved in the business too, working with Jarren in the kitchen for the first few months to “keep quality consistent,” until staff fills out.

The menu is organized by cuisine from left to right: Korean (which Jarren says is the most exciting portion of the menu), Chinese and Japanese. Korean offerings include bulgogi ($19) and japchae — clear sweet potato noodles cooked in Howard Wang’s savory lo mein sauce ($14 for veggie, add on for protein).

In Korea, much like in the U.S., the cuisine of Chinese emigrants has been adopted into the mainstream with originally Chinese dishes adapted for local tastes. Pan Asian’s menu pays tribute to the Wang family’s mixed roots in its Korean offering with dishes like tangsuyuk ($17), a sweet-and-sour sauce-smothered bowl of Korean-style crispy pork with assorted vegetables, and jjajangmyeon ($15), Chinese-style wheat noodles cooked in a sauce made with fermented black bean paste known as chunjang.

“We’ve grown up eating Korean food all the time, but we just never opened a business for it but now we have a little small Korean offering so we’re very excited,” he says.

Chinese options span a variety of regional traditions but focus especially on Northern — where Howard’s family is from — and Sichuan cuisines. The Sichuan heat is felt with dan dan noodles ($11), kung pao chicken ($17) and mala chicken ($16), served with onions, peppers, zucchini and farm-to-table shiitake mushrooms. The Northern influence is apparent with moo shoo pork ($17).

Photography by Kathy Tran

Most Americanized staples like orange chicken ($17) and General Tso’s chicken ($17) can be ordered at Pan Asian. Its menu also features Cantonese dishes like Hong Kong-style fried egg noodles ($19 base price) and a house-special clay pot ($20)

“Traditionally, they put the rice in this clay pot. And it’s like a very small portion of the rice soup, like a cup, and then it’s put it over fire, and it cooks with stir fried meat coagulation and some kind of brown sauce with veggies. And it’s placed on top of the rice, uncooked rice,” Wang says. “It’s supposed to steam together and have this little rice bowl that just makes just like a nice addition to eating the saucy meat thing that got going on top of the rice.”

Hibachi bowls, ramen, udon and teriyaki protein round out the Japanese offering and can be ordered with a variety of toppings.

Last but not least, the noodles. Pan Asian offers flat noodles, pad thai and yakisoba (Japanese buckwheat). All three can be ordered with vegetables and tofu for a base price of $14, and proteins such as chicken or shrimp can be added on for a few dollars more.

Pan Asian serves beer, wine and sake from its bar, which may also one day be churning out sushi, Jarren says. In the absence of higher-proof spirits, the cocktail menu is confined to sake-based concoctions.

He says business has been going well since opening in December. That may come as a surprise to some, as restaurants in this space have had trouble staying open in the past. Predecessors like The Koi Way and Hei Hei were open for just about a year before shuttering their doors. Wang says he feels Pan Asian’s options will be what sets it apart.

“The menu can just cover a wide array of options, kind of never can lose interest from our customers and clients, just because we are offering different cuisines.”

As the owner of the area’s newest dining addition, Wang says Lake Highlands has welcomed him with open arms. He is looking forward to “building a community” and wants the restaurant to be a casual everyday eatery for the neighborhood.

“Neighborhood restaurants are special because of the day-to-day life amongst everyone that comes into restaurants, and we want that here, where people can just kind of relax and set the tone for their everyday lives. Just come in and enjoy some good food.”