USA TODAY A pan-Asian panoply of fresh new eateries Now that American diners have digested the rituals of the sushi bar and learned to drink their sake chilled, several more styles of casual Asian dining are poised to enter the mainstream and expand the comfort-food universe. Modern (and often Westernized) noodle bars, izakaya taverns and pan-Asian small-plates eateries are beginning to pop up around the country. Some are branches of popular Asian eateries from Tokyo and London, while others are brands launched by American restaurant franchisers. Still others have won prestigious national culinary honors and critical acclaim. With America's Asian population continuing to grow and a wave of young food-savvy diners embracing low-priced casual dining and exotic flavors, the time may be right for an Asian renaissance. "There is such a fervor for it, a whole culture behind it," says David Chang, chef/owner of Momofuku Noodle Bar and Momofuku Ssäm Bar in New York. "People are appreciating it more, and they understand it's not just sushi." The genre received a major boost last year at the James Beard awards when the Korean-American Chang was named rising star chef and his Momofuku Ssäm Bar was nominated for best new restaurant. Chang had built his reputation over the past four years with the tiny and sleek Noodle Bar, which serves bowls of ramen noodles in broth topped with high-quality organic ingredients. In 2006, he opened the cafeteria-style Ssäm Bar (ssäm is Korean for "anything wrapped") to showcase dishes of meat and rice encased in flour pancakes. This spring, he plans to open Momofuku KO, a 14-seat restaurant also in New York that will serve creative "vaguely Asian" dishes, but "is really food without borders." "Our goals from day one have never changed: Let's make something that's delicious regardless of authenticity," says Chang. "But let's be respectful of food, where it comes from, and make it with good technique. And make it affordable." On a larger scale, two noodle-bar chains are staking their claims along the coasts. Last year, the first two stateside versions of London's Wagamama chain opened in the Boston area, and more are planned for the East Coast. Wagamama, with 80 eateries in a dozen countries, features edgy decors, communal seating, multiple noodle options and entrees costing $9 to $14. "The appeal of noodles is universal, no doubt about it," says Paul O'Farrell, chief operating officer. "We do a great family business because kids love noodles. Parents are becoming more conscious of what their kids are eating and are steering them clear of fast food. We have a kids' menu, but it's not patronizing —just smaller portions." The Zao Noodle Bar chain, founded in Palo Alto, Calif., a decade ago, now has six locations in the Pacific Northwest, and further expansion is planned. The original concept prominently featured Japanese-style noodles, but those have been dropped in favor of Westernized Asian street-food dishes with Thai, Vietnamese and Chinese influences. Top sellers: ginger-garlic chile chicken and prawns and Vietnamese rice noodles with protein toppings. "The spice and aromatics are a little dumbed-down compared to what you would find in Asia," says CEO Matthew Baizer. "But we're fresh. We take the essences of Asian flavors and add them to reasonably priced American dishes, and it has worked." Another concept on the horizon is the Japanese izakaya. These rustic neighborhood taverns feature wide selections of beers, sakes and shochus (a vodka-like spirit), and small plates of food that range from steamed edamame and other bar snacks to sushi, tempura and grilled-meat skewers. Most dishes are designed to be shared, and prices generally are lower than those in more formal Japanese restaurants. "Izakaya dining is an adventure in which you design your meal as the evening progresses, ordering dishes as the mood takes you," says Tokyo resident Mark Robinson, author of Izakaya: The Japanese Pub Cookbook due out in May in the USA. "It can sometimes be hit and miss, but the overall experience is deeply satisfying, and the misses don't really cost anything; in fact they add to your learning." Casual, independently owned versions already have strong footholds in areas with large Japanese populations, such as New York and the San Francisco Bay Area, but chain versions with more varied and upscale food options may not be far off: Two successful izakaya franchises in Japan have opened versions in Seattle (Wann Izakaya) and Los Angeles (Torafuku). More significantly, the U.S. company that created the national chain of P.F. Chang's China Bistro restaurants has tested the waters in Scottsdale, Ariz., with an izakaya-inspired concept called Taneko Japanese Tavern. The menu, which incorporates organic and seasonal ingredients, embraces several Japanese cooking styles and East-West hybrid dishes such as Kobe beef burgers and tempura fish and chips. "The idea was to take the comfort aspects of American taverns and Japanese taverns and produce an izakaya," says Rick Federico, CEO of P.F. Chang's China Bistro. Though Federico says Taneko has been successful during its two-year run, it hasn't generated the high-volume business the company requires to launch it as a national chain. P.F. Chang's is selling a majority of its stake in Taneko back to the founding parties, who may try to tweak the approach. "Taneko may have been a little early into the marketplace, but these types of restaurants will become increasingly popular," says Federico. "They offer new and interesting flavor profiles, and U.S. consumers are much more adventuresome than they were 10 years ago." The Oregonian Curry Vegetables If dishes could talk, this one would say: "Don't hate me because I'm beautiful." Sauteed vegetables in hues of orange and green sit atop round udon noodles bathed in yellow curry sauce, all nestled in a deep white bowl. It's almost too lovely to eat. But the fork gets in there somehow, and each bite tastes as good as it looks. The indisputable star is the noodles, thicker than any you'll find at the supermarket (they're from California's New Hong Kong Noodle Co., which, alas, sells only wholesale). Asian noodles used to be a lost cause in the 'burbs, but that was then - this is Zao. (7237 S.W. Bridgeport Road, Tigard, 503-620-6500; $9) The Oregonian Savor the calm amid holiday storm Right now, Bridgeport Village is a bedlam of holiday shoppers, with well-clad women darting from boutique to boutique, hauling monster-size bags of newly acquired trophies of excess. Amid all the conspicuous consumption, you can find a slice of Zen minimalism at Zao Noodle Bar, a recently opened outpost of a small Asian chain that has a half-dozen outlets in Northern California and the Northwest. This no-reservations spot offers an extensive menu of low-priced noodle dishes and salads that, along with a calming cup of green tea, can silence the silver bells rattling in your noggin. A good place to start here is with the tofu fries -- flash-fried slices of bean curd -- served in a martini glass alongside an array of Asian dipping sauces. They're perfectly crisp and just right for sharing. The heart of the menu is the 15 pan-fried and Vietnamese noodle entrees, like an immense bowl of Shanghai noodles tossed with prawns and ginger-fueled bits of chicken. Or grilled pork over rice vermicelli with crushed peanuts and fiery chili sauce. A few things warrant a pass, like a ho-hum starter of chicken summer rolls, which are uninspired, meaty versions of salad rolls you find all over town. Instead, save room for the warm banana spring roll with chocolate sauce. Asian places rarely are known for dessert, and while the options at Zao are limited, this sweet finish offers interesting textural and sweet/sour contrasts. Prices are surprisingly low, particularly considering the upscale locale. Only one main dish is more than $10, so two people can easily dine for less than $40. Plenty of stores nearby are eager to take care of whatever money you save here.
San Francisco Chronicle Zao Noodle Bar fast and friendly Cut-rate Asian food is a Fillmore winner Zao Noodle Bar offers a quick, inexpensive meal that comes in several notches above fast food in quality. The food, an assortment of Vietnamese, Thai, Chinese and Japanese noodle dishes, is vividly rendered and generously portioned. The dining room is handsomely trimmed in black and red and offers plenty of fun eye candy -- like a collection of Godzilla toys arrayed on shelves. Service is fast and friendly. Zao opened its first outlet in Palo Alto five years ago and now has three branches in San Francisco. We revisited the Upper Fillmore location and found dining there to be mostly hits with a few misses. Bok choy and spinach stir-fried with plenty of garlic and ginger ($3.99) makes for a warming and cozy starter. The contrast between the wilted spinach and the al dente firmness of the sliced bok choy stalks gives the dish added interest. Shrimp har gow ($4.79), a special, would make any dim sum parlor proud. The tissue-soft wrappers of the three delicately pleated dumplings encase a firm, almost buoyant filling of seasoned ground shrimp. The chicken satay ($5.99) is made up of three skewers of moist, tender meat. A warm peanut sauce is served for dipping but added little to the satay. "Veggie" summer rolls ($5.99) are packed with tofu, shitake mushrooms, bean sprouts, mint, carrots, rice noodles and red leaf lettuce, yet they're surprisingly mild in flavor. The dipping sauce is a jumble of hoisin sauce topped with spoonfuls of fiery sambal and crushed peanuts. The clash of red and brown doesn't look appetizing; I'd rather have had these seasonings kept separate. Zao isn't afraid of heat. Spicy dishes are marked with one or two firecrackers. One firecracker can pack a big bang, but there's a wide selection of drinks -- beers, wine, Vietnamese coffee, teas hot and cold -- to slake the burn. Chile paste certainly gives a jolt to the Vietnamese rice noodles with nicely charred, thinly sliced grilled pork ($7.79). The generous bowl teems with crunchy slices of caramelized shallot, mint, basil and plenty of cool salad greens to tame the chile flames. You can accent the dish with an imperial roll for $1.50 extra, but this deep-fried cylinder was dry and anonymous tasting. Pad Thai with prawns ($8.99) was a tad heavy, and the pan- fried noodles overcooked, but the bowl is filled with good things, like fried tofu, bean sprout, scallions, flavorful shrimp and, again, lots of heat. Good desserts include a bowl of mango, green tea and coffee flavored mochi ice cream ($4.99) and a warm banana spring roll filmed with chocolate sauce and served with two scoops of rich coconut ice cream ($4.99). Zao Noodle Bar is a real value. Not every dish may work as well as it should, but the prices are low enough to ease any sting. American Way Magazine Whether at the ballpark or his favorite restaurants, shops, and sights, the all-star Giants outfielder is RIGHT at home in the City by the Bay. Here’s where he spends his weekends when he’s not out hitting homers. Restaurant News April 16, 2001 Growth Chains El Cerrito, Calif. (April 16) Despite its contemporary Asian underpinnings, six-unit Zao Noodle Bar is turning out European-style Renaissance people by cross training general managers to oversee kitchens. The parent of the growing chain, Noodle Bar Inc. of El Cerrito, was founded in 1996 by Adam Willner, who previously worked for the upscale Il Fornaio Italian dinner-house chain and San Francisco's Cypress Club, among others. He said the concept is a response to the growing interest in Asian foods by Americans and added that the full-service chain's mission is to serve "fresh, made-to-order exotic foods at accessible prices." How accessible? The per-person check average is between $10 and $11, vice president of operations Matthew Baizer reported. Willner, who is also the company's president, opened the first Zao Noodle branch near Stanford University in Palo Alto, Calif., in early 1997. That 1,500-square-foot restaurant seats 46 people and is the chain's highest-volume unit, with annual sales of about $1.6 million, he said. It wasn't long before college students, Palo Alto's affluent and food-savvy residents and visitors were streaming into the Palo Alto Zao Noodle Bar. Its menu featured such foods as Vietnamese vegetable summer rolls with Hoisin-caramelized onion dipping sauce; Shanghai noodles with ginger, garlic, chili, chicken and prawns; and seared salmon and soba noodles with ginger-miso broth. Until 2000 the chain placed a general manager and two kitchen managers in each restaurant, but that has changed, said Baizer, who joined the company a year ago after overseeing operations at multiunit Applebee's franchisee Apple Bay East. Cross training general managers to handle kitchen matters as well as overall business issues means training for that position now takes six to eight weeks ,depending on the candidate's prior experience, Baizer said. Seattle was the first unit to open without a kitchen manager, he said, and the position is being phased out at the company's other units, which once employed a total of 10 such managers but now have just three on the payroll. Today, all of Zao Noodle Bar's general managers "can cook and know intimately our product specifications and plate presentations," Baizer said. The general managers "all got significant [pay] raises," he added. Eliminating the kitchen manager has resulted in "a significant labor [cost] reduction" and "more of an ownership mentality" on the part of general managers, Baizer said. He said that strategy, combined with "a pretty lucrative bonus program" and the introduction of stock options for general managers, has led to lower turnover. Baizer said general managers set and oversee food production levels with the help of a computer tool that takes into consideration sales forecasts for the day in question and the actual usage of menu items on that day in the previous three weeks. That program, he indicated, generates a production list that the general manager hands off to the line crew, consisting of a "hot-side cook, cold-side cook and expediter." In keeping with Zao's philosophy of "bringing noodles to the people," Willner said the chain looks to locate units where "people are going to be doing other things, whether that is working, shopping or hunting for entertainment." He added, "We're looking for generally affluent areas, but that is not the most important thing, as we found that we attract a pretty diverse crowd." To date, the chain has located near three universities and a medical center and in neighborhoods with a strong mix of trendy retailers and entertainment outlets, such as San Francisco's Chestnut Street. "We have not been focusing on downtown sites," Willner said, "but in the future we may put together a prototype based on Monday through Friday business." The Seattle restaurant in the University Village retail center represents the latest thinking in Zao unit design, Willner indicated. It takes up about 2,450 square feet and seats about 75 people. He said about half of the total square footage is dedicated to food production. The current Zao Noodle Bar decor package features a "deep red epoxy floor," "rich yellow walls" and "walnut-colored wood fixtures," including slatted banquettes, Willner said. He noted that colorful wall displays are filled with Asian food products, such as sake boxes, different varieties of soy sauce and noodles, as well as toys, like miniature Godzilla replicas. "We have some cliche things, like fans and lanterns, but we also have scrabble sets with different words glued in place, chopstick sculptures and a "electronic fortune cookie, or digital display board," Willner said. "We have papyrus-paper shade lamps in different shapes on the wall or hanging as pendant lights, and we've made sake bottles into pendant lights in the bar." Willner added, "We always use an open kitchen so people can see, smell and hear what is going on." Counter seating is another design signature. The exterior of Zao units are painted or finished in black or deep gray, and the chain's logo is often replicated in painted-metal letters and mounted on natural-finish, fir awnings. Unit development costs "are in the neighborhood of a half a million dollars," Willner said. He said units in new developments at times run less, because some developers are willing to help offset costs, while storefronts in established areas "tend to cost more." According to Willner, average daily covers per restaurant range from about 300 to 500 and average annual sales "across the board are about $1.1 million." As a percentage of sales, "food costs are in the mid- to low-20s" and "labor runs in the mid-30s," he said. The sale of sake, beer and wine contributes from 10 percent to 12 percent of total sales, Willner said. He said specialty soft drinks, such as coffee, a variety of hot and cold whole-leaf-tea brews and fresh juice beverages, including ginger-orange-flavored "Zao coolers," generate an additional 5 percent to 8 percent of the gross. Among the recent menu additions developed by Noodle Bar Inc. executive chef Gary Beauregard are: Pad Thai with fresh tomatoes and prawns; Zao Mein with fresh shiitake mushrooms; and a grilled half chicken marinated in sweet Thai-style chili barbecue sauce and served with rice and greens. Also new are a side dish of pan-seared bok choy and spinach with garlic and soy sauce and a grilled fish option served on top of popular Vietnamese rice-noodle dishes made with fresh herbs, red leaf lettuce, sliced cucumbers, sambol, peanuts and sweated scallions. The San Francisco Chronicle's DatebookOctober 15-21, 2000 100 Best Buys in San Francisco In the past year, ZAO Noodle Bar added two locations to its expanding chain - one in the Sunset and another in the Castro. All the branches have the same menu of reasonable priced noodle dishes from Asia. And they all have a similar decor: newspapered walls with red and black accents. The food can be a bit Americanized and is a dollar or two more than it would be at real-deal Asian restaurants. But there are many good options, and the place is ideal for those less experienced in noodle cuisine. The San Francisco Chronicle Wednesday August 18, 1999 ZAO Takes Asian Staple Mainstream "The staff is fairly efficient, though occasionally we had to flag someone down to get the check, and once we were told we'd have to wait for sake because all the sake cups were dirty. But the place is so often packed, it's easy to understand these transgressions. And while a few dishes don't do justice to the food they were based on, ZAO Noodle Bar goes a long way in making Asian noodles an everyday part of the American diet." The San Francisco Bay Guardian June 7, 2000 The people's noodles We've had the Summer of Love and the Summer of Sam, and now the Summer of ZAO - more like the former than the latter, presumably - is at hand. That would be ZAO Noodle Bar, or really, bars, two of which will open between now and Labor Day, "bringing noodles to the people," in the words of founder Adam Willner. The two new ZAOs will be on Irving just west of Ninth Avenue (in the old A.G. Ferrari space) and at 16th Street and Market, longtime home of Josie's Juice Joint and Caberet. They will join their older (though hardly old: the first ZAO opened in the city just last summer) siblings, one on California near Fillmore, the other on Chestnut near Fillmore in the Marina. Willner doesn't seem to have an intricate method for deciding where to put his restaurants. He relies mainly on a feel for neighborhoods. "What I love about California and Fillmore is that it's a real San Francisco neighborhood," he says. "So is the area around Ninth and Irving. And the ZAO at 16th and Market is going to be very community focused. We're going to give it more the look and feel of a neighborhood restaurant - adding more finishes to the interior design and things like that. The space will have a back room for private functions, and we'll be doing the food for the closing ceremonies at the Gay and Lesbian Film Festival." Construction is already well under way at the Market site, and Willner expects to open there by mid July. The Inner Sunset location is still waiting for permits; Willner hopes to have things going there by August. Sounds like boom times for ZAO, but Willner's plans for growth could well be sated by these two projects. "Four restaurants is probably about as many as we'll do," he says - this despite having a virtual monopoly on the market for low-cost, high quality, full-service noodle restaurants in the city. The places ZAO most resembles are Pasta Pomodoro and Fuzio, but Willner isn't too impressed with the latter (If you try to do everything, things can get muddy"), while the success of the former in a particular location he regards as a favorable omen for ZAO. A booming Pomodoro, he says, shows that there is a strong neighborhood demand for "lower-price-point, quality food." Is there any neighborhood where that isn't true? If there packing into ZAO in Pacific Heights and the Marina, Willner may have to rethink his modest plans for expansion. Guardian August 11-17, 1999 Golden bowls Upper Fillmore Street in Pacific Heights is not what I would call a neighborhood for the value conscious. There's lovely, lovely stuff for sale in the shops along Fillmore and the cross streets, but it's stuff aimed at people who know what they want and don't especially care what it costs. You won't find many bargain hunters at Mike San Francisco or Fillamento. If there's an exception, it's the restaurant scene - perhaps because of Darwinian competition. Practically every other storefront seems to hold an eatery of some kind, and while a few spots, such as Elite Cafe, are distinctly upscale (and correspondingly pricey), most seem to cater to casual foot traffic. People get hungry drifting from store to store; they want something good and fast. True grit isn't the answer for the phalanx of strollers in their Ralph Lauren ensembles: there are no greasy spoons or generic burger joints or taquerias upholstered in pocket linoleum on upper Fillmore. But there is a surprising amount of artful downscalishness, restaurants that express a certain sort of discreet genius. To run a restaurant that's inexpensive and fast - but whose menu is fresh and imaginative, and whose service is simultaneously friendly and professional - is somehow to defy a basic syllogism of contemporary social logic, which is that if it costs a lot it must be good, and if it's good it must cost a lot. At ZAO, a new noodle bar on California just west of Fillmore, worlds collide: It's good - often better than good - and it doesn't cost a lot. Inside, ZAO is a bath of tranquility, a melange of wheat walls and honey-colored wooden furniture set on a long axis that runs from window side tables (there are sidewalk tables too) to the kitchen at the rear. The space, though narrow, feels open and generous, with plenty of sun and fresh air blowing through the open windows. Adam Willner, the proprietor of both ZAOs (the original is in Palo Alto), aspires to deliver "health and wisdom in a bowl." Certainly the bowls are unforgettable; they're nearly large enough to accommodate an eager face. And with some of the noodle dishes, that sort of dunking seems almost necessary. The fettucine-like Shanghai noodles in a bowl of hoisin pork loin ($6.50), for instance, stubbornly resisted both chopsticks and a large soup spoon, and left me fighting the temptation to reach in with my bare hands. But everything else about the dish was full of grace, from the pale coins of meat suspended in a light five-spice broth, to the shreds of carrot and spinach that added considerable texture and color. Quite a few of the dishes are visually explosive. Vietnamese rice noodles with five vegetables and tofu ($6.95) was like a bowl full of springtime, with sauteed carrots, bok choy, greens, green beans, and tofu - and far-more-pliant rice vermicelli. There was nothing shy about the soy-lime dressing, either. With or without chicken, spicy black-bean vegetable stir-fry ($7.50 with, $6.75 without) looks like a salad that's taken a turn in the wok. A wealth of zucchini, carrots, tomatoes, and basil rest atop a bed of jasmine rice, though the black-bean sauce isn't as "rebelliously seasoned" as advertised. There's much mire flavor in the green curry-coconut prawns ($8.25), a comfortably Thai-style dish given, in addition to plenty of tiger prawns, a generous spiking of broccoli, carrots, green beans, and spinach. The vegetables, though simple and straightforward, are immaculately fresh and handled by the kitchen with the lightest, most respectful of touches. The shitake mushrooms, sprouts, carrots, mint, and rice in the veggie summer rolls ($5.50 for four) seem barely to have been handled at all. And the iceberg lettuce in the Middle kingdom chicken cups ($5.75) is gorgeously crisp and fresh - yes, even edible. If ZAO's bowls contain health, as they seem palpably to do, they also reflect several levels of wisdom, from simple business acumen - giving people good healthy food at a fair price, expeditiously, and with a smile - to a profound understanding of the relationship between people and the earth. There's no substitute for freshness, and no need to embellish it. It speaks for itself. The San Francisco Examiner's Epicure August 4, 1999 ZAO Noodle Bar takes on all of Asia ZAO Noodle Bar is the answer to the proverbial dilemma: "I'm in the mood for Asian food, but can't decide what kind." Open only three months, this cute, pleasantly hip lunch and dinner house has already made a name for itself in the tiny neighborhood called Upper Fillmore. Satisfying every culinary desire can be a lesson in futility, but if everyone is happy with some variation of Asian food, then ZAO Noodle Bar is the place to go. ZAO is one of those restaurants that fill sup fast and looks that way with one glance from the sidewalk: Open the front door and you're standing in the dining room. Someone from behind the cashier stand will take you to your seat, which could be at the wooden banquette along one wall or at one of the bare-topped tables in the center and along the other side of the cozy room. Although the decor does not focus solely on the elemental design of Southeast Asia, China or Japan, the overall tone feels more Japanese. Contemporary and whimsical wall decorations, a vivid red floor and dark wood appointments combine to make this space modern and fun but not stark or weird. The one-page menu is divided into sections: First flavors, noodles, hot noodles, noodles in broth, rice dishes, kid's noodles and desserts. On the reverse side is a large selection of beverages, beginning with Thai iced tea ($2.25) and ZAO coolers ($2.50) flavored with either ginger orange or lemonade; full leaf tea available by the 2 or 6 cup pot; and Vietnamese coffee ($2.95). Beer is sold by the bottle or on tap, as is cider. There are seven different kinds of sake, served cold unless otherwise specified, as well as an interesting assortment of imported and domestic wines. Clearly this restaurant caters to a clientele experienced, or at least interested, in enriching their meals with interesting nonalcoholic and spirited beverages. At the bottom of the beverage section is the "Story of ZAO," which explains its who and what. I'll let you go over that yourself. Back to the tangible stuff: food. Four distinct cuisines are represented: Japanese, Thai, Vietnamese and Chinese. What a joy to be able to sit in one place and order from one menu while enjoying many favorite dishes from four different countries! Take for example, the appetizers; it's possible to visit Thailand and Japan simultaneously by ordering chicken or beef satay and vegetable yakitori ($4.75). Likewise, travel to Vietnam with crispy imperial rolls ($5.95) or the cold, uncooked version called veggie summer rolls ($5.50), made with tofu, shitake mushrooms, bean sprouts, carrots, mint, and rice noodles, wrapped in rice paper, formed into a roll and sliced into four sections. The accompanying slightly thick, spicy sauce makes each bite even more delicious and nibbles of fresh cucumber, carrot and lettuce served in a glamorous tumble alongside the rolls is a welcome addition. Kitchen god dumplings ($4.95) turns out to be six half-moon shaped dumplings concocted from fresh spinach (or other green herb) dough, filled with your choice of chicken, pork or vegetables. The vegetable version was light, flavorful and very delicate. I couldn't resist ordering one of my favorite Vietnamese dishes, found here under the noodle section and simply named Vietnamese rice dishes with seared pork ($7.25). It was good to see the traditional mound of skinny rice noodles topped with lettuce, mint, cucumbers, bean sprouts and wispy strands of carrot, served in a grand-sized white ceramic bowl with a side of nuoc cham sauce. The bright and refreshing flavors came together with the expected culinary magic, but the overcooked pork was dry and tough. Slightly disappointing was a Chinese-style dish listed under hot noodles called ginger-garlic-chili chicken and prawn ($7.95), in which wonderfully fresh, handmade noodles combined with thinly sliced zucchini and yellow squash, plus a few strips of bell pepper, were topped with slices of overcooked, dry chicken and a couple of prawns. And where was the ginger, garlic and chili? This is not to say these ingredients were not included, but judging from robust flavors and care taken in other dishes sampled, its seems as if the chefs got "slammed" in the kitchen and simply overlooked one dish. Not to worry. The components - other than the dry chicken - were sparkling fresh and nicely prepared. Thai green curry chicken ($7.75) - one of three dishes listed under rice dishes - is deeply flavored and very satisfying. In this dish very tender bits of chicken breast tossed with green peas and bamboo shoots are coated with a thick sauce fragrant with the delightful and unmistakable flavor of Kaffir lime leaves, hot chilies and lemongrass. The jasmine rice was perfectly cooked, the whole dish just marvelous. Another unique feature at ZAO is the dessert department, where four very tempting treats are featured. IF warm banana spring roll ($4.50) served with chocolate sauce and coconut ice cream doesn't tantalize you, then how about amazing mochi ice cream ($4.95), described as "three soft-rice wrapped ice cream balls, one of each flavor:mango, green tea and Kona coffee?" I settled on coconut caramel flan ($3.95), a silky, light and very sweet (almost too sweet) way to close a meal. ZAO Noodle Bar is a friendly, casual place to enjoy an eclectic assortment of well-prepared Asian dishes. The wait staff is convivial and knowledgeable about the menu, which makes ordering unfamiliar dishes effortless. ZAO offers an appealing new twist on a time-honored theme - big bowls filled with fresh, invigorating vegetables and noodles, accented with chicken, pork or seafood, and spiked with intense, vibrant flavors. Synapse; University of California at San Francisco Student PaperOctober 19, 2000 ZAO Noodle Bar: Hip, Urban, "Asian" "It is not surprising that it appeals to the young, urban and multi-ethnic patrons of the inner sunset." ZAO gets on latest trend: inexpensive, exotic noodles Synapse; Restaurant Business The Sake Tails Hour Synapse; San Francisco Chronicle ZAO takes Asian staple mainstream Synapse; San Francisco Examiner ZAO Noodle Bar takes on all of Asia
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