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For months, Highland Park area residents speculated about what would take over 5816 York Boulevard. Perhaps a yoga practice? When the “Mala Class” sign appeared, some wondered if the former Salvadoran restaurant would be turned into an arts and crafts studio. (In addition to the feminine version of “bad” in Spanish, mala also translates as “garland” in Hindi and Urdu. It can also refer to rosaries used in Hinduism and other South Asian religions. there is.)
It wasn’t until late June, when co-owners Kevin Liang and Michael Yang opened their colorful fast-casual Chinese restaurant, that the intended meaning of the name became clear. The word “mala” is accented with standard pinyin and is most commonly associated with the southwestern Chinese province of Sichuan, known for its bold, pungent dishes rich in garlic, chili peppers, and pepper. It has a unique numbing spicy flavor.
Photo: Jesse Hsu for Time Out Mara Class was five years in the making, taking over the space that once housed a Salvadoran restaurant.
A modern, nuanced take on the region’s cuisine, Mala Class (which I recently gave 5 stars to) is arguably the most interesting Sichuan restaurant to open in Los Angeles in the past decade . Inspired by the Han Dynasty on the East Coast (where they first met and one of the best Chinese restaurants in New York City) and their family’s overall experience in the restaurant industry, Mr. Liang and Yang has created a winning formula: an affordable and approachable Sichuan cuisine menu. It is still able to please diners accustomed to dishes that thrill the taste buds.
Yang, a Sichuan native who most recently cooked at Bistro Na’s in Temple City, displays a level of technical precision that makes Mala Class’s simple meals shine in Los Angeles’ competitive Chinese food scene. . Flavorful and satisfying, dandan noodles have just the right amount of elasticity and a popular texture known as QQ in Greater China. The subtly pungent mapo tofu at the Mala class is the best dish I’ve had in this city. Much of the menu is plant-based and can also be modified to be vegan or vegetarian. Mouthwatering appetizers like cumin-crusted fried mushrooms, mixed greens with Sichuan dressing, and spicy chicken wings will keep you coming back for more.
Photo: Jesse Hsu for Time Out Mala class’s small but mighty menu.
“People understand Sichuan food, but they don’t actually know what Sichuan food is,” says Liang, who runs Front of House. He was involved in management and operation for several years in the Han Dynasty. The Sichuan Sanzhou chain was originally founded in Philadelphia, where Mr. Liang spent his formative years and later majored in kinesiology at Temple University. His immigrant parents ran a take-out Chinese restaurant from an early age, then moved to Los Angeles while in college and took over Louisiana Fried Chicken in Inglewood. (They still do it.)
In late 2019, the duo’s culinary director approached Liang about a concept for a Chinese restaurant based in Los Angeles. Like Liang, his parents settled near Los Angeles and opened and sold two Sichuan restaurants in the San Gabriel Valley. “We came out that September thinking, ‘Oh, we can open a restaurant right away,'” Liang recalls.
The pandemic put those plans on hold for two and a half years. Initially, both co-owners helped their parents keep their business afloat, and then found other jobs in the restaurant industry. Liang at Bone Kettle in Pasadena and Jan at Bistro Na’s. They searched for the right location, painstakingly developed an opening menu, and of course dined at many Chinese restaurants and hot pot joints in LA in the name of research and development. The self-financed Highland Park restaurant, which entered a lease in May 2022, was built over a five-year period.
Photo: Jesse Hsu for Time OutLiang and Yang DIYed as much of the dining room as possible, including painting the walls.
If you’re even remotely familiar with LA’s Chinese food scene, you know that Sichuan cuisine first took the city by storm over a decade ago when Chengdu Taste (2013) and Sichuan Impression (2014) opened. Alhambra’s Chengdu Taste still ranks on best restaurant lists, and for good reason. Since then, suburban chains like Sichuan’s Hao Di Lao and New York’s Sichuan Mountain House have sprung up near Los Angeles, while many other copycat stores have opened. Thanks to the clever marketing strategies of “cool” brands like Fly by Jing and MomoFuku, Sichuan chili crisps and other similar products have become popular gourmet foods across the country.
This city-wide obsession with Mara extends into the realm of fast-casual, as well as the price point and style of service that appeals to me for personal as well as editorial reasons. The most memorable local example to date is Ajian, a noodle concept from the Chengdu Flavor team with locations in West Adams, San Gabriel, Rowland Heights, and Artesia. In late 2023, Fly by Jing founder Jing Gao and influencer Stephanie Liu Germese also opened Sua Superette, a Pret a Manger-inspired concept, in Larchmont. Over the past 10 years or so, I’ve eaten at all of these places. Since my first visit to Chengdu Taste, I have yet to find a Sichuan restaurant that captivated my taste buds and interests more than Mala Class.
Photo: Jesse Hsu for Time Out Mala Classroom’s Dressed Dandan Noodles.
Despite the small menu size, contemporary Sichuan cuisine leaves a memorable first impression. Small details like the texture of the noodles and the crunch of the chili-fried tofu didn’t go unnoticed thanks to the regular customers I, Mr. Liang, and Mr. Yang had built up. Mellow scallions and the subtle but obvious tinge of mapo tofu elevate this ubiquitous dish from merely believable to something truly profound and wonderful. The dan dan noodles served tableside were drizzled with a spicy, garlicky, slightly creamy sesame sauce that unfortunately tasted nothing like the sad peanut buttery versions I’ve encountered elsewhere.
Explaining the name Mala Classroom, Liang says that essentially the restaurant serves as an introductory lesson in Sichuan cuisine. Mr. Yang often talks about his childhood growing up in Sichuan province and the food he grew up eating. The region’s heavy use of chili peppers is based on traditional Chinese medicine, Liang said. “These little things that people don’t know about are what make Sichuan food special.”
Photo: Jesse Hsu for Time Out Mala Classroom’s chili oil pork dumplings, cucumber and tofu salad, and fried mushrooms.
“I’m going to share these stories with the next person [customers] And let them understand the culture more,” he added. “It’s like taking everyone to class, because you never know how many times people come in and say, ‘Oh, I want chili oil.'” Well, chili oil is not ma. [numbing]Anyway, it’s spicy and very fragrant. People have a false impression because Sichuan pepper is always combined with spices, but they are different things. ”
Like Liang and Yang’s previous employer, Han Dynasty, Mala Class positions itself as an approachable gateway to Sichuan cuisine in a region with minimal competition. (Highland Park is home to Joy and Mason’s Dumplings, both of which serve different styles of Chinese food.) But their long-term hope is that even if Mr. Yang takes over, It is also possible to maintain the current level of quality and consistency of the menu. I am no longer an everyday chef working behind the scenes. Their restaurant’s tree branch-like logo represents the couple’s north star, and they hope to eventually open other locations.
Photo: Jesse Hsu of Time Out Liang (left) and Yang (right) sit down to take a break between lunch and dinner on a weekday.
Mara Class Cuisine may offer artisan-level excellence, but Liang and Yang are ultimately businessmen. The co-owners are quietly proud of the three-month-old restaurant’s springy noodles and thoughtful appetizers. That being said, their long-term goal with the modern Sichuan concept is to expand their business to multiple locations and hopefully accumulate enough wealth to help their immigrant parents retire.
“The ultimate goal is to make money, be successful, and do all of that. But it also means retiring our family,” Liang says. Both his and Jan’s parents have spent nearly their entire careers in the restaurant industry. They have seen how much they have worked, how hard they have worked. “We have to come up with something to get them out of this situation. You can’t do that by just having one restaurant.”
Liang added that although his father did not want his son to enter the industry, he was open to the idea of his son becoming his own boss. Although his parents weren’t able to eat at Mala Clas because both Louisiana Fried Chicken and Mala Clas close on the same day of the week, they were proud of his latest restaurant endeavor. Yes, he says. It’s getting busier.
“They call me every night and ask, ‘How much money did you make?’ Not, ‘Hey, how are you doing?’ “What did you do tonight?”
Mala Class received 5 stars from us. Read the full review for more information on food, drinks and service.
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