What is it?

Tucked away in a strip mall on Edwards Road in Hyde Park, Yat Ka Mein is the kind of hole-in-the-wall restaurant you could drive by a million times without noticing. With such neighbors as Penn Station and Roly Poly, this writer assumed it was of the same caliber. Then a fellow blogger at the Foodie Report (may it rest in peace) raved about it a couple of months ago. She had lived in Asia for years and said it was the closest thing to an Asian noodle shop she'd found in Cinci. I agree. It's just like the noodle places I remember in Seoul and Tokyo (more like the latter).
On a rainy night, it was the perfect place to find respite from the storm and grab a couple of bowls of takeout noodles. (Had to take some home to the boyfriend.)
He had the traditional Yat Ka Mein Bowl ($8.50) with egg noodles, chicken, pork, fish and assorted vegetables. Served with chicken broth, it was light and full of veggies (plus a whole lot of tasty and salty broth, he said). I went with the Spicy Salt and Pepper Bean Curd($8.95), which turned out to be little more than fried tofu with hot sauce and a few vegetables. For this whole-grain and veggie lover, it was a heavy and overpriced. It was tasty, but without the vegetables I asked them to toss in, I would have felt incredibly ripped off. Next time, I'll ask for suggestions from the vegetarian mennu or find out whether some of the tasty-looking noodle bowls could be made vegetarian.  
All was forgiven after I tasted the Sesame Sweet Dumplings ($4.50). Oh, wow! Sticky rice cakes (mochi) are filled with sweet bean paste, coated in sesame seeds and fried. Reminiscent of the crispy, fish-shaped, bean-filled cakes I'd burn my hands on all through the bitter Seoul winter, these are addictive. I burned the roof of my mouth gobbling up the sweet morsels, but I could have eaten a dozen of them. As it was, I had a hard time leaving two for my boyfriend to try.

Who's it for?

Noodle lovers. Anyone looking for a cheap dinner. Yat Ka Mein would be a great place for a stomach-padding meal before a night at the Hyde Park pubs.  

Where to get it?

3546 B Edwards Road, Hyde Park, 45208

513-321-2028

Open 11-10, Monday through Saturday

Lunch:11-4; Dinner 4-10

How much?

Lunch:$1 (soups)-$6.50 (pad Thai combo)

Dinner: $1.50(egg drop soup or an egg roll)-$25.00(a whole Cantonese Roasted Duck)