Luyixian is the first restaurant in America for Chun Hua Tao and her husband Yao Ye. They grew up near the coast of the Zhejiang province in central China and operated restaurants there before opening in Alhambra.
In both Mandarin and Cantonese, "lu," as it's spelled phonetically in English, is the word for braising. In Chinese cuisine, it broadly refers to the technique of simmering foods in highly seasoned, soy-based liquid. Los Angeles Time restaurant critic Bill Addison explains that "yi" means "hundred million" and "xian" means food or cuisine, so Luyixian means "restaurant serving a wide variety of braised dishes."
The menu is large and the couple traverses regions with Sichuan-style cold meats, boiled fish in scarlet broth, and a spicy beef noodle soup found in Taiwanese restaurants. Addison points out #44 on the menu — "a beautiful, soothing collage of ingredients presented on an oblong platter." A mound of white rice sidles up to brown, braised pork belly and a spread of condiments with a soy-braised egg.
A spicy beef noodle soup, beloved in Taiwan, can be found on Luyixian's voluminous menu. Photo by Mel Melcon/(c) 2023 Los Angeles Times.