Danny Bowien, chef at Mission Chinese Food, stands for a portrait in Berkeley, Calif., Feb. 22, 2011.
This was the year that a cohort of young Asian-American chefs, cooking every kind of cuisine, came of age and made their collective debut as a force in American gastronomy. From Danny Bowien’s fiery, idiosyncratic take on Chinese food at bicoastal Mission Chinese to Paul Qui’s reimagining of Japanese food at Austin’s Uchiko to Kris Yenbamroong’s bold new take on Thai food at Los Angeles’ Night + Market, these chefs have arrived in force and are ready to take their food to new and unexpected directions — and not necessarily toward the Pacific Rim.