This restaurant was recommended by some local residents, and it turned out to be one of my favorites in the Snoqualmie Valley. Even though the restaurant is right off I-90 it is rather hard to find. Look for the Safeway and it is in the same shopping center.

Serving Szechuan and Mandarin style food (although not the authentic Szechuan food found at Sichuanese Cuisine in Redmond), the owner nevertheless swears the food is authentic. I am not convinced it is completely authentic, but it seems pretty good.

The best dish I tried was Ginger Tofu, something I had to order off-menu. There may be many good meals that can be discovered by making special requests of the owner (this can usually be accommodated by going at a non-peak time). In fact, one of the best features of Yum Yang is that it stays open between 2:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m., a time when most restaurants are shut down, thus making it more convenient for travelers on I-90.

More recently, though, I have not been able to have the ginger tofu prepared for me. The lunch menu has several types of tofu available (as well as a number of meat items), and the tofu dishes offer a good variety, but they say that ginger tofu is not available. I tried the Tofu with Black Mushrooms containing shitake mushrooms and a variety of vegetables that is commonly found in home style tofu and other dishes. The brown sauce used in the black mushroom dish was good but not extremely impressive (this is one reason I used to like the ginger sauce). Other sauces are available for the tofu dishes including Szechuan sauce and a white sauce used with the tofu and vegetable dish. The brown sauce, though, just did not seem as good as the ginger sauce I used to get. I will say, though, that the black mushrooms are probably an authentic version of this dish while ginger tofu is not.

Other than its location in a strip shopping center (across the street from the factory outlet mall) the other notable feature is that you are likely to hear Spanish language music coming from the kitchen. At first I thought this was a foreboding that mediocre food would be served as in most Chinese restaurants in El Paso, but the owner is firmly in control of the recipes and the other cooks seem to be competent.

I did not think Yum Yang served noteworthy, authentic Chinese food as can be found closer to the Seattle city center, but this is good food when you are in the area or you need a stop along I-90. The owners are friendly, and the food is enjoyable.

The Hot and Sour Soup was very good, and Cashew Chicken seemed like a good choice if you want something that is not spicy.