Wokcano Owner Transforms Downtown Steakhouse Into Modern Asian Bistro

Wokcano founder Marcus Kwan quickly converted Downtown’s Spear Steakhouse into its newest iteration, Kues Modern Asian Bistro & Bar October 29. Kwan’s vision is a bit more than an 8,000 square foot restaurant, with future plans for a late hours lounge with live music, and DJs. Before Spear, the place was a French-ish restaurant called Le Ka.

Eater spoke with Kwan about the switch, where he outlined his love of traditional Chinese dishes like Peking duck, dim sum, and dan dan noodles. But Kues also offers modern and unconventional choices as well, including lobster uni pasta, wagyu pepper beef, a cauliflower “fried” rice, oxtail stew, and a reasonably-priced raw bar.

Wokcano, with ten locations and another opening soon in Carlsbad, is only one of Kwan’s vast ventures. He opened Wokcano in 2001 only 12 years after immigrating to the U.S. from China. He also opened seafood restaurant C.O.D on West Third in 2016. When it’s expanded to full hours, Kues will serve Monday through Wednesday from 11 a.m. until midnight, Thursday to Saturday until 2 a.m., and Sunday from 5 until 11 p.m.

Kues Restaurant. 800 W 6th St Los Angeles, CA

• Downtown’s Le Ka Swaps to Become Spear Steakhouse [ELA]
• A Beguiling New Pan-Asian Restaurant and Bar Kicks Up in Downtown [ELA]