Pancakes, meet pandan. Asian American restaurants add their own spin to the weekend brunch

With different SE Asian pastes available (even sometimes in Japan), like green curry or Lemak cili padi or Tom Yum, it is easy to experiment with the tastes at home. I have zero interest in "authentic" cuisine myself (there is almost nothing which is really authentic unless you are eating weeds from a forest and some of those might be invasive) but love to mix tastes even across continents.

This is where I want to be. Whether ordering by menu or enjoying a buffet, these dishes seem to be 1.) different than the usual, 2.) creative, and 3.) dang fun. It's a foodie's dream.