Yolo update

Chinese food, fried chicken and more: The next school year at UC Davis is about to start, which means new Davis restaurants have been scrambling to open as soon as possible.

Among them: Hong Kong Cafe (2151 Cowell Boulevard, Suite C), a cha chaan teng serving an eclectic mix of Hong Kong-style dishes. There are those baked meats over rice or spaghetti, covered in sauces ($8.50-$10.50), including ox tongue; instant noodle soup with Spam ($7.75); and condensed milk spread on toast ($3).

Among the internationally influenced offerings: Indonesian fried rice ($9.25), Hainanese chicken with rice ($8.95), Malaysian-style chow fun ($10.95), Thai-style chicken wings ($7) and Russian borscht ($3.50).

The Organic Coup (130 G Street) also recently opened in the former Vampire Penguin space. The fast food chain stands out for its use of entirely organic ingredients and extremely short menu: fried chicken, available in sandwich, wrap or salad form.

A new hot pot restaurant opened in August and then closed for further remodeling, but it should return any day now. Boiling Pot (630 G Street) is located in the former Monticello Seasonal Cuisine space, which now looks very sleek and modern. The menu is pretty simple, with a few Asian desserts, milk teas and sides. Instead, the focus is on 10 preset hot pot combinations, most of which cost $14.99 at dinner. The house special, for example, includes cabbage, fermented tofu, pork, enoki mushroom, fish cake, meatball, clam, quail egg, pork blood and preserved vegetables.

There’s also Meow Gee (2880 Fifth Street, Suite 140), a boba shop that opened earlier this summer. Most importantly, it’s cat-themed, with the most adorable image of a little cat holding tea stamped onto each cup. The menu is smaller than most bubble tea shops, with roughly 20 variations on milk tea as well as a few topped with crema. Instead of the usual array of fried snacks, Meow Gee serves two types of noodle soup ($8.50-$8.75).

And let’s not forget Ike’s Love & Sandwiches (212 F Street) of San Francisco fame finally opened a couple of months ago. This location serves about 20 meaty sandwiches and 15 vegetarian ones, including two Davis exclusives: Yolo ($7.97) holds pastrami and ham, and Room 107 ($8.98) has fried chicken. Both feature American cheese and “Aggie sauce.”