10 Asian Restaurant Chains That Will Expand In 2026

Chinese food has long been popular in the United States, and you can seemingly find a Chinese restaurant in every city, but there's so much more to Asian cuisine than Chinese food. Asian restaurants beyond Chinese cuisine have also been increasingly trendy, though, with the rise of food like Korean BBQ and more affordable sushi. According to Pew Research, back in 2023, around 12% of the restaurants in the U.S. served Asian food. That number is sure to increase soon, if it hasn't already. 

Popular Asian food chains that have been around for a while, like Panda Express, continue to expand, while new restaurant chains have also started to pop up. Whether they're started by Asian-Americans in the U.S. or brands coming in from overseas, some of these chains are currently among the most successful restaurant brands in the country. 

You'll likely soon find things like soup dumplings, Korean fried chicken, or Japanese yakiniku being served more often in your city. Want to know what's coming? Here are the ten rapidly rising Asian restaurant chains that are planning to expand even more in 2026, and may soon be arriving near you.

The California-based Chubby Cattle is known for being an all-you-can-eat restaurant that offers Japanese A5 wagyu, the highest grade of the coveted wagyu beef. Most of the locations serve yakiniku, the traditional Japanese BBQ, where guests grill their own meat on the tables. Some locations focus on Chinese-style hotpot while others serve Japanese shabu shabu, but all three concepts use the Chubby Cattle name.

The menu offers three different price tiers. With the highest two tiers, you can order A5 wagyu and other special dishes like lobster tail and foie gras. In addition to the meat and seafood for grilling, the menu also offers sushi and dumplings. For diners who can really put away food, the all-you-can-eat offering can be a great deal. Another thing that is different about Chubby Cattle is that the restaurant offers a membership program that comes with perks like discounts and free birthday meals.

Chubby Cattle opened its first location in Monterey Park, California, in 2023 and has since expanded to numerous locations, including Atlanta and New York. There are currently ten Chubby Cattle locations with more on the way. In 2026, the chain plans to expand into Texas, starting with San Antonio. The parent company also operates other restaurants such as Mikiya and Niku X.

Pei Wei Asian Kitchen opened its first location in Scottsdale, Arizona, back in 2000. This restaurant chain is a fast casual chain, serving Chinese food, and commits to using fresh, whole ingredients. As opposed to many Chinese fast-food restaurants where the food is already prepared and kept in warming trays, the food at Pei Wei is cooked to order. 

It was originally started by the same people behind P.F. Chang's China Bistro to be its casual, affordable sister restaurant, but Pei Wei split off from the P.F. Chang's parent company in 2017. The restaurant also originally opened under the name Pei Wei Asian Diner but switched the name to Pei Wei Asian Kitchen in 2018. The menu has expanded beyond Chinese food since then, and now offers other dishes like pad thai and salmon poke.

As of November 2025, Pei Wei already operated from around 180 locations around the country. Some of the more recent expansions include locations in Oklahoma and Florida, including one that recently opened in Delray Beach in South Florida. Tapping into the needs of travelers and students alike for fast, affordable food, the brand has also opened branches in several airports as well as on university campuses. 

Din Tai Fung's story goes quite far back. The founder originally opened a cooking oil retail shop in 1958 but decided to start selling xiao long bao (soup dumplings) in half of the shop in 1972. The dumplings ended up being so popular that not only did the oil store become a full-fledged dumpling shop, but Din Tai Fung has become a global restaurant chain with locations in 13 countries, including the United States. 

Din Tai Fung is well-known for the quality of its food, especially the soup dumplings — so much so that the Hong Kong location has received a Michelin star five times. In particular, customers love the thin skin of the dumplings, which are said to be folded 18 times in each dumpling. The chain's first U.S. location opened in 2000 in Arcadia, a city in Los Angeles County. The xiao long bao can be filled with Kurobuta pork, crab and pork, or chicken. In addition, the restaurant also offers dishes like spicy wontons, noodles, fried rice, and Shanghai rice cakes.

Din Tai Fung currently has 17 locations across the U.S., but the brand is certainly not stopping there. It has become the top-earning restaurant chain in the U.S., bringing in an average of $27.4 million per location, and the company certainly plans to expand further across the country. If it's your first time, learn how to eat a soup dumpling before you go so you can enjoy them like an expert. 

Haidilao is China's biggest hotpot restaurant chain, and it's one of the popular food brands from China that's rapidly expanding in the U.S. Founded in 1994, the restaurant opened its first location in Sichuan Province, China, where the restaurant is famous for its amenities. As there is typically a long wait to dine at a Haidilao location, the restaurants have a waiting area that offers not only free snacks and drinks, but free manicures. 

By 2020, Haidilao had opened more than 900 restaurants around the world, including in Indonesia and Australia. The first U.S. location was opened in 2013 in Arcadia, California. Though the brand initially required some fine-tuning to adjust to the U.S. market, from the flavor palate to the service, it has now found its stride (don't worry, you can still get the staff to perform the famous noodle dance at the stateside locations). 

Haidilao now has 12 locations across the U.S and is adding more, including in Austin, Texas. These locations offer Chinese hotpot with a choice of six different soup flavors, alongside a variety of meat, seafood, and vegetables. There are also different dipping sauces to try. Before you go, brush up with this ultimate guide to ordering Chinese hotpot.

JINYA Ramen Bar's founder, Tomo Takahashi, opened his first restaurant in Tokyo back in 2000 before finally opening the first JINYA Ramen Bar in the U.S. in 2010. The first was in Studio City, California, but the chain now operates more than 75 locations around the U.S., including in Texas, Colorado, Arizona, and beyond. According to the company's website, around 170 locations are already in development, and some of the upcoming locations include New York and New Jersey, where around 25 locations are planned. The company also operates other restaurant concepts, including Robata JINYA, which focuses on robatayaki, where skewered meats and vegetables are grilled over charcoal.

The restaurant's specialty is the ramen broth that's simmered for 20 hours. In addition to the classic pork broth ramen, it also offers chicken as well as vegetarian ramen, which makes JINYA Ramen Bar a good option for people with various dietary restrictions. There are also other dishes to round out the menu, like gyoza or crispy rice topped with spicy tuna.

Bonchon sells Korean fried chicken, and who doesn't love fried chicken? What makes the Korean version different is the double-frying technique that makes the batter extra crunchy, as well as the Korean sauces used for the glaze. Bonchon is one of the largest Korean fried chicken chains in the world, with more than 470 locations worldwide, in places like Singapore and Vietnam. 

Bonchon started in Busan, South Korea, back in 2002 and opened its first location in the U.S. in 2006. By the beginning of 2025, Bonchon had already grown to 147 restaurants in the U.S., and announced plans in 2024 to expand to 500 more. This is part of a larger plan for the company to double its number of locations globally within the next five years.

At Bonchon, customers have four different sauce options, including the signature soy garlic or the spicy sauce, or purists can just get the fried chicken plain. In the U.S., the menu at Bonchon now also includes dishes like bulgogi fries, fried rice, and udon, appealing to customers who are looking for a more complete meal. 

Gyu-Kaku was started in Japan back in 1987. The company currently has more than 800 restaurants worldwide, with the first location in the U.S. having been opened in 2001, in Los Angeles. The restaurant specializes in yakiniku (Japanese BBQ), where diners grill the meat themselves on a grill built into the dining table. Gyu-Kaku also prides itself on its smokeless grill, using a down draft system to minimize the smoke, so you don't come out smelling like a grill after dining here.

The best-selling cut here is the skirt steak, which has been dry-aged for 21 days. The restaurant offers both an à la carte menu and an all-you-can-eat menu. To accompany the grilled meats, Gyu-Kaku also offers stone pot rice and noodles, plus beer and sake.

Gyu-Kaku currently has over 50 U.S. locations, with more already in the works, including in North Carolina and California. The company has also announced plans to expand into locations such as Orlando, Denver, and Austin. 

Panda Express is already one of the biggest Chinese restaurant chains in the U.S. — it operates over 2,600 locations worldwide, and most of those are in America. The chain restaurant's story started with a sit-down Chinese restaurant in Pasadena, California, called Panda Inn, which first opened in 1973 (it's still there today, and received a major renovation in 2024). The company later opened Panda Express as a fast-casual spinoff at a mall in Southern California. 

This restaurant's most famous dish is, of course, the Panda Express orange chicken. This now-famous American-Chinese dish was first created by a Panda Express chef, Andy Kao, in 1987, and helped pave the way for Panda Express to expand. In 2017, the chain opened its 2,000th location in New York City. To stay relevant, Panda Express has an Innovation Kitchen in Pasadena, where the brand tests out experimental ideas like an orange chicken burrito or an orange chicken and bacon biscuit sandwich. 

You can find Panda Express branches at airports, college campuses, and more. In May of 2025, the company announced that it would be opening 130 more locations around the country, so you will certainly come across a Panda Express soon, if you haven't already. Wondering what to order when you do? We've already ranked the Panda Express menu items for you.

Wagamama is a pan-Asian restaurant chain, but this particular brand doesn't come from Asia or the United States, but from across the pond, in the U.K. The first location, in London, opened in 1992, and Wagamama has now grown to over 250 locations around the world. The restaurant made its move into the U.S. market with the opening of a location in Boston in 2007. Wagamama currently has seven locations in the U.S., in New York, Virginia, and Florida. 

Wagamama started by just offering Japanese noodles and chicken katsu curry, but the menu has expanded significantly to keep up with the competition and customers' evolving palates. The menu now not only has ramen and yakisoba, but also includes pad thai, noodles with kimchi, and plenty of vegan and vegetarian options.

The U.S. division of Wagamama recently relocated its headquarters from New York to Tampa, Florida. This was a strategic decision. The company plans to expand in the near future, focusing specifically on Florida, Texas, and the Carolinas. 

Kura Sushi is a conveyor belt sushi restaurant, where plates of sushi and other small bites circle around the restaurant on a conveyor belt. Customers can either order specific items, which the computerized system will deliver to their table via the conveyor belt, or wait until something that looks good passes within reach. Not only is it fun to grab sushi from the belt, but Kura Sushi also offers an affordable way to enjoy sushi. 

Kura Sushi started in Japan back in 1977. The restaurant chain opened its first U.S. location in Irvine, California, in 2009. With most of the sushi plates costing $4.10 at the Los Angeles location, the price point is appealing to many customers, with the added bonus that guests receive a surprise gift after ordering a certain number of plates. The restaurant also does fun collaborations, like offering a limited menu and gifts in collaboration with the video game series, Kirby. 

Kura Sushi has grown into the largest revolving sushi restaurant chain in the country. There are currently 79 Kura Sushi locations in 22 states, plus Washington, D.C., with 15 new restaurants having been opened in 2025. Not stopping there, the company plans to add 16 more locations by 2026.