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The words of the great food writer M.F.K. Fisher on sharing food (“Table for one” April 15) resonated in my mind throughout a sumptuous multi-course feast I shared with my friend Alexander at Sampan, Chef Michael Schulson’s 4-month-old Pan Asian restaurant on 13th Street’s restaurant row.
Each dish we shared — save one — was bursting with flavor and prepared with top-quality ingredients. Elizabeth, our server, advised us that Schulson creates small, but not tiny plates because he wants his patrons to share each dish.
Two days before our dinner, I went to Sampan for lunch and was recognized. I had a pork bahn mi ($7), a juicy succulent pork belly sandwich served on a hoagie roll topped with pickled cucumbers and carrots with a spicy mayonnaise-like sauce on the side. It comes with a bag of Utz chips and a fountain soda. I do not drink soda so I ordered iced tea ($2), which was on the weak side.
That said, it is back to dinner. An icy cold Bombay Sapphire martini was well-priced ($8.50). Alexander ordered a large Shichi Hon Yari sake ($40), which we shared. It arrived in a French carafe.
Alexander adores truffles. We began with a mushroom salad ($11) and edamame dumplings ($7). The salad was a simple mound of baby greens tossed in a heady truffle vinaigrette. Less is, indeed, deliciously more. The dumplings are a Schulson signature dish. He cooks edamame, adds truffles and purees them into the consistency of baby food. The wrappers were thin with a bit of bite. They were floating in a light sake broth laced with shoots.
King crab egg roll ($15) was a first for me and Alexander. He does not like crab meat, probably because he sampled some from the Gulf of Mexico, which I do not like either. I suspect Schulson uses Atlantic crab to fashion two cool, crispy rolls topped with a spicy pineapple chutney, miso and scallions. They were gone within a few moments.
Tuna sashimi ($14) was an eye-appealing presentation of small chunks of first-rate, raw tuna scattered on a large white plate strewn with bits of creamy avocado. Tuna and avocado is a fine culinary marriage. We placed the fish and avocado on crispy crackers similar to naan and enjoyed.
The chicken dumplings ($9) were a surprise. The minced chicken was nicely seasoned and stuffed into light wrappers with a light broth and microscopic bits of potatoes and rice. This would make a delicious soup on a cool evening.
Duck is one of my favorite foods. Schulson looked to France for its unusual style and presentation of Peking duck ($17). The meat was shredded and arrived in a glass jar much like pork rillettes you would find in France. It was cooked in its own fat and for some reason, emitted an aroma of cinnamon, which I liked. Two bite-size, thin pancakes prepared with tamarind were alongside julienned scallions and cucumbers. We took child-like pleasure in stuffing the pancakes and eating them with our hands.
Alexander has an appetite for life and fine food. He wanted a few more dishes. Although I was slowing down, it was fine with me. If we stopped, we would not have sampled Schulson’s super over-the-top Korean barbecue short ribs ($10). They were succulent and accented with kim che. King crab satay ($14) were equally fine. Succulent tender crab was simply placed on wooden skewers and needed little embellishment.
At this point, Schulson came over to greet us.
“I made your matzo ball soup,” he said. During Passover, I tweeted about my Asian-style matzo ball soup. Schulson wanted the recipe, so I e-mailed it to him.
He sent over a bowl of ham and egg-fried rice, which Alexander and I agreed was just so-so. He also sent us desserts. Alexander is not a dessert eater. He does not care for sweets, but adores honey. A strawberry tart topped with meringue was a bit sweet, but I loved the coconut tart made with a chocolate crust.
Service was a little spotty. We arrived at 7 p.m. and by 8 p.m., Sampan was almost solidly booked.
Three tips of the toque to Sampan.
Sampan
124 S. 13th St.
215-732-3501
Reservations are an absolute must
www.sampanphilly.com
34178459
34178594
