Sakura - More Soup Dumplings in Chinatown

It has somehow become my role in the Philadelphia dining community to shoot-up a signal flare whenever Xiao Long Bao are spotted in the area. I'm pleased to say that I can report another spot that offers the delicate "juicy buns" and not only that - they just might be the best yet.

The high quality of these dumplings shouldn't come as a surprise: the new-ish restaurant Sakura, at the corner of 11th and Race in Chinatown, is run by former partners in Dim Sum Garden, where the local mania for Xiao Long Bao was stoked. Although there were several dishes from Shanghai on Sakura's opening menu, the XLB are more recent additions, announced on a hand-writen sign on the door. We're told a new menu is imminent, featuring even more regional Chinese specialties, and these will surely be on it, but don't look for "Soup Dumplings." Like at Dim Sum Garden, they're referred-to as "Steamed Juicy Buns."

There are three varieties: one with pork, one with pork and crab, and one with shrimp and pork. We've sampled the plain pork, and the pork and crab, and they're really outstanding (we slightly prefer the plain pork.) The wrappers are paper-thin, but display significantly better structural integrity than those at Dim Sum Garden. We haven't had a single one rupture or tear, a frequent problem at Dim Sum Garden. They might be a little smaller than the ones at Dim Sum Garden, but larger than Zhi Wei Guan's, and come 6 to an order (as opposed to 8 at DSG and ZWG) but these seem in perfect balance. The skins are tender, yet strong, holding in just the right amount of broth. That soup inside is less salty than many other versions, but comes into perfect balance with a few drips of the gingery sauce that accompanies.

It's pretty amazing: not long ago, Phiadelphians would bemoan the lack of XLB in local restaurants, and now we have three places that serve good ones.

The even better news about Sakura is that there's much more worth exploring on their menu. Of particular note is their Scallion Pancake, which threatens to overshadow the Xiao Long Bao as a seductive snack. This version is airy and flaky, not the crunchy puck we've gotten used to at other restaurants. They're still a little oily, but seem more buttery than greasy. There are two versions, regular and onion, neither of which tastes very much like scallions, but they're so good that it's easy to not care.

There are lots more interesting things on the menu, along with some of the same-old Chinatown standards, it will be interesting to see if the new menu tilts more strongly toward the traditional Chinese styles. Although they offer several spicy dishes typical of Sichuan, I think the kitchen is stronger in the realm of the foods from Shanghai.


That said, the Double-Cooked Pork was tasty, if not especially spicy. Tender slices of pork belly were stir-fried with cabbage and chile sauce, which gave a bold flavor, but not a lot of heat, and none of the tingly sensation that comes from Sichuan Peppercorns.

The spicy dishes we got on an earlier visit were good, but they're not going to challenge the versions you can find a few blocks away at Four Rivers, or Szechuan Tasty House, or out in the 'burbs at Han Dynasty.

You'll have better luck here with the Shanghainese dishes, like the Braised Pork Shoulder, the Lions Head, or some of the dishes with Rice Cake.

We tried the Fried Rice Cake with beef. It's mild, but the chewy texture of the noodle-like discs of rice cake along with a little crunch from cabbage an onion make this a nice subtle comforting dish.

I hope to see more homey dishes from Shangahi and beyond on the new menu. I'll certainly be checking in with them soon!

In the meantime, there's no reason at all for you to delay heading over there for Steamed Juicy Buns and Scallion pancakes.


Sakura
1038 Race Street (on the corner of 11th Street)
215-873-8338

earlier post about Sakura here>>

Sakura - Regional Chinese, and Sushi too

Sakura is a restaurant with multiple personalities. One might think from their name that they're a Japanese restaurant, but although they serve sushi, their main focus is on Chinese food. To add another layer of complexity, they serve Chinese food that draws from many parts of China. There are dishes that are typical of Shanghai, some from Sichuan, northern dishes, and the broad selection of Mandarin style typically seen in Beijing.

We chose to concentrate on the Chinese side of the menu, we're still a little unsure about the combination of Chinese food and sushi, we tend to want one or the other, not both at the same time. There's plenty to choose from on either side of the menu, so that was no hardship.

Even though we were concentrating on Chinese, they wanted us to try the special "Wasabi Roll" and kindly sent one out for us to try. It was filled with tempura shrimp and dressed with four sauces. My tablemates all said this was not the kind of sushi they normally order, but admitted that it was tasty!

We started the main meal with Shong Shao Fish Soup, which had a nice thick texture, tender fish, and a bright, complex herbal flavor.

The Scallion Pancake showed no evidence of scallions, but we didn't care, it was a wonderful version, very light and flaky, with many layers, the top adorned with sesame seeds.


House Shrimp were well-liked at the table.

Diced Chicken with Hot Pepper had some serious spiciness.

As did the Baby Shrimp Sautéed with House Spicy Sauce

The Braised Pork Shoulder is a favorite from Shanghai, with a deep, sweet glaze over the luxuriously fatty meat.


Lion's Head is another popular dish from Shanghai, and these baseball-sized meatballs were a flavorful version, despite being just a touch dry. The delicious sauce and braised bok choy compensated nicely.

Sautéed Water Spinach was bright and tender, the hollow stems of the vegetable soaking up the garlicky sauce.

Shanghai Pan-Fried Udon had a great texture from the large, firm noodles.
Steamed Fish with Ginger and Soy was very nicely done, featuring delicate fish, just barely cooked, flavored with a thin but flavorful sauce.
Chicken in Rice Wine Sauce was a favorite around the table. The cold chicken had picked up a pleasingly boozy, sweet flavor from the marinade, and its time in the wine had tenderized it perfectly.
Shanghai Marinated Duck was another cold dish with vivid flavors from a complex dark marinade.

We'd asked if they had any pickles, and these preverved vegetables had a bright sour kick that went well with many of these dushes,

For dessert, they sent a delicious sweet soup with tender tapioca and a touch of wine.

And finally, Banana Tempura. Warm, crunchy, sweet... what could be wrong with that?


Overall we thought the food was very good, and we're thrilled to see more regional Chinese on menus here. It's a big country, with many different traditions. Shanghai-style is represented well here, in fact we recognize some staff from Dim Sum Garden which also serves excellent dishes from Shanghai.

We're still not sure they need to serve sushi here, the menu is already very diverse, but I'm sure they'll find out whether there's a demand for it in this context. We'll be back to explore more of the menu, we barely scratched the surface, and who knows, maybe we'll even feel like some maki too...

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Sakura
1038 Race Street (on the corner of 11th Street)
215-873-8338

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