ChinaTown Reccomendations

[janzu]

I'm sure I've seen postings on here before concerning ChinaTown, Philadelphia. I have not been out in that area before though. Any reccomendations for this weekend? Good food....nothing greasy
Thanks

[rabidog]

ooooooh this thread got me all in the mood for chinatown so i just biked down there for dinner! i was aiming for lee how fook, but they looked pretty closed and all of a sudden a summer roll craving set in so that's how we ended up at vietnam palace across the street. we ordered all vegetarian dishes - they had a fantastic selection. maybe we ordered *just* the right thing, or you all need to check them out again - we LOVED it. i mean, it was one of the better meals i've had in philly this year. i would absolutely recommend any of the four things (i wanted to order more but was cut off by the s.o.!) we ordered: tofu summer rolls with a great dark, thick ?plum? sauce, spring rolls with a lighter sauce, a tomato soup with tofu, pineapple chunks, bean sprouts, other veggies, and a flat wide rice noodle stir-fry with tofu and veggies and cilantro. i was so happy with dinner. pleasantly full now, but not stuffed, brought some home.

can anyone else weigh in on other vegetarian vietnamese options throughout the city? i think i'm going to be stuck on this cuisine for awhile now.

[Rondo]

Can't really weigh in on vegetarian options since I am a confirmed carnivore, but I can tell you I had dinner last week at Shiao Lan Kung for the first time and it was very, very good. there were a number of vegetarian options on that menu so you really couldn't go wrong if you suddenly craved Chinese vs. Vietnamese. Also almost directly across the street is Rising Tide, which my son tells me is very good also.

[Dib]

Be careful with Chinese food if you're a vegetarian. A dish that may be named something simple like "sauteed greens" in English and is under the "vegetables" section very often has meat broth, most often chicken broth. It isn't apparent in the finished product. I didn't know this until a Chinese chef friend gave me cooking lessons.

I don't know if this is true about Shiao Lan Kung specifically (never asked) but their "vegetarian" section does have dishes with oyster sauce and shrimp paste in them.

[kennedy1025]

pho cali! best vietnamese in town. 10th and arch (i think?)

[baekster]

Really? I wasn't impressed with their Pho (the broth was under-seasoned and the meat cut wasn't as thin). If you want really good Vietnamese food, go to 11th and Washington Ave (that's a little Vietnamese strip mall with a few restaurants). If you're in Chinatown, both Vietnam and Vietnam palace are decent not great.

[Gertie McDowell]

Are you a fan of Pho 75 in that Washington Ave strip mall? They have a new-ish branch on Race street between 11th and 10th.

[baekster]

Avoid Szechuan Tasty House if you don't want greasy. But it's soooo good.
Ocean Harbor offered pretty good dim sums for brunch (and you know most dim sums are steamed so no grease).

[potroastcat]

Vietnam! www.eatatvietnam.com

I'm getting hungry thinkin' about their spring roll vermicelli. It's great atmosphere, inexpensive, fast and completely ungreasy.

[MothaTucker]

What do you guys and gals order from Lee How Fook? Do they have something that can't be missed?

[Gertie McDowell]

My favorites are salt baked squid, chicken hot pot, and sui mai (sp?) dumplings. Oh, and duck noodle soup. And steamed whole fish. Mmmm.

[pamd]

hot & sour soup is amazing! Fried rice is huge portion & great! I enjoy ma po tofu & hot pots

[jessicheese]

Their wonton soup and fried rice have ruined all others for me. I also really like the sea bass. The sweet and sour version is insane, and I also like it Hong Kong style.

[Delucacheesemonger]

Hot and Sour soup
Wonton, best ever, soup
Salt baked scallops
fish hot pot
many things eg: pork are iffy but the above have worked for me for decades

[cwdonald]

I second the Lakeside Deli for Dim Sum (its a la carte.. not steam carts.. pun intended)

Szechuan Tasty House is the other great option in Chinatown.

Rangoon which has been sighted is NOT chinese, but rather Burmese. It is wonderful.

[arizonagirl]

Rangoon and the Imperial Inn are my 2 favorites

www.foodhunter.blogspot.com

[Gertie McDowell]

Seconded: Lee How Fook and Shiao Lan Kung.

[sailbadthesinner]

Lee How Fook, Sang Kee

[Buckethead]

Rangoon, get the house noodles.

[saturninus]

Shiao Lan Kung
Lakesdide Deli

[phillyjazz]

DO NOT miss the thousand layer bread !! OOPS ... that is pretty greasy....