Dinner at Buddakan Restaurant, April 2003
Dinner at Buddakan, April 2003... Recommended to me by a few people, and being owned by the same dude that created Morimoto Restaurant (Stephen Starr), I thought I would eat dinner at Buddakan. Here are my thoughts...
Some of what we ate:
Course 1: Kimono
Course 2: Duck and Shiitake Potstickers
Course 3 Crispy Shrimp Spring Rolls
Course 4: Angry Lobster IV
Course 5: "Dip-Sum" doughnuts
FULL DETAILS:
Similar to my night at Morimoto, I rolled into Philly on Saturday for some fun and good eats. We started our night with a few drinks at the hotel and were a little late for our 10PM reservations. But, the manager on hand that night was nice and not only did he seat us right away, he re-seated us to a more private, non-smoking table when I informed him that I wanted non-smoking and something less "crowded" (even though I didn't specify this when I made the reservation). Little did I know that we would get, in my opinion, the best seat in the house for a couple eating dinner alone. We had a perfect view of the entire restaurant, while being far enough away from all other tables so as to keep our privacy. As you'll read in my description of the restaurant in the paragraph below, privacy is scarce at this place...
The atmosphere in the restaurant is quite nice. It was cool, both literally and figuratively. Even for an April night, I felt slightly cold in the restaurant because of the air conditioning. The tall ceilings must necessitate a heavy duty heating and cooling system or something. But anyway, I always prefer a restaurant slightly on the cool side since I tend to wear a jacket most of the time. Our table was in the corner and faced the giant Buddha. The Budda is the first thing you will notice once you walk inside the restaurant. It stands about 5 feet off the ground and is around 7 feet tall and almost the same width. If you are in a large group, THE table to get is the long, "castle-style" table directly in front of Budda himself. The table is made of translucent material and is lighted underneath creating a nice effect. I checked out the second floor briefly and felt it is too isolated from the rest of the restaurant. I would say it is more suited for the older visitors of this restaurant as it's a bit quieter up there and "removed" from the action. The white curtains covering nearly every wall are a great touch. They are very cool and remind me (almost too much so) of the Delano Hotel in South Beach, Miami. Privacy is nonexistent at Buddakan (even on the second floor), but if you are like me and don't enjoy hearing every word the party at the table next to you is saying, there is only one table to sit, and that is the the table where we sat. But still, it is not private by any means, but more so than anything else on the first floor since it is nestled into a corner and has nice space all around it.
Buddakan prides itself on being "family style", meaning the portions they serve are large, and meant for sharing. The waiters will tell you this, the hostess will tell you this, the bartender will tell you this, even the menu has the following statement at the top:
"Following the tradition of asian cultures, Buddakan provides a family style dining experience by offering plentiful portions designed to be shared. It is Buddakan's suggestion that you pass our plates amongst your friends and companions and embrace this custom as well. Our servers are here to guide you, so please call upon them for the smallest of favors. Buddakan has no set rules. Be creative. Have fun and follow your own path."
Personally, I was disappointed with this whole "family style" theme they are trying to create. First of all, they do not succeed in creating a "family style" restaurant. The environment, the service, the portions, and the type of food is not appropriate for sharing. Our waiter even told us that the only dish large enough for two people to split is the angry lobster dish. All this being said, I think there is a conflict between the environment and the theme of the restaurant. The environment is expensive, and upscale. The words "family style" have no place in any restaurant that can truly consider itself either "expensive" or "upscale". Family style is reserved for restaurants such as Buca di Beppo in Washington, DC, where the decor reminds you of being at home and the portions are gigantic. Buddakan is an expensive restaurant where you go to enjoy a classy meal, not to get multiple dishes and have everyone's hands digging around in each others entrees. It simply is a clash between two incompatible themes. Anyway, notwithstanding any of what I just said, Buddakan has done a good job at attempting to fuse these two styles together and has probably come as close as anyone ever will to creating an upscale "family style" restaurant.
On a final note in describing the restaurant, I must compliment a gentlemen named "Alex", who was our bus boy. His manners and service were first class. He answered all my questions politely and was on top of things from the moment we were seated. The real irony is that he puts 95% of the waiters I have encountered in my life to shame and his talent is shadowed by his position as a bus boy. I can only hope that he will one day be the head waiter of a large hotel, they would only be so lucky to have him... Anyway, on to the review of the food...
STARTER: "KIMONOS (Stoli vanilla, pineapple juice, fresh lime juice and chambord)"
OK, so normally alcohol is not considered a course, but I decided that these drinks were so good, they deserved to be considered as such. We started with a round of Kimonos right away to get the dinner started. They were a good conversation piece and were very tasty. The taste was strong (the vodka), yet sweet. We drank them pretty quickly, like an aperitif, so we were just about finished with them when the first appetizer came and we decided to order another round of Kimonos to carry us through the rest of dinner, instead of wine or sake.
APPETIZER NUMBER 1: "DUCK AND SHIITAKE POTSTICKERS (with citrus soy vinaigrette)"
I can safely say that this was the tastiest dish of the night. The potstickers were tangy and salty, with a sweet soy sauce that complimented the game-style flavor of the dumplings that the chef seemed to want to be emphasizing. The combination of duck meat and mushrooms was PERFECT. Wow, I remember wanting to order two or three more plates of this stuff and I'm actually convinced that no trip to Philly will be complete without stopping by Buddakan to enjoy these perfect little gyozas. Highly recommended! A+!
APPETIZER NUMBER 2: "CRISPY SHRIMP SPRING ROLLS (with plum & spicy mustard sauces)"
These rolls came after we had finished eating the potstickers. There are two sauces, mustard and plum. The mustard sauce is reserved for mustard lovers. It's pretty strong tasting and has good flavor. But if you are not a big fan of mustard, then you will probably not enjoy this sauce (I didn't). The Plum sauce is the sauce for the rest of us. It is a great, sweet compliment to the slightly oily skin of the rolls. When taking a bite of these rolls, either plain or with the dipping sauce, the shrimp is clearly the star of this dish, while still maintaining a humble presence to the rest of the ingredients inside the roll. Great appetizer.
MAIN DISH: "ANGRY LOBSTER IV (wok seared 3-pounder served in a nest of lobster mashed potatoes & wok charred vegetables, coconut curry sauce)"
I want to start with a small disclaimer that I am a big lobster snob, and I am typically not happy with lobster when I dine out which is why I so seldom order it. However, Morimoto Restaurant was an exception because I chose the theme ingredient and the live lobster was prepared in front of me by Morimoto himself. I am happy to say that another exception is the dish known as "Angry Lobster" at Buddakan. This dish was absolutely unique and amazing. Typically, a 3lb lobster is tough and a bit dry because of the size of the lobster. It is not the fault of the chef, but more so of mother nature as that is simply the way it goes. The larger the lobster, the drier and tougher the meat. I NEVER order lobster larger than 1.5 lbs, but I felt I had to make an exception tonight. I was expecting a decent dish, but what I got was an excellent one. The meat was juicy and perfectly cooked. The dish itself is comprised of an interesting potpourri of vegetables for a large entree. The spices are subtle and very appropriate for the dish. The 3lb description for the lobster is about right as there appeared to be a little less than 1lb of meat total and the empty tail shell was about the right size for a 3lb lobster. The vegetables in the dish are: asparagus, broccoli, sweet peppers, carrot, cauliflower, green onion, mushrooms, and snow peas. It's a very Chinese dish, almost Chen-like in the use and quantity of different ingredients. The tail however, is definitely the centerpiece of the dish and it is contained in the lobster mashed potato, which is the secret to success here. I've never had lobster mashed potato, but all I can say is that I will definitely have it again. It's a great flavor and with the amount of tail meat used, you seldom eat a bite without having a good chunk of lobster. It's very luxurious and simple all at the same time. Highly recommended.
DESSERT: "'DIP-SUM' DOUGHNUTS (5-spice mini-doughnuts served warm with blackberry jam, chocolate sauce, and ginger creme cheese for dipping)"
Not being a big fan of dessert, I don't have much to say about this dish except that it was one of the most interesting desserts I've had in a while. I didn't sample the chocolate sauce as I gave up chocolate for lent but I did get a chance to try both the blackberry jam and ginger creme cheese sauce. I think they are both excellent dips for these doughnut hole style puff balls. The doughnuts themselves are not too dense (they are pretty big and I was afraid they would be doughy) and are actually just right for a nice finish to a big meal. Again, I recommend this dish.
FINAL THOUGHTS - "FAMILY STYLE" = BIG NEGATIVE:
Again, I can't stress enough that it's my personal feeling that the words "family-style" have no place in an expensive, trendy restaurant. The thought of having a business dinner here and having the waitress suggest that a group of formally dressed businessmen "share" dishes is simply not appropriate. That being said, even though I was not at a business dinner, I still didn't like the idea of family style. Somehow, it just took away from the overall experience and did not fit in. I think the concept is fine, but not in a sterile, trendy setting like Buddakan. If you want family style and mediocre food, check out Buca di Beppo in Washington, DC. If you want great nouveau-asian cuisine in a trendy setting, check out Buddakan in Philly, you won't be disappointed.
And of course, in the end, one last drunk picture of me hanging out with Budda. ;-)
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