For this edition of The Once-Over, Phoodie man about town Collin Flatt and our editor Joey Sweeney checked out Kong, a new (and reasonably priced) Chinese Street Food sit-down (with bar, no BYOB here) in Northern Liberties. After the jump, the gruesome twosome jaw about what’s great — and what could use a little work — at this unique and ambitious new spot.
JS: So, the other night, we were both treated to a once-over of Chef Michael O’Halloran’s Kong, which just opened in NoLibs and boasts, to my mind at least, one of the most dangerous bacon dishes in the city.
CF: On the same tip, Sweens. You hit the high note early. The bacon dish was amazing. Fat as hell, juicy as hell, and quite sizzling. Surrounded in leafy greens as an homage to lettuce wrap, but with a much bigger score to settle.
JS: I figured it was good one to start with, for one, because the dish — Honey-Glazed Chinese Bacon with Spicy Roasted Peanuts — is at the heart of Kong’s “Chinese Street food” menu (in this case, on the dim sum section) and two, because the one thing I kept thinking as we tore through seven plates, is that this stuff is MAN FOOD. Which is not to say it’s not accomplished — so much of it truly is — but it’s certainly not dainty.
CF: Agreed. I liked the heat they started with, too. The first dish was that Stir Fried Egg and Crab, and was my second favorite of the night thanks to the burning sriracha. Man food yes, sloppy, no. I thought the wine list was a complete miss though, as with anything spicy, all you really want is Rieslings, and there was only one or 2.
JS: I went with the Halida, a light and tasty Vietnamese beer — something about the menu made me want almost anything but wine. And you’re right about that Stir Fried Egg and Crab — that’ll definitely be one of the dishes Kong will be able to hang its hat on. And it also gets to the heart of O’Hallaran’s concept — the “street food” thing, buzzworthy as it is, doesn’t really convey the homestyle vibe that dishes like egg and crab had. That vibe ran through a lot of the dishes here.
CF: Totally agree…there’s not enough ‘handfood’ like the wraps. I found the Fried Green Beans were almost flavorless, and needed some sodium kick somewhere. Also, the Deep Fried Asparagus has been done better other places, but I liked the hoisin sauce that came along for the ride. Those missteps aside, BIG YUM on the Beef Brisket with Shanghai Noodles. Rusty, smoky, and a bowl full of warm hugs. I could eat that any day. of. the. week.
JS: I’m glad you mentioned that: I DJ next door at 700, and I can tell you right now, that noodle bowl is gonna get me through the winter. It was a perfect dish through and through, and showed something else I liked a lot about Kong: These guys are willing to go the distance. That brisket is not cooked quickly by any stretch of the imagination, and the noodles are made right there in the kitchen.
CF: Gotta say: I am a dumpling FIEND, and the dumplings I had were a little too hefty on the dough to be called sensual. The edges of mine were a little dried out. With a glut of such great dumplings in this town (Sakura, Dim Sum Garden, Sang Kee) I want to see this one get rectified. I like the pork stuffing three ways, it was awesome, just needs a better home. Not a tough thing to fix up. I said ‘dumpling’ like 4 times in this message. Sounds dirty.
JS: I agree about the dumplings, dumpling. I think in recent years, we’ve been treated to a lot of places that do these almost Faberge Egg versions of them, where the emphasis is so much about the lightness and precious nature. By comparison, these were very heavy, by I have a feeling that’s Kong staying on message with the whole homestyle thing. I don’t think little old ladies in China are serving up the Steven Starr version of ultralight steamed veggie dumplings, as good as they are. Still, that’s one concession to the outside would I would have liked to have seen. They weren’t bad, they were just… too much.
CF: Steven Starr version? No way man, I mentioned 3 Chinatown staples. A Starr version would be 2 over-the-top dumplings full of duck rillette and roasted fennel, for $19. I give a high five to the Pork Belly Rice Bowl I had. Nice aromatics with the anise. Quite tasty, too. The rice was done well in all of my dishes, just slightly toothsome. I would like to seemore fire and less sweetness though. Most of my dishes had a lot of sweet.
JS: That’s true, but let’s back up to those Duck Buns. Haha, I said “duck buns.”
CF: Duck Buns were solid. I enjoyed them. The meat was shredded just right, and I thought the bun itself wasn’t too cakey. I think that’s a dish I could get behind any day of the week. I said ‘get behind’. This chat is falling apart at the toilet joke seams.
JS: It’s going to be impossible for me to get through this sentence: Lots of things can go wrong with those Chinese buns. But again, O’Halloran’s cutting out the middleman and making them in=house.
CF: As it should be. Everyone at this stage in the game should be doing in-house. Philly is huge foodwise and there’s so much competition. Lets talk prices. I like the app prices and the dim sum. All do-able. But some of the bowl prices might be slightly steep on a regular basis. I want that Beef Brisket to be $10. But then again, that’s because I want to eat it every day.
JS: But look at it this way: All seven plates plus four drinks rang out at only $100. That is some serious eat-like-a-king action right there, but I think even if you don’t, it’s pretty reasonable. And honestly? I’d pay $20 for that noodle bowl. Actually, I’d empty my pockets. I’m totally sold on Kong. I think this is one of the more unique and well-thought-through new spots to open up in a while. The whole time I was there, I kept thinking about when the next time I went there was gonna be. And it’s soon. Real soon.
CF: Agreed. I like the direction, every issue I had can be rectified. I just WANT to love it more than I do right this second. And I will give it many more chances. There are plenty of reasons to go as I type this. But I want to be evangelical. I want it to be on the tip of my tongue when people come from out of town.
Kong, 702 North Second Street. 215-922-5664
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