Sakura Mandarin

Craig LaBan checks out Sakura Mandarin in Chinatown and finds a place that excels in scallion pancakes, soup dumplings, Szechuan food and surprisingly, even sushi.

And pretty much everything Sakura Mandarin cooked with pork was outstanding, from the shredded lean pork with the lightly smoky garlic sauce to the double-cooked pork belly, whose fat-ribboned meat was tossed with dried bean curd, fermented beans, and a vivid flicker of chile heat. Even the heat-blistered Szechuan green beans got a little porcine boost from crumbled spicy meat.

Two Bells – Very Good

Sakura Mandarin [Philadelphia Inquirer]