If you’re with a group, order the whole fish in a cabbage-based stew with pickled peppers for about $35. Come for numbing, Szechuan peppercorn-laden dishes like crispy Chongqing chicken or mapo tofu (that can easily be made vegetarian). 1001 Race Street.īest For: Szechuan food - any way you want it.ĮMei has been open for about a decade, and they still consistently serve some of our favorite Szechuan food in the neighborhood.

We once heard a rumor that David’s Mai Lai Wah is open during daylight hours as well, but we’ve never actually seen this in action. This old-school Cantonese restaurant acts as a last-call destination for chefs, bar crews, insomniacs, and anyone drinking nearby at 1 a.m. If you’re often out late in Philly, you’re already aware that David’s is an institution. 927 Race Street.īest For: Big groups, late-night dining, soaking up alcohol. Chuan Kee also serves dishes like fried soft-shell crabs, bacon-wrapped enoki mushrooms, lamb soup, pickled chicken feet, and fried bananas or fried rice cakes covered in brown sugar for dessert, but you’re really here for the skewers. Make sure to order some barbecued skewers, too (they’re coated in a dry-rub of cumin and chiles, and not meant for dipping) These skewers - called chuan - originated as a street snack in the Xinjiang region in Northwestern, China. From Chinese restaurants serving Mongolian-influenced hot pot, cumin-heavy Northwestern dishes, or big plates of Cantonese seafood to Malaysian, Japanese, Taiwanese, and Korean spots that have broadened Chinatown’s cuisine scope over the last few decades, these 21 places will show you exactly why Philly’s Chinatown is such a gift to this city.īest For: Hot pot lovers, skewer lovers, hot pot and skewer lovers.Īt Chuan Kee Skewer, you dip skewers of meats and vegetables into bubbling vats of hot pot sitting in the middle of the table - which is not only awesome, but less common than other types of hot pot around Philly.

Let this guide help you forge your own path while you’re in the neighborhood (our preferred method is to spend an afternoon jumping around from spot to spot, ignoring the concept of three-meals-a-day).

Some are stacked on second floors or hidden under a bridge next to a Hilton a couple stay open past midnight and many of them showcase regional specialties that are hard to find elsewhere in Philly. There are so many good restaurants in Chinatown, it’s easy to feel like a tiny child in a giant candy shop trying to choose just one.

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