So many of Pittsburgh’s Chinese, Indian, Thai, Korean and Japanese restaurants offer epic-length menus with photos, along with crossover dishes from a different country’s cuisine. Want Japanese sushi at a Chinese place? No problem.
5882 Forbes Ave.
Squirrel Hill, 15217
412-422-7188
Hours: 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Sunday; 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday; 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday.
Add to the confusion that these restaurants often have one-page addendums with region-specific specials or variations on a dish, such as hot pots.
There’s no reason to give up on places where it’s a challenge to navigate what’s for dinner when the proprietors offer a wide menu that attempts to please everyone. If you’re patient, you can find authentic and interesting dishes — some of which may even be tough finds among restaurants in larger cities.
But it’s a relief when you’re offered help as to which dishes are the chef’s favorites.
This was reinforced after a half-dozen visits to Sakura Teppanyaki and Sushi in Squirrel Hill, where you may think you’re going to a Japanese spot, yet the sandwich board outside is written in Mandarin.
Yes, you can get sushi here. But the more interesting menus offer weekend Chinese brunch as well as dishes from Xi’an in the Shaanxi province in northwest China. They’re specialties from co-owner Ping Geng’s home city.
Ms. Geng and Feng Gao, who have lived in Pittsburgh for 18 and 20 years, respectively, opened their restaurant eight years ago, primarily as a Japanese restaurant. Ms. Geng thought “it would be easier and more popular to run a Japanese restaurant,” she said. Working in a Japanese restaurant had been her experience before they opened this one.
Shortly after they opened, Chinese students learned that Mr. Gao could also cook Chinese dishes, but to try them they had to order at least 24 hours ahead.
Eventually Ms. Geng and Mr. Gao broadened the menu to include Chinese dishes inspired by their home city that students had been asking for when they missed home.
Two years ago, the restaurant added a short menu for Chinese brunch, sold Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. It has become the restaurant’s most popular meal and often garners a wait.
Then in May, Mr. Gao went to Xi’an to study for a month at a culinary school. When he came back, they decided to offer a regional Xi’an menu with a handful of offerings inspired by his trip.
The restaurant’s Chinese food has become so popular they recruited a cook from the culinary school where Mr. Gao studied, who will move to the U.S. in October.
Their decision to find a skilled cook who specializes in Xi’an cuisine mirrors a practice at Everyday Noodles across the street, where owner Mike Chen recruits cooks from Taiwan who work for as long as their visas allow them to stay (from three to six months), making soup dumplings and hand-pulled noodles at the restaurant.
The food of Xi’an reflects its location along the Silk Road, which saw influences from central Asia and the Middle East in religion, culture and cuisine.
It’s different from Cantonese or Sichuan cuisine in that flatbreads and hand-pulled noodles take precedence over rice. Lamb, mutton and beef are the most common meats. Hot chili oil is a primary condiment, while cumin, star anise and dried hot peppers lace seasonings. Meat skewers and street sandwiches are highlights.
While it can be fun to hunt and peck to find favorites on your own, here are a few dishes to introduce you to the restaurant’s regional Chinese dishes:
Lamb skewers, $7.95: Thin slivers of lamb are rolled in cumin and a smattering of dried hot peppers that make for an addictive starter. Served on metal sticks as thin as wire, this take on kabobs suggests influence from the Middle East. “This is common street food,” said Ms. Peng. “They pair well with a pilsner and they are among my favorite dishes here.”
Where to find it: the Xi’an menu.
Eight treasure spicy sandwich, $4.95: Pork dishes aren’t as common in Xi’an because there’s such a Muslim presence in the province. No matter the meat, if there ever were a hipster Chinese sandwich this has the potential to be it. Served on a flaky, buttery pancake with a browned exterior with crisp tendrils around the edges, inside, seven ingredients marry a spicy marinated pork, including celery, carrots, onion, garlic and peanuts, all of which are diced. Dollop with chili oil for kick and order a side of chopped scallions to use as a bright garnish.
Where to find it: the Xi’an menu.
Egg-filled pancake, $4.95: No need for chopsticks or silverware; eat this like a sandwich even though it looks like an omelet stuffed with lettuce, turkey and a spicy sauce. Even with that, it’s one of the mildest dishes on the menu and reminds me of an appetizing version of school lunch.
Where to find it: the Xi’an menu and the brunch menu.
Homestyle Chinese cabbage, $8.95: Shards of cabbage meet a flurry of dried hot chilis, soy sauce, vinegar, salt and other seasonings. I tend to think of cabbage as underwhelming, except when it’s the star of a dish like this.
Where to find it: the primary menu.
Hot oil noodles, $8.95-$11.95: If there ever were a Chinese comfort food dish, this is it. Hand-pulled flat noodles are the base for beef, shrimp, chicken or vegetables, garnished with hot peppers and a smattering of chopped scallions. It’s a bold interplay of savory, salty, spicy and bright, the kind of dish you’ll want to finish even when you’re full.
Where to find it: the primary menu
Shredded pancake lamb soup, $12.95: Homemade pancake is cubed and dropped in lamb broth laden with sliced lamb, and garnished with chili oil, scallions and cilantro. It’s my least favorite dish in terms of flavors, but it’s still interesting, particularly for the texture of the bread and presentation.
Where to find it: the primary menu.
Chinese pickle beef, $11.95: Thin-slivers of beef dressed in garlic and soy interplay with pickled greens and dried hot chilis for a dish that satiates year-round but is traditionally considered more of a winter dish, since greens are preserved for months beyond the growing season. The heat from the peppers and the tart greens are lively complements to the savory meat.
Where to find it: The primary menu.
Fried breadstick with congee, soy milk and bean curd, $1.50 (sides run from $1 to $3.50): A long, thin doughnut is the dipper for as many items you may choose to order, though a standard trio is the congee, a rice porridge the consistency of oatmeal followed by hot soy milk and bean curd. While this is a breakfast that is enjoyed all over Asia, the details point to Xi’an; Unlike breakfast in Hong Kong, where the bean curd is sweet, Ms. Geng and Mr. Gao make a salty version.
Where to find it: the brunch menu.
Melissa McCart: 412-263-1198 or on Twitter @melissamccart.
First Published: August 13, 2015, 4:00 a.m.
