Sunday, January 16, 2011

A Weekend at Sampan and Some Shopping

The Mistress was all tied up this weekend as her friend J was coming for a visit to go shopping at the never ending King of Prussia mall,some Philadelphia dinning and some late night debauching. The shopping was just fabulous as the Mistress got to see some of the extravagant Badgley Mischka gowns at Neiman Marcus which would all look stunning on the Mistress, but alas, is not in the budget! I did finally get my rubber outdoor walking boots from Kenneth Cole though. I can't wait to walk Buster in them the next time it snows. And some other little treasures were picked up from Bendels. It was a fun shopping day even though J is the biggest pain in my posterior to shop with and can't make a purchasing decision to save his cute little sole, without consulting the fashion Gods, Joan and Melissa Rivers, the Vogue Staff, and the Holy Grail!!!!! I mean we were in a store the size of a shoe store for three hours!!!! I could have hit half the mall and had time for three cock-a-tails at the Rail Bar in Nordstroms , not that I did this or anything, in the time J was done in Kenneth Cole alone! But I digress. Then it was on to home for a wardrobe change and showering and on to the highlight.........Sampan!



Nowhere in Philly can you experience the flavors, textures and colors found in Michael Schulson’s latest Center City eatery. For diners who dig lusty flavors and relaxed surroundings, Sampan impresses with the perfect balance of ambiance, service, and fairly priced, inventive dishes with an Asian spin. Chef Schulson also opened Izakaya in 2008, joining an all-star roster of chefs at the Borgata including Bobby Flay, Michael Mina and Wolfgang Puck. I'm also familiar with his cooking flair from another of my favorite spots, Pod. The interior is amazing with a woods mural that changes colors as your dinning, and in the warm months there is Sampan’s outdoor “graffiti” bar which is Center City’s newest watering hole. Philadelphia-area graffiti artists layered the walls and counters with custom street artwork.




The menu had a amazing selection and everything sounded so good. Didn't know where to start but ended up going with the crab wanton taco and edamame dumplings.



For my main entree I went with the pork banh mi and hamachi cevichi, which was a great mix of savory, moist pork with tangy pickled onions and vegetables, while the hamachi ceviche's tempura flakes provided an interesting texture to an otherwise straightforward approach to the ceviche.




After a lovely dinner there were cock-a-tails at the Q-bar and then a night of dancing up the street at Woody's and Voyager. While there a suprise awaited as I met by pure accident, a frequent blog reader and commentor the Mahogany Empress which was a pleasure to finally meet. We met while waiting for drinks and got to talking. I must have said something which tipped her off and then she addressed me as the Mistress Borghese! We then went on to dance for the next two hours.And what a tasty little collection of morsels she was with!!! It was a real pleasure meeting you girl! J and I got back to the Mistress's abode around 3:30 am and passed out quickly. And this mornging was a bit of one of those hung days! But a wonderful weekend none the less even though I'm still recovering! Tootles!

11 comments:

  1. If you had listened to me and dumped J when I told you to, you could have had time for the three cocktails. Way cool that you met the Mahogany Empress.

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  2. Sounds like an ideal weekend (except for the shopping torture, of course).

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  3. OH MISTRESS, it was a hoot and hollar to finally meet you!!!! Who would have saw that coming! And your just so cute and compact too! And girl can you dance!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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  4. Wow! What a cool place. I love Pan Asian food. But did you behave yourself is what we want to know??? Sounds like it was a nice weekend.

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  5. Damn girl you get around! Why are you not working for a living magazine? Love the decor there.

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  6. Wow that place looks amazing! And I love the King-of-Prussia mall! Great weekend you had I'd say.

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  7. Looks like a gorgeous place to spend a evening in the cold! Sounds like you had a wonderful weekend ! And you should have took that Kailyn's advice,lol! Or did you have cocktails?

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  8. Another fun weekend! I need to visit there for sure, before I'm the last person who doesn't meet you! And unless J is hot, I'd left his ass! Dinner looks so good!

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  9. My kind of weekend, dining retail therapy, and debaching! And I love Sampan. We hit it sometimes after a symphony performance. Sampan is probably one of the few Asian fusion (if not the only) restaurant in philly that I like. What I like about Sampan is that you never know what to expect. Let's start with the name. What the heck is a sampan? Is it a person, place, or thing? Is it even a noun? Who knows? I'll never find out unless I try some sleuthing, I suppose. Once you walk in, you're introduced into a dimly-lit lounge where you might find Don Draper sitting in a corner, sipping on some scotch. But the food at Sampan ain't no Crisco-laden restaurant fare. The plates are tapas-style, but the flavors are executed well and authentic. And to wash this all down, the eight of us got two scorpion bowls, which resulted in us having a drinking contest between the two tables. The night ended at the new Graffiti Bar with some sake bombing. Now Sampan isn't the cheapest place to pick up a sake bombing habit, and the steel bar top not the best place to pound the sake in. Just ask my friends who broke a jade bracelet, part of their watch strap, The bartender was awesome though and he tried to keep our tab as cheap as possible.

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  10. Your friend J seems like a hand full!?! But glad to hear the Mistress is shaking things up out there! And what a chic place,looks very cool from the link you gave!

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  11. Josh, sampan is a thing if I remember correctly.

    And Mahogany Empress, what the hell?! Maddie was dancing? I have yet to see that. Might have something to do with cocktail consumption. All I know is I may have changed my mind about seeing if that bitch wants to check out the Balenciaga exhibit with me. That's right. Balenciaga. Suck it, bitch. (Not you, Mahogany Empress. I mean my drunken sister.)

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Go ahead darling, tell me something fabulous!