The Lovin' Poon-ful

Joe's Peking Duck Original 1984

by David Snyder

Call it "Joe's" for short. But for the record, the full name of chef Joseph Poon's new restaurant is "Joe's Peking Duck Original 1984." If you think that's a mouthful, wait until you see the portions.

The name pays homage to the restaurant that put Poon on the map — Joe's Peking Duck House, which he opened in 1984 near 10th and Race. (Legally, he can't use the same name again, as he sold his original business in 1994.) Poon left the industry in 2005 after running another successful Asian fusion restaurant in Chinatown, but he couldn't stay away for long. For this latest venture, the chef decided to go back to his roots. "I miss my old restaurant very much," he confesses.

The menu at the new Joe's, though, is a broad, curious medley chronicling Poon's entire career — Chinese classics based around his famous Peking duck, Asian tapas and ... Italian pasta dishes? ("I was an Italian chef before I became a Chinese chef," Poon explains.)

The small plates are creative and flavorful. The heat in the wasabi pork shrimp shumai is nicely moderated by a honey bourbon reduction. A red curry coconut sauce gives a shrimp puff sophistication. The kitchen stacks perfectly crisped five-spice calamari on slices of addictive grilled ginger and cilantro flat bread that's topped with wasabi honey cream cheese. My favorite small plate — golden brown crispy buns cradling heaps of rich Peking duck — is everything I wanted it to be.

But what stands out most at Joe's is how generous Poon is with the portions — especially for lunch. The duck pizza's soft ginger, scallion and cilantro crust comes buried beneath a mountainous nest of sweet, savory meat. A deep bowl of soup teems with heroic chunks of sweet roast pork, bok choy and shrimp-stuffed wontons.

My only disappointment was the dinner menu's pad Thai, which was missing the heat and fishiness needed to counterbalance the characteristic sweetness. And it would be easier to nitpick the baked seafood linguini if Poon was not so magnanimous with the scallops and shrimp.

Indeed, at these prices, it almost feels like you're stealing. To assuage my guilt, I ordered items from the lunch menu during dinner for an additional 38 cents per item (3 and 8 are lucky digits for the Chinese). Poon donates the overage to cancer organizations and a scholarship fund. "If you're a good person, you'll get back," he says. Thanks to healthy, abundant dishes like these, Poon is guaranteed to do the same.

(david.snyder@citypaper.net)

Joe's Peking Duck Original 1984 | 108 Chestnut St., 215-922-0880, josephpoon.com

Hours: Sun.-Thu., 11:30 a.m.-10:30 p.m.; Fri.-Sat., 11:30 a.m.-mid

Lunch, $5.50-$9.50; Dinner, $4.50-$19.50

BYOB