This is a true story. Every time my chopsticks reached for one of those little yodelers, a startling "Quack!" would honk behind me. I reached again and again - "Quack! Quack! Quack!" - before I finally turned around to find an adorable Chinese girl no older than 3 blowing her "Ride the Ducks" kazoo straight at me. Youthful mischief? Perhaps. But I took it as a sign to back away from the beaks.
This might have been a hardship somewhere else, where the funky bits and esoteric flavors are the only attraction. But fledgling Sakura Mandarin's kitchen, run by chef David Dai, is one of those Chinatown rarities that manages to do many things well in its quest for a broader audience (even sushi?! Uh-huh). And it has rightfully won a steady flow of crowds to its lime-green corner space, formerly Ong's, which bustles at all hours of the day with an impressively diverse clientele.
In fact, Sakura's best dish is one that's typically the most mundane - scallion pancakes, which are so flaky and crisp and toasty (yet still just pliant enough), they come bundled on a plate like warm silk handkerchiefs flecked with green onion.
Lion's Head is a less familiar dish to most, but has an equally soulful and accessible appeal. These large pork meatballs are the equivalent of Shanghai comfort food, the fluffy orbs of ground meat slicked in a "red cooked" mahogany gravy scented with soy and star anise.
