Midtown Lunch

Luncher Aubre needed some soup, off to Sang Kee…

During this brutal winter of bitter cold and high winds, I became a lunchtime fiend for the big noodle soup bowls at Sang Kee. A bunch of the Profiled Lunchers on this site have mentioned Sang Kee’s lunch combo deal and Nick enjoyed the Shanghai Noodles—but no one has yet mentioned their big noodle soup bowls. No one has trekked across the icy tundra of Market street at least once a week to warm their soul with a ten gallon bowl of soup,  no one, except for me… and the hundred other people who are always eating there and making wait for a table.

At a mere $7.50, my personal favorite, and admittedly the only one I have tried, is the shrimp dumpling with udon noodles. What I love most about these big soup bowls is that you can choose your preference of noodle, from a list of 6 choices, although you’re crazy if you choose anything other than udon. What other kind of noodle could possibly be better than the chewy, slippery, delectable udon? Although slightly hard to maneuver with chopsticks and a spoon, I still think the udon are the way to go.

The shrimp dumpling soup comes with four large shrimp dumplings floating in a mild broth, with udon noodles and bok choy. Ask for a side of the hot chili oil and a bottle of sirracha to add some necessary spice and flavor to the broth. Aside from the delicious udon noodles (did I mention I love those?) the dumplings are the best part of this soup. The filling is so fresh, perfectly season, and despite floating around in a bowl of broth, retains the perfect crunch that shrimp dumplings should have. None of that mushy over processed filling. I’m sure this soup wouldn’t be considered “healthy”, despite the generous helping of bok choy, but I usually come close to finishing the whole thing and never feel the effects of a food coma.

I have heard that the House Special soup is delicious as well, featuring shrimp dumping, roast pork, chicken and more shrimp at $10. I also usually get an egg roll to accompany my soup, because I have a hard time resisting something fried.

Two other items on the menu that I find particularly tasty are the Steamed Juicy Buns and the Shrimp Rolls. There has been a decent amount of buzz in Philadelphia, surrounding Shanghai soup buns and where to find the best and most authentic. I’ve had them at both Sang Kee and Dim Sum Garden and, I have to say, I prefer Sang Kee’s. They come in a very generous serving of six large buns with a salty, tangy dipping sauce. Unfortunately I didn’t have a room for them this time, but one order of these is normally plenty for me for lunch. The Shrimp Rolls are really just fancier versions an egg roll and have the same crunchy, delicious shrimp filling as the dumplings. If you’re having a major shrimp craving, try the rolls and the dumpling soup.

Sang Kee Noodle House, 3549 Chestnut St (@ 36th St), 215 387-8808