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FeedWahso: Somewhat fantastical fare
It’s one of the most beautiful restaurants in the state: Wahso’s pan-Asian décor is drop-dead gorgeous. We were delighted recently to be seated in one of the alcoves; although the lantern-lit balcony and the opulent dining room are equally lovely, the sumptuously draped booths are so exotically private that it makes any meal a special occasion. In the off-season, the place was eerily quiet, with only a few tables taken, but even when there’s a crowd, the sequestering effect of the heavy curtains creates a peaceful intimacy that is rare among today’s increasingly noisy restaurants.
We started with the signature “Malaysian” potstickers, plump with a pretty usual filling of ground pork and seasonings, but crisped all over instead of on just one side. Other options—pad Thai, Kobe carpaccio, Korean ribs—were also variations on an original dish. But the same approach ties it all together. Gazpacho next to tom kha ghai on the soup list seems incongruous, unless you’re thinking with your mouth. Then, it seems like a natural part of the fresh progression. Entrees, Korean-style barbeque salmon and a bento box of tempura and steamed vegetables, obviously came from the same culinary imagination. We finished with the coconut crème brulee, a beautifully fragrant custard served in half a coconut. My only quibble was that I wished there were a way to eat the coconut meat.
Wahso offers wine flights, so you can taste several options and judge which is best with the hard-to-match flavors in Eastern cuisine.
I’m just back from a visit to San Francisco’s Chinatown—read all about it in a future issue of the magazine. Of course San Francisco is a city filled with good food of all kinds—we enjoyed salumi, Italian cheese and wines at Uva Enoteca and spent hours at the Ferry Plaza market, enjoying sights and smells of everything from pluots to porcini.
But the one eating experience that made me truly envious was dinner at the R & G Lounge right on the edge of Chinatown. It’s a plain, bustling, three-story place where efficiency is the epitome of good service, and the ambience is entirely on the plate. Everything from specialties like fried live salt and pepper crab to dishes we thought we knew, like orange beef, was fresher, more immediate and more extreme than any Chinese food we’ve had in Utah.
My point is, don’t go to Wahso expecting authenticity and you won’t be disappointed. Wahso’s pan-Asian approach allows plenty of latitude for playing with tradition, which, as often as not, means the kitchen adds modern American touches to Japanese-, Chinese-, Korean-, Vietnamese- and Thai-inspired dishes. Like its cinematic décor, Wahso’s food is more about Asian-inspired fantasy and imagination. Go with it. 577 Main Street, Park City, 435-615-0300.
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