Why Come Here? French- and South American- Inspired Chinese dishes, Cocktails & Foodie Snacks at the Bar
Following my visit to Kings County Imperial, I made my second Chinese Fusion foray of the week to the nearly two year-old Fung Tu. The chef Jonathan Wu is a vet of Per Se, so I had high expectations coming in. Unlike most modern Chinese, Fung Tu actually is located pretty much in the heart of Chinatown, which is about the only thing authentic-ish about dining here. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.
You enter the narrow space and are greeted by an L-shaped bar that looks like the entrance to pretty much every trendy Lower East Side restaurant. And like most other LES establishments, they’ve got a solid cocktail program going on. I started off with a White Tiger which was one of the highlights of the meal, possibly because drinks and snacks is the best way to enjoy Fung Tu.
The dining area is a set of booths and a long bench against a white brick wall surrounded by wine racks. It could just as easily pass for a French restaurant as Chinese. But perhaps that’s what Wu is going for. Most of the dishes have clear influences outside of China which is what drew me here initially. Typical French ingredients like sweetbreads and crepes make some intriguing dishes. So do the presence of South American stylings in things like scallion masa cakes and “china-quiles.”
The menu is presented tapas style, with lots of small plates and only a few “entrees,” because hey that’s what the people want. Until you see the bill. It ran about 35% higher than my recent trip to similarly-inventive Kings County Imperial for less food that was more inconsistent. I guess some people will still pay a lot of money to stay out of Brooklyn. Anyway, here’s a rundown of what we tried:
Kohlrabi Noodle Salad 
Cabbage, sesame and anchovy make this an interesting take on a traditional sesame cold noodle dish.
Sweetbreads Manchuri 
This was the winner of the night. Crispy balls of shortbreads done sweet & sour style with pickled cauliflower. The perfect opener or bar snack.
Beef & Chinese Broccoli 
A tale of two parts. The sticky bbq beef was thinly sliced and very tasty. But the deep fried broccoli was served too cold and almost inedibly dense. Hopefully Wu can find a better partner for his beef next time.
Masa Scallion Pancake with Cilantro and Cashew Salad and Smoked Chicken 
An interesting blend of two of my favorite carby snacks – the arepa and and scallion pancake. The smokiness of the chicken combined with the cilantro’s spice and cashew makes this one worth a try.
Arepa Filled with beef and watercress, it was a tasty snack arepa. However, the masa-to-filling ratio was a few points north of what I prefer.
Fried Pork Chop w/ Pickled Mustard Cabbage 
The sweet-sour glaze on the chop was spot on, but the chop itself came out a little tough. For an “entree” it’s a little basic to serve on it’s own.
Fung Tu
22 Orchard Street (Canal & Hester Sts.)
New York, NY
