Aqua

[Bluehensfan]

I hear they opened this week and wondered if anyone has tried the place and what is good there...

[philadining]

Roti Canai

Tom Yum with Chicken

Thai Mango Salad with Barbecue Squid

Hainanese Chicken with Rice

Aqua Tofu

Sizzling Beef with Black Pepper

Deep Fried Striped Bass in Belacan Sauce

Edited September 1, 2006 by philadining (log)

[Bluehensfan]

Thanks for posting the pictures...the food looks great! Do you remember what's what?

Edited September 1, 2006 by Bluehensfan (log)

[serpentine]

Thumbs up. I can't find my menu and therefore can't tell you what my dish was, but it was under specials, and I remember that the description was chicken slow-cooked with lemongrass and...other stuff. It was terrific. Lovely sauce, mildly spicy, tender meat. I'm eating the leftovers for lunch today.

The owner was bustling around supervising waitstaff and chatting with every table about the food, and inviting feedback on food and service. Nice guy.

[KatieLoeb]

1. Roti Canai

2. Tom Yum Soup with Chicken

3. Mango Salad with BBQ squid

4. Chicken something

5. Tofu Aqua

6. Sizzling Beef with Pepper

7. Fried Striped Bass with Bemican (sp?) sauce

I'm running out the door so I don't have time to elaborate much, but I can say that Aqua is absolutely delicious!! It's restored my faith in Malaysian cuisine. I always hated the heavy oily food at Penang, not because it didn't taste good, but because it inevitably made me ill. The food at Aqua is prepared with a far more delicate hand, subtlety of spicing and eye for presentation. The roti, tom yum soup and tofu were exquisite. I've never had lighter crunchy-on-the-outside-creamy-on-the-inside tofu anywhere. This may be the single best tofu dish in Philly. Mango salad was spicy and sweet. Everything was as good as I've ever had. And there's a whole bunch of menu items we didn't get to try yet, as well as the Thai section of the menu that bears exploration.

Service was friendly and efficient. We were checked on frequently. We had a nice chat with the owner who takes his food and service quite seriously. He decorated the entire place himself. It's minimalist but very lovely inside.

I think we're a table full of new regulars. This place is awesome!!

[Bluehensfan]

Thanks for the labels! Now I know what is what as it seems that an immediate visit is in order!

[Andrew Fenton]

Basically, what Katie said.

But to add a couple of points, first, the tofu is really something special. The description (tofu with ground pork, chili and basil) made it sound like ma po tofu (except for the basil part); but it's really nothing like that. The 'fu itself has the texture of really good sweetbreads, crispy on the outside, creamy on the inside: krispy kreme, if you will.

My other fave was the roti canai. If you can go wrong with fried bread + curry, please keep it a secret from me. This reminds me a little bit of my all-time favorite at Rangoon, the thousand layer bread. Call this single layer bread; whatever you call it, it's good.

It's a nice place. I'll be back, for sure.

Edited September 1, 2006 by Andrew Fenton (log)

[I_call_the_duck]

Where? WHERE?!

[Bluehensfan]

Where?  WHERE?!

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7th and Chestnet or so, next to Kibitz in the City (or across the street from Jones and that calling service )

[Andrew Fenton]

Went back to Aqua last night, and had another nice meal. The place was packed-- granted, Friday night at 8 is prime time, but there was a line out the door. We were four people, and waited maybe ten or fifteen minutes; if you're going with a big group, it's probably worth it to call ahead.

Roti canai and Aqua tofu were as good as before. Sambal squid was... shrimp paste-y. You want to make sure you like that flavor before ordering it. Mango chicken was fine (it's not a dish I like all that much, but my co-eaters did), but I enjoyed the pineapple beef.

Oh, it's totally worth it to save room for dessert: there are a few dishes wrapped in roti: coconut paste, fresh banana or mango, etc. We had the peanut pancake with coconut ice cream, and it was pretty great.

[sockii]

OMG, this looks so good. I must try soon.

Question: how are they for strictly vegetarian choices? I have a friend who enjoys exploring Asian foods with me but is veggie-only...that tofu looks divine but I may have to save it for myself...

[Andrew Fenton]

Not so great. I'm sure they could make the tofu without the pork, and it'd be almost as good. There are maybe a half-dozen strictly vegetarian options-- though they may be made with fish sauce, I don't know.

There are plenty of options for piscitarians, though, especially if they are dried shrimpetarians...

[philadining]

Returned to Aqua, and we weren't quite s blown-away as the first time, but it was still very good...

Started with Tom Kha

This was a very solid version of the classic Thai coconut milk soup, perfectly fine. But their Tom Yum is really extraordinary, so I think I'll stick with that in the future!

Mixed Satay (Beef and Chicken)

This was very tasty, and pretty similar to the versions at Penang and Banana Leaf, in that the meat has a sweet glaze, and the peanut sauce has a nice, thick, pumpkiny thing going on. For better or worse, this dish came out pretty quickly, in contrast to there always being a bit of a wait, especially for the chicken satay, at the other Malaysian places. This makes me think that they might have some of these ready to go, which is convenient, but the meat was not quite as hot and fresh-off-the-grill as might be ideal. That is a small quibble, it was still quite delicious. You get two beef and three chicken skewers in the mixed version.

Kari Ayam

The curry sauce on this was really great, but sadly the chicken was a little dry, seeming a bit over-done. It wasn't a big problem, breaking the chunks of chicken up a bit and letting it absorb the sauce solved that issue. But I've had this dish elsewhere with more thinly sliced chicken that was moister.

I'd read an account on-line of someone really loving the Volcano Ribs, so I figured we'd give them a try. Im not entirely sure why, but they arrive like this:

Tear open the foil, and you find these:

The ribs were cut into approximately 2-inch segments, deep-fried, then tossed in a sweet sauce, dusted with sesame. I have to say we just didn't like these very much. Because of the sauce and from steaming in the foil, there wasn't any crispness from the frying, the meat itself was pretty chewy, and the sauce was rather one-dimensional. We ate them, I don't think there was anything wrong with them, we just didn't like them as much as most other things we've had there.

Overall, a good meal, but not quite as impressive as our first visit. I'd get the satay again, and try the Kari Ayam again to see if the chicken is any better. Looking forward to trying more, for sure! The service once again was very good, very friendly and helpful. And we didn't use one, but we noticed that there were credit card symbols in the window, so I assume that they take cards now.

Edited October 7, 2006 by philadining (log)

[Bluehensfan]

Returned to Aqua, and we weren't quite s blown-away as the first time, but it was still very good...

I agree with your impressions. We went there last month and while we liked the satay and pad thai, thinking both were pretty good, we were not impressed by the volcano ribs or the fish in ginger sauce. All in all it was pretty mediocre. The host was very enthusiastic, though, but the food did not seem worthy of a return visit.

[philadining]

As with many spots, I think it may come down to finding this place's strong and weak points. It took me a few visits to Penang to figure out what I liked and didn't...

A few things we had were really outstanding, like the Roti Canai, the Tom Yum, the Satay, the Mango Salad, the Aqua Tofu. A few other things were good, just not mind-blowing. A couple of other things we has were probably correctly done, it just depends on whether one likes the style. And a couple things just weren't all that well-executed. But I'll give some of them another chance, it could have been just that day, that dish.

My overall impression is still quite positive, and I'll be going back.

[Bluehensfan]

You're probably right that Aqua is a good option for Thai in Philly. The problem is that ever since we ate the sublime Thai cuisine at Kittichai in NYC, Thai food anywhere else has generally been a disappointment. Time to take the train to the big apple one of these days I guess!

[kretch]

Thai Mango Salad with Barbecue Squid

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This looks and sounds awesome. Can you describe its contents/prep a little more? This looks like something I'd like to make at home to serve to guests.

Tom

[chowfun]

I am organizing a dinner at Aqua, a ladies night out from work, and I could use some menu suggestions. The owner told me to choose menu items and he would serve them banquet style in their upstairs room. My challenge is that about half of the ladies are not adventerous eaters. I am not sure if many of them have eaten thai food, let alone Malaysian food. The other half are foodies. For example, at our last dinner at Lee Hau Fook the salt baked seafood was scarfed up by only half of the diners. I am more familiar with Chinese food, and I feel more comfortable coming up with a mix of safe dishes and dishes that would be a little stretch for the uninitiated. Can any of you offer menu suggestions? For appetizers I was thinking about the roti and the satay and maybe spring rolls. The soup is a challenge, because I really dont want to order wonton soup, but I think the tom yum or tom ka might be too scary for some people. I am trying to figure out a noodle dish, and chowfun might be the answer but I would take any suggestions. For those of you who have had the Hainanese chicken, would that be a good choice?

Thank in advance for any and all suggestions!

[philadining]

Chowfun, I think you're on the right track, there's plenty to be had there that's not especially intimidating.

Definitely get the Roti Canai, the foodies will love it for sure, but even the more timid diners will likely start fighting for shreds of the bread. The dipping sauce is like a Thai green curry, so if the inexperienced folks like that, you might have just given them a clue about something else they might like...

It's hard to go wrong with satay, that's bound to be popular, and they make a good version. I haven't had their springrolls, so I don't know how they are, but keep in mind that they have something a little unusual called "Rice Net" springrolls that look interesting. I haven't tried those, but there's a description (and picture) at Philafoodie.

The Tom Yum is delicious, but it is intense, might scare off some folks. The Tom Kha was good, but a little bland, but maybe that would be a good thing! They have two different sizes of those soups, the smaller one could serve two, the larger, probably at least 4. Depending on the size of your group, maybe you could order one of each, and toss in something really safe, for the truly timid.

I haven't had the chowfun at Aqua, but love the versions at both Penang and Banana Leaf, so it's probably good here.... Philafoodie liked the Pad Thai. They've got a gazillion noodle dishes with lots of stuff on them, just be careful to make sure that you know whether the dish is more of a soup or a stir-fry, it's not always obvious!

The Hainanese Chicken was quite good, and not especially challenging, the only thing is that it's served at room temperature, and some people are creeped-out by that. We liked it. The sizzling whatever platters are not a huge thrill, but they're good, and approachable. I'd recommend the Aqua Tofu too, it's really good, might even convert some tofu-haters if you can get them to try it. (It's not a veggie dish though, it's got ground pork on it.) Also, I haven't ordered it at Aqua, but Mango Chicken has always been a crowd-pleaser at Penang and Banana Leaf.

Please let us know how it goes!

[KatieLoeb]

I'll second Philadining's suggestions. The Aqua Tofu is one of the best tofu dishes I've ever had. If folks don't like that, they probably ought to write off tofu entirely. Mango chicken is delicious - I had a bite of my dining companion's last time I was there. The Roti Canai is a great starter. My friend that likes neither curry NOR coconut scarfed it down and declared it delicious, completely out of character for her usually somewhat fussy eating habits. The Hainese chicken is pretty innocuous and I think the foodies and non-foodies alike would enjoy it.

[Phila-Foodie]

philadining:

Hey, thanks for the link. Your pics are great.

The Rice Net Spring Rolls remain one of my favorites.

I have tried the Tom Kha and I loved it as well. I thought it needed a bit more pepper, though. You need a subtle heat with the fatty sweetness to flesh out that soup.

Keep up the great reviews and pics!

-PhilaFoodie

[Jeff L]

philadining:

Hey, thanks for the link. Your pics are great. 

The Rice Net Spring Rolls remain one of my favorites. 

I have tried the Tom Kha and I loved it as well.  I thought it needed a bit more pepper, though.  You need a subtle heat with the fatty sweetness to flesh out that soup.

Keep up the great reviews and pics!

-PhilaFoodie

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Welcome to EG, oh and cool blog.

[mrbigjas]

Welcome to EG, oh and cool blog.

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yeah, what he said. post more!

[philadining]

Indeed, welcome Phila-Foodie! I too hope you'll join-in our conversations here, and post pics!

[Phila-Foodie]

Indeed, welcome Phila-Foodie!  I too hope you'll join-in our conversations here, and post pics!

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Thanks everyone. Looking forward to sharing and learning from you guys on EG.

-PhilaFoodie