Phoenix Palace

Phoenix Palace doubles down on the formula that made sister restaurant Potluck Club a go-to spot for lively group dinners, with a touch more ambition this time around. The place is a modern homage to Chinatown, with scalloped velvet booths, turquoise lanterns swaying in the crisp A/C, and a short menu of Cantonese American food so surprising and delicious it deserves its own genre. You’ve seen youtiao before, but have you seen an olive-freckled version with lap cheong jam? Start with those fried dough sticks, then get the bouncy crab noodles and mound of lobster sticky rice with crispy bits of guanciale. All of the food here tastes comforting, new, and fun as the vintage jukebox sitting up front.