Phil Rosenthal Finds His Happy Place at Fan Szechuan in NYC — Let's Do Lunch

Quick Overview

Phil Rosenthal visits Fan Szechuan in New York City, sampling authentic Szechuan dishes like Roasted Whole Fish in Sweet & Sour Sauce and Spicy Crispy Eggplant Tempura, while sharing personal favorites like Peking Duck and soup dumplings, ultimately concluding that the restaurant's authentic flavors are exceptional, even when compared to his global favorites.

Key Points: Phil Rosenthal visits Fan Szechuan Restaurant & Bar in New York City for an episode of EATER's "Let's Do Lunch." He praises the Roasted Whole Fish in Sweet & Sour Sauce, noting its beautiful preparation and authentic flavor profile. Rosenthal enthusiastically samples the Soup Dumplings, demonstrating the proper technique for eating them without spilling the broth. He ranks the restaurant's Brown Sugar Peking Duck among his top three favorite dishes globally, praising the extra smoky flavor. When asked about his favorite food city, he initially names New York but suggests LA is catching up, especially for Indian food. Rosenthal states his favorite chain restaurant is Nandos and his favorite food is pizza, though he prefers a great hot dog over a four-hour tasting menu. The owner, Tianze "Max" Niu, serves the dishes, including Green Scallion Egg Fried Rice and Spicy Crispy Eggplant Tempura.

Context: Phil Rosenthal, creator of the Netflix travel/food show "Somebody Feed Phil," visits Fan Szechuan Restaurant & Bar in New York City for an EATER interview segment called "Let's Do Lunch." The segment features Rosenthal sampling several dishes prepared by the owner, Tianze "Max" Niu, while answering quick-fire questions about his personal food preferences, travel bucket lists, and opinions on current food trends.

Detailed Analysis

Phil Rosenthal visits Fan Szechuan in NYC, hosted by owner Tianze "Max" Niu, to enjoy several dishes. Rosenthal immediately dives into the food, sampling the Roasted Whole Fish in Sweet & Sour Sauce (05:04), which he praises as beautiful and authentic. He then tackles the Pork, Crab Meat, and Black Truffle Soup Dumplings (01:46), carefully demonstrating the correct technique to avoid spilling the hot soup inside. He also tries the Spicy Crispy Eggplant Tempura (09:51), describing it as great, even if every vegetarian dish were like it. Rosenthal names the Brown Sugar Peking Duck (01:51) as one of his top three favorite dishes in the world. During the rapid-fire Q&A, Rosenthal reveals his favorite food city used to be New York but now leans toward LA for Indian food, names Nandos as his favorite chain, and pizza as his favorite food, though he prefers a great hot dog over a long tasting menu. He states his relationship with food is a "love affair" and that his first meal cooked for himself was likely a tuna sandwich or a hot dog, contrasting this with the elaborate Szechuan cuisine being presented. Finally, he plugs his new cookbook, "Phil's Favorites," which he claims contains the next four seasons of his show's locations.