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Executive chef and restaurateur Philippe Chow believes in the long play. At 15, he moved from his homeland China to Hong Kong and secured his first restaurant job. He was only 20 when he emigrated to the United States and signed on as a dishwasher at Mr. Chow, a local chain in New York City. Over a 25-year period, he moved up the ranks and, in 2004, left to open Philippe by Philippe Chow. His dedication to offering fine Beijing-style cuisine with high-touch service in a posh setting made his restaurant a sensation. Now, two decades later, he is proud to bring his distinctive dining experience to Nashville. Three years in the making, Philippe Chow Nashville has made its grand entrance in historic Cummins Station.
The expansive space has a modernist deco feel: darkened rooms accented in brass, marble, and mirrored glass; curved columns highlighted with dramatic lighting; and a stunning ginkgo tree fixture traversing the dining room ceiling. You’ll find plush seating at the gleaming bar, white linen-draped high-tops, fourtops, and luxurious curved booths. There are playful aspects, too: a large panda statue at the front door and an infinity mirror of colorful lanterns at reception.
Each table has a modern votive and petite vase bearing a single calla lily bloom; each place is set with both Western utensils and chopsticks resting on a ceramic Philippe Chow panda. White-jacketed servers present the leather-bound menus for food, wine, and cocktails — and are knowledgeable guides. Family-style dining has long been the best way to dine in a Chinese restaurant, and servers recommend ordering an array of plates to share. Select from these categories: For the Table, Raw Bar, Dumplings and Eggrolls, Specialty Rice and Noodles, Classics, Indulgences, and the pièce de résistance, Tableside Peking Duck. Settle in, order a cocktail — a bracing vodka-based Philippetini laced with lychee, pineapple, and crème de cassis could do the trick — and enjoy the experience.
Executive chef Jason Francisco presides over the kitchen, faithfully preparing Philippe’s signature recipes. He has also created a few dishes particular to the Nashville market. When ordering, enjoy a mix of traditional and new.
Leading the menu is Francisco’s own Scallion Milk Bread — tender yeasted dough rolled into bun shapes, brushed with chili oil, and served with a swath of his X/O butter. As you pull apart the rolls, you take in the release of fragrant steam — the second-best part of eating them. Combining rounds of pickled Asian pears, Gorgonzola crumbles, candied walnuts, arugula, and young mustard frills in an orange-ginger champagne vinaigrette, his Pear and Arugula Salad is a successful union of Eastern and Western ingredients. Under Philippe Indulgences is Francisco’s Whole Wild-Caught Snapper — the fish butterflied, pan-seared, then braised in a ginger-spiked bouillabaisse sauce, fusing French and Chinese tastes. It is delicious. He’ll tell you he feels the most pride for his Hamachi Crudo — and deservedly so. The cuts of yellowtail are like butter in a sauce based on Peruvian leche de tigre, but made with ginger oil and lychee. Scoops of pickled melons and locally sourced leek sprouts round out the dish.
Both the crispy vegetable egg rolls and hand-formed steamed vegetable dumplings come with special dipping sauces — clear sweet-sour for the former, and a light vinegary soy for the latter — and will satisfy your cravings for traditional Chinese fare. The Honey-Glazed Pork Ribs go a step further. Philippe Chow’s choice is heritage Berkshire baby backs, which are meatier and more flavorful than typical spareribs, and they deepen in flavor while marinating in savory-sweet char siu sauce. Your server will remind you that, unlike low-and-slow smoked ribs that practically fall off the bone, this style has toothsome bite.
The centerpiece of the menu, the Peking Duck, is in a category all its own. It requires a multi-day, multi-step process of aging, curing, spicing, lacquering, and air-injecting — key in separating the skin from the meat, which ensures the prized super-crispy skin — before the fowl goes into the designated duck oven for roasting. At service, the staff presents the finished bird and deftly carves it before your eyes. To accompany your platter of juicy sliced duck are julienned green onions and cucumbers, plum sauce, and a bamboo steamer filled with impossibly thin pancakes. Spread each pancake with sauce, a scattering of vegetables, and the succulent meat (with crispy skin). Roll and savor. One duck serves four to six — and it is absolutely worth the wait. If there are only two of you, they will pack up the extras to enjoy at home.
Don’t pass over the greens. Baby bok choy is excellent, cooked to a tender crunch in a mild garlic sauce. Shishito peppers, which Francisco sources from local Bloomsbury Farm, have wonderful bite, punched up with chili crisp and aged balsamic. And don’t pass up dessert. The Baked Alaska is unlike any you may have had: a meringue-encased cheesecake hidden beneath a showy mound of pink cotton candy. Your eyes widen as the server flambés the sugary spin, which melts and collapses over the cake while torching the meringue.
There’s much to bring you back to Philippe Chow (the Satays, Grand Walnut Sesame Prawns, Spicy Wild Mushrooms). Meanwhile, Francisco is working on expanding, adding brunch and lunch service with dishes ranging from Hot and Sour and Wonton soups to more innovative offerings such as spicy lobster noodles and Maine lobster in gingerscallion sauce.