Mawn’s Phila and Rachel Lorn are on a roll with a new restaurant and two prestigious “best of” nods

Phila and Rachel Lorn are having a good year and a spectacular week The husband and wife crew behind Mawn are fresh off a James Beard Awards win in June with Phila claiming the award for Emerging Chef and this week they ve opened up their new restaurant Sao to much buzz That s great but Phila also grabbed another Best New Chef title from Food Wine Magazine earning a spot on their annual list By the way if you don t know how to pronounce his name by now that s on you And to top it off the New York Times put Mawn on its list of best restaurants of Philly s Meetinghouse also made the Times list Phila and Rachel Lorn center with staff outside Sao Photo by Neal Santos The mom-and-pop pair have identified success homing in on cozy vibes and family-inspired recipes with Chef Phila drawing upon flavors from his Cambodian heritage and Rachel running front-of-house operations with a rare mixture of precision and warmth Making the New York Times and Food Wine lists So what did two of the country s bulk prestigious outlets say about Mawn the self-described noodle house with no rules The Times Brett Anderson singled out the noodle house s boar prahak and banh chow crepe salad and its knack for creating bright salty sour dishes The restaurant embodies so much of what s appealing about Philadelphia s B Y O restaurant scene Anderson wrote walking in with a bottle or two under your arm underscores how much the dining room overseen by Rachel Lorn Mr Lorn s business partner and wife feels like a domestic space An assortment of dishes from Mawn Courtesy of Mawn Food Wine noted that its journalists visit hundreds of restaurants in order to find the the greater part promising and dynamic chefs right now Then the outlet s food writers narrow down the final selection to chefs The magazine lauded Phila s ability to tap into his Cambodian roots and spin them up in a freewheeling joyful twister that incorporates the flavors of Southeast Asia Philadelphia and beyond The chef responded to the Food Wine mention in a declaration Being named a Best New Chef was a dream I never allowed myself Phila noted Sometimes dreams just come true and it s out of your control It s a huge honor and I m in specific good company How now renown Sao Running one effective restaurant is hard enough With all these fresh accolades all eyes are on the Lorns to see if they ll put it off again with Sao While Mawn was all about the couple s familial roots Sao gets back to their professional beginnings The couple met while working at Zama in Although Sao isn t a sushi restaurant its menu revolves around raw seafood Billed as an oyster crudo and cocktail bar the concept draws flavor inspiration from South Philly and Southeast Asia The name Sao coined by Phila s mom is a playful nod to that cultural mashup You can also find nostalgic keepsakes at the back bar such as Jewish deli counter scales and an old register from Rachel s grandparents Jersey Shore motel Fresh oyster s from Sao Photo by Neal Santos Menu items include bang island curry mussels soft shell shrimp with thai basil and chili multiple crudos oyster selections and something known as honey butter hoe cakes Like Mawn the space is intimate and cozy Rachel Lorn contrasted Sao s vibe with the former spot to the Inquirer s Michael Klein describing Mawn as you re coming into my house and I m going to feed you whereas Sao is like I decorated the house and I m throwing a party We re getting a little more dressed up here Securing a reservation at either Mawn or Sao might take several patience Certainly with all this buzz the duo might just be revving up for a Michelin Star The post Mawn s Phila and Rachel Lorn are on a roll with a new restaurant and two prestigious best of nods appeared first on Billy Penn at WHYY