Things happen quickly at Pod. Sushi zips smoothly along a conveyor belt. Pok‚mon characters battle on the television screen. Puma-sporting waiters float by carrying trays of artful drinks and entr‚es.
We took a seat aboard this high concept, Pan Asian starship and began our meal.
I started out with a "Green" -- one of Pod's color-coded signature cocktails, cleverly titled "Liquid Remedies," a drink that tasted like someone had spiked my Grandma's holiday mint Jell-O with some Vanilla Stoli. After some helpful suggestions from our knowledgeable server, my companion and I decided to take the mix and match approach in selecting our appetizers.
The chef whipped us up a dim sum sampler platter, complete with pork potstickers, crab spring rolls with sweet chili dipping sauce, lobster wontons with miso aioli and crispy garlic-crusted calamari. The crab spring rolls were wonderful -- with a crispy exterior, creamy crabmeat interior and tangy dipping sauce.
After finishing the dim sum, we moved on to our sushi, which consisted of a small assorted plate and an order of the Spider Rolls. I had not heard great things about the sushi, but it was fresh and surprisingly good, with the Spider Rolls filled with tempura soft-shell crab standing out in particular.
Though quite full by this point, we courageously ventured onward with our entrees of blackened big eye tuna with lentil salad and citrus soy sauce and wasabi-crusted filet mignon with wasabi mashed potatoes. Given that the dim sum and sushi were hard acts to follow, the entrees did not disappoint, but did not live up to our appetizers.
I expected the wasabi-crusted filet to be rather spicy, but in reality it was quite tame. Of the two, I would recommend the tuna with the lentils, as it was a much more adventurous combination.
For dessert, we selected the fudge brownie banana split and the brown sugar buttercake. Ironically, for a restaurant that bills itself as Pan-Asian, the desserts were anything but. Absent from the menu were any interpretations of Asian standards like green bean ice cream or egg custard. Although both selections were tasty, they bordered too closely on the safe side of things.
Pod's design is retro futuristic -- 2001: A Space Odyssey meets The Jetsons. Gleaming white walls and psychedelic lights serve as the perfect capsule for the Pan-Asian cuisine.
And forget about what your parents told you about needing to "hold it" on long road trips. Even if you do not have to 'go,' visit the bathroom at Pod just for the visual experience of it.
Overall, Pod succeeds as a futuristic culinary escape. In typical Stephen Starr style, the emphasis is more on overall dining experience and atmosphere rather than on cuisine. Pod leaves its passengers feeling like they've traveled light years ahead, when in fact they've never left West Philadelphia.
