Press

January 21, 2010

Since its opening nine years ago, Molly Woo's Asian Bistro has undergone subtle changes as the Cameron Mitchell venture seeks its mark.

Chinese lanterns still decorate the spacious main dining room, but the sushi bar is gone.
Experience has firmed up a menu -- a mix of cuisines, from Japanese to Mongolian -- that seems to be the best in the restaurant's history in terms of quality, consistency and value.

Spicy mayonnaise and ginger-flavored soy sauce accompany the vegetable-tempura appetizer ($6.95) -- a delicately done, wide-ranging lineup of deep-fried vegetables (broccoli, sweet red pepper, green pepper, onion, green beans, squash and potato). The soy sauce balances the richness of the oil.

The poke appetizer ($10.95) is an attractive display of chopped tuna mixed with diced avocado and sesame oil atop a round of sushi rice.

The deconstructed version of a sushi roll is accompanied by wasabi and, in place of pickled ginger, an excellent mix of shaved cucumber, onion and pickled ginger with a tart dressing.

The caterpillar roll ($10.95), fairly new to the compact sushi menu, has a core of tempura-cooked shrimp and avocado wrapped with sushi rice. On top: a mash of spiced raw tuna. The flavors merge with distinction.

A recent upgrade to the California roll ($7.95) makes it unusual. A longtime beneficiary of shredded real crab instead of surimi, or imitation crab, it now includes lump crabmeat -- and plenty of it. The crab flavor avoids domination by the avocado and cucumber that are standard with such rolls.

The sushi garden roll ($5.95) is offbeat in a good way, with its original collection of sweet pepper, cucumber, avocado and radish sprouts seasoned with soy-kissed shiitake mushrooms.

Also new is an attractive stir-fry of plenty of shrimp, sweet peppers, onions, water chestnuts, baby corn, snow peas and shiitake mushrooms in what tastes like a white-wine sauce (sake shrimp and vegetables, $14.95). The sauce is particularly good on the side of rice (a choice of white, brown or fried) that comes with each main dish.

The Mongolian seafood hot pot ($15.95) is equally attractive, with its fresh shrimp and scallops well-served by tomato chunks, shiitake mushrooms, garlic and the flavors that hot stir-frying develops. While properly cooked noodles provide the bulk, there's no stinting on the seafood.

The side of mildly spicy Sichuan green beans ($5.95) is stir-fried with minimal oil -- a great relief from the norm.

An outstanding coconut cream pie ($4.95) is house-made, using just enough sugar to enhance the coconut-custard flavors. A competent creme brulee is well-served by marinated berries.
Plenty of wines are offered by the glass.

The best candidate for this food is the Dry Pacific Rim Riesling ($5.95), which stands up to the sometimes-spicy Asian flavors.

The Cavit Pinot Grigio ($5.95) is more delicate, though still pretty fleshy for its price point at retail.

September 24, 2008

Of all the Cameron Mitchell projects, Molly Woo’s gets the least ink. Perhaps that’s because it’s in a mall (but so is the Ocean Club), or because it’s Asian (and Mitchell is not).

Whatever the reason, the project still seems to chug along. While its big Bravo! neighbor has shifted its gears from a Lindey’s to a Brio, Molly is the same old gal, continuing to sell its self-proclaimed “fun chow” to shoppers and their families.

And you’d really want to be a shopper to make a visit. Proximate weekend parking is only slightly more abundant than it is in German Village or the Short North—it’s a valet or a hike. But at least at a mall, you can see the available parking spaces on the horizon.

The appetizer selection of the menu is like you’d see anywhere: short ribs and egg rolls. Nothing in particular says Mitchell Magic. Still, the Potstickers ($6.95) are pleasant—meticulously wrapped and pleated little crescents of finely ground meat with a few vegetable shreds.

Crab Rangoon ($7.95) is nicely done here, too. Although the joys of wretched excess in the Rangoon department cannot be overstated, these are nice, if modest, pockets of pleasure. The blush-colored filling tastes of crab, absent any artificial sweetness.

The very expressive waiter suggested Cashew Chicken ($12.95) as being “fabulous,” and it is dang good, with almost a 50-50 ratio of giant cashews to chicken. A few snow peas and water chestnuts are tied into the mix with a light sauce.

The Triple Delight ($13.95) is a Chinese-restaurant staple. The entrée takes on a different form at every joint, though a combo of beef, chicken and shrimp is the defining characteristic. In any case, Mitchell’s version is interesting. One, because there are a couple of tomatoes thrown in the mix (seems weird). And two, because the starch element comes from “semi-crisp” egg noodles. (Semi-crisp noodles are flash-fried noodles that are still bendable, like a twisty tie. They’re also horrifically wonderful and have wrecked the entire universe for plain old slimy boiled noodles.)

Onwards. Black Pepper Steak ($13.95) is a conceptually solid rendering with onions and green peppers. The restaurant uses a good-quality beef, so it isn’t sodden with tenderizers. However, with the aversion to tenderizers come the inevitable unchewable bits. If the restaurant’s tagline is fun chow, this would be, I suppose, the fun chew.

For those less into chewing, there is the Pineapple Curry Shrimp ($14.95). It’s a soaking stew of pineapple and peppers (and more tomato) plus a discernable coconut contribution. The shrimp itself is decently sized and firm, though not enough to inspire a raving fanaticism.

One the dessert side of things, the foundational Chocolate Cake ($5.50) is offered, complete with a dense and very chocolaty frosting. During our visit, it inspired more crazy raves than anything else on the menu.

"All in all, it was quite a memorable evening for both of us, and we will be going back to Molly Woo’s again. In fact, we haven’t been able to keep our mouths shut about it to our friends and family. If you’re in search of some fabulous asian food, go to Molly Woo’s."

2007

“Executive chef Stephen LaFountain experimented with different recipes for four months before he perfected the toasted coconut cream pie at Molly Woo’s.  The base is a basic cream cheese pie, but the secret is in the coconut – toasted instead of fresh, which solves the texture issue some people have with this tropical fruit.  “Most people who don’t like coconut try this and change their minds,” LaFountain says, adding that the vanilla crème anglaise on top gives it another level of sweetness, for “an added touch of ‘Mmm.’”

September 9, 2002

Seats: 250, including private dining room, patio and bar seating
Cuisine: Asian. Specialties: Hong Kong scallops with broccoli, red onion and black pepper sauce; sashimi sampler with tuna, yellowtail, whitefish and octopus; crispy-fried catfish with mushrooms, red peppers, jalapeños, Thai basil and spicy garlic sauce; orange peel beef with red chilies.

January/February 2003

If you’re craving an out-of-the-ordinary happy hour experience that boasts a flair for the exotic, consider a visit to Molly Woo’s Asian Bistro, a member of the popular Cameron Mitchell family. If you’re yearning to wash down your spicy scallop roll or shrimp tempura roll with some Dragon Punch or Typhoon Tea, this is your spot.

With its hanging red Chinese lanterns, 16-foot-high ceilings and wall of Chinese artifacts, visitors are guaranteed prime people-watching angles from every corner.