19 Dec 7th–Dec 13th, 2023 phoenixnewtimes.com phoenix new Times | NEWS | FEATURE | FOOD & DRINK | ARTS & CULTURE | MUSIC | CONCERTS | CANNABIS | Seek and Discover Kembara is not only chef Angelo Sosa’s newest restaurant. It’s a love letter to Asian street food, history and culture. BY GEORGANN YARA C hef Angelo Sosa is passionate about food. He’s equally passionate about stories. And his newest restaurant Kembara serves as one of Sosa’s stories. It’s told in a mouthwatering format composed of many diverse chapters with Asian street food as its voice. On a Tuesday morning roughly a week before opening, Sosa strolls through Kembara and shares a few tales. Standing at its entrance where diners will be greeted by a giant illuminated ring, he talks about Marco Polo’s journey to the East along the Silk Road and how the Singaporean food stalls influenced his latest venture. After taking several steps into the restaurant, Sosa leans on a Japanese-style wood dining table and scrolls through photos on his phone. He pauses to show some featuring graffiti-flanked streets in the Malaysian state of Penang that he says sparked the concept of his upscale dinner- only restaurant at the J.W. Marriott Phoenix Desert Ridge Resort & Spa. He moves to the center of the dining room which is lined with sumptuous leather banquettes and a massive graffiti wall inspired by those photos. Here, Sosa opens up about his past and explains how food was his lifeline throughout a difficult childhood and gives thanks to his aunt Carmen. She’s the namesake of Sosa’s southwest eatery Tia Carmen, which is also at the resort and a quick 30-second walk from Kembara. Sosa’s 25-year career in the industry spans staging in restaurants to helming high-end kitchens, several of them in Asia. This new venture allows him to showcase what draws him to the continent’s fare. “Kembara (represents) the cuisine that I love,” Sosa says, eagerly anticipating the opening date of Dec. 7. “The cuisine itself is my interpretation of my journeys, the scope of what I saw and what I wanted to take away from them.” Taking a deep, delicious dive The menu pays homage to Asia’s street food stalls, the families who’ve owned them for decades and time-honored recipes passed down through the generations. All of the restaurant’s noodles are hand- made fresh onsite, yielding a texture and bite that dried packaged versions cannot duplicate. The dim sum is also freshly made and ingredients such as the fragrant curry leaves that Sosa leans on for many of his creations, are grown in the onsite garden. Among the highlights are the Tuna Thai Jewel, a balanced sweet and savory starter of tuna sashimi, turmeric tapioca-dusted jicama, fresh herbs and basil oil, chilled in a coconut lemongrass ginger broth. Crab fried rice is loaded with lump crab and gets a delicate punch from oyster sauce and a fresh crunch from sugar snap peas. The lemongrass pork collar is inspired by a Vietnamese grilled pork chop and mari- nated in lemongrass, garnished with herbs and dressed lightly with fish sauce. A vegetable curry with Persian and Indian flair is among the vegetarian options. Sosa’s version is accompanied by Japanese yams, carrots, bamboo shoots and warming spices. Desserts include Vietnamese coffee donuts that are tossed in a Vietnamese cinnamon and sugar mixture and served with Len’s Vietnamese Coffee. Condensed milk is on the side for dipping. The eclectic menu reflects Sosa’s expe- riences, travels and three months of serious hands-on research with longtime business partner and restaurant devel- oper Mark Stone. Sosa and Stone, who also collaborated on Tia Carmen, delved deep into the sea of Asian street food delights. Singapore, Chiang Mai, Hanoi, Taipei, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur and Tokyo were a handful of places they hit, consuming as much as they could. “I wanted to dive very, very deep into the culture because the culture is where the story and the beauty is,” Sosa says. “I wanted to intertwine how to tastefully do this and how (the dishes, culture and their stories) all speak to each other.” Literary libations This is also reflected in the bar program, which Stone spearheads. It features a sake list curated by renowned sake judge, ambassador and sommelier Eduardo Dingler and one of the largest collections of Asian spirits in the country. But literary fans would be impressed by the 12 signature alcoholic and non-alco- holic cocktails that are named after note- worthy books by Asian authors. A long cement bar sits in front of vertical gold bars that provide a visual rendition of bamboo. Here, Stone points out the mix of historic and contemporary books, some of which are his personal favorites, that inspired the cocktails and sit on either side of the shelves housing the spirit bottles. The titles include The Namesake, a twist on a mango lassi made with frozen mango, coconut milk, Greek yogurt, makrut leaf syrup, sea salt and ground cardamom. The Committed is a Vietnamese coffee martini made with coffee beans from Vietnam that are roasted in Massachusetts. But the showstopper promises to be The Sympathizer, named after the prequel to The Committed. It’s a concoction of Akashi Whisky, genmaicha tea and toasted rice syrup. It’s smoked with cherry wood chips, served from a teapot and poured over a big cube in a lowball glass. The drink is served in front of the guest and the presentation of the teapot and glass on a bed of small stones echoes a zen garden. The toasted rice element is an example of the connection between Kembara’s kitchen and bar, Stone explains. “Toasted rice is used in a lot of the cooking,” Stone says. “In many of the cock- tails, there’s a link between the ingredients used in the food and drinks.” A journey of discovery For the look of the restaurant, Sosa tapped the expertise of designer Thomas Schoos, who also worked on Tia Carmen and is responsible for Kembara’s Whooping Crane wallpaper gracing the walls and ceiling and neon fuchsia rope lights hanging from above. At a small gathering area just past the entrance, guests may peer down into a wishing well holding a round mirror. Pendant lights hanging from the ceiling above the mirror change color, creating a multi-dimensional view of those looking at their reflection. The open kitchen gives diners a show as chefs work their magic. Two private dining rooms are adjacent Gold bars represent a visual rendition of bamboo at the bar. (Photo by Mary Berkstresser) Chef Angelo Sosa and his team, including chef Penny Tagliarina, are getting ready to open Kembara at the J.W. Marriott Phoenix Desert Ridge Resort & Spa. (Photos by Mary Berkstresser) ▼ Food & Drink >> p 20
