Havertown’s newly remodeled Sampan Inn offers awardwinning Chinese and Japanese cuisine for over 25 years
HAVERFORD >> Brookline Boulevard has become quite a restaurant mecca in recent years and the newly renovated Sampan Inn is among those that are stealing the show.
Sampan Inn offers fine Chinese and Japanese cuisine, right in the heart of Havertown. The newly renovated restaurant has been voted one of the top five Chinese/Japanese restaurants in Delaware County, no less than 12 times by Main Line Life newspaper, Main Line Times and News of Delaware County. In 2017, the restaurant garnered enough votes to win the prestigious Delco News Network’s Talk of the Town award for the County’s best Chinese/Japanese restaurant.
Opened in 1993 by siblings Winston Chau, Wen Chau and Jenny Chau and their parents Song Zou and Song Qui, all originally from Canton, China, the Sampan Inn has evolved through the last quarter of a century to continually please the palate and the wallet of diners from all over. With their parents now retired, the Chau siblings have continued to bring customers the awardwinning dining experience that customers throughout the area have come to expect at Sampan Inn.
In addition to a fullfledged Sushi Bar offering Sushi and Sashimi, stocked daily with fresh fish and other top-shelf ingredients, the Sampan Inn offers a varied menu of Hunan, Szechuan and Cantonese style dishes, as well as Tempura, Teriyaki, seafood and steaks. The restaurant also has a fully stocked bar of fine wines, spirits and beers. The restaurant has both a full Chinese menu and a full Japanese menu to please any taste, as well as many vegetarian options. On the weekends, when the restaurant is the busiest, there are six Chinese chefs, two Sushi chefs and one Japanese kitchen chef on duty.
In addition to the Chinese-American dishes that are always in high demand by customers, such as General Tso’s Chicken, Peking, Lemon, or Orange Duck, Sesame or Orange Beef or Chicken, Sweet and Sour Chicken, Chow Mein, and dozens of other standard entrees, the Sampan Inn offers dozens of house specialties, including Shrimp with Honey Walnuts, Salmon with Black Bean Sauce, Mongolian Lamb, Chinese Angel Hair Supreme, General Tso’s Shrimp, TaiChen Chicken, Roasted and Glazed Lamb Chops and Beef and Scallops with Chinese Vegetables. The restaurant also has daily lunch specials, Sushi party trays, a variety of soups and many appetizers, including the popular Egg Rolls and Spring Rolls, Chinese Pizza, Boneless Barbecued Spare Ribs, Coconut Shrimp, and Steamed or Fried Dumplings.The Japanese menu offers house specialty items such as a Tuna Pizza (baked tortilla with light mozzarella cheese topped with sliced, raw tuna and spicy sauce), Beef Nagimaki (prime beef wrapped around scallions), and Edamame.
Prices are reasonable, with most lunch entrees under $10 and most dinner entrees, with the exception of very few, under $20. Examples of dinner entrees and their prices on the Chinese menu include the Seafood Party, consisting of jumbo shrimp, scallops and lobster with assorted Chinese vegetables for $15.95; Chengdu Triple Delight, a scrumptious combination of jumbo shrimp, chicken and pork sautéed with fresh vegetables in the chef’s exquisite spicy Chengdu Sauce for $13.95; and the Roasted Salmon with Honey Miso Glaze with sautéed fresh vegetables, $16.95. On the Japanese menu, among dozens of options, are the Scallops Teriyaki, $18.95; Shrimp and Vegetable Tempura, $17.95, and a Sushi Sampler, $15.95.
“All of the ingredients in our entrees are at optimal freshness and always top quality,” said owner Winston, proudly. “We never skimp on ingredients. We always use Jumbo Shrimp instead of the small shrimp and bring in all fresh ingredients daily.”
The restaurant is open seven days a week and offers lunch and dinner, as well as take-out, which is so popular that it constitutes over half of their business.
“Havertown has a lot of young families and people on-the-go, so they know we will have lunch or dinner, freshly prepared and waiting for them when they arrive,” Winston smiled. “We make it very convenient for our customers. Our takeout business has always thrived.”
For delivery, the restaurant participates in Caviar, as well as Door Dash delivery services. The familyowned restaurant is a longtime member of the Haverford Business Association.
However, it’s the diningin feature that has so many coming back again and again. Only three years after they opened at the Havertown location in 1993, the bank next store to them, on the corner of Brookline Boulevard and Darby Road closed its branch, so the owners jumped at the opportunity to expand. Sampan Inn currently seats about 90 customers and can comfortably host private parties up to about 20, making it a perfect venue for small office holiday parties and special occasion family gatherings. The re-
cent renovations, which got underway in August and were completed by October, have increased the restaurant’s ambiance, making it attractive for date-nights and the celebration of special occasions, as well as for families and everyday diners. Improvements have included changing wood paneling to stone walls and tiling, adding new lighting and flooring, a new Japanese/Chinese Sushi Bar and more modern features, including new restrooms and updating tables and chairs.
The place is sparkling clean, and tastefully decorated. The new lighting and spacing combine to create comfort and intimacy. Winston said the family prides itself on excellent service, beautiful surroundings and exceptional food.
“We’re really excited about our newly remodeled look,” Winston explained. “Havertown is very family and community oriented and many people have stopped by to tell us how nice it looks and we really appreciate that. We enjoy being a part of the Delaware County community. But it’s the food that keeps customers coming back again and again. We hope that people who have never tried us, or who haven’t been here in a while, will come and dine. I know they will like what they find here.”
IF YOU GO: Sampan Inn is located at 2-8 Brookline Blvd., Havertown. Hours are
11:30 a.m.- 3 p.m. Mon.-Sat. for lunch; 3-10 p.m., Mon. – Thurs., 3-10:30 p.m. Fri.-Sat., and 2-10 p.m., Sun. for dinner. For more information or reservations, call 610446-3000 or 610-446-2188.