Jane G’s aims to fill a pan-Asian void that Trey Popp isn’t sure exists. That it does so expensively and blandly doesn’t help the Center City restaurant.

It’s not that anything was awful—though it was really a shame that someone had turned a $38 quasi-Thai “bouillabaisse” into a lobster-themed salt lick. Chef Michael Chan executes Jane G’s menu ably enough. It’s just that the menu is by turns dated, overpriced, and more adventurous to read than to taste.

“Spicy Hunan Lamb” wasn’t spicy at all, but oversweet and gloopy, like weeknight takeout. What made the skewers of “Tibetan Lamb” Tibetan? A gentle dusting of cumin, apparently—because it can’t have been the (non-emulsified) satay sauce, the (better) teriyaki reduction, or the Tibet- goes-tiki pineapple juice marinade.

One Star – Fair

Philadelphia Restaurant Review: Jane G’s [Philadelphia magazine]
Jane G’s [Official Site]