Mawn is Phila and Rachel Lorn’s first restaurant, often described by the couple and their fans as a “noodle house with no rules.” The cozy, 28-seat BYOB has a Cambodian heart, but its menu roams freely across Southeast Asia and South Philadelphia. “It’s whatever you want to make it, whatever you want to eat, is what Mawn is all about,” said Rachel. “It’s a special place to have a meal with friends, where everyone is taking care of you.” It’s also the kind of place where you’ll want to gather a group, to dive into the indulgent “All Star Seafood Rice,” piled high with bay scallops, uni, shrimp, lump crab, trout roe, and crab fat butter; to tear apart the pan-seared whole fish sizzling with ginger-scallion oil; and to savor fried chicken with a crackling caramelized crust and spicy hull sauce.
Mawn has inspired legions of diners to hover over their screens the moment dinner reservations open on the first of each month. With just 1,300 seats or covers available, they’re usually gone in seconds. Lunch is walk-ins only, and Mawn has become one of the few queues impatient Philadelphians will actually wait in. Its Italian Market location feels fitting for a couple whose childhoods and marriage are rooted in South Philly. “I’ve never worked more than five miles from where I lived, except for a small stint at Terrain in the Philadelphia suburbs,” said Phila.
While Mawn never shies away from spice, especially in dishes like the beef noodle katiew with pickled jalapeños, the wild boar prohok dip electrified with Cambodian chilies, and the Cambodian papaya salad brightened with fresh herbs, it’s also the place where you’ll go to dive into the most comforting noodle soups. Mawn means chicken in Khmer, and the restaurant’s name is an ode to that great indulgence, available only to Phila’s family in peacetime. The Mawn noodle soup is also an ode to Rachel’s Jewish family, its stock sweetened with parsnips, as matzo ball soup frequently is.
Mawn’s Puck and See (Khmer for “eat and drink” and a nod to the original working title of their restaurant project) menu, priced at $65, is one of the best dining deals in Philadelphia. The staff orders for you after a short conversation about what you’re craving, then builds the meal around it.
