When I was a kid and my family went out for Chinese food, Formosa restaurant on Summer Avenue was the place we always went.

I loved how every dish was served family-style and I could taste of bite of so many delicious things in one meal. Thinking back on it, that experience was probably a foreshadowing of my future me — I love to try as many things in a meal as possible!

But, I digress.

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The reason I bring up Formosa is their sesame chicken. An order of the crispy, battered pieces of chicken was one of my favorite dishes at Formosa. In fact, I don’t think I ever had a meal there that did not include an order of sesame chicken.

Fast forward decades later, and now when I go to Mosa Asian Bistro on White Station Road, sesame chicken is always part of my order.

Seems I am not the only one.

Mosa has been open since 2008, and co-owner Michelle Pao Levine says not a day has gone by that someone hasn’t mentioned the chicken dish.

“I hear every day, to this day, what people ate at Formosa. It’s really cool,” she said. 

You see, the story of the sesame chicken goes back 45 years.

Eddie Pao, Levine’s father, is the chef and co-owner of Mosa and runs the East Memphis restaurant with his daughter and his son, Alex Pao.

Eddie Pao grew up in Taipei and brought the flavors of his home country to Memphis in the late 1970s, when he and his brother Alfred opened Formosa. That restaurant quickly became a Memphis favorite, including being named Best Chinese Restaurant by Memphis Magazine for 19 years in a row.

While Alfred moved to California years ago, Mosa is the continuation of the brothers’ legacy.

I can’t remember if the sesame chicken was an entree at Formosa, but at Mosa, it’s served as an appetizer. You can order a small portion (16 oz.) or a large portion (26 oz.).

“We say the small order feeds one, and the large portion feeds two, but it’s a lot of chicken,” said Levine, explaining that the portion sizes were designed to fit their Chinese paper to-go boxes.

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A lot of work goes into making Mosa’s sesame chicken.

“It’s a two-day process,” Levine said. “We brine, marinate and season the chicken the day before – and there is a really high-quality sesame oil and sesame seeds in the marinade. I really think that’s the real secret. It’s what we do in advance.”

The chicken is hand-battered (and, yes, there are sesame seeds in the batter, too) and fried fresh to order.

Mosa’s (and Formosa’s) version is slightly different than the saucy sesame chicken dish on offer at many Chinese restaurants, but it is served with a sweet and sour dipping sauce. (When I was a kid, my dad liked to add a little hot Chinese mustard to the dipping sauce for an extra kick.)

In addition to Pao’s native Chinese cuisine, Mosa also features Thai and Japanese dishes. The family refers to their concept as “Pan-Asian dining.”

Other dishes on Mosa’s menu that I once enjoyed at Formosa are the hot and sour soup, the spring rolls and the fried rice.

But one dish that I often order at Mosa that wasn’t on Formosa’s menu is the Yuan Bao soup. The best way I know how to describe it is as an Asian spin on chicken and dumplings. Handmade chicken dumplings are served in a flavorful wonton soup broth with Napa cabbage, carrots and fresh cilantro. The dumplings are tender and flavorful, and crispy wonton strips and a sauce (available in mild, medium or spicy heat) add the finishing touch. Each serving is a generous portion that, in my opinion, could serve two.

Another signature dish for Mosa is the Rainbow Panang Curry, which has been featured on the Cooking Channel.

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“My father may be known as the godfather of Chinese food,” Levine said. “But, at age 60, when we were starting Mosa, he went to his friend’s Thai restaurant in Atlanta to learn Thai cuisine, as well.”

Named “rainbow” for the multitude of colored vegetables in the dish, the rainbow panang curry is one of the most complex sauces on Mosa’s menu. The dish includes lime leaves, sweet chile, fresh lime juice, coconut milk and panang paste along with julienned carrots, baby corn, mushrooms, snow peas and zucchini. It’s served over rice with your choice of salmon, shrimp, chicken or tofu.

When dining at Mosa, be sure to catch a glimpse of the action in the kitchen.

“Wok cooking is an art,” Levine said. “It’s a lot of work, so I am afraid it may not be around forever.”

Luckily for Memphians, Eddie Pao and his family are committed to keeping the tradition alive.

Mosa Asian Bistro, located at 850 S. White Station Road, is open for lunch 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., Tuesdays through Fridays and Sundays; and for dinner 4 to 8:30 p.m., Tuesdays through Thursdays; 4 to 9 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 4 to 8:30 p.m. on Sundays. It is closed on Mondays.