Philly Food Blog

Aperto

2012-01-21T10:56:00.003-05:00

Wade's Take:

It was a feeling of eternal return to be back in the space that is now Aperto. Yes, the PFB group has been in many restaurant real estate spaces again and again (see Koo-Zee-Doo formerly Copper Bistro, or Adsum which once existed as Coquette, to name a few). This was different for me. I've known this local eating space as four different restaurant iterations. What began as Carmine's turned to Margot. Margot became Gemelli. Now, Gemelli has blossomed into Aperto. Each had its unique strengths and each was a default spot to take out-of-town guests (I live mere blocks away). I am happy to report that Aperto lives up to this legacy.

The space is comfortable, intimate and warm. The kitchen is small and open, bordered by a eat-on bar curving across the corner of the room. This openness allows for a great feeling of connectivity with the chef and kitchen happenings.

We had a serving of small plates to whet our appetites. I ordered the feta and olives. Small chunks of fresh feta were skewered with nuevo brined olives.

My starter was the salmon tartare. Small pieces of diced salmon were piled atop cucumber and tzatziki. The dish was good, but very safe. The salmon was mild and tempered even more by the simple tzatziki. Many people might like this dish exactly as it is. For my taste, I imagine it could be improved by serving it with toasted rye bread, a dose or capers or even some citrus to give it some zest.

The striped bass provencal was my entree. It was a scrumptious dish. The fish had a gently seasoned pan fried skin that I lovingly ate. It was cooked just right and was both flaky and meaty. The fish was second-fiddle to the rest of the dish, though. The french-based, thick broth contained chunky tomatoes, roasted fingerling potatoes, capers and cipollini onions. This was my first foray into cipollini onions, and I loved them. These tiny, sweet, purple onions almost tasted pickled with their tartness, but I think it only took some roasting to produce this fantastic flavor.

Dessert gave us many tempting options, but we decided upon the chocolate coffee panna cotta. If I had a nice bitter cappuccino alongside my panna cotta I would have been happier. The mocha and chocolate mousse layers weren't as strong as I'd hoped. We mused that perhaps there was too much gelatine that softened the flavors and left my taste buds craving something with a little more depth as my last taste of Aperto.

3 out of 4 local eateries.

Jess’ Take:

You know it takes some convincing to get me outside of the City. We’ve done it before with success, so when both Wade and Craig LeBan informed us of Aperto I thought it was time to once again make the trek…. All the way to Narberth.

We were not disappointed. It’s obvious that we weren’t the only ones who enjoyed the new spot. Our reservation was at 8pm and when we left around 10:30 the restaurant was still hopping.

Embracing our European sides, we ordered 3 courses, beginning with several small dishes. The roasted chic peas were my top pic, although the spiced Marcona almonds were a close second.

My second was the Farm Salad, made up of greens, beets, goat cheese, carrots, smoked pancetta, almonds and cider vinaigrette. It was delicious! The salty pancetta and creamy goat cheese made the dish (naturally the two things that bring down the “health” value of the salad quite a bit).

For my entrée I decided to go with the special, which was monkfish served with braised asparagus, carrots and squash. It was served over French lentils with a red pepper coolie sauce. It was excellent! Monkfish is one of my favorites for it’s meaty texture and subtle taste. This one was just slightly crispy on the outside and very moist on the inside. A top fish dish of the year for sure.

As Wade mentioned, the dessert was good but not great. As always, we were wooed by the chocolate but it failed to hit home. I’m always amazed at how challenging it is to find a good dessert in this town – Narberth included.

3.5 out of 4 commutes to the burbs.

Sbraga

2012-01-05T20:51:00.001-05:00

Wade's Take:
We jaunted down Broad Street for the second month in a row to try Sbraga, a fairly new "modern American dining" spot.

The interior was fantastic. A large, open-space was coupled with high-ceilings and lean pillars made of a web of re-salvaged woods. The bar and kitchen prep area stretched the length of the restaurant, and pillars broke up the space to allow for more of a private dining feeling. Windows wrapped around for views of Broad Street in every direction.

Sbraga's primary offering is a four-course prix fixe menu for $45. Each area had some great choices, and here were mine.

My first course was a dose of sweetbreads. These delectable morsels were flash-fried and paired with tonnato and capers. Let's never forget how great capers can be... and tonight's dish did not disappoint. The tonnatos gave the dish a subtle sweetness. The capers added a mini bitter bite. To finish the dish were small pools of yogurt-like substances, and some arugula. It was a dish worth having.

Next up was the arctic char. The fish was cooked excellently - but the skin was unforgettable. Separated from the filet and (pan-fried?) densely crisped, it was like eating a fish potato chip - yet less greasy and only with the slight taste of fish. Dipping the crisp skin in the beet sauce dallops along its side was perfection for me. The caviar, dill and pickled onions that also came along for the ride only added to my enjoyment.

The third and final savory course was meatloaf. I picked the meatloaf with a potato puree and bacon marmalade. The meatloaf was nice, with overtones of your typical homemade meatloaf and undertones of things a bit more exotic, like sriracha and lemongrass. The potato puree was doused in a rich beef broth reduction. The bacon marmalade was subtle, which was nice. I was expecting something too rich with bacon... but Sbraga proved that bacon actually can be subtle.

Dessert was their tiramisu flavor combination of marscapone, coffee granita and chocolate. The texture of this dessert was a highlight of the meal. The crunch, creaminess of the marscapone and bittersweet chocolate and coffee flavorings hit the mark.

Sbraga, I'd love to see you again. 3 out of 4 capers.

Tashan

2011-12-06T13:59:00.001-05:00

Jess’ Take: We choose Tashan because Sophie was joining us for dinner this time and the reviews said that it was kid friendly. As soon as we walked through the door it was obvious that the only thing kid friendly about this restaurant was the fact that it was empty of other diners (we had chosen to dine at 5:30, just in case). However, the staff was gracious about having a toddler wander around the tables and throw food on the floor.

Tashan calls itself Modern Indian and I would say that’s about right. There are plenty of traditional Indian elements in the dishes, but they all have an interesting and sometimes unexpected twist. The menu is broken up into 5 sections, and we decided to order one dish from each section, tapas style.
We were all intrigued by the description of the Gol-Gappa, so had to order it. Described as hollow durum puffs with spicy potato, injected with tangy mint-cilantro water, they were little one-two bite taste explosions. You had to add the mint-cilantro water yourself, which arrived in a separate little bowl, and it did a good job of cooling down the spice.

Next we opted for the Baby Octopus Nicobari, a Spanish rock octopus that was braised and served with a red bell pepper sauce. This octopus was excellent, very tender and went well with the sauce, although I think they went a little crazy with the amount of sauce that came with the dish. I found myself scraping some of it off to better taste the octopus.

From the Tandoori section we went for the jumbo shrimp, which were served with fenugreek, carom seed toasted yellow pea flour and coco essence and were delicious! Served on a skewer the dry rub on the shrimp complemented the creamy sauce it lay on top of perfectly. Sadly only three came with the dish.

For the last dish we went for the Chilka-Style Black Bass, which was pan-seared, served with a curry froth and apple-fennel salad. It was good, but not the highlight of the meal. There wasn’t enough curry to necessitate the amount of apple fennel salad that was served. It was a nice, light dish though.

It was an excellent meal with so many different and interesting flavors. It’s a bit pricey and the décor is a little too Atlantic City casino-esque (as Wade put it), but certainly worth a visit. I hope to find myself back there again sometime soon, possible without a toddler in tow.

3 ½ out of 4 Indian spices.

Paloma

2011-10-28T21:00:00.002-04:00

Wade's Take:
Jess told me this was our 81st restaurant as a blogging group. Holy moley! I started to crunch some numbers on what that meant for the total number of calories consumed, dollars spent, percentage of restaurants now closed and more... but then quickly realized that as interesting as that would be, it's clearly not the point of our group. We eat, we talk about it, we write about it. Good old foodie fun. And that's what we did this month, too.

Paloma was our target. It's a Mexican haute cuisine joint in the Bella Vista portion of South Philly. The space definitely used to be an office center. The interior seemed a little stark and white, but that may have had more to do with the lack of other patrons than the decor (it was a cold and rainy night).
On the semi-new trend we've seen for our past few restaurants, Paloma has a blog. I like reading these in advance of a meal. If done right, it can give you a better sense of the mantra of the restaurant, its origins and dishes. Paloma's blog is mainly promotional, but it does list some recipes and ingredient descriptions that are interesting.They love peppers and rare fruits, and add them to whatever they can on the menu (amazed there weren't exotic peppers or cactus juice even in the tap water).

So, on to the food. My appetizer was the crab ceviche. It came out as a tower of tomato and avocado slices with chunks of crabmeat as the crown. It was drizzled with olive oil and shallots, cilantro, jalapeno and lime juice. None of the ingredients with this oil came across too strongly - which was ideal. The crab combined with the creamy avocado and summer-tasting tomatoes was a perfect blending on its own.

My entree was the tilapia, baked with a delicious coating of pinole (coarse flour) and tortillas, served with a sauce of pureed pepitas (pumpkin seeds), ancho peppers, lime and garlic. The sauce poured from atop the fish into a puddle around the fish. I could have licked it all clean. The fish was prepared to perfection with a flaky exterior and a firm interior. The mildly sweet fish was the perfect match for the ambrosial ancho/pumpkin/lime sauce, which somehow managed to produce sharp and mild tastes at the same time. There was another stack on my plate to go with the fish - a pile of whipped potatoes and spinach. It was nice to see a side prepared in such an interesting way.

It was great to see traditional Mexican cuisine flavors used in such a delicate way with all of our dishes. Paloma, I'd love to revisit!

Three out of four peppers.

Jess' Take:
Mexican haute cuisine is just up my alley.

I ordered corn chowder for my entree because it seemed just right on a cold, rainy night. It was very hearty and filling. Although it was described as creamy on the menu, I didn't find that it was. The addition of baby shrimp added an interesting flavor to the oniony, peppery soup. I would have like it served a little more spicy, but luckily the chef makes a special hot pepper sauce served on the side for the whole table. One dab of that and yowza! Luckily I started off with a very small dab.

For my entree I went for the "award-winning" crab cake, which was served in a crisp phyllo dough. The presentation was a work of art. The crab cake was pretty good too, but definitly needed the carrot-curry sauce that was served along side of it.

Of course the dinner would not be complete without chocolate, so I ordered a slice of the espresso pound cake served with toasted hazelnuts and chocolate. It might have been the tallest piece of cake I've ever eaten. How it arrived to the table still standing is a mystery to me. While it looked delicious, it was pretty dry and desperately needed the chocolate-chipotle sorbet that was served along with it (which was amazing by the way)

I love the creativity that the chef at Paloma had - but if you're interested in going, go soon. With an out of the way location, larger than necessary space, and the fact that we were the only diners on a Thursday night, I'm pretty sure Paloma won't be a restaurant option for long.

3 out of 4 large pieces of cake!

Fare

2011-08-30T23:35:00.002-04:00

Wade's Take:

The concept of Fare is a good one. Take good, clean, organic foods. Prepare and cook them as they are meant to be cooked. Keep the dishes straightforward, the infusions to a minimum and let the natural flavors present themselves.

Fare's blog expounds upon this decision-making process in great detail (and has an interesting section devoted to Philly tap water's improved purity to bottled water). The interior of this Fairmount restaurant reflects this ethos as well. Clean lines and simple design are abound with hearty wooden tables and comfortable booths and chairs.

This is all well and good - but we were there to eat. And that's where it didn't (the pun can't be resisted) fare well.

I began with the scallops. They were great. Two scallops pan-fried with a crisp edge and melt-in-your-mouth center. The scallops sat on a sweet pea puree that was good enough to constitute it's own soup.

I couldn't resist the idea of an avocado crab cake, and had to order it as my main. The crabcakes were very good. The hunks of fresh avocado were in equal proportion to the crab meat, and there was a punch of wasabi in the mix as well. Although pan-fried, the crabcakes weren't too oily. All of these flavors I describe above took some detective work to uncover, though, because the crabcakes came doused in sweet chili sauce. I am a great fan of chili sauce - I will dump it on anything edible at home. However, it wasn't necessary for this dish and overpowered it.

The sides for the crabcakes included a rice pilaf and julienned summer vegetables (squash, cucumber and company). Both were plain and unremarkable. Not offensive, not memorable... just simple sides. I suddenly understood why there were salt and pepper shakers on all the tables.

Dessert came in two forms - semisweet flourless chocolate cake and some sort of sage candle-like pudding. Dave nailed it when he assessed they weren't house-made. The flourless chocolate cake was mediocre. It was on the dry and crumbly side and served with a whipped cream (good) and strawberries (which somehow tasted out-of-season).

Overall, my take is that this is a place where you'd take a finicky Aunt from out-of-town who likes nice restaurants but prefers dishes on the simpler side.

Two out of four organic fares.

Jess’ Take:

Wade pretty much said it – great concept, but I can make it at home. I was very excited when this restaurant opened because not only do I love the organic/local trend that has overtaken Philly, but it’s also in my neighborhood! Unfortunately the whole meal was good, but not great.

I started with roasted cauliflower and chickpeas over a dill yogurt sauce. I’m not a huge cauliflower fan unless it’s roasted, and I LOVE chickpeas, so this dish sounded perfect. It was nice, but needed a little oomph. There just wasn’t much there, there.

For my main entrée I went with grilled salmon with a tarragon caper sauce served over brown rice with a side of roasted corn. Again, I was un-wowed. It was good, but something I could have thrown together at home in 30 minutes while I’m running around the house getting other things done. And the tarragon caper sauce was more of a tartar sauce, which I ended up scraping off midway through.

I know that our review is much like others written recently and I hope that the chef listens and gives a little more effort into flavor and simple creativity. I would love for this restaurant to turn it around because it’s only a hop, skip and jump away from home.

2 out of a possible 4 roasted chickpeas.

Talula's Garden

2011-06-17T23:08:00.003-04:00

Wade's Take:

This was definitely my most anticipated meal of the year thus far. We've had this reservation for Talula's Garden for months, and it finally came to be.

I walked off the street into the outdoor entrance to Talula's Garden and immediately felt the change in atmosphere. I was instantly reminded of an outdoor summer wedding. People were all well-dressed in their summer best, happy, socializing, nibbling on food. I walked mid-restaurant and stopped, observing and adjusting to the new scene. There were two women standing near me, casually talking. They started a conversation with me like we were old friends, asking me about my work day, how I was doing and other pleasantries. I was starting to think I did in fact know them until they asked me if I had a reservation. They were restaurant managers or owners, not life-long friends of mine! They walked me to an equally perky hostess. I realized right away this wasn't going to be a typical pretentious new restaurant scene - this was going to be different all around.

Our table was outside in a setting that matched the restaurant's name. There was a garden wall around us, plants sprouting from every possible position, and our table and chairs were straight from someone's patio. With a nice warm breeze blowing Dave's hair like he was a super model, it was a great summer scene.

Now to the cheese plate. Jess and I selected the "In Kind" cheese platter. It was described as four rare and ridiculous cheeses. They were right. Fantastic. My meal could have ended with this plate, and I still would give Talula's Garden a four out of four. Hours later, I'm still thinking about the L'Amuse Gouda and calculating how to get another fix.

I can't pass up sweetbreads on a menu anymore. It's been a fun game to compare and contrast this dish at restaurants over the past few years. Talula's Garden had a nice version, but it didn't come close to trumping the sweetbreads from Fond a few months ago. The sweetbreads were lightly breaded and milder than I'm used to. They were served with an asparagus royale (read: asparagus jello), but my favorite addition was the crisp, fried kale on the side. Potent with salt and actually crunchy, I could have had an entire side of this and been happy.

My entree was a beef and ribs dish, with a foamy brown butter/banyuls and turnips. The beef was succulent and tender, sprinkled with a coarse salt. The rib meat was a cut that was soft enough to crumble apart under my fork, yet still dense. Confusing to the senses. The meat wasn't just infused with the smoky sweet barbecue, it was married. I can't comprehend how they made the foam of brown butter and banyuls (wine/vinegar). It tasted like polenta air. The turnips were neutral, but probably best that way with all the other players on my plate.

I was jealous of Dave's lamb shoulder and very fond of the scallops Jess ordered.

Dessert was a state of euphoria after everything else. Some petite doughnuts were on the table and a soft chocolate dessert with toasted marshmallow and crumbs of smoky bacon. It was bliss.

The meal took time, clocking at two and a half hours. Was it worth it? Absolutely. My one lingering question about Talula's Garden has to do with vegetables. Where were they? Perhaps it's because of the name, but I expected to have more splashes of leafy greens in the dishes for a restaurant that's founded on the concept of farm to table.

Nonetheless, I proclaim Talula's Garden to be four out of four hippy chic garden locales.

Kennett

2011-06-04T21:08:00.003-04:00

Wade's Take:

Settling into a table at Kennett on a Friday night post-work week felt warranted and just right. This Queen Village pub has history in the neighborhood going back to 1924. Now rehabbed and under new ownership, it works perfectly in the neighborhood.

Kennett has a variety of local craft beers. It was a tad difficult to find something light on the hop heavy beer menu - but my choice of the Rogue Somer Orange-Honey Ale seemed to work.

We delved into one of the specials for our first course... anchovy and cucumber bruschetta. The anchovies were mild enough, but paired with the neutral cucumber and some light olive oil, the dish was nicely balanced and none-too fish-rich.

Another of the appetizers was beans on toast. The dish was large butter beans (a derivative of Lima beans) served on a Paul Bunyan-sized piece of toasted brioche. The fresh brioche was dense yet spongy, and the beans were smeared atop the bread, soft and paste-like. For a crown the dish had a fried egg. Cracking through the brioche and its layers with a fork made for many a delicious bite.

My entree was a white pizza special. The pizza had a thin-crisped crust, farmer's cheese, arugula, pork belly and chive blossoms. It was a nice pie for the most part. The farmer's cheese was a good choice, it melted evenly across the pizza and was more neutral than a mozzarella. This was ideal, because the arugula, large pieces of roasted pork belly and chive blossoms sang loudly. If it were up to me, I would have portioned the pork belly pieces and chive blossoms a bit smaller. These larger-sized items made the pizza just a little cumbersome to eat. All in all, I was happy.

Dessert was ideal for what we wanted and expected on a warm Friday night. We ordered the chocolate bark with vanilla bourbon ice cream. Although there was nary a bourbon flavor, the ice cream was rich and good. The chocolate bark broke easily into bites of dark chocolate, almonds and sea salt. It was a nice simple dessert to go with the straightforward meal.

Kennett had good, paired-down dishes that were perfect for those wanting a nice non-complicated Friday night.

3 out of 4 happy Fridays.

Dave's Take:
I was only able to make it through a round of beer and the starters course at Kennett (I had a small, upset, little girl to take home and deal with... and I don't mean Wade). But what I saw, I liked.

The tomato pie was my starter. It was done well. There was an herb in the sauce, perhaps cinnamon, that made it unique. Definitely worth trying.
3 out of 4.

Jess' Take:
As Dave mentioned, we had a very cranky little girl with so, so the first part of the meal entailed me taking walks outside trying to entertain her. I guess she just wasn’t ready for the explosive flavors that Kennett had to offer. Once she was whisked away by the best husband in the world, I settled in with Wade and a good beer. Please keep the bad mother comments to yourself.

We had a smorgasbord of starters, including roasted chickpeas, which were served with smoked paprika and citrus. They were really smoky and delicious. And also went quite well with the beans on toast.

I opted for the veggie burger for my main. It was a very hearty burger, made of wheat berries, red beans, walnuts and sunflower seeds. It was also served with a spicy 1,000 island dressing that unfortunately overpowered the nutty tasting burger. I ended up scraping most of it off, and then eventually finishing the burger with a fork and knife and only one side of the bun. It also came with a side of sauted greens, which were pretty darn good.

Wade mentioned our dessert, chocolate bark. It was so-so. I wouldn’t order it again. I was pretty excited about the bourbon ice cream, which turned out to be very good vanilla and not much more. Eh.

Like my comrades, I give Kennett 3 out of 4 smoky chickpeas. Next time I hope to be back with a delightfully pleasant little girl. One can hope, right?

Ocean City Restaurant (Dim Sum)

2011-05-06T12:02:00.001-04:00

Jess’ Take:

I love dim sum. The problem is, when you have to blog about it, it’s hard to remember it all. So, I’ll touch on my personal highlights. I’d also like to add that dining with a Dim Sum master, like Wade, makes the experience that much more enjoyable. We left the ordering to him and enjoyed plate after plate of perfectly sleeved deliciousness.

My first highlight of the meal with a dish of fried fish, piled high and generously salted. The batter was light, almost like a tempura batter. I could eat this dish like popcorn, popping piece after piece until it’s all gone and my fingers are glistening in grease. Unfortunately this dish came toward the end of the meal, and I just couldn’t bring myself to keep at it.

My second highlight was a dish of fluffy white buns filled with barbecued pork, otherwise known as Char siu baau. This is usually a highlight for me, and Ocean City did not disappoint. The combo of sweet and salty all wrapped up in a fluffy steamed package just makes me happy.

Fluffy white pork bun at the top of the picture

Another dish I’d like to mention is the lotus leaf rice wrap, which was served with pork. Also a favorite dim sum dish of mine, it usually comes with a flavorful rice and meat wrapped inside the leaf. This dish was pretty good, but not the best I’ve had. The rice got a little too greasy for my liking, and my feeling is that if I’m going to indulge in rice during a meal like this (i.e. one in which I will be gorging myself), it better be damn tasty, like the sweet rice balls served for dessert for example.

After it was all done I left the restaurant feeling very full, but satisfied and happy, just as a dim sum lunch should leave you feeling. Ocean City, you get 3.5 out of a possible 4 fluffy buns from me.

The Farmer's Cabinet

2011-04-20T09:45:00.002-04:00

Jess' Take:
The Farmer’s Cabinet is a new spot in Center City Philadelphia that boasts local and responsibly raised food, which is right up my alley. From the street the restaurant is unassuming, but once you walk in the door you realize it’s really spacious. We dined on the second level, tucked in a corner, which for various reasons was probably on purpose.

To start I went for the escargot, craving a buttery, sinful started. They arrived not in their individual shells, but rather in a cast iron pot, shells already removed. The presentation was more mussels than escargot. Typically, when done right, this is one of my favorite dishes, but I found that it lost something when I wasn’t using a little fork to pull the meat from its shell. They were buttery, yes, but also salty and gritty with a briny aftertaste. The preparation was unexpected and though still tasty, not my preferred preparation method.

For my second course I decided on the sautéed skate wing, which was served with black lentils and fried green tomato fritters. The presentation was very attractive and the fish was huge. It’s rare for me not to finish my dinner, but this was one of those unusual occasions. I was happy I did though, because it was just as tasty reheated the next day. Although both the fish and the fritters were fried, it wasn’t a very heavy dish.

I’m a fan of Farmer’s Cabinet, both the concept and the food. The “local” craze has been done a bunch in the last few years and these guys got it right. 3 out of a possible 4 local farms.

Wade's Take:
Not only was the space cavernous, the menu was equally vast. This was something we haven't been accustomed to on our culinary adventures as of late. I think the menu at Koo Zee Doo had about eight items on it, total.

So I was feeling a little overwhelmed, and thankful Jess used her sway to get us some private space in the back. There are no people-watching distractions when you are in the rafters with the Phantom of the Opera.

There was a cheese plate that was forgettable, especially when compared to my lamb kidneys starter. Oh, how I love me some kidneys! Lamb kidneys were a subject of much controversy in my household growing up. My mom still cooks them on special occasions, slicing them and frying them in butter until crisp. Some in my family love them. Some gag when they are being cooked (they do smell a bit like urine). Nevertheless, I would eat them weekly if they weren't so hard to acquire.

The Farmer's Cabinet chicken-fries two large kidneys (meaning they are immensely battered then pan fried), covers them with some fried greens and a little pomegranate molasses, then buries it in a sweet potato biscuit. Forget the dry biscuit, the greens and the molasses... I pushed them to the side. The kidneys have enough flavor to stand on their own, and they should have. They couldn't compete against my Mom's variety.

My entree was a grilled elk strip loin. It was just what I was craving. Cooked medium rare, the meat was succulent and none too gamey. It was served with some sauteed wild mushrooms (very good) and mustard grain mashed potatoes. Like Jess and Dave, I was full to the brim, and unable to finish my meal. A rarity indeed, but I blame it on the series of dense and filling items on the menu.

The Farmer's Cabinet is worth a revisit. Three out of four lamb organs.

Koo-Zee-Doo

2011-02-25T23:59:00.003-05:00

Wade's Take:

We either eat out a lot, or Philadelphia doesn't have a lot of restaurant realty. This month found us at yet another location we've been to before that's now under a different moniker. Koo-Zee-Doo, formerly Copper Bistro, is a Portugese BYO in Northern Liberties.

Koo-Zee-Doo maintains the comfortable atmosphere of Copper Bistro. Exposed brick walls, an intimate, warm table layout and a rustic bar that doubles as the kitchen make Koo-Zee-Doo welcoming. This atmosphere serves as an automatic encouragement to eat a little bit more slowly, let conversation saunter and have another glass of wine. Even Sophie picked up on this as she leaned back relaxingly in her high-chair to eavesdrop on our neighboring tables.

The similarities to Copper Bistro end there. Koo-Zee-Doo is a straight-up Portugese style dining experience. The menu is marked with large, shareable portions, exotic land and sea combinations and dishes you won't find often out in Philly's gastronome culture.

We had several rounds of food and I'll highlight my favorites. The rest of the items I leave to my co-bloggers.

A pile of clams came to the table as one of our appetizers. It was Amêijoas à Bulhão de Pato... white wine steamed clams. Amidst the rocky outcroppings of clam shells were triangular croutons, baked until dense. A drop of these croutons in the light, herbed broth turned them into fragrant, soft morsels. The clams swimming in the broth fared just as well. Jess, always wise and precognitive, saved her table bread to dip in the broth. We were jealous of her calculated brilliance.

The Bacalhau do Dia that day was a salt cod with roasted potatoes and onions. Our server's description of the salt cod's sodium intensity was spot on. It was strong. The roasted potatoes were excellent. Whole fingerling potatoes were roasted until crisp-skinned and then ever so slightly pressed to crack open. This allowed the potato to absorb some of the plate's citrus olive oil base. I loved it. The aromatic liquid was just right to help the dish's potatoes, broccoli (albeit small pieces) and salt cod balance a bit more. The final act on the seesaw was the sweet pickled onion slivers. The sweetness nearly made you forget about the bitter saltiness of the fish.

Koo-Zee-Doo is a good place to take other food adventurers when you are looking for something beyond typical BYO or fusion fare.

3 out of 4 koo-zee-doozies.

Jess' TakeI loved this little spot! An (amazingly small) open kitchen, great smell and warm atmosphere make it just lovely to walk into.

In addition to the clams, for an appetizer we also picked the sweet potato fritters. The arrived in a big fried mass and my mouth started to water. They were fritters all right. Cheese was a big part of the filling and I think, though I can't be sure, that there was some sweet potato in there too. If it were not for the name of the dish I might not have picked up on it though.

Our second entree was Fricassé de Polvo, or octapus gravy. It was the Friday special and I highly recommend if you plan on going to Koo Zee Doo, do it on a Friday for this dish. If you're a regular reader of this blog (all 2 of you), you know my love of octapus and this dish lived up to all expectations. It was served in a rich, buttery, artery clogging sauce that you couldn't help but smile when you ate. There was a pile of mashpotatoes to accompany the dish, but I don't think they were necessary. The dish was decadent enough.

We ended with an organge chocolate cake that was served with granola and liquor soaked cherries. The description was amazing, the dish was only so so. The orange flavor was strong and overpowered all else. I don't think it was even finished (which tells you something).

If I'm back at Koo Zee Doo, it'll be on a Friday for the octapus. Certainly worth the trip to Northern Liberties. 2.5 tenticles out of 4.

Hoof & Fin

2011-01-17T16:31:00.004-05:00

Jess’ Take

We started our 2011 year in food with Hoof & Fin. It’s a restaurant that’s been on our list for a while, and for one reason or another we just never made it. I’d heard some mixed reviews it was with guarded enthusiasm we embarked on the same location that formerly housed one of my most favorite restaurants, Gayle.

The food gods were smiling down on me this day, as I had had lunch at JG Domestic just a few hours earlier, so was still stuffed, but determined to enjoy myself nonetheless. It also meant that I would need to steer toward the ‘fin’ side of the menu. As always, I was too tempted by the octopus starter to not order it. It was served with a tomato comfit and potato croquette. The server ensured that it was braised for hours before grilled to make it tender and juicy. It was certainly juicy, but not as tender as I’d like (maybe it’s just because I’m still dreaming of the octopus from Fond). The potato croquette was delicious and a really nice accompaniment, along with a small salad. I enjoyed it, but might explore other options if I find myself there again.

The most phallic picture of octopus you've probably ever seen

For my main I went for a special, which was grilled Pacu fish ribs served with coconut rice. The server told us that this dish was going to be featured on Diners, Drive-in and Dives in an upcoming episode (apparently they serve this same dish at a little seafood shack down the shore). That tainted it a bit for me, as Guy Fieri makes my skin crawl, but once I tasted the dish I soon forgot. When they arrived they looked like pork ribs, although there were several bones to each piece. They were hearty enough to pick up and eat, but the flavor was really delicate. The coconut rice was sticky and sweet and went really well with the fish. If only this dish was served with some fried plantains, it would have been near perfection.

Pacu fish ribs

Presented with the dessert options, none that included chocolate, we decided to pass.

Hoof and Fin gets a thumbs up in my book, and a 3 out of 4 fish ribs for sure.

Wade's Take:

Before I even arrived at Hoof and Fin, I knew what I was craving that night... fish and carbs. It's a simple craving that can be fulfilled on nearly any restaurant menu, sure. But I've walked into many a restaurant with this craving and had sub-par results. Hoof and Fin met the challenge.

Gnocchi

My appetizer was the gnocchi, draped with browned butter and sage. The gnocchi was plentiful on the plate, filling and not too dense. The brown butter was fired just right and had a nutty smell and taste.


Skate

The main course I ordered was the fish plate featuring skate. This was a great dish. The skate was pan seared and dressed with a Moroccanesque seasoning. It was sliced thin and cooked to perfection. The dish was paired with a refreshing salad with a lemon vinaigrette, and a cast iron pot filled with truffle potato gratin. The gratin's combinations of cream and cheeses was excellent. It was a well-balanced meal, to boot.

Hoof and Fin met all my cravings that night, and sincerely proved to be worth another visit.

3 out of 4 cravings.

Tres Jalapenos

2010-12-04T17:03:00.001-05:00

Wade's Take:

I don't know how Tres Jalapenos ended up on our list of buzzy places to chow in Philly. But I'm glad it made the list. This South Philly eatery is just a few blocks from the Italian Market. Its atmosphere is comfortable and down to earth. The inside of Tres Jalapenos has funky details (such as bales of hay and twinkle lights) that make it fun. I can't tell you the last time I ate adjacent to a bale of hay (probably 1997), but I can tell you that it's always a great time when hay is involved.

A special note needs to be made here about the staff... they are genuinely friendly and welcoming. Not just "we want your return business" friendly, but more like your next door neighbor from your hometown kind of friendly. You can tell these folks love their food and are proud of the establishment, and rightly so.

The chicken soup was the perfect choice for a cold December night. Generous portions of chicken were swimming in a rich stock. Its simplicity made the dish a tasty and ideal starter.

Tuesdays, as it turns out, are known as Taco Tuesdays at Tres Jalapenos. This means unlimited tacos for a minimal price (I think it was $7.50). Tres Jalapenos has traditional Mexican tacos - double corn tortillas, meat, cilantro and onions. I did three rounds of these tasty tacos - one round with steak, one round with pork, and one round Al Pastor (marinated pork with pineapple. Go for the Al Pastor... these were scrumptious.

I left Tres Jalapenos feeling fat and happy.

Three Jalapenos out of Four.

Jess’ Take:

If you’re looking for authentic Mexican, Tres Jalapeños needs to be on your list. Like Wade mentioned, the festive atmosphere sets the tone for some down and dirty (and tasty) food.

We started with an order of guac and although it didn’t arrive with any frills, it was delicious and obviously very fresh, as were the chips, which were still warm and more than lightly dusted with salt.

Although temped by Taco Tuesday, I opted for the Green Enchiladas, on the recommendation of our server. On the menu they are served with chicken, but I substituted shrimp (for an extra $3). They arrived piled high with green sauce, cheese, onions, sour cream and next to a generous portion of rice and beans. All of the ingredients were extremely fresh and flavorful, however, the shrimp did not do the dish justice. Their taste and texture were out of line with the rest of the enchilada, and so I found myself with bites that consisted of just cheese and beans.

After dinner I was reminded of why I have a love/hate relationship with Mexican. The anticipation and taste is amazing, the heartburn and guilt of consuming so many calories, not so much. However, if I’m going to indulge again, I’m going to do it at Tres Jalapeños. This time I’ll stick with the chicken.

3 out of a possible 4 sombreros.

Adsum

2010-10-20T14:35:00.002-04:00

Wade's Take:

Formerly at the location of Coquette, Adsum has a corner lot with large windows facing Queen Village. It immediately makes the place feel entrenched in the neighborhood. Hopefully, that helps it stick around, for I found it definitely worth a revisit.

Adsum is one of the wave of new, trendified gastronomy lab kitchens. It's done right. Chef Matt Levin, formerly of Lacroix, has launched Adsum as a place for foods that fill people's cravings... the type of food other chef's crave when they close up shop. The menu definitely reflects that. Forget the high end salads, forget the organic chow... this place is all about fats, starches and fried goodness.

I started with the fried oysters with pickle juice remoulade. The oyster selections were phenomenal... large, plump and meaty. The fry batter was crisp and dry, lacking excess fat. Atop the remoulade, which had a clean tartar sauce appeal to it, this was a fantastic appetizer.

I'd heard about the perogies in advance and knew I'd be ordering them. It's a light, refreshing take on the classically heavy dish. The potatoes are whipped with milk and garlic super fine and stuffed into a soft dough shell more like that of an asian dumpling. Burnt onions that taste of thyme lay over the perogies, and woven between each perogie on the plate is the smoked buttermilk. A forkful of the perogies and onions, smeared with richness of the buttermilk made each bite excellent.

The chocolate donuts were fair, but missing some creme fraiche or some similar substance to balance with the cocoa.

Three out of 4 cravings

Jess' Take:
Adsum has such a foodie feel to it, I felt immediately at home when we sat down. One look at the menu and you know that you're there for the flavors and creative combinations, and not for a heart healthy meal. Gotta love it.

I started out with the grilled rock octopus, served with black pepper caramel. Although the octopus was extremely tender, the sauce tasted like it was straight out of a store-bought BBQ jar. It was overpowering, sweet and completely dominated the dish. It's unfortunate because the portion is a good size.

For my main entree I went for the fluke served with grilled snails and mushrooms. This dish MORE than made up for my disappointing appetizer. I'm a huge mushroom fan and this dish definitely served them up - big and juicy. The snails were tender and tasty and the fish was light and flavorful. Each element also incorporated a strong, but not offensive, garlic flavor. It was amazing.

Wade mentioned that we ended with chocolate donuts. They were more like donut holes which weren't quite cooked all the way through - coated with sugar and warm and gooey in the middle. I agree, the taste was a little flat. Dave mentioned they could use some salt and he's spot on there. But, nonetheless, they were a great sweet ending to the meal.

By the end of the meal, my appetizer was a distant memory (although one that I must take into consideration with my rankings). So, Adsum, you shall receive a 3 out of 4 from me.

Fond

2010-09-23T16:56:00.006-04:00

Jess' Take

AH-MAY-ZING. Yep. That pretty much sums up my thoughts on Fond. I had been told that this was an incredible spot, and even with all of the buildup, I was not disappointed.

We arrived for an early dinner, as we have a very young diner in our group, who tends to be a little unpredictable in restaurant situations. We have discovered that if she eats with us she is much more accommodating, so she enjoyed some pureed prunes with her formula while we ate. Definitely a foodie in training.

The menu is limited, but was supplemented with several specials. I decided to start with one of the specials, which was escargot served with truffle foam. I believe this is the only time I have had escargot where it is not drowned in butter. I assumed it was always served that way because the actual taste was offensive, but it turns out that’s not the case. It actually has quite a delicate, almost earthy taste. It was unexpectedly light and delightful.

I went for a menu item for my main course, trying the octopus stew, which was served with chorizo, preserved lemon and fennel. Simply put, this was the most amazing octopus I’ve ever had. I didn’t think you could make octopus that tender. I was wrong. It almost melted in your mouth. The chorizo was an excellent compliment, giving just a kick, but not too much spice. I was sad when the dish was done.

We ended the night with two desserts. The first, dark chocolate cake served with Earl Grey ice cream. It was very good, but not as dense as I was expecting (and hoping). The Earl Grey ice cream was spot on. The second, malted milk chocolate ice cream served with peanut brittle, chocolate crumble and peanut butter ganache. This was the clear winner in the dessert category. Salty and sweet – what more could you ask for?

Despite the fact that this restaurant is WAY down in South Philly, we will definitely be back.

Four out of a possible four tender octopus tentacles.

Wade's Take:

SPEC-TACU-LARE (french accent). I'm with the Mrs. on this one. Great meals come in small packages, especially in the case of Fond.

Yes, they had sweetbreads. Yes, I have an automatic bias whenever they are on a menu.There was no doubt that I'd order them as my appetizer course. The tender morsels were evenly pan-fried, crisp and scrumptious. The succulent white thalamus goo still had its smoky rich flavors. Topping off the dish were microgreens, melted onion slivers, a red pepper confit and a fried egg. Yes, I've had many sweetbreads in my time, but Fond's are by far the best.

Since I always gravitate towards food items with action descriptors, I ordered the harpoon-caught swordfish for my entree. It was served with cucumber tzatziki, heirloom tomatoes and a saffron nage. The swordfish was seared and retained a tender center. Balanced with the zesty tzatziki and the sweeter saffron nage, this dish had great symmetry.

I'm very... what's the word?.... fond of Fond, and hope to be back for more.

4 out of 4 Fond memories.

MiLah Vegetarian

2010-08-15T18:25:00.006-04:00

Wade's Take:
Philly Foodies went Veg Head for our August brunch.

The healthiest member of our blog tribe, Jess was the one who heard good buzz about MiLah. This made me wonder, where do you hear veg restaurant buzz? I imagined her in the produce aisle of Whole Foods - stealthfully eavesdropping through a pile of broccoli and squash on two hipster moms as they dish about MiLah. Or perhaps, more likely, she just read it online.

Anyway, this place is hot. Literally. The restaurant air temperature was in the muggy 80's. Perhaps we were meant to perform some sweat yoga after our meal.

Now to the food. It was most excellent indeed and worth the buzz.

I selected the tofu benedict and a side of veggie bacon. Eggs, salmon, now tofu benedicts have been my trend over these past few meals and I wanted to see how the herbivore variety stacked up.

The silken tofu was in large squares, placed symmetrically on toasted whole wheat English muffins. Their hollandaise sauce was poured over top. I wondered how you make hollandaise sauce without butter and egg yolks - but this one was fair. It was mildly tart with lemon juice and light. The roasted tomatoes that lay on the side weren't anything memorable, but the kale and home fried were very much delicious. The kale was sauteed, yet still crisp. When layered on the benedict it made an even better combination. The sweet potato and red bliss homefries were small chunked potatoes, lightly pan fried and delectable. The veggie bacon was good, but nowhere close to fooling me that it was related to the real deal.

3 out of 4 veg heads.

Jess’ Take:

This might be my new favorite brunch spot. If not, it certainly comes very close to Beau Monde. Wade was semi-right. I heard about this spot from a personal trainer friend of mine; definitely a non-meat eating type of guy. I was amazed that I’ve actually walked by this place dozens of times and never really noticed it. I thought they might be able to use better marketing, but when we walked in we grabbed the last of the open tables, so clearly I’m the one who’s not in the know.

Their brunch isn’t just vegetarian, it’s fully Vegan. I was very interested to see what they would present and the chef did not disappoint. The descriptions were mouthwatering. I went for veggie sausage and avocado on oven-fresh biscuits in mushrooms gravy with sweet potato fries and bronzed coconut king mushroom. Um, that sounds amazing. And it was. I typically don’t like a veggie substitute parading as meat, which the veggie sausage clearly was, but it did such a good job that I couldn’t be annoyed. I can’t decide what the highlight of this dish was – the biscuit or the sweet potato hash browns. It’s still up for debate.

I also went for a side of veggie bacon. I should have realized that the crispiness I love about bacon cannot be recreated in a veggie form. It lay limp on the plate, unsuccessfully parading as meat. Next time, and there will certainly be a next time, I’ll skip it – and maybe order an extra side of sweet potato fries in its place.

4 out of 4 crunchy vegans.

Spring Mill Cafe

2010-08-09T20:20:00.007-04:00

Wade's Take:

Suburban brunch done right.

The Spring Mill Cafe is a charming, homey restaurant that looks quaint and worn from afar. You sit in an eclectically decorated dinging room that once served as the restaurant's general store. Worn books partially fill the room's many bookshelves. Their tattered covers reflect the origin of the Spring Mill Cafe's chef. A "Tour of Morocco," "Modern French Baking," "Gladwyne: A Historical Perspective," ... these books tell of the varied past of Spring Mill Cafe's owner - Michele Haines. Michele's history with food shows in all the dishes.

I chose the truffled chicken liverpate as my starter. It was served with slices of crusty french baguette, bitter gherkins and grainy Dijon mustard. The pate was smooth, yet rich. It didn't have the lingering bite of bitter that some pates can have (e.g. the ones I make at home). Combined with the gherkins and mustard, I was loving life.

My entree was the smoked salmon sandwich. Thick slices of flaky salmon snuggled with cucumbers and a dill spread in between hearty slices of pumpernickel. It came mix a mixed green salad that had the perfect sprinkling of her lemon vinaigrette atop the leaves. This dish was light and refreshing.

Coffee by La Columbe and and air of relaxation made the Spring Mill Cafe even more desirable. I will be back, with more friends!

3.5 out of 4.

Slate

2010-05-27T16:14:00.005-04:00

Jess’ Take:
I’m really loving this brunch thing we have going on. It gets us out and together on the weekend and there’s no stress of the work day weighing us down. It also opens up a bunch of new options for restaurants, like the one we hit this month, Slate. Located on 21st street, the weather was warm and wonderful so we sat outside to take it in.

The brunch menu isn’t extensive, but includes some interesting choices, like short rib mac and cheese and braised pork n’ cheddar. I went for the local beef burger myself, which was piled high with sautéed “ale” onions. Unfortunately I’m still on a no-dairy diet, so I had to forgo the boursin, but even without it this was an amazing burger. Actually, it was surprisingly good. I typically save my red meat consumption for something that is truly special and I’m glad that I decided to go for it, because this burger certainly was. Accompanied with cilantro fries, the dish was indulgent and delicious. Paired with a spicy bloody mary, I floated through the rest of the day on a brunch high (as well as a very full stomach).

I hope to find myself back at Slate sometime soon. And hopefully by then I can go for the boursin! Slate, I give you 4 out of 4 lazy Sunday brunches.

Wade's Take:

I'm with the lady on this one, brunch is the new dinner. For us, anyway. Slate proved to be a great choice.

I selected the short rib mac and cheese and a side of the home fries. It was a carb party, that's for sure.

The mac and cheese was the four cheese variety - I could detect pecorino romano and a smoky cheese, maybe a Gruyere. The short rib meat was aplenty. It was a satisfying dish that would only have been better if topped with some crunch of panko.

The home fries I'm still thinking about. Although they may have been to sodium-rich for some, for me they were perfection. The potatoes were sliced thin and seasoned with garlic and pepper. They were dense, yet prepared thin enough to be eaten voraciously (which I did). The edges were crisp and browned from pan-frying. Excellent.

Slate's slated for 3.5 out of 4 carbs.

Valley Green Inn

2010-04-12T16:10:00.006-04:00

Wade's Take:

Switching from dinners to brunches for the Philly Food Blog couldn't have had a better transition. Our first group brunch was at the Valley Green Inn - the famed restaurant nestled next to the Wissahickon Creek in the midst of Fairmount Park.

All of my memories of the Valley Green Inn prior to this experience were tied to angst and jealousy. Before now, the closest I'd ever come to the restaurant was when passing it on the trail during a training run or walk. Knowing I couldn't stop, I would enviously stare at the patrons enjoying their coffee, mimosas and waffles as I power-walked past them while gnawing on my dehydrated granola bar. Contempt would fill my heart.

But now I was one of the elite... those lucky and lazy enough to be gorging on eggs, pancakes and java on a beautiful Sunday morning. It was bliss.

We sat at a small table tucked next to entryway on the Valley Green Inn's porch. Servers scurried about us, and the porch was filled to the brim with patrons, but our dining experience still felt private. Our junior blogger was even able to sleep through the entire meal.

I selected the Smoked Salmon Eggs Benedict for my brunch entree. It came with a choice of salads or soups and I picked the house salad. The salad was standard, and good. The Smoked Salmon Benedict had a healthy portion of lox atop a grilled croissant. A poached egg and hollandaise sauce were layered above the salmon with a bit of caviar for effect. The dish was good. The hollandaise sauce wasn't too potent or rich. Once I broke into the egg with my fork the runny egg yolk blended with the salmon, hollandaise sauce and croissant and absorbed into the croissant. It made for the perfect bite. The breakfast sausage, grilled tomato and potatoes that accompanied the dish were all flavorful, yet neutral enough, to go well with it.

A perfect morning in a perfect location.

3 out of 4 perfect mornings.

Jess' Take
Like Wade, we’ve jogged, hiked and biked by Valley Green, but never stopped to enjoy the fare. Sunday couldn’t have been a better day to take advantage of this cute restaurant in the center of Wissahickon. Although I felt a few pangs of guilt with each fit person that ran by – my first sip of wine soon took care of any misgiving I was having about just “sitting around.”
This was the first foodie meal that we were joined by our newest member, Sophie. Although a mini-foodie in training, she currently is experiencing a food allergy to dairy and soy, so as a result I’ve had to cut those items from my diet. But I must mention, although my indulgence of soft cheese was short lived, it was certainly an enjoyable one.

Eating out has been a challenge with the dietary restriction, but our server was great and helped guide me to selections that were dairy and soy free. I decided on the crab cake Benedict sans the béarnaise sauce (slightly joyless, I know). Although the dish as a whole was a little dry, each element individually was enjoyable. The crab cake wasn’t the best I’ve had, but definitely worth getting again. The poached egg was slightly over cooked, but that’s actually the way I prefer it. The dish was accompanied by a link of venison sausage that was delicious – moist and very flavorful. Overall it was an enjoyable brunch, which was made that much more enjoyable with the atmosphere, weather and company.

You’ll definitely find me back at Valley Green in the future. Hopefully by then I can be in full diary heaven and order the sweet potato pancakes, which I hear are amazing.

Valley Green, I give you a 2.5 out of 4 possible dairy-free dishes.

Zavino

2010-03-28T20:18:00.005-04:00

Wade's Take:

Thirteenth and Sansom is the home to Zavino, a wine and pizza joint we visited this month. There was much reason to celebrate... my co-bloggers had recently welcomed beautiful baby Sophia to their family. And we didn't miss a single month of dining!

Zavino has a small space but it makes up for it with high open ceilings and lots of windows and walls that open to its streetside tables. We had the best seat in the house - a wooden both nestled next to the entrance, the meat and cheese station, and across from the bar. It was a private booth that offered great views of the whole restaurant from my seat.

The cured meat tray offered samples of the best cured meats, including my favorite - a salami called Baby Jesus. The cheeses we selected were all enjoyable. I was impressed with our waiter's ability to describe all 9 cheeses in great detail and to recommend an optimal pairing. Like all cheese trays, there was a shortage of bread offered. The bread was a nan-like flatbread that was neutral in flavor. It was ideal for highlighting the cheeses.

My pizza selection was the Fratello. It entailed bechamel sauce, broccoli, roasted garlic and mozzarella. Compared to Jess' pie, mine fell flat. There was a punch or zing missing from the pizza. It needed a touch of sweet onion or something similar to liven it up. It was still very good - but didn't live up to the standard set by Jess' pizza.

The dough was clearly house-made and had large crisp bubbles of charred dough... my favorite.

With a good glass of wine, a nice atmosphere, knowledgeable wait staff and great company, Zavino had many factors for a great outing. There may be better pizzas at Pizzeria Stella or Osteria, but Zavino will do just fine for me when I'm in the neighborhood.

3 out of 4 Baby Jesus.

Dave's Take
I loved Zavino. This little, unintimidatingly hip spot is not fine dining, but a fantastic spot to spend an evening with friends. The interior was bistro-style with plenty of natural light and indoor/outdoor seating.

You had me at hello I said to the cured meat selection as it arrived fleshly sliced at the nearby cheese and charcueterie booth. Our extremely friendly and knowledgeable waiter suggested a nice selection of cured meats and cheese. The prosciutto was very good. Certainly not the best but a solid performer. The smoky-salty speck was fantastic and the other highlight, the baby jesus was a salty,fatty, tasty fantastic take on salami.

The next course were hand-made fire baked pizzas. The small pizza format allowed each of us to try a different interpretation. I got the Kennett, a pizza round packed with oyster, crimini & shitake mushrooms in a béchamel sauce with homemade mozzarella. The bits are charred dough from the fire-baked pizza added a smokiness that complements the earthiness of the mushrooms and the fresh rosemary was excellent. Like Wade's Fratello, it was a bit flat as it needed some sort of zip to brighten the flavors. Jess on the other hand ordered spectacularly. Her sausage pizza was smoky, bright with fresh tomato flavor and excellently spiked with garlic.

We had to cut dinner short since we had to get back to the kiddo so we did not have dessert but we had enough to know Zavino is a great spot if you down in Midtown Village. We also did not try any of the small plates but certainly will during the next trip since what we saw on the other tables looked fantastic.

3 out of 4 slices for Zavino- a reasonably priced, comfortably hip, extremely friendly local eatery.

Amis

2010-02-10T12:02:00.012-05:00

Jess' Take
Marc Vetri is one of my favorite Philly Chefs, and Osteria is one of my favorite Philly restaurants, so I was super excited to try his new restaurant Amis, billed as the more affordable of his three spots (which also includes the fantastic Vetri). Unfortunately Amis disappointed.

The menu is compiled of tapa style plates in a variety of categories such as bruschetta, salumi and formaggi, several types of antipastis, pasta, carne, pesce, contorni and dolci. We took our servers suggestions and ordered 4 of the antipastis, 2 pastas and 1 carne.

Of the 4 starters that we ordered, mortadella mousse, trio of pecorino, mixed salumi plate, and artichokes alla guidaida, the mortadella mousse was the most interesting and tasty. What Dave would describe as a “meat hummus” the consistence was a little more yogurt like than hummus, with a pink hue. It had a subtle sausage flavor without being overpowering. It was very tasty smeared on the toasted bread it was served with (although I have to say, they were a little skimpy on the bread, with just 2 pieces for a pretty sizable bowl of mousse). Also interesting were the artichokes, which were battered and fried twice at two different temperatures. I really liked the concept, but the final product was a little bland. The best flavor to come from it was of funnel cake, which I assume has everything to do with the batter. The only salumi that I could enjoy (but not for long!) was the pork live terrine which I did not care for at all. At best it tasted like something from a can.

On to our pastas. Again, we took the recommendation of our server and ordered what she said were two of the most popular pasta dishes: Bucatini alla “matriciana” with pork jowl, chili flake and pecorino and gnocchi alla romana with oxtail ragu. The Bucatini was the winner of the two in my opinion. At first I didn’t like the flavor, but after my second bit I got into it. It had a subtle spice that hit the back of the tongue and the pasta was cooked perfectly.
The gnocci on the other hand was not so pleasing. First of all, it resembled no gnocci that I’ve ever had. Instead of delicate little balls, it was two, larger balls of what looked like cream of wheat covered with sauce and cheese. It oxtail was undetectable among the mush on the plate.

For our carne we went for the guinea hen leg saltimbocca with prosciutto and sage. I’ve never had guinea hen before, so was very interested to try this dish. Now I have to preface this with the comment that I’m not a big saltimbocca fan, so that may have played into my opinion of the dish. Although I didn’t love the taste, the consistency was what really got me. The battered outside was soggy and the inside was chewy. I only had a few bites and gave the rest to Dave.

In my opinion, dessert saved this meal. Although we were tempted to throw in the towel and not have dessert, I convinced my fellow foodies that this is my last meal to eat guilt free and we must! So we decided on the olive oil torta with whipped cream and quince butter and Belgian style waffles with nutella, vanilla semifreddo and toasted hazelnuts. Both were delicious, but I will give an extra shout out to the waffles. Yes, I’m a nutella freak, and it was everything I hoped it would be.

Amis, I’m not sure that I’ll decide to step inside your doors again on my own. However, I’m also willing to give you another chance given the opportunity. The menu has a lot to offer and I am certainly willing to try other offerings – I’ll just steer clear of the gnocci and guinea hen.

Because I’m partial to Vetri and the desserts were great, Amis you’re getting a 2 out of 4 from me.

Dave's Take:
Amis was A-miss. Mark Vetri has failed where the other restaurateurs have succeeded, the recession-friendly medium-tier tasty restaurant. Garces did it with Village Whiskey, Starr did it with Pizzeria Stella and they did it well. Reasonably priced eateries with great food and just a slightly less polished feel than their brethren.

What Vetri did do right was the look and feel. A nice bistro style almost reminiscent of a smaller Osteria. A natural feel with warm wood panels and comfortable surroundings was exactly what we were looking for on the snowy day we visited. The menu sounded great, the wine I got by the glass was superb and reasonably priced. Things were going great until the food came. We started off with some small plates of Mortadella mousse, pecorino cheese plate and Artichokes alla guidaida and a mixed Salumi plate. Nothing was bad but nothing was that good either. The artichokes were tasty but Jess called it exactly when she said it tastes like funnel cake.
I'm thinking maybe the chef was inspired during a recent trip to the Iowa state fair. The Salumi plate holds a special place in my heart and Osteria is one of my favorites. This one on the other hand, was disappointing. It was ridiculously small. I know house cured salumi is expensive to make but for $16 I was expecting at least enough for my stomach to know I ate something. The pork liver included in the trio tasted like it should have come out of a tube.

Our next round came. Bucatini alla “matriciana” with pork jowl, chili flake and pecorino, Gnocchi alla romana with oxtail ragu and Guinea hen leg saltimbocca with prosciutto and sage. The Bucatini pasta was good but nothing special. My local pizza shop Angelino's in Fairmount makes a similar tasting dish with everyday ingredients and much cheaper. I love pork jowl and have had great preparations at Osteria but this was a waste of the tasty cut. Speaking of pizza shops, the veal parm, I mean Guinea hen saltimbocca was unimpressively mediocre. I really thought it should have come on a bun wrapped in aluminum foil. The gnocchi I thought was going to save the day. After all, Vetri is famous for his gnocchi. That too disappointed. The goopy cream of wheat or Metamucil or whatever it was totally ruined the tasty oxtail ragu that accompanied it.

Dessert was pretty good. I'm glad we decided to give it a try since it left we less disappointed. The Belgian style waffles with nutella, vanilla semifreddo and toasted hazelnuts was extremely tasty. The Belgian waffle was light, sweet and hot. The melting, very delicious semifreddo and nutella really added a richness and moisture and resulted in a great dessert. The olive oil totra was good too but less memorable. The pastry chef was obviously the only one in the kitchen that really took a new look and food cost rather than just trying to dumb down Vetri signatures with disappointing results.

OK, so it wasn't vile and wasn't too overpriced and the interior was nice but there are too many great places out there to make those my criteria for revisiting a place.

1 disappointed Dave's out of 4. If I didn't know this was a Vetri endeavor, I might give it a 2 out of 4.

Wade's Take

Whats left to say? My co-bloggers were on the mark with their comments above.

I was having a good time pre-meal, eating marinated olives and sipping a fancy Belgian beer in Amis very comfortable, warm atmosphere. The space is open, with exposed concrete beams and worn metal framed windows. Yet despite its openness, it is still a small, intimate space. There are great views of the kitchen and the bar - you could see every table in the house from my seat (which proved true when I spotted a fellow Narberthian). We saw Vetri several times (I admit I was very excited each time). I say all of these things because I too really wanted to like the place... but the meal didn't synch.

The defining moment came when the salumi plate hit the table. Where was the rest of it? A measly sampling indeed. In fact, the pork liver terrine was a flavor clone of Oscar Mayer's braunschweiger. A tube of liverwurst you can buy at your local grocer for $2.29.

There were other highs and lows, captured perfectly in the words of the reviews above. At the end of the day, though, I have to give Amis a 1 out of 4.

Fish

2010-01-18T17:44:00.008-05:00

Jess' Take:
I love this restaurant. It’s intimate, but not cramped, our server was knowledgeable and obviously had a passion for food, and the food itself was simple and delicious. Not surprisingly, the menu included little else but seafood options. If you’re looking for chicken or steak they ask that you call 24-hours ahead to put in your request. The menu isn’t extensive, but it does include a wide variety of tastes and options for the seafood lover.

While the boys went for some tasty oysters – which I’m looking forward to enjoying again post-pregnancy – I ordered the South Shore wild little neck clams served with herbs in a shallot, white wine reduction. This was a delicious way to start the meal, the best part of which was to sop up the broth with the homemade bread (which our server gladly brought seconds and then thirds of for the table). The clams were delicate and flavorful. Really enjoyable all around.

For the second course I went for the red snapper, which was served with merguez sausage, fingerling, escarole and giant beans (I have no idea what the actual name of this type of bean is). The sausage intrigued me, which is the reason that I ended up ordering the dish, but in the end the flavor didn’t mesh with the dish as much as I would have liked. The sausage was too overpowering for the light fish. On the other hand, the beans and broth were an amazing compliment. I quickly got over my disappointment with the sausage and happily enjoyed the other accompaniments.

We went for two desserts – an apple cake with cinnamon ice cream and (of course) a flourless chocolate cake with port soaked cherries. The chocolate cake was almost too decadent (if that were actually possible). It encased our spoons and was impossible to get off without having to scrape your teeth across the spoon. The port soaked cherries were rich as well, which both complimented the chocolate and almost make it too much (again, if that were possible). Despite any negative comments, both plates were sopped clean. I believe actions speak louder than words here.
I hope to find myself back at Fish again sometime soon. The atmosphere was great, the food was fantastic, and, as always, the company endlessly enjoyable. 4 out of a possible 4 fishes.

Dave's Take:
Maybe it was my mood that afternoon; maybe it was the association with Little Fish - I had a bad experience. Who knows but I was very skeptical about Fish and was coming in ready to be very critical. Walking up to the place I noticed a chalkboard announcing a happy hour. As a rule of thumb, I like happy hours. I especially like them at upscale and cozy eateries. Although I did not partake in said happy hour, the fact that drink specials accompanied a $1 selection of oysters and a few other tasty tidbits were in a hip and cozy bar atmosphere got me feeling a little better about the place.

The dining room, although small, was comfortable and relaxing. The menu is solely concentrated on seafood and lacks any specials due to the fact that the menu changes constantly based on ingredient availability and the chef's inspiration. I started off with oysters. It's been a while since I have had a good selection and Fish was kind enough to procure some tasty varieties. In a sensitive effort to not fuel the East Cost v West Coast gang rivalry, they have a great selection from both coasts. Now, although I am firmly an East Coaster, I have to side with Westside crew on oysters. The Pacific Northwest's compact and creamy oysters paired with a dry vodka martini is about as good as it gets. The selection I tasted of Hama Hama, Fanny Bay and Hog Island were all excellent but I would say the Fanny Bay was the best. I tasted Jess's little necks and was impressed with them as well. The sweet, ocean flavor of the clams were enhanced by a subtle yet outstanding herb broth and resulted in an excellent starter. Wade's short rib ravioli's in a lobster sauce were good but nothing compared to my oysters or Jess's little necks.

As we went into the second course, my feelings were changing about the place. I was really enjoying myself and when my entree arrived it got even better. I ordered Suzuki which is a Japanese Seabass and one of my favorite fish. Raw or cooked, Suzuki is amazing and Fish's preparation was outstanding- served over orzo with clam, bacon, lemon and parsley, the combination was superb. The clams added the sweet fresh taste of the sea to the delicate fish and there was just enough bacon to add hints of earthy smokiness that complimented but did not overpower. The parsley and preserved lemon flavors hit the last few of my taste buds that the others hadn't. In short, it was really, really, really good. I only had a small taste of both Jess's & Wade's dinners as I was not too interested in sharing my winner dish. Both were good but did not compare. Jess's snapper had a spicier edge that was very nice. Wade's on the other had I was not a fan of. The Vitello Tonnato was raw tuna rolled in veal then cooked. The result was an interesting combination of meat and sushi. I give the chef an A for effort and creativity, but only a C for taste. It was good but a bit bland and the textures and tastes did not blend to create the synergy I'm sure they were hoping for. I would have been happier with veal and raw tuna on their own.

I am going to give Fish a 3.5 out of 4 bivalves. It was an extremely tasty and enjoyable experience but I could not give it a 4 out of 4 for two reasons. The first was no amuse buche. A tasty amuse would have been a great way to start the meal and the prices support a differentiating offering like that. The second reason is that Fish got a little ahead of itself on the wilder dishes that Wade ordered. The short rib raviolis did not fit the theme and showed. The Vitello Tonnato was certainly creative, but again, was flat compared to the other dishes where the chef concentrated on his core competencies.

I will certainly go back to Fish and am strategically planning the next time I can get to 17th & Lombard between 5-7 on a Mon-Thurs for that happy hour.

Midatlantic

2009-12-21T20:16:00.004-05:00

Wade's Take:

I'm PA Dutch... I'll admit it. Sure, I cover my Dutch phraseology as best as I can, trying not to end sentences with "with," avoiding phrases like "doncha know" and pronouncing it "shower" instead of "shahr." But that PA Dutchness is always there. Just like my taste for PA Dutch food goodness.

Whoopie pies, apple butter, fastnachts, shoofly pie, chow chow and pretty much anything cooked with lard... those are some classic PA Dutch foods. It's a warming, comfort cuisine, and it is scrumptious.

So, when December found us at Midatlantic, Daniel Stern's new PA Dutch / Philadelphia cuisine fusion restaurant, I was intrigued. How could anyone mess with chicken pot pie, or scrapple? Weren't it's fat-laden foods already good enough?

Fast forward to the end of the meal. I was pretty much happy. PA Dutch food plays well with others. It turns out that fat and lard are like the Switzerland of food... a happy medium where all cuisines can live in harmony.

The interior of Midatlantic is cool with its authentic multi-shaded hard wood on the walls, roaring fires all around, open kitchen, and field tool tchotckes all over the walls. It's a great place for a happy hour, and you could tell that night. Most of the guests were Penn docs in happy hour groups.

The appetizer arena was strong. We had the pretzel chips with horseradish cheddar dip. It hit the mark. The dip had a strong enough kick from the horseradish that was counterbalanced with the sour cream and cheddar. The chips passed the test... salty with heavy crunch.

The other two appetizers were the welsh rarebit fondue and the pig wings. My cohorts will take on those descriptions.

My entree was the grilled trout with chips. Not as good, I must admit. The trout was brined and salted - and pulled too tart. The fried chips were good - but were too much fried saltiness after the appetizer course. A green was needed to mellow this entree out.

Dessert and coffee made me happy. The cake we ordered was layers of cake, icing and flavored with stout. It was soggy and I didn't enjoy it at first. Paired with coffee though, it was better.

This is an after-work snack and drink kind of place, not a place I'd consider returning for a full meal. I will be back, albeit for happy hour snacks only.

Brunch at Midatlantic could be phenomenal, if they choose to offer it. Easy parking, PA Dutch breakfast foods, good coffee... it could be a winning combo.

3 out of 4 lards.

Percy Street Barbecue

2009-11-25T19:45:00.000-05:00

Wade's Take:

October and November had us at very different restaurants; 1862 last month and Percy Street Barbecue this month. Last month we donned our finest threads and had multiple servers handling our meal experience at 1862. This month we had a roll of paper towels at our tableside and food came out fast, served on metal trays and wrapped like packages in wax paper.

Percy Street Barbecue opened up a few weeks ago. There's a great story to the place that's had an effective round of PR. The staff traveled down to Texas and went to something like 13 barbecue places in one day to research what makes the best barbecue and how to replicate it. Their gastronomical adventure paid-off. Philly finally has some good barbecue.

This place is simple. The menu's easy, the food comes out fast and the flavors don't go beyond basically barbecue essentials. There are no infusions, reductions, fancy menus designed by word smiths. It's refreshing.

We ordered three meats: the lean brisket, pork belly and spare ribs. I'll take on my favorite - the brisket. It was a really trim cut of meat... the fat was lacking, but yet the brisket was still juicy. It crumbled easily under a fork (although I hardly noticed this because I was devouring it so quickly). The edges had a nice burnt crisp.

Percy Street is smart about their servings of meats -they give you kickin' pickles, onions and white bread to make sandwiches if you desire. It's nice to have options.

What you don't have options in is the sauce. They only offer you a small pot of their sauce. It has a tomato paste consistency, and rings sweet in the mouth... and I wasn't loving it. In order to appeal to those of us that like heat on our BBQ, or some sweet tang... I hope they add more choices in sauces to the menu.

The sides were all great in my book. The cole slaw wasn't too creamy - and had a nice punch to it. The green beans were soft and salty like I like them at a barbecue joint. The mace and cheese... superb (I'll let Jess take on that one) and for the collard greens I'll differ to Dave's CG guru-ness to describe them.

We had two desserts - the banana pudding and apple crisp. The crisp was excellent. It had large slices of apple, gooey yet still somewhat firm. The oatmeal and sugar top had the perfect crunch, and the ice cream finished the dish just right.

My clothes smelled like barbecue smoke hours after I left. It was a nice reminder of this place worth repeating.

3 out of 4 Texans.

Jess' Take

Dave called it when he said that this place would be a great place to come and watch a game. They have rootbeer on tap (for those of us who are currently alcohol free) and beer that's served in old brown apple juice jugs. We were one of the first patrons to arrive, but by the time dessert arrived they place was packed and loud with messy finger folks enjoying the boisterous atmosphere and tasty BBQ.

Which brings me to the most essential item on our table - the full roll of paper towels, of which we went through quite a few.

I'll just comment on the highlights, since Wade did a good job with the overall meal. The mac and cheese is not to be missed. It's creamy, but not too much, with a nice crisp topping of breadcrumbs. If you're not a meat eater it would make a great meal on it's own (but then why bother hitting a BBQ joint at all).

Also a highlight for me was the brisket. We ordered it lean and it was thinly sliced and was delicious paired with a forkfull of coleslaw.

I also enjoyed the banana pudding, but mostly because I haven't had banana pudding since I was about 10. It was a nice, sweet end to the meal, but certainly not the highlight.

I think we will definitely find ourselves back at Percy St. to enjoy some cheap, tasty food, espeically in the cold winter months ahead.

3 messy fingers out of a possible 4.

1862

2009-10-23T10:23:00.000-04:00

This month we headed to 1862, Martin Hamann's new restaurant at the Union League.

Jess’ Take:
This was a super schmance dinner for the Foodies, and I loved every bite! We made our reservations on the first day the reservation lined opened up were told a few days prior that the restaurant was booked for a solid month, so I was surprised to see so many open tables when we walked in, but maybe that was because the Phillies were playing game #4 of the NLCS. Regardless, this just meant more servers to hover over our table. I’m not complaining.

Shortly after sitting down we were greeted with a very tasty amuse bouche of lobster salad with truffled celery. It was amazing, rich and flavorful. Also most appropriate served as a bite and no more. A full appetizer would probably have taken a few days off my life.

To start I ordered the butternut squash soup, which was served with a fried cheese ball and bacon. It was rich and delicious, really perfect for the cool fall day that we were having.

For the main entry I had the grilled grouper, which was served with cockles, artichoke hearts and fried potato sticks. The fish was perfectly cooked and delicate and it was a pretty sizable portion. The potato sticks were interesting, but a little bland. The cockles added a nice, salty flavor to the dish.

The desserts were definitely the highlight of the meal. Although we could have ordered every one on the menu they were all so intriguing, we settled for just three. Of the three, my favorite was the one served with bacon (of course). It was a small brioche French toast topped with maple ice cream and sprinkled with candied bacon. The whole thing was served on top of a sweet fruit compote. This dessert was decadence to the max and I loved every bite of it.

1862 isn’t a restaurant we’ll hit often because of the price tag, but I’ll definitely be back, and the whole time I’ll be anticipating dessert.

1862, I give you 4 out of 4 little pieces of candied bacon.

Dave's Take
My first course was a braised rabbit stuffed rigatoni. Yes, rabbits are cute and some people keep them as pets but if you have not tried it, please get over it and give it a go. Rabbit is excellent and this was no exception. Succulent rabbit stuffed in two rigatonis with a hint of peppercorn, mustard and vinegar. It was excellent and I will order again, but I have to admit, not as amazing as those empanadas from the ribbon cutting.

Next up I ordered the Sautéed Pennsylvania pheasant with chestnut and foie gras “paquet,” Brussels sprout leaves and natural sage jus. I love pheasant. It’s what chicken is supposed to taste like and this was cooked to perfection- tender, juicy and full of flavor. The herbal sage jus complemented the richer pheasant flavor without overpowering. The foie gras “paquet” was a unique execution of foie gras and reminded me a little bit of a souffle. The taste was rich and flavorful but as often happens with me and foie gras, became too rich for me and I had to surrender.

I should point out at this point that our service was excellent- Friendly, amazingly attentive and for only the second week in business, fairly familiar with the menu. Dishes were delivered at precisely the same time and cleared in a timely manner. We were more than content after the mains but asked to take a look at the dessert menu since we had tasted some amazing treats at the ribbon cutting and were looking forward to what was to come. We agreed on 3- The chocolate soufflé, a ginger cake with milk stout ice cream and an amazing brioche French Toast over fall fruit compote with, and here is the best part, maple bacon ice cream. This was THE BEST ice cream I have ever had and if you have ever smiled when watching the syrup on your plate slowly make it way over to the side of bacon, you know how good that combo can be. Sweet and salty. The ginger cake was excellent and the idea of beer ice cream would have been mind-blowing if it was not sitting on the same table as bacon ice cream. Oh, and the chocolate soufflé was the best I have ever had since we had it at Fountain.

Wade's Take:

Yeah, we were excited to be "in" at this place. Our chance to eat somewhere before most professional reviewers! The pressure was on to beat the other bloggers to the scoop... then I waited to blog about 1862 for nearly a month. D'oh.

I was sold on 1862 by the bread plate. Particularly, a rosemary flat bread that had me entranced. If I was an old lady with a purse, I would have scooped up the remaining breadbits into my purse for later.

Instinct dictated that I order the sweetbreads as my appetizer. Good move. The sweetbreads were crisped on the exterior, and packed the sweetened tang of a classic internal organ. It was plate roommates with kale and a white bean puree that had a punch of saltiness that went well with the sweetbreads.

I went against my cardinal rule of not ordering salmon out at a restaurant (it's almost always better at home) with my entree. The salmon was a generous portion, sprinkled with peppers and chili powder and grilled just right. It sat on a cheese/cauliflower puree that was fairly good - although it left me pining for a missing ingredient I couldn't quite place. The roasted garlic, shell and all, was a great additional side to this dish.

Then there was dessert. How I loved thee. The chocolate souffle was world-changing. Overflowing and gooing from the large rameking, the fluffy chocolate cake blanketed with a semi-sweet chocolate layer, which was emblazoned with a Union League logo. If this were my restaurant, I'd mark a dessert like this with my brand, too. I'd be very proud. The souffle was spongey, moist, warm and had a whipped cream and chocolate shaving accompaniment. Perfection.

For the appetizer, bread plate and dessert, I give 1863 high marks. The salmon? Not so much.

3 out of 4 scoops.

Village Whiskey, is post # 60!

2009-09-23T20:36:00.000-04:00

Recap:
The Philly Food Blog began five years ago as a simple enough concept... friends get together to eat somewhere new each month and talk about it. The trio started off at Philadelphia's Rittenhouse staple byo, Friday Saturday Sunday for its inaugural meal.

This month marks 60 posts to this blog. There have been a wide range of restaurants over the years, from Creole to Korean, from intimate byo's to celebrity chef mega-restaurants, and from cheap eats to break the budget bistros. Nearly 30 percent of the restaurants we've visited have closed up shop over these past five years.

Our tastes have changed over five years. Our appreciation of a good meal has been amplified, but we've also become more selective in handing out high blog scores. We've branched out from our early days when Jess regularly ordered scallops, Dave gravitated towards wild game and Wade was obsessed with duck. But some things have stayed the same... fine cheeses, chocolate and cured meats are still always our favorites.

The biggest lesson learned after five years? Making plans every month can be hard... schedules don't mesh, you're tired after work, budgets are tight at times. Committing to working past the noise of life for something you love, like good friends and fine food, is always worth the investment.

Village Whiskey

Wade's Take:

Jose Garces continues to make his Godzilla-like, delicious mark across the city with the opening of Village Whiskey. It's a high-end bar food joint with an extensive whiskey list. Village Whiskey gets automatic bonus points for sharing the kitchen with its neighbor (and Garces' family member) Tinto.

We had three starters. My favorite from the pickles menu was the herb cherry tomatoes. Out came finely toasted sourdough bread, whipped ricotta cheese (creme fraiche-like) and a black olive tapenade to accompany the pickled cherry tomatoes. The trio piled atop the bread was perfection. The tapenade is one of the best I've had with its harmonious sweet, tart and sour deep olive flavors. Highly recommended.

I went big for my entree and ordered the lobster roll. I should know by now that higher price does not equate to better taste. My celebratory mood overwhelmed common sense, however, and the giant $28 lobster roll soon sat before me. If Philly has taught me anything, it's that a good sandwich is all about the bread. This one failed. Yes, there was lobster and aioli and bacon. That trifecta is normally impossible to beat. The roll brought it down. Spongy and limp, it seemed more like something I'd pick up in the day old bread section at Genuardi's.

My favorite of our desserts was the classic hot fudge sundae. Served in a old-fashioned glass ice cream dish, it had throwback flavors with modern punch. A peanut butter brownie was broken up within vanilla ice cream, chocolate ganache and bananas. This formula was done just right.

Three out of four malt scotches.

Jess’ Take:
I officially LOVE Village Whiskey. Maybe it’s because I was on a “60th Blog Dinner” high, but whatever it was, the chef could do no wrong. My favorite of the starters was the tater tots. As a tots lover from the start, these were above and beyond any others I have had. The insides were whipped as opposed to the more traditional small dice and the Vidalia onion crème fresh dipping sauce was amazing. There was not a drop of this left when the waiter came to clear our plates.

Although I was really considering ordering the Whiskey King (or better known as the “10oz burger of death”), I decided to give my heart a chance and ordered the veggie burger. Good choice. It was delicious. Made of black beans and lentils and topped with guacamole and pickled red cabbage, it was the perfect consistency and very flavorful. It was served between the most perfect sesame bun.

We did both the strawberry shortcake and peanut butter brownie sundae for dessert and I can’t decide which was better. The shortcake had almost a corn bread consistency (though not taste) and was accompanied by a whiskey infused whipped cream. The sundae was very sweet, but complimented by the salty peanut butter bits.

I’ll definitely be back at Village Whiskey – and Whiskey King, I’m coming for you.

4 out of a possible 4 perfect tots.

Dave's Take:
I liked the idea of Village Whiskey from the beginning. The Doors-esque window, the casual atmosphere and the chance of some good Garces food. The atmosphere reminds me of some of the best Soho/West Village bars. Smaller, cozy and fun but Village Whiskey has better food. From my birthday dinner 2 weeks ago at Tinto, we got the skinny that the downstairs kitchen actually services both places. Some good business planning from Garces- more seats, more alcohol revenue and a simple menu so you can service a new restaurant while keeping overhead low by sharing a kitchen.

To start I must clarify, Village Whiskey is not the fine dining experience. It's simple, upscale bar food executed flawlessly. First up was the Tater Tots. At $3, this dish was the cheapest on the menu and one of the cheapest on any menu I have seen. They were great. Potato puree that was golden and crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside. Certainly a step above the lunch-lady version. The star was the Vidalia onion crème fresh on the side. It was so good we kept it for dipping bread after the tots were gone. Other apps were pickles. These stole the show. Yellow and Red roasted beats in one jar and tomatoes in another. A sweet, tart and herb-intense pickle still let the natural flavors of the beets and tomatoes (respectively) shine through. These were no store bought dills.

On to the main course. I got the standard burger. It was fantastic. Now, I have always believed that Standard Tap and Rouge has the best burgers in town (I have not had the B&S burger yet but plan too soon). Those too have floated on the podium while the rest of the burgers in town fight for mediocrity. Now, a new player has made it a 3 way fight for superiority. Between Tap & Rouge, Rouge has been leading lately. I need to do some more scientific research but at first taste, Village Whiskey will give Rouge a run for it's money. Jess got the veggie burger. It was big, flavorful and full of cumin. It was good but after tasting my burger, it seemed wimpy. I'll need to try again on its own.

Wade unfortunately order the only expensive thing on the menu. He got the lobster roll. I'm not a fan of lobster rolls so I didn't taste it but at 3 times the price of my burger, it did not look impressive and Wade did not seem that happy with it.

Oh yeah, and the bar menu isn't bad either. Ton's of Bourbon, Rye and Scotch and plenty of signature drinks based on old-time cocktails. I was on good behavior this Tues night so I went with a imperial stout from a fairly extensive beer list of good quality. Our server was fun and attentive enough with the same casual feel that fit the place. He even had the chef de cuisine come up and visit us to celebrate our 60th dinner. My biggest complaint- It's not open for brunch. Jess & I tried last week only to find out it was closed. The format is perfect for brunch and would steal some of the Rittenhouse crowd if open. As proof, we went to Rouge for a burger as the back-up.

If I only rate my food, and I factor in the value equation, it's 4 out of 4 pickled livers. If I factor in Wade's disappointment, it s 3 out of 4. Either way you need to get to Village Whiskey. You should go for one of the following scenarios- 1)- To tie one on during an after work happy hour while eating the best bar munchies around. 2) For a dinner out where you just want to hang out and relax. 3) To join the protest to have them open for brunch

ChefAMe

2009-08-30T19:01:00.000-04:00

This month we did something different and hit up an event called ChefAMe. The masterminds of the event wanted to create a sort of open mic night for chefs, so each month they invite a local, up and coming chef to create a menu and a restaurant donates the space. Tickets are $35 and it’s BYO. This month the dinner was held at AVA restaurant in Queen Village and there were two chefs, Diana M. Martignoni, a woman who loves to cook but has no professional experience and Ali Waks a professional chef.

Since all of us ate the same thing, instead of each rating all six courses, we decided to divide them up and each rate two courses. We of course collaborated first, and our combined experience is below.

Jess’ Take:
The dinner started with an amuse of One Fig Two Ways. The first preparation was with a brulee Fig on top of a canapé of chicken liver. I’m not the biggest fan of chicken liver, but this was amazing. The usual cat food taste was not there and it was just salty enough to nicely compliment the sweet fig. The second preparation was a crostini smeared with bergamot ricotta and topped with a fig salsa. This was also amazing. The ricotta was really mild and the salsa was not too sweet. The whole thing just melted in your mouth. The dish also came with chive blossoms, which were not only pretty, but very flavorful for being so small. This was a great way to start the meal.

Our second dish was an essence of Jersey corn soup. I love the concept of this soup, but the flavor was weak. Essence was definitely an appropriate description. It was topped with some droplets of truffle oil, but not enough to taste, just enough to smell and wish that you could taste it. I added a little pepper (secretly so the chefs didn’t see me) and that helped. The soup also came with heirloom tomato brioche which was very good and as this was August, I appreciated the pairing of my two favorite summer foods, corn and tomatoes.

Wade's Take:
At this point, it was time for the salad course. We had already heard buzz about the dressing that was to top the salad that night, so I was hopeful for something buzz-worthy. It did prove true. The raspberry orange muscat vinaigrette that topped the salad was sweet, tart, potent and perfect for the potpourri of greens and friends underneath (organic spring greens, carmelized spiced pecans (these were excellent), dried cranberries and gorgonzola. The gorgonzola piles could have been too much for those who love not the cheese... but for me it was a perfect addition to a well textured salad.

Out came one of the two entrees - enchiladas. The chef had prepared enchiladas stuffed with torn chicken, soft spanish onions and cheddar and monterey jack cheeses. The sauce that blanketed the dish was spectacular... a dense, potent mole/chili sauce that had clearly been simmering down for hours to make its flavor silky and smooth. Simple and light pico de gallo, more of the chive blossoms from the first course, and a delectable dallop of sour cream finished the dish. Simple flavors that balanced well together made this dish my favorite of the night.

Dave's Take:
Next up was the Smoked Coffee and Espresso Rubbed Hanger Steak with Roasted Potatoes and a Rainbow Chard with Garlic and Lemon Confit. This was a lofty goal by semi chefs and after so many complex courses. They almost hit it. The staff only gave out 1 steak knife per table. Not sure if this was a show of confidence that the steak was so tender we didn't need it, or if they were short. My guess is that is was because they were short, but to my delight, I got through with my butter knife. That is a real compliment since this is a hanger steak not a filet. The rub was great as well. I did not taste any of the smoked flavor they advertized but the aroma and flavor of the coffee/espresso paired wonderfully with the juicy and flavorful steak. Unfortunately, the rest of the dish did not stack up. The potatoes were bland and did not have that wonderful crust of good roasted potatoes. These were more like breakfast buffet style. Swiss/Rainbow Chard is one of my favorites and this was sautéed well but the lemon confit did not work. It tasted like someone spilled some lemonheads in by accident.

By the time dessert came, we were full and content but determined to push on. The dessert they put up was very naked chef style. Local Peaches, Vanilla Gelato with Cherry Balsamic Gastrique with a Lavender Pistachio Biscotti. This was simple, light and completed the tristate trifecta of summer ingredients (with the corn and tomatoes Jess mentioned). The peaches were extremely ripe and juicy and thankfully, not altered to allow their natural flavor to shine. The sweetness of a small scoop of gelato was balanced well by the drizzle of tart cherry gastriue Last but not least was a bonus Earl Grey Chocolate. Earl Grey Chocolate Grenache inside a dark chocolate shell. I'm not sure if they made it or bought it but damn was that good!

This was a lot of really great food for a really low price. We critiqued this like a professional restaurant and they faired pretty well- better than a lot of other restaurants on this blog. If we put the semi-pro handicap in effect, they blow all but the best out of the water. Thanks to the folks at Chef-A-Me for putting this together and I encourage everyone one of their events a try. It's a lot of fun.

Novita Bistro

2009-07-19T19:09:00.000-04:00

Jess' Take:
For my birthday foodie dinner we hit up Novita Bistro, a Mediterranean influenced BYO at 16th and South. The restaurant is very typically BYO, small and cute. I was disappointed to see that they didn’t have hummus on the menu, since that may or may not have been the reason that I chose the restaurant, but I was still intrigued by the menu’s other offerings.

I started with the Merguez, which was described as a Moroccan lamb sausage. It was served on top of a chick pea puree. Now, if you can get past the way this dish looks then I think you’ll enjoy it. However, that may be a bit of a task. Fortunately I’ve got a strong stomach. The sausage had a really delicate flavor that included mint, which was really nice. However, it was also on the dry side, which is where the chick pea puree came in handy. To really enjoy this dish each bite of sausage needed to be accompanied by the puree. Despite this, it was a nice starter.

Keeping with the Moroccan theme, I went for the Moroccan Tagine for my main entrée. This might be the first time in five year’s I’ve ordered chicken in a restaurant, but I’d heard good things about the dish, and the waiter gave it high marks. It arrived in a super fancy painted dish, which I assume is traditional Moroccan. When the lid was lifted the smell of the dish hit me and it was delicious. Although the taste of the chicken was nice, I found myself wanting a little more flavor (maybe this is why I typically don’t order chicken?). I loved the preserved lemon that was served with it, which gave a nice added flavor; unfortunately I can’t say the same for the potatoes, which were very bland.

Although I love the concept of this Novita Bistro and the possibilities of the menu, I’m not sure I’d make a special trip back. If I have a craving for Moroccan I’m going to hit one of our old standbys, Fig, before heading back to Novita Bistro.

2 gross looking sausages out of 4.

Mango Moon

2009-06-18T23:51:00.000-04:00

Wade's Take:

Mango Moon is an Asian small plates restaurant on Main Street Manayunk. It veers away from the traditional Asian dishes (just saying no to mu shu pork, pad thai or fried rice) and offers small plates that balance out multiple asian cuisines, ingredients and flavors. That's no small feat considering how bite-sized the plates really are.

I took on one tiny plate, and three small plates. Tiny plates equate to bar snacks, essentially. I chose the roti - warm, thin unleavened bread that is Indonesian in origin - as my tiny plate. It was fresh and delectable.

My first small plate was the shrimp and coconut soup. It was rich, yet somehow light and refreshing. It (quite nicely) didn't have the gastrointestinal punch that typical tom yum soups have... it was milder. Filled with large pieces of galangal, lemongrass, mighty shrimp, cilantro, thai chilies and mushrooms, it was a bountiful feast. I could have easily gone for a second bowl.

Grilled chicken livers served with chili lime sauce were my second small plate. This was my least favorite of the group. The livers were a bit tough and dry (maybe slightly overcooked). They were chock full of that rich liver flavor, but needed more to work correctly. The chili sauce didn't do it.

Round three on the small plates was grilled pork neck. This reminded me of one of the Vietnamese bun dish meats. Chargrilled with lemongrass flavor, the meat broke apart easily. It was marpled with bits of crispy pork fat (yum!) and was paired well with the chili lime sauce that accompanied it.

Dave's "tasty little fish" tiny plate was beyond compare. What better way to down a beer than alongside a mouthful of tasty little fish? Truly minuscule, you could eat about two dozen of these fellas in a single bite. With eyes that were still bulging even in death, their taste and visual appeal were addictive.

Finally, our server was fantastic. She guided us through the menu and looked out for any potential needs we might have (e.g. too spicy, too fishy, too big). She was sort of an Asian Goldilocks - having tried all the options and advising us on what was the menu's best.

3.5 out of 4 tiny little fish.

Jess' Take:

Yes, I finally acquiesced and agreed to a dinner outside of the city. So, okay, Manayunk is technically Philadelphia, but getting there involved getting in the car and enduring a plethora of meatheads – so really, it might as well be suburbia. Despite this, Mango Moon was worth the hassle.

Like Wade I ordered a bunch of small plates – to share of course.

I started with the Roasted Shredded Coconut and Shrimp in Herbal Wrap or in Thai, Meang Khum. I’ve had this dish before at a Philly Foodie favorite Siam Lotus, and this version was just as good. It’s difficult to get the whole lettuce leaf in one bite, but when you do your taste buds are rewarded with toasted coconut, ginger, lime slices, kaffir leaves, shallots, sun-dried rock shrimp and roasted peanuts with a palm sugar sauce. Absolutely amazing.

The next small plate I had was the taro and tofu combination, which was essentially a variation on French fries. They were good, especially paired with the sweet chili dipping sauce, but this dish would have been better with a beer at the bar then accompanying the rest of the dishes.

Next up was the salmon salad, which in my opinion could have been considered a medium dish, not a small one. The salmon was actually a deep fried salmon belly (diminishing all nutritional value I’m sure) and the salad consisted of shallots, ginger, fresh mango slices, roasted peanuts, mint and cilantro topped with fresh chili-lime dressing. We were warned by the waitress about the heat from the chili peppers in it, and she was right – this dish was spicy. It was also incredibly good, especially accompanied by my Singha beer.

The last dish I ordered was the shrimp and water chestnut dumplings, which in addition to shrimp included pork, water chestnuts, mushrooms, cilantro root, sesame oil, black pepper and oyster sauce. These were super tasty and also a pretty substantial small dish. The oyster sauce was a great compliment to the salty pork, and I also found that these paired really well with Wade’s peanut sauce that came with his roti. Unfortunately this dish came toward the end of the schmorgusboard of food, so my total enjoyment of it was overshadowed by the lack of room in my stomach.

I would definitely hit Mango Moon again. In addition to being very tasty, it was also inexpensive – especially considering that many of the small dishes could have served as main courses.

I give Mongo Moon 3 out of a possible 4 small plates.

Dave's Take:

So as Wade not-so-subtly pointed out, Jess & I neglected to do our blog entries last month at Pub & kitchen. It's too late now, but I would like to mention that it is a great neighborhood pub and a quick walk to Rittenhouse so you should visit.
Now, onto Mango Moon. First, I need to point out that I hate Manayunk. A wise man once told me that Manayunk is where frat boys go to die and I believe it, so when I heard we were headed out there I was skeptical. Like a few other Manayunk gems, Mango Moon just may be an oasis.

At Mango Moon there are a few options for ordering. The helpful and pleasant server suggested we order a tiny plate, small plate and a medium plate (no big plates) or 2-3 smalls and a tiny. We all stuck to the tiny and smalls as the option for more tastes was better and the dishes seemed more creative. Since my fellow diners went heavy on the entree's I only ordered two dishes of my own but had plenty of the others on the table. My tiny dish was "salted tiny fish." Thinking I was going to get anchovies or something similar, I was a little surprised when these shoestring fry looking things came out all crispy and golden. These little buggers were small and had cartoon eyes. Not for the faint of heart/stomach but they were really tasty and as soon as I tasted I thought a perfect beer drinking food.

My entree was Thai beef jerky with sticky rice and a hot dipping sauce. First off, the beef was much more tender than I was expecting. This was more like overcooked Chinese style beef strips than western jerky. They were heavy on the black pepper which I liked and the chili based vinegar sauce went well. I liked it, although the sticky rice was a little disappointing as it was more like a block of glued rice rather than sticky and tasty. With all the other dishes on the table, skipping the rice was not a big deal.

Other highlights for me included the taro and tofu strips with sweet chili dipping sauce. These where like thick cut fries but rather than potato, were taro root and tofu cut into slices. The sweet chili sauce was great and the whole combo was a fun play on an old plate. Wade's pork neck was good as well. Grilled slices of meat that as Wade pointed out, reminded you of pork shoulder. No noticeable esophagus or other organ, just nice little pieces of peppery meat with a dipping sauce.

Big shoutout to the sweet sticky rice. Sweet and tasty and very tender with a condensed coconut sauce and sesame seeds on top. We ordered with our other pates but I attacked that after I was done the savories for a nice little dessert.

Mango Moon is relatively cheap, very tasty, quick, friendly and modern. If you have an adventurous pallet and are anywhere other than Chinatown or 12th & Spring Garden, it's worth the trip. If you are in Manayunk, please get out of Mad River and walk down to street to someplace good.

3 out of 4 tasty little salted fish

Pub & Kitchen

2009-05-31T00:26:00.000-04:00

Wade's Take:
May’s dinner led us to Pub & Kitchen. It was an easy choice once we realized that we’d been to 23 of the 25 top restaurants listed by Philadelphia Magazine as their favorites. This was the only one left (except for the, ahem, suburban restaurant Blue Fin – which my Philly Foodie colleagues cannot travel to in good conscience. They have an oath to the restaurants of the City, some would say a blood pact, that cannot be broken.)

It was a nice May evening, and there we sat at a sidewalk table at Pub & Kitchen. Although the table was miniscule, the meal was grand.

I selected several small plates, and dug in.

The gnocchi was fantastic. The pasta was ever so light, like small pillows, with a slight pan-fried crisp edge. It sat in a pool of browned butter with samplings of roasted artichokes. Texture, flavor, and uniqueness made this dish one of the best pastas I’ve had in quite some time.

The gnocchi was followed by steak tartare. The cut of meat was ideal, supple but with enough sinew to give it some heart. It was blended with a light, dry mustard, topped with greens, mint, and onion. Not remarkable, but a good dish.

The duck toasts were on the money. Bits of toast, smeared with a duck pate that was smooth and rich. This was a bar menu item on the menu, and I could easily see myself downing several rounds of these toasts at a happy hour.

Though full, we opted for dessert in the form of baked, sherried apples served with donut holes dusted with cinnamon sugar. The donut holes were good (but could easily be replicated at home) and the baked apples had the texture and flavor of something roasted in an EZ Bake Oven (no dis to EZ Bakes).

The atmosphere was fun and vibrant. We had a waitress that bubbled throughout the night; she was like the foodie version of an MTV VJ.

For the gnocchi alone, I say 3 out of 4 pasta pillows.

Saute

2009-04-20T23:30:00.000-04:00

Wade's Take:

April's dinner was Saute, a fairly new restaurant on Front Street, South of South Street. It was a neighborhoody place, filled with babies and regulars and oddly next door to a funeral parlor. The menu changes regularly, so it will likely be vastly different even a week from now.

My app was a hamachi ceviche. The hamachi (a young yellowtail) was thin cut and stacked sideways with citrus slices. Two dots of smoked avocado puree flanked the appetizer, and the entire thing was dusted with cilantro. The grapefruit pieces overpowered the hamachi. Granted, the hamachi is light, but it was completelty overwhelmed by the fruit. The smoked avocado pulled the flavor of the dish back down from sweet, but this appetizer still didn't land perfectly.

We shared a charcuterie plate among the five of us (howdy, Chris and John), which had a fantastic chicken liver pate with a lid of clarified butter. I couldn't get enough of this - I would even brush my teeth with it if that were somehow possible. The rest of the charcuterie plate was moderate. There was some sliced, rolled meats that reminded me of cheap pepper loaf.

Sticking with poisson, I ordered a bronzino for my entree. Served with the skin, it was cooked really nicely. It sat on a fontina fondue that had a cheez whiz cousin type texture. Atop the fish was brocolli rabe, red onions that were peppered and sweet, and pine nuts. What it was missing was a starch... maybe a bit of some coconut rice type substance.

Dessert was the milk chocolate mousse served in a phyllo cup alongside berries. There was much phyllo to get through once the mousse was finished, probably too much. The mousse was good, though - milky smooth and with a nice distinctiveness from the normal dark chocolate, bitter mousse most places serve.

The staff was what truly bumped this place up a notch. I really liked the cast of characters that worked there, including our waiter, the owner and the chef. By the end of the night, we had spoken extensively to all three. They were eager to hear feedback on the plates and tell us about future menu and space plans.

Food - 2.5 out of 4
(Staff - 4 out of 4)

Dave's Take:
Saute is a great neighborhood dining spot and the folks in Bella Vista are lucky to have it. No tourists from South St, no duck tours driving by. Just a nice comfortable place to have a good meal at reasonable cost.

To start, we shared a Charcuterie plate. This was really a pate plate with a few slices of mediocre cured meats. Since I believe charcuterie plates were sent from the heavens and serranos, prosciutto, lomo's etc., are the top of the food chain, I was a little disappointed here. I'm not a huge fan of pate but I can appreciate it when it does not taste like cat food. I must admit, the duck pate was excellent but the charcuterie was disappointing. Unless you are a pate fanatic, stay away from this.

For my personal app, I got the special duck meatballs with apricot cream. This was fantastic. The duck meatballs were rich, tender and delicious. This is what regular meatballs unsuccessfully strive to be. By themselves, they may be too rich but the tartness of the apricot cream cut the fat of the duck and resulted in a very nice dish. From the tastes of my compadres, it was the highlight dish.

Main entree was the grilled quail. Quail is one of my favorite of the game birds and is head and shoulders above the bland but popular chicken. This was seasoned with salt, pepper and herbs, split in two and accompanied but cherries and a puree. The bird was tasty and tender with nice flavor and similar to the duck, the cherries added a nice tart acidity. The puree was pretty bland (even though it was full of butter/cream) and brought down the dish. Would have been much better with a wild rice risotto or similar treatment. Overall, a solid performer.

Agree with Wade. The people make the place. The food is good and creative but hit or miss and flat on occasion. It could just be that the food is finding its place since its a new opening. If they can improve consistency and match the food to the service, this will be a home run. If you live in Bella Vista, take a walk over and give Sauté a try.

Attention- We noticed a liquor license application. Go before they get it approved. The place is way too small for booze and it will just increase the cost. I hope it does not ruin it.

3 fowls out of 4

Jess' Take:
I won't spend too much time on the Charcuterie plate since Wade and Dave did a nice job. I will say that if you're a pate lover go for it, if you're a cured meat lover steer clear. I am a pate lover so I was very pleased.

I went with the special black cod served with fennel. Nothing to write home about. The fish, while cooked well was a little tasteless. It was divided into two even, square portions, which sat happily atop the bed of fennel, which was much more tasty than the fish. After trying Wade's bronzino I had wished that was my main dish. Ah-well, next time I suppose.

Being a lover of brussel sprouts I ordered a side for the table (translate: for me). It was served with diced prosciutto and truffle oil. While that combination is enough to make even veggie lovers swoon, the brussel sprouts were just this side of ripe, and as a result had a bit of a hard, sour taste to them. Luckily proscuitto and truffle oil are pretty overpowering tastes, so unless you were really trying to taste the brussel sprout this dish was delish.

I give Saute 2.5 out of 4 artery clogging pates. I'll give it another go so long as it remains a BYO.

Kanella

2009-03-25T22:39:00.000-04:00

Wade's Take:

It was all Greek to me and my belly when we popped in to Kanella on 10th and Spruce last week for a gastro tour of Greek cuisine.

I can't believe that was my opening line. Forgive the pun above, and focus on the food review below. I liked this place and it deserves better than my lame headline.

Greek food is great, because I feel like I could never make it at home. Not even close. The flavors are too complex... to unknown to me to even try to explain the spices. I just eat it, close my eyes, savor it for a second, and say "that was mighty good." I've given up trying to sound like a food sophisticate for anything Greek.

Case in point... my first appetizer. Bureki. It was filled phylo dough with feta cheese and thyme, baked until golden and then drizzled with thyme honey, served with a side of beets. It gets the best appetizer I've had at a restaurant award, hands down. It beats out Rae's onion fondue.

The second appetizer up was veal hearts, grilled. The meat was limp, the flavor was lacking. It came with a side of chickpea fritters (think of mozarella sticks, but 100% chickpea). These fritters were too intense with salt. Then, voila, Dave recommends I combine the two in one bite. Much better! Though they paired well, the veal hearts and fritter marriage didn't compare to the Bureki, which I was still ogling the crumbs and empty plate.

My entree was makaronia. Comprised of home made pasta, sweet peas, tomato sauce with mint, yogurt and kefalotyri cheese (made of sheep or goat's milk) - this dish was fantastically complicated and rich with flavor. There was an afterbite that resounded. I don't know what added the kick of spice, but it was perfect.

There was a trio of ice creams that came to the table for dessert. All had unbearable flavors in my mind (I am a lover of chocolate ice cream and chocolate ice cream alone) but Jess and Dave seemed to like them.

I focused on the sweet chocolate mousse (partially redundant name) that came out served creme brulee style. It had a hat of lavender ice cream, which tasted like soap. Since I have an older brother, I've eaten soap before in various older to younger brother tortures. Soap ice cream fares better than Dove and Irish Spring. The mousse itself was too sweet (living up to its name), but was toned down by the french pressed coffee Jess and I guzzled sans sugar.

The atmosphere of Kanella was warm, tight and cozy. Cozy like in a Euro-bistro kind of close enough to smell your dining neighbor's whole fish kind of good way, not a Quizno's under Market Street kind of smell your dining neighbor's BO bad way. I even felt cozy with the mature Frenchies that sat next to us and babbled french tales (and stared at our food) through the night. I'm sure if we had stayed for another course we would have saddled up to their table and become a part of their lively frenchie tales. Or maybe I'm just waxing nostalgic because of the bureki.

I will be back, Kanella.

3.5 out of 4 Greek words ending in vowels.

Jess' Take:

I was excited to try Kanella. It had been recommended to me by two different people, both Greek, who raved about it. A cute BYO with a very Mediterranean feel inside, I was very excited to dig in.

I ordered the grilled baby octopus for my app, and although it was flavored wonderfully, it was a little too chewy. That certainly didn’t stop me from eating the entire portion, but I wouldn’t order it again. And… once I had a taste of Wade’s Bereki, well, let’s just say I was dreaming about it for the rest of the meal. Hands down one of the best starters I’ve ever had.

I decided to order the filleted fish of the day, which was dorado, despite the waiters joke that he likes to call dorado “the stripped bass of the Mediterranean.” I mean, is that supposed to be funny? Anyway, funny or not, it was delicious. Perfectly cooked, seasoned well and extremely fresh. It was served wtih a chickpea concoction that was amazing - it looked heavy but was very light, and also had some hidden lentils, which are another favorite of mine.

Aside from Wade’s Bereki (which I’m still thinking about) the most remarkable element of our dining experience was the French pressed coffee. It might have been the best coffee I’ve ever had (and I’m not just staying that because we popped open our third bottle of wine at the same time it arrived). I usually don’t do caffeinated coffee at night, but I was lured by the French press and happy I was. Rich, dark and smooth, it was much more memorable than the desserts.

Kanella, you’re getting 3 out of 4 coffee beans from me. Next time I’m back I’ll give the homemade sausages a try – I hear it’s delightful.

Cafe Apamate

2009-02-27T01:17:00.000-05:00

Wade's Take:
February may be the month for lovers, but our hearts weren't fluttering when we finished with Cafe Apamate, a Venezuelan restaurant off of South and 16th. If my heart was going thump-thump a little heavier, it was merely because of my concentrated dose of chocolate caffeination with dessert.

We started with the charcuteria plate, always a favorite of ours. It had bonus points going into round one, as we added on a very special cured meat (See Dave's post for details). Despite this bonus, I felt that the plate wasn't well balanced. The cheeses were too strong in flavor - there was nothing mild to blend down your palate. The bread was standard fare, and not even textured well for smearing, topping or any of the other things you need a good bread to do with a charcuterie plate. And although the other meats were good, they didn't compare to our bonus meat.

I went straight for an entree instead of tapas, as I was famished and ready for some substance. I picked the New Zealand lamb chops, medium rare. The chops were done just right, pan fried and seasoned with some sort of chili dusting and caramelization. It was hard to get to this taste, though, as they were daintily small. Luckily, the medley of vegetables below it made up for the lamb chops' meekness. Roasted grape tomatoes and red peppers, caramelized onions, green beans (perfectly crisp) and brussels sprouts made an excellent, and superior, pairing. It was worthy of being its own entree, sans meat.

We almost bailed on dessert. Luckily we found out there was a dense chocolate mousse lump on the dessert menu. It proved to be potent and quite, quite good. Drizzled with olive oil and salt, with a mint leaf and single strawberry, it was gone from the table quickly.

The place had a lot of background noise, with the kitchen sounds echoing into the dining room, a large refrigerator hum by the entryway and various other heating and music-related distractions. Don't get me wrong, I hate quiet restaurants, but Cafe Apamate seemed to have a cacophony of distracting sounds. It wouldn't stop me from going back.

2.5 out of 4 lumps.

Dave's Take:
I love Pintxos and Tapas. I also love plates of cured meats. And I like (but not love) Cafe Apamate.

First up, as Wade mentioned, was the Plato de Charcuteria. These are always a hit with me and this was no exception. Serrano, lomo and chorizo, the usual suspects, set the stage but the real star was the Jamon Iberico de bellota. I have been wanting the try this for a while but its hard to find and very expensive so it has eluded me up to this point (just legalized recently). Jamon Iberico de bellota is the Kobe beef of cured meats. Happy Black Spanish Pigs roam in open fields eating acorns and soaking up the views in the countryside. No commercial feed, no pesticides or hormones, just nature at its best. These bad boys are then cured for 12-36 months. If you like cured meats then this is a must. It has a similar taste to Serrano ham but much more delicate, rich and has more of a nutty taste. I can't speak to the cheeses, but the meats were awesome. Second prize goes to the Lomo, it was one of the better I've had (best goes to Amada).

While my compadres went with a main course, I decided to hedge my bet and go with some Pintxos so I could taste more. I'm also prepping for our trip to Spain so I needed to do my homework. For those interested, Pintxos (pronounced Peen-chos) are little bites originating from the Basque lands in northern Spain. Similar to tapas. I had about 4 or 5 of these little things and they were good but not great. I'm not going to go through all the details because honestly I forget them and that is a good indication they are not really worth writing about.

I'm usually the one to bail on dessert but the chocolate mousse intrigued me. Olive oil, salt and chocolate mouse was something I needed to try. This was a mouse like none other. It was so dense it held it shape on a plate and boarding on dry. Since real chocolate mousse is just chocolate, egg yolks and egg whites, the chef must have limited the egg whites, over whipped them to almost dry and went heavy on the yolks. Not sure if it was intentional or a kitchen mishap that was turned into a sellable dish but whatever it was it was tasty. I knew the salt would be good on it but the magic was from the olive oil. A high quality oil, heavy on floral and fruit was sparingly drizzled over the shaped "mousse" which gave it additional flavor depth and complimented the dry mousse very nicely.

The verdict. "Mas e menos" Some creative excellent executions, a good respect for ingredients (a lot of local and organic ingredients when possible) but some dishes that were just so so. I would go back but it will not make it on to my favorite list.
2 out of 4 Jamon
I am however haunted by the need to eat more Jamon Iberico. I will find it and it will be mine.....

Jess' Take:
The highlight of my meal was the Jamon Iberico de bellota on the Charcuterie plate, which Dave detailed above. I’ll just add that the pigs are put to sleep rather than slaughtered, making me feel just that much better about eating them.

I went with a fish special that was covered in a smoked red sauce. I was not happy with my choice. The fish, of which I cannot even recall the type, was on the dry side, and the sauce was so overpowering (as you’ll see from the pictures, it’s drenching the dish) that it wouldn’t have mattered what it was poured over. It may or may not have come with something green on the side, but again, was so drenched it didn’t matter.

Although Dave didn’t detail his tapas, I do recall a very good scallop dish – two perfectly cook scallops served in a large scallop shell. Nicely presented and very tasty.

The dessert, also described above, did a good job redeeming Café Apamate, but not enough for me to put this restaurant on my “hit again” list. If I do happen to find myself sitting in this little restaurant again, I’ll go for a tapas sampling, not completely committing to one dish… just in case.

1.5 out of 4 happy pigs.

Supper

2009-01-24T11:42:00.001-05:00

Jess' Take
Last night we hit Supper, a cozy and welcoming restaurant at 9th and South. The restaurant was actually a last minute decision. We were originally planning to hit Memphis Taproom, but the group decided we just weren’t into greasy bar food and beer so Supper it was. We started the feast with a charcuterie plate, complete with a variety of pates and mousses. It was delicious, especially the duck prosciutto. It was also the first time that I’ve had boudin blanc and I have to say, although a little scary looking – very tasty. Our waiter was not shy with the bread (and as a result I have a special place for him in my heart).

For the appetizer I broke tradition and ordered the same thing as Dave, the smoked butternut squash soup with cinnamon marshmallow and sage. It arrived in an oversized bowl with what looked like a schmear of fluffanutter along the inside that was just browned with a kitchen torch. Although I’m not a big fan of anything too sweat, this was a perfect combination of sweet and smoked spice. There were bits of cooked apples at the bottom of the dish that added just a little tartness. It was delicious.

Unfortunately I cannot say the same about my entrée. I ordered the chili dusted skate with crab, mango, red onion and yellow mole. The presentation was impressive, but the fish was way over spiced and the crab salad atop was very cold and would have been more at home atop a bed of green with a creamy dressing. The mole, which is one of my favorite sauces, was disappointingly flavorless (is that even possible?).

Although I was pretty full at this point, I couldn’t resist ordering a selection of cheese for dessert. I was very glad I did. I can’t recall the exact cheeses, but they definitely included a goat and a guere. They were served with smoke paprika crisps and some local honey that was out of this world.

I really wanted to like this place – and I did, aside from my main entre. It was great when the chef came out to see if we liked everything (luckily I didn’t have to lie at that point) and our server was friendly and not pushy. Would I go back? Probably. The soup was good enough.

I give it 2.5 out of a possible 4 schmears of fluff.

Dave's Take
Jess did a great job of describing the app and the soup so I will just expand on my entree.

I ordered the slow roasted pork belly with spiced yams, greens and pineapple mustard. The pork belly was great. Seasoned just enough to accentuate the flavor, it was rich and tender just like pork belly should be. Fantastic. The pureed spiced yams were good, but really heavy on the cream and butter. This made them too rich for my taste, especially since it is being served with pork belly after all, and masked the great natural flavor of the yams. The greens were crisp and tasty and maybe gave it a little health benefit? (OK, maybe not). Overall though, I was very pleased.

I was a little apprehensive on ordering the dessert. First, I noticed the inconsistency of the previous dishes. Sure, I was lucky but my compadres were slightly disappointed. Next, my cholesterol was already peaking since I just had, charcuterie, a creamy soup and pork belly. But I was outvoted so we ordered the cheese plate (which I mostly avoided) and split a dense chocolate cake (big surprise). It was good enough but this standard dessert was lost in my memory with so many others. Nothing to expand on here.

I loved the feel of Supper- comfortable and just trendy enough. The staff was not pushy, helpful and very nice. The chef made a effort to talk with the guests which was a really nice touch. The prices were reasonable. The entree's were inventive and creative. If they could only consistently execute the taste, this would be one of my favorites. As it stands now, I'll give it a 3 out of 4 tasty piggies. I certainly want to give it another try.

Wade’s Take:

January’s dinner brought a last-minute switcheroo, as we ended up going to Supper instead of Memphis Taproom (I pledge to thee, Memphis Taproom, we will grace and thrive in your beer selection soon). The advantage to this change in plans is that I didn’t have time to read-up on Supper, get online advice for what to order or find out anything about the chef. I was going in blind… no room for potential bias.

The appetizer course involved us ordering Dave and my old pal, the charcuterie plate. This one included a boudin blanc, country pate with pistachios, pickled okra, shoestringed spaghetti squash, duck prosciutto and an odd, somewhat pickled brussel sprout. The pates were right up my alley, and would be worth ordering again.

It was hard for me to focus, though, as I was having a love affair at the table with the complementary breads. I should have been complementing them. Garlic-infused and whole wheat breads, combined with their homemade supple and creamy butter, were tremendous.

I hardly ever order a special. I’m always suspicious. Is it leftovers they are trying to dump on unwitting customers? But I strayed from my norm, and ordered a Tuscan white bean soup with croutons and a whole egg on top. Let’s see… random seemingly leftover ingredients, an abundance of salt, oddly textured… is this Drexel’s cafeteria on a Sunday at lunch? Honestly, the soup was fine. It needed an exotic, tanged twist at the end to finish its straightforward flavor. Plus, during the whole bowl, I was enviously glancing over at my friends’ (much better) soups as they licked the bowls clean.

My small plate was the short rib with pearl onions, cheese polenta and some greens wispily coated in not enough horseradish oil. I agree with Dave, the short rib was surprisingly not as moist as would be expected. The pearl onions were superb, but the polenta was beyond strong. The overdose of salt, creamy buttered richness and intense flavor were too much. I expected Supper’s dishes to be more subtle, but after the soup and then this, my palate was overwhelmed.

Then, a phenomenon happened that I very much equate to a dissatisfying meal. Jess (also disappointed with her meal) and I revisited the bread and butter, left on the table from our first course. My belief is that we sought out the beginning of the meal again, when we had been happier and full of hope. Or perhaps we just wanted to bring balance back to our tastebuds after the mild unpleasantness of our dishes.

The dessert course was superb. I had a dense chocolate cake with dulce de leche on the side that was perfect. The cheese plate was excellent as well. Jess picked a gruyere that I am still thinking about, some 12 hours later.

Dave’s review will be more favorable, and his dishes were good. I think he may have a bit of a prejudice, though, as he ate tiring travel food (at hotels, airports) all week prior to the meal at Supper.

Two out of four butters.

Post script – I did try Memphis Taproom, finally. Not as good as I thought! I really wanted to like it, but ended up with greeeezy food that, although delicious and high-class bar food, wouldn’t lead me to wander back to Fishtown.

Zot

2009-01-09T16:17:00.000-05:00

Jess' Take
Last night we hit Zot in Head House Square. You can’t miss this restaurant as the sign is enormous and bright – whether you should miss this restaurant is another story. The bar is a perfect spot to hop into on a blustery winter day to enjoy a full-bodied Belgian beer, of which there is a selection to rival Monks. Wade was especially happy to see Le Chouffe available. The dining room is also cozy, with exposed brick and wood beams, you just have to try and ignore the seriously freaky print of what is possibly a tripped out Richard Simmons.

I started the evening with an Allagash White (yes, an American beer – I know) and perused the menu. While the offerings aren’t extensive, the set up of the menu is time consuming. First you choose a meat, of which there is a very interesting variety, then pick a sauce, of which there are about 20 too many choices, and finally decide on a side. If you’re not in the mood for meat, there are mussels – many, many mussels. I couldn’t even begin to navigate through the mussel menu, so I started with escargot for an app and then went with a filet of bison, black peppercorn sauce and two sides: Brussels sprouts and sauteed mushrooms.

The escargot arrived nestled between a fluffy biscuit. Instead of the usual rich buttery flavoring, this dish was served with a smoked sauce and fabulous paprika undertones. The biscuit was perfect to sop up the extra sauce. Although a hearty dish, it was a nice portion, so I wasn’t too full when my main dish arrived. Very satisfying.

The bison arrived cooked to a perfect medium-rare, which I really appreciate. So often restaurants overcook red meat, which is totally disappointing. The best part of my dish was the black peppercorn sauce, which I had them put on the side. It was spicy and not too heavy – the meat, very similar to steak, was a perfect compliment. The Brussels sprouts were swimming in bacon fat, which meant that they were inherently tasty, although not very impressive. Ditto on the mushrooms (sans the bacon fat). Overall a tasty dish – but nothing I can’t make myself, probably even a little better.

Dessert was certainly nothing to write home about. Berries and cream and a pot de crème that was more like dense chocolate mousse.

If I find myself back in the neighborhood I would happily stop in and grab a beer, but I’ll probably save my appetite for Xochitl, which is a block away and a world tastier.

Zot gets 2 out of 4 possible brews from me!

Dave's Take

Jess hit Zot pretty much dead on. One thing about the decor that could be a turn off for some but really appealed to me was the front bar. It had old school skiing memorabilia on the wall. Think a hard rock but for skiing which is much cooler. That combined with the looping Warren Miller videos will make we want to go back for a drink. If I'm there for a drink, I might get some food again, but certainly wouldn't make the trip for the food especially since I have to pass Bridget's and Monks to get there.

My first course was the bone marrow. Now, my other run-ins with bone marrow have been spiritual. That could be from the stem cells packed in there or the delirious feeling of my cholesterol tripling with each bite but whatever it was, Ansil and Distrito pack so much rich flavor into each bite it is amazing. I call bone marrow meat butter and if Ansil is the Kerrygold, this was the parkay. Sure, it was rich and warming but lacked the flavor of the others. Not bad, just a little bland and not worth it here.

I also had to create my modular main meat (MMM). I love the idea of exotic meat. I think it's cool to eat crazy stuff (probably why I like "Strange Foods" on the Travel Channel). Zot did not disappoint there (Kangaroo, Boudin, Bison, Boar Sausage, etc). I got the ostrich med rare and it was cooked perfectly and very tender for such a lean meat. Here is where I take issue. The 20 sauces Jess mentioned came with no guidance. Looking at them, I knew that all 20 would not work. When I asked which one would work best I got a few choices but the server did not recommend anything with confidence. I go to a place to be guided by the chef on how to best experience what they envision a dish should be. This was more like- hey, yeah sure you want that meat. OK- now you have to decide what will taste best on it. Sure, there is an optimum choice or two but we aren't gonna tell you what they are. You have to guess. That's seems like more work than I need. Also, if you get one of the less exotic or cheaper meats, you're totally getting ripped off since they are all the same price. Even with my complaints, my perfectly cooked ostrich did go well with the mushroom cream sauce.

I wanted to skip dessert. Jess & Wade fought to include it. I should have remained strong but gave in. The berries and cream were just fair as you could tell the berries were not in season by the mushiness and lack of flavor. As we ate to the bottom, the lack of taste issue changed but for the worse. Some type of distilled liquor was waiting to sicken us. I think it may have been Aquavit. OK for a shot but nasty when you want the taste of berries. The other dessert was a Pot de crème. It looked way too big for a pot de crème when it came out and was only a partial success. Once I was making a Pot de crème for a dinner party and I screwed it up by cooking it too long. It got a little more dense like Crème Brule often does. I called it Chocolate Crème Brule and my guests were none-the-wiser. Zot should have done that on us. Tasted good but too firm.

If you live in the hood, put it on your rotation. Go for the bar. Go for the beer and possible stay for the food. If you live in another area, I wouldn't make a special trip unless you want to drink while watching Warren Miller films at some other place than your friends couch.

2 out of 4 Après-Ski's

Wade’s Take:

Here’s the thing with Zot. It’s a free market economy. The menu is wide and open for you to invest in however you’d like. There’s no egomaniac chef forcing you to subscribe to his communist pairings. It’s all on you, baby.

What’s that you say? Your hungry for a piece of wild game, perhaps bison, with some sort of sauce… maybe bearnaise or caper sauce, and something starchy… not sweet potato fries, not gnocchi… garlic frietes, that’s it! There you go, you’ve just designed your own dinner. You have the power, you see, because Zot let’s you mix it up. They have over 15 meats on the menu (many exotic – bonus points there!), 20 plus sauces to add-on and then a dozen plus starches to finish your plate.

I opted for the kangaroo (I’m new to kangaroo) with a blue cheese sauce and some garlic frietes for the side. Kangaroo Jack was a long cut of meat, grilled medium rare. I enjoyed it, and the blue cheese sauce was straightforward, but good. My garlic frietes were no Monk’s fries, let’s get that straight. A bit soggy and lacking the garlic I so desired, they perked up when I swiped them in Jess’ black peppercorn sauce.

I had a first-rate onion soup that was my appetizer. The onions were caramelized and oh-so-sweet, cutting the normal sodium-fest of onion soup down to a minimum.

Technically, I suppose, my real appetizer was the smooth extra large bottle of La Chouffe I had as my first course. Brimming with an 8% APV, this strong Belgian pale ale is a new favorite of mine. If this were my world, I’d be sitting on a hilltop in Switzerland right now, eating a tasty apple, some raclette and with a bottle of La Chouffe at my side. Instead, blogging about it is cool, I guess.

I went to the upstairs bathroom bar after dinner to check it out. It’s a great event space with an actual bar made out of bathroom pieces. The countertop is all mirrors (yahoo for all you coke heads out there), a massive claw foot tub houses the bottles and atop that is a spigot/tap of beers. The whole thing rests within a shower basin, with various rub-a-dub-dub accoutrements flanking it. I want to go back. In an odd way, though, it reminded me of one of those shooting galleries that Knoebels is famous for. You know the type, the ragged hillbilly home exterior with the outhouse, squirrels in the broken down car and bullseyes all around to aim your air pistol at.

Final answer… Zot is a fun place, don’t miss it. It’s good food, not the best around in this town of great eats, but a great hang out spot, nonetheless. Go, drink beer, makes food selections, be happy.

Two out of four exotic meats.

Talula's Table

2008-12-14T18:31:00.001-05:00

So, Dave and Jess had an unbelievable opportunity to experience Tulula's table in November. The reservations were made in January, truly a dedicated wait! Located in Kennett Square (so you know it had to be good to get us out of the city), it's a farmers market by day and a two table restaurant by night. Eight courses based on seasonal ingredients, emailed out a week before with wine suggestions (as it's a BYOB). The experience was amazing.

We're going to throw it out there right up front. The dinner we had at Tulula's Table was the best meal we've ever had. Yes, better than Vetri, LaCroix and the old DJango when they used to run it. Start to finish it was creative, complex and very tasty. At eight courses, it was difficult to fight pallet fatigue but the chef's creations made it worth it. Believe it or not, eight courses was just enough due to the small complex portions. Full but not exploding.

1st course was the only possible low point but that's really only because we were expecting so much. After all, with a year's plus waiting list, you want your first taste to be life changing. This was very good, but it was overshadowed by the other freak'n fantastic courses. Fluke "Naturel" with cauliflower puree, orchard apple and foamy pomegranate. Think fluke Ceviche. Very good, creamy and a very interesting ingredients that worked well.

Next up, Citrus-drop Ricotta Ravioli with butter poached red (king) crab and melted leeks. Now generally I am not a fan of ravioli but this was awesome. Super creamy and rich but somehow light. This was certainly not the ricotta you get the in grocery store. The hint of citrus and sweetness of the crab and leeks played well with the ravioli so much that we started to feel guilty that Wade wasn't there. Yes - we were cheating on him which we felt a extremely bad about but we're food whores and this was too tempting to pass up - and our friend's Seth & Tara were nice enough to let us crash their reservation.

3rd course was Chicken Liver and Beech Mushroom Terrine, Duck Confit, Fresh Cranberry Sauce and smoked brown sugar. Again, liver is iffy with us, but this was a fantastic dish. Imagine a tiny little square of mushroom and liver that was bursting with mushrooms and just enough liver to make it savory and meaty. The accompanying duck confit was out of control with amazing deep flavor and richness that was cut by the fresh cranberries resulting in a perfect balance. I'm sure the smoked brown sugar would have gone nicely with the other flavor but it never made it. Dave couldn't get over how cool of an idea it was to smoke sugar that he quickly ate the small dusting with a few quick swipes of his finger. He's now dreams about smoked brown suger.

4th course - Spiced Black Grouper with glazed little carrots and saffron infused swallowhill squash broth. Make no mistake, this was not a soup, the broth was a thick coating on the plate to add a depth to the flavor. It was like a thin, perfectly complimenting consumee to the wonderfully cooked and spiced grouper. The small piece of grouper had more of a stripped bass consistency and was perfectly cooked - moist and tender with a slight crisp on the outside.

OK, at this point we're feeling good and not just because of the wine Seth picked up at their suggestion for the pairings. It was because of the bad-ass meal we were enjoying and the anticipation of the next dish. If you know us, especially Dave, you will understand that he loves game meats. Wild boar, elk, bison, venison, quail, etc. Not sure why everyone doesn't. They have more flavor and most likely lived a good life out in nature. Anyway, this was our highlight. Tenderloin of Bison with a Bison sausage choucroute, spaetzle and horseradish béchamel. The chef came out to explain this dish to us, which we were told was a Bison tenderloin medallion that was poached slowly in duck fat. Our heart cholesterol increased immediately and we began to salivate. We can tell you that if you haven't had a meat poached at low temps in duck fat, you will probably live longer than us but we've experienced the finest preparation possible of tender meat. You hear melt in your mouth good often. We may never use that phrase again as this was truly the definition. Meat so tender and flavorful. It was amazing. Just seasoned enough to bring out the flavors but certainly not cover them. We almost forgot, next to that bison medallion, was a bison sausage choucroute (basically slice). That was great too. That smoky, salty favor only a cured meat can add. Together they were even better. This dish is what the filet mignon wrapped in bacon strives to be but this was exactly 423% better.

The 6th course, if served on the same plate as the bison course would be illegal in most states so Tulula's table took the safe route and separated them. The best risotto we've ever had. Amazingly creamy. You still knew it was rice based but it was so moist and creamy it could have been easy to forget. The quail flavors shined through and worked perfectly with the sweet, tart and spicy peppercorn syrah sauce. For good measure they threw in some cured meats - whcih seem to make everything taste better. Culatello is basically a super fancy small production prosciutto they make in house. If you stop by the shop and they sell it, you would be wise to purchase some.

Course 7 was a cheese plate to rival all cheese plates. This was also Jess' high point as Dave doesn't eat cheese, so Jess got double the goodness. One cheese in particular, a hard cheese that had a hint of black truffle olive oil, was the most amazing single bite all night - only to be topped by Dave's black truffle olive oil cheese. Yes, it's a spoiled life...

The last course was a dessert of bittersweet chocolate soup with brandied cherries and crunchy almond financier. This, to our surprise, was not a drunken perpetrator of the financial crises we were to carve up for their sins. It was a little almond cake/cookie-like square with some really intensely favored cherries and a chocolate "broth." We really enjoyed it but at this point had so much fat, sugar, alcohol and endorphins running through our system it was time to end this ordeal and get back to the real world.

So it's a few weeks later and we're sure we missed some of the details but the theme is spot on. This was an awesome dining experience. Our only wish was that there was an intermettzo and a stretch to take a break - and that Wade could have been with us to enjoy it.

Big props to Seth for organizing this whole ordeal and getting the wine. It's not cheap but a value for the level of food you got. We've have had more expensive meals, but never a better one. And by the way, Kennet Square is ridiculously far!

5out of 4 cardiologist bills!

Meme

2008-11-23T19:35:00.000-05:00

Wade's Take:

Tradition was broken when we sat down at this latest spot. What’s our vow? Never to eat at a place where any of us dined before. Well, we had ALL been to 2201 Spruce Street once before, when the place had been the pretentious and tasty Melograno (see our thorough blog entry on the joint here). But truly, it wasn’t a rule breaker. It was a new restaurant we were dining at on 2201 Spruce Street… Meme.

Meme is at a corner spot with close tables of open-grain wood, awesome hipster lights and a snug, intimate feel. You feel like you’re in a neighborhood bistro from the get-go. This intimacy was even reflected in the smells of the place. As the stoves roared and crisped the foods all night, we had smell-o-vision of the whole ordeal, we were that close. Even the music made it feel like we were in a friend’s kitchen. With a great soundtrack of 80’s beats, Meme is beyond that blasted ambient/trance music that haunts most restaurants and makes you feel like you should be wearing a black turtleneck and dancing like Sprockets.

Okay, enough about the scene. The food is what matters.

Well, it was outstanding.

I began with a small plate of shrimp with etouffee and toast. Great combo, great flavor. The shrimp (head and all), were atop the orange sauce with chunks of green pepper and a slight Caribbean flair. It worked.

Then I went with my old favorite order… duck. It came out as tender sliced duck breast, with red beets, pearl onions and a port sauce… layered on spinach. Fantastic. The duck was the most perfectly done duck I’ve ever had… soft and red enough to have its savory duck-ness intact. The spinach was phenomenal… still tasting fresh, and mellowing the tart beets and intense duck. I don’t think I took breaths in between bites, I was trance-like in my enjoyment of this dish.

We topped the night off with two cheeses and a pot de crème. The pot de crème was actually that… served in a small pot. The espresso in it was superb and the creaminess of the dessert flowed over my tongue with great delight. It had a hat of a zest orange sauce… unnecessary.

The Pierre Robert was an incredible cheese until someone made me realize it may be in fact named after the WMMR DJ. Then I suddenly thought it tasted like socks for a minute, and then quickly got over it and re-realized it was in fact a tasty cheese (it’s actually a decadent, cave-aged triple-crème style cheese from France, I found out later). The Roaring 40s was a blue cheese from Australia, made with cow’s milk and aged in wax. It was definitely the best blue I’ve ever had – mild and the perfect last bite at Meme.

I can’t believe I’m doing this…. Maybe it was the flowing wine, the cozy atmosphere or the distinguished dishes, but:

Four out of four, I say!

NEWSFLASH: My two fellow PFBs have been selected to dine at Talula’s Table. Sacre bleu… this is big stuff. I implore them both to write about the experience and grace PFB with their descriptions of the sure to be tantalizing feast.

Modo Mio

2008-11-06T19:19:00.000-05:00

Dave's Take:
Wade said it right, we needed to give another Italian joint a try. With such a string of disappointing experiences, the next one had to be good. I wanted to hit a place that wasn't in center city and that target Modo Mio as our next stop. Depending on when you read this, a store-front shop on Girard between 1st & 2nd may not seem like a place to get dynamite food and the exterior wouldn't suggest it either. But everything changes when you enter this cozy little BYO. It is warm and comfortable inside and the service is friendly and very knowledgeable.

When we first sat, they brought over an amuse bouche. Woo-Hoo! Usually this means the place is going to be good, and who doesn't like a free bite to eat. This was roasted eggplant unlike I've ever had on top of a small piece of crusty bread. It was smoky, spicy (but not hot) rich and wonderful. They cleared the plate and when a few minutes later, another waiter offered us our free amuse-bouche, we said thank you and gladly took it. OK- so maybe we should have told them we had one already but it was too freaking good.

We all got the Turista menu. 4 courses for $32 and it came with a free shot of Sambuca. I must admit that Jess ordered best, but here is my selection. For my antipasto course, I had traditional veggie antipasto but I must admit, this is the best I've tasted. Roasted eggplant, asparagus, and red peppers with a fantastic rich compote of some sort and a roasted beet. Went together great and was only overshadowed by Jess's outrageous scallop. Wade's was good too.

Up next, the Pasta dish. I got Parpardelle with Wild Boar Ragu. This was fantastic. The only Pastas on that level are the rich Duck Ragu's you get at places like L'oca or Vetri. This was screaming fall. Spices like clove and cinnamon exciting the rich and highly reduced rich sauce that hours ago was broth. With tender strings of wild boar and perfectly cooked pasta, it was amazing. The highlight of my meal.

My Secondo was a roasted suckling pig. On the menu it had goat cheese which I'm not a big fan of (hey-don't give me crap) so I asked to get it without. The waiting was so confident and knowledgeable he pleaded to leave it in as he knew that was in there to take some of the richness, heat and saltiness out of the dish. We agreed that we would both cut some slack and leave it out but that it would be my fault if it wasn't fantastic. It was very good, but not fantastic. Maybe it was my fault but I didn't balk at those points he mentioned. To me, it was a little bland- kinda like a Chinese food brown sauce. Good, but not exciting. I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt. The duck special however that I was thinking about getting was out of this world. I stole a taste from Jess but could not gain access to any more.

Desserts- They're OK but nothing to write home about. So I won't. If you don't get the Turista menu, don't get them. If you are doing the tasting menu, then it's included so why not?

This was the closest place to the 4 out of 4 in a while but I just can't do it... due to the only okay desserts. I'm going to give 3.75 out of 4 little piggies. I know it's a cop-out but I'm writing this so I can do what I want. I will certainly be back to Modo Mio and you should go too. For the value, it is one of the finest places I have been and got me loving Italian food again!!!

Wade's Take:
I am a carb-fiend. So when I walked into Northern Liberties’ Modo Mio and saw the largest loaf of crusty bread I’d ever seen before, I was intrigued. The loaf, which was Umbrian country bread, weighed nearly 20 pounds. And I am quite sure that I am in love with it.

Bring on the specials when you dine at Modo Mio. For $32, you go through four courses which includes antipasti, pasta, secondo and dolce, aka dessert. Modo Mio, what a deal!

The amuse bouche was tantalizing. But that Umbrian country bread I was in love with was great. The bread came out with a sweet olive oil and butter/cheese hybrid. My mouth was brimming with my bread friend and her oily companions. Perfection.

My appetizer was essentially a mozzarella sandwich with anchovy caper butter. A finer grilled cheese I have never known. The bread was perfectly crisped on the periphery, and soft, gooey and warm inside. The mozzarella was at an ideal melting point and the anchovy caper butter gave it a sensational flavor kick.

The lamb and veal tortelloni with sage brown butter, as my pasta course, proved equally delightful. The meats were tender and well seasoned in their modest pasta shells. Like my theory of capers (“nothing can go wrong when capers are involved”), my brown butter motto stills holds strong (brown butter makes it better, baby!). Add in the sage flavorings, and you had a solid dish. The portion size, too, was amenable to my stomach.

My primary course was the skate special – lightly deep-fried with an incredible texture, balanced between crispy outside and tender flaky inside. The poisson sat atop lightly grilled eggplant and a nest of spinach. The dish was well-salted, and its intense sodium may have been too much for some, but did me right.
Dessert was a torta de chocolate – like a moist brownie with no trace of the vile nutella that was supposedly used to flavor it.

And what a view from inside of Modo Mio. There’s a sweeping view of the city skyline from inside the restaurant, so long as you sit in just the right spot. We were there at sunset, and the whole skyline had an amber glow. Plus, it gave me an excuse to look towards that delicious hunk of bread, worthy of Andre the Giant, once more.
3.5 out of 4 colossal loaves of bread

Jess’ Take:
Do not miss this restaurant. Dave and Wade did a great job so I’ll cut to the chase – I cannot stop thinking about the Parpardelle with Wild Board Ragu. It was quite possibly one of the best dishes I’ve ever had. I’ll also give props to the scallop antipasti – the scallop was done to perfection and placed on top of a sweet, egg-based bread. The combination is fantastic. Even though you have to get a dessert with the tourista special, it’s such a deal you can’t really complain.
I officially give Modo Mio a 4 out of 4!

Distrito

2008-09-26T14:11:00.000-04:00

Dave's Take:

Jose Garces has done everything in his power to make me not like Distrito but I just can't do it.

Jess put it perfectly. Continental Midtown and El Vez had a steamy interlude one night and out popped Distrito. I was surprised to see it wasn't Steven Star. It had all the annoying traits like an abnormal amount of hostesses that do nothing (thank god they're attractive) and a very pre-fab, chain looking interior that's trying too hard to be FUN. Absolutely did not share any of the classy and enjoyable aspects of Amada or Tinto.

Now I know this is an attempt to celebrate the street food and culture of Mexico City and it supposed to be a fun place and located near a college campus, blah, blah blah, but at my 3rd "enjoyment" of Sweet Caroline sung in Spanish by the lone roaming mariachi singer, I almost couldn't take it anymore (you can also enjoy My heart will go on, Hotel California and other "hits" multiple times during your dinner).

On to the food. It was great with one exception- the Camerones Ceviche. This was shrimp in a martini glass covered with a tomato sauce/salsa that tasted like cheap store bought salsa (the generic one without real veggies). It was very disappointing. The other Ceviche, the Atun, was awesome! Thin Tuna slices in a sweet and tangy coconut sauce with a hint of spice and some lime sorbet to tart'n it up. Very tasty.

Now, Tapas-style food is hard to write about because you get so much but luckily, its easy to enjoy. I'll concentrate on some highlights. The Bone Marrow- came out last and was a tasty treat. Marrow roasted in the bone served with accoutrements that included a Bacon Marmalade that I could have just eaten on its own. This is a sinful dish that is not American Heart approved, but it did win mine. Not as good as Ansil's (one of the best things I have ever tasted), but not a bad alternative. Huaraches is apparently Spanish for pizza, or flat-bread or something like that. Before I knew that, I decided to order the Guisados Huarache because it had short rib in the description. It was very good. Tender short rib with a BBQ type sauce that was rich, salty, smoky and overall fantastic. I also order the Tamales. These were good but were overcrowded by the rest. Steamed corn Tamale with a cubed pork sauce that was eaten quickly but not discussed about much. Special shout-out to the Crab special Jess got but I'll let her go on about that.

You can skip dessert, the Churros were good but probably not worth the calories that could have been consumed on another tasty Tapas. Same goes for the molten chocolate cake. It was good, but not great.

This will be a very successful endeavor. The Penn crowd is certain to flock like 2nd graders to recess and you can bet it will be their favorite place for mommy & daddy to pay. If I'm in the area, I'll be back but probably may not venture out to U-City just for a trip here.
Food gets a 3 out of 4 masked wrestlers. Overall experience notches it down to 2.75.

Jess' Take:

Since Dave was so thorough I’ll stick to the good & the bad (I think the ugly was sufficiently covered). The good: bone marrow… mmmm… Served in the bone, the experience of scooping it out is almost as enjoyable as the rich flavor. The portion size was sufficient for three people and we had a bit of a fish & loaves experience… it seemed to never end. When I asked for a doggie bag for the bones the server didn’t even flinch. Benson was one happy dog when we got home.

Another good: the rabbit mole. This dish was not the typical pulled rabbit that we’re so used to seeing, but actual pieces of rabbit meat, which needed to be cut with a fork and knife. Also very tasty and flavorful – although not a huge portion size.

Our server told us that we would be full with 2-3 plates per person but she obviously didn’t know who she was dealing with. We were satisfied after three plates/person, but could have easily ordered more. And should have – which brings me to the bad: dessert could definitely have been skipped. For all the effort and care put into each of our dinner plates, our dessert was disappointing. Maybe “bad” is a little harsh, so let’s just go with “not worth it.”

Over all a good food experience – the atmosphere is a different story.

Rating: 3.5 out of 4 happy dogs.

Wade's Take:

My eyebrow raises in concern. I’m having trouble focusing on what I eat. I’m sitting across the table from my fellow Philly Food Bloggers at Distrito, the latest in a chain of restaurants produced by Jose Garces. You may have heard of him; he’s the guy that’s created the masterpieces of Amada and Tinto. Both of these places are built on the concept of those teeny little taste sensations, tapas.

But my eyebrow still raises because I can’t pay enough attention to the details of what I’m tasting. I’m over-stimulated by Distrito’s colorful ambiance. It’s a fun joint, with lots of loud chatter and spastic energy. There’s a mariachi guitar player in the corner, belting out Spanish love songs… er, wait… nevermind. He just started singing N’Sync’s “This I Promise You,” mariachi style. I try to focus back on my food and what topical conversation we’re having. It’s hard. Distrito’s spaz-tastic nature is a trigger point for anyone’s latent ADHD.

But then I remember that if I have one skill in life, it’s eating. And that is what I’m there to do. We dive through round after round of Distrito’s tapas. There was a hamachi taco that was standard fare but overall unremarkable. Then there were the camarones ceviche… tsp tsp tsp… what’s that taste? Ah yes, ketchupy tomato paste with (clearly once frozen) shrimp, avocado, and plantain chips. More courses ensued, but some days later, they clearly aren’t that memorable.

I do recall the Tuetano. Incredible. Long hunks of beef leg bone roasted hot. What comes inside? My favorite. Bone marrow so soft you can scoop it out with a spoon. It’s accompanied by tortillas, bacon marmalade (heavenly), onion, jalapeno and cilantro. It was a solid dish. Ansill’s bone marrow still wins the ribbon, but Distrito buts up a good fight.

Dessert was molten chocolate cake – standard fare, served with avocado cream and lime sorbet. These were odd pairing that didn’t tango well in my mouth. We also ordered the churros with coffee ice cream and hot chocolate. This pairing was illustrious. Fried dough, chocolate and ice cream… how could you go wrong?

Beyond the wall of Mexican wrestler masks, past the mini car table in the lobby and further than the swing seats and glowing specials signs… there’s a restaurant in the midst of the Distrito circus somewhere. It may just not be worth finding.

Flash forward to one or two years from now. I’ll be sitting at a table at Distrito. It’ll be the first time I’ve been back since the original Philly Food Blog visit in September of 2008. I’ll be taking part in some birthday celebration, networking event or some such festive endeavor where the atmosphere matters more than the food. That’s why you go back to Distrito… not the food, but the spaz.

Two out of four repetitious mariachi guitarists.

Zahav

2008-08-21T07:10:00.000-04:00

Wade's Take:
I don’t know how to write about Israeli food. Its flavors, spices and cooking processes are pretty alien to me. But I do know how to eat it… and love it.

August found all of us in the PFB crew at Zahav, the fairly new (and very much critically acclaimed) Israeli restaurant in Society Hill.

My first taste of Zahav came through the Lemonnana, a bourbon, muddled mint, lemon verbena, and fresh lemon drink. It drank easier than a mojito, and was twice as refreshing as a glass of lemonade.

We had a salads course of eight small pickled, marinated and finely diced items in stacked metal cradles. Mainly vegetables, they did effectively whet my appetite for more and prepare me for some of the flavors we’d experience that night. Outside of the eggplant, though, I found most dishes to be a bit too salty for my liking.

We all shared our courses with one another, and the dishes that crossed our plates kept getting better and better. The three dishes I ordered proved excellent.

First was the basturma… scallions, air-cured beef, and garlic. It was my favorite of the night. The meats were rich and dark, rolled and served on a wooden platter. The combination of the cured meat and its toppings was ideal – pulling traces of both pepper and the tang of the scallions.

The chicken freekah had smoky, simpler flavors that worked well with the other dishes. The roasted almonds, in particular, were almost a palate cleanser in between bites of the other foods being passed around.

Last and most spectacular was the Jerusalem grill – comprised of chicken livers and sweetbreads. For those that don’t know, sweetbreads are the thymus gland of lamb, beef or pork (the thymus gland produces the helpful and hardy T cells). This dish had the best chicken livers I’ve had thus far in life (and I have had some incredible chicken liver dishes – thanks mom!). The livers were dusted in a light spice. They were tender and crumbled under light pressure from my fork. The sweetbreads were a heavenly white and overall great specimens. The full flavor of the livers worked well with the gentler flavors of the sweetbreads.

Turkish coffee was my final course. It was the best I’ve had. The deliciouso-sludge was naturally sweet and went down easily. This review was written some 4 hours later at home, at 1:30 am, as I still ride on my caffeine buzz. The Turkish coffee is well worth being a bit bleary eyed at work tomorrow.

Zahav has an open, conversational atmosphere. There are lots of warm brown tones on the walls and large windows with an expansive view of Society Hill.

The service was excellent, and our waiter was genuine and well-informed. Despite what I had read about lackluster service on other reviews of Zahav, we were very pleased with the service.

And am I feeling a little high and mighty and positively biased about the place because we were being photographed for Food and Wine and Esquire the whole time? Yes. Yes I am. Look for us in the December issues (perhaps), over-emoting and enjoying our tasty Israeli foods.

3 out of 4 paparazzi.

Guest Blogger Melissa Ross' Take:
I was honored to be a guest reviewer at this month’s Philly Foodie outing. When Jess said we were going to Zahav, I was excited since I had heard and read good things about it. Well, it certainly lived up to its reputation.

Since the menu was designed for sharing, we all ordered something different and created our own “tasting menu.” I started with the Jerusalem cocktail which consisted of prosecco and sabra fruit. Although it was good, it didn’t excite my taste buds. My favorite libation was actually Jess’s Israeli Salad Martini, which literally tasted like a salad. It was salty with a refreshing twist.

Our first course included of a variety of Middle Eastern salads, the eggplant salad being my favorite. I certainly went back for second and third spoonfuls. Being that we were at a Middle Eastern restaurant, we had to try one of their hummus creations. We decided on the unhealthiest option of all, the Turkish Hummus, with butter, grilled garlic, lemon and cumin. The consistency was unlike traditional hummus, it reminded me more of a mashed potato texture, but none the less, it was delish.

About halfway through our meal, our server mentioned there was a photographer on the premise taking pictures for Food and Wine Magazine. Once we spotted him, we noticed he was taking some pictures of our table. In my secret fantasy of being a celebrity, I chatted up the photographer and told him that we were fans of Food and Wine and if he needed some extra shots, we would be happy to pose for him. It turns out the pictures are also being used for Esquire Magazine.

With hopes of appearing in a nationally syndicated mag, came the hot Mezze course. I ordered the Yemenite Soup, with chicken broth, Yemenite curry, and potatoes. I enjoyed Dave’s fried cauliflower and seafood stew more than my own choice, but that is the loveliness of the small plate trend…lots to share and taste.

For our last course, I ordered “The Galil,” a safe choice of baby eggplant, tehina, pistachios and rice. Again, it certainly didn’t disappoint, but was not a standout creation. I tried Wade’s “Jerusalem Grill” a savory combination of chicken livers and sweetbreads. Who knew that chicken livers taste just as good before they go in the food processor for the perennial Jewish holiday favorite, Chopped Liver? And lucky enough for me I already had two drinks, so it didn’t faze me when Dave and Wade mentioned that the sweetbread was animal thymus. It actually had a very nice savory texture to it. But by far, Dave’s pick of the “Moroccan Pastilla,” the delish dish of rabbit, prunes, and almonds in a sort of phyllo dough wrap, was my favorite of the night.

About this time, the photographer came over and asked Jess and me to talk and smile a lot. Dave and Wade needn’t worry about acting, as they would be out of focus. I hope my friendliness and the fact that I was wearing a cute outfit, influenced the photographer to pick our table for Esquire’s feature of the restaurant. Check out the December issue of Esquire and hopefully you’ll see our unrecognizable faces in a picture where the bar behind us in the focal point. I believe the Food and Wine Magazine feature is December as well, but since it will only be plate shots, I wasn’t paying attention to the timeline as much. At least you’ll know we were there when the pictures were taken.

Overall, I give it 4 out of 4 pita breads. The food was creative and the sharing option allowed enough culinary variety that you are sure to find something you love with each course. Having been to Israel, the decor and ambience was authentic. But really, the best part of the dining experience was the company. I hope they’ll invite me back again.

Salento

2008-08-07T15:49:00.000-04:00

Dave's Take:

OK so this time I was really in the mood for some Pasta. For the few readers of this blog, it must be hard to believe but it was true. I was imagining some tasty treat like parpardelli pasta with rabiit ragu or something of the like and the from the reviews I read I was excited.
I usually expand on my reviews but I'm going to keep this one short. I will never go back to Salento. My appitizer was a meat ragu and they took that very litterally. It tasted like meat sauce from a jar. Flat and acidic. It was very dissapointing. Next up was my entree, a pork loin. I have had better roast pork at street vendors. Sauce was tastless and at the same time was overpowered by salt and pepper.

1 very disapointed Dave's out of 4

In other news, recently went to Osteria again. It was awesome but that's was already reviewed. Just thought I needed some positivity here.

Jess' Take:

What can I say? I just know how to order. While my dining companions were very unhappy with their food at Salento – I was satisfied (though not delighted as I had expected to be). I started with the Orecchiette Al' Anatra – a pasta with shredded braised duck, thyme, shaved grana. Delish. Very decadent and flavorful. And the perfect portion size, generous for a first course, but not too much.

For my second course I decided on the Coda Di Rospo, prosciutto wrapped monkfish medallions, white wine, shitake broth, mashed potatoes with leeks, sugar snap peas. Although I’ve certainly had better monkfish, the prosciutto enhanced the flavor of the dish. The monkfish itself proved to be a little chewy, when I would rather it easily break apart with my fork. Again, a good portion size. I was appropriately full without being stuffed. While my first course was excellent, alas it is not enough to bring me back to Salento.

I rate Salento a 2 out of 4. I’ll agree with Dave – if you’re in the mood for some mouthwatering Northern Italian grub, hit up Osteria.

Wade's Take:
Salento did me wrong. I didn’t even have high expectations, but this semi-new Italian place on Chestnut near Rittenhouse Square just didn’t perform.

My appetizer was octopus that was swimming in a white balsamic vinegar with onions and potatoes. It had the essence of a Genuardi’s potato salad, with tentacles. The whole dish had too much tang; the vinegar was tart and alone in its flavor. The octopus chewed slowly it my mouth, it was overcooked and rubber.

My entrée was forgettable. It took me a few moments to even recall what it was as I sat down to write this, some 4 hours later. I had the balsamico skirt steak with potato, balsamic drizzle, and green beans. Again, too tart for my taste buds. The potato was good, but nothing close to what I’ve had at any one of the eight restaurants we’ve blogged about thus far this year.

Desert was a chocolate torte with raspberry drizzle. The drizzle was canned. The cake was dense and rich… my favorite, but was so different than the rest of my meal I’m quite certain it wasn’t made on site.

Salento’s atmosphere feels like the place was just finished a few days earlier. It even still smells like fresh cut lumber. The room was vastly open, and not cozy at all. The lighting was bright, but felt artificial and harsh on the eyes.

What a complainer I am! But in a city of great eats, Salento just doesn’t shine.

One out of four tart tastes.

Les Bon Temps

2008-07-02T14:53:00.000-04:00

Wade's Take:
It burns from the very first sip. The swamp water flows over my tongue and gallops down my throat, its acrid vapors rising into my nasal cavity. I cough, my eyes water. Mon dieu! This is going to be a spiced night.

I’m sitting in Les Bon Temps, Philly’s latest greatest creole joint, deep in the heart of the gayborhood. There I was, waiting for my dining companions, watching over the restaurant from the second floor balcony and feeling mighty third person omniscient gazing at all angles with Les Bon Temps countless mirrors. I could see so well, in fact, that I witnessed the bartender dump a too-hefty-helping of Tabasco in my drink.

So there I sat, waiting, with a large swamp water drink in front of me. What made it so potent? Swamp water is Les Bon Temp’s take on a dirty martini, I guess… vodka, Tabasco, Hendricks gin, olive juice and a blackened shrimp as a floater. It was too much for meak ol’ me.
Despite this bad taste in my mouth (bad pun intended) I was spectacularly happy with the rest of the meal.

My starter was the crawfish spring rolls, served with marinated carrots and a ginger soy sauce. Sacre bleu! Crunchy and well textured with heaps of tasty crawfish meat… I was satisfied.
Dave’s eggplant beignets were the perfect symbiosis of sweetness and sass. The breading was fired with Tabasco, and powdered sugar was generously dumped on its top.

My entrée was a potpourri of many things Cajun. I had blackened Duck, fried oysters, and pulled pork shoulder overtop jambalaya. The pork shoulder as perfectly tender and richly vinegared. The duck surprisingly wasn’t oily and had incredibly crisp skin, but was a tad dry without its neighbor, a bacon reduction sauce. The fried oyster was coated in cornmeal, and bland, but balanced the diversely flavored jambalaya it rested atop.

People-watching was superb. We had a great time simply viewing the many guests as they entered and went to a private party on the third floor. What’s even better is that the numerous mirrors made it so we could all be voyeurs without even turning our heads (I’d also like to note that I 100% called the secret party’s purpose above us. It was a Philly Magazine writer’s going away party, BTW. Dave thought it was a Blood Brothers cast party, and Jess said something about an Aerosoles sales force convention).

I give this hush puppy 3.5 out of 4 fire in the bellies.

Dave's Take:
It was fate. I was listening to NPR the day we went to Les Bon Temps and heard about the Sazerac aka, the official drink of New Orleans. There is plenty of controversy about who invented it and exactly what's in it, but it is basically simple syrup, whiskey/bourbon, herbsaint/absinth and bitters. Hurricane's are for tourists, Sazerac are the deal as as they say. I was excited. I love Creole and Cajun food. Just the idea gets me pumped. Each cuisine is superb at melding bold flavors and ingredients with, if done well, sophestication and exquist techinque.

I loved the decor. Not sure what was there before but from the look it must have been vacant for quite some time because Les Bon Temps restorations huants back to the old days. It adds to the experience as you walk through the door and up the grand staircase to your Creole adventrure. As Wade mentions, he was drinking a crazy martini when we got there. I had a sip and moved to my Sazerac. My appetizer, the Eggplant Beignets were awesome. I love Cafe du Monde late night snacks and these were a twisted and extremely tasty pervesion of those. Think of roasted eggplant dipped in funnel cake, tossed in tabasco and covered in powdered sugar. Although it may sound weird to some, it was freak'n awesome. Savory, sweet, tangy sourness and good to eat. Like a rocket launch for your tounge.

Onto the entree- Crawfish Etouffee. This is my absolute favorite New Orleanian-style dish. The crawfish, the roux, the spices, the techinique, I love it all. I was pumped when I saw it coming over to the table. I am a little concerned when I saw the color of the roux but still waited with anticipation as I took my first bite. hmm, I though to myself as I ate, it's missing. Let me take another try I said to myself. Damn, there it wasn't again. What was missing? Taste. The dish tasted like crawfish, but the sauce tasted like something from a can. It lacked that wonderful complex flavor with spices and the right amount of heat hanging in the background. More like a Betty Crocker crawfish helper microwave meal. My associates had better entrees but I was too distraught to try to steal bites when they weren't looking.

I'm going to go 2.5 out of 4. I need to go back to get another experience and not order the etouffee. Had it not been for my disappointment in this essential New Orleans dish, it would have been a perfect score. Alas- I'm still in search of my perfect etouffee.........and for the Sazerac- certainly try one, but it's pretty sweet, at least here. I'll stick with a Manhattan

Although this is not my best review, I must stress that people should go try the eggplant beignets. At least go for a happy hour and snack on them at the bar.

Jess's Take:
Ode to Les Bon Temps

Yes, this is my first post since November (gulp)
Let’s say that’s because Les Bon Temps is one to remember (not that others weren’t)
Miss Judy’s crispy sea scallops were an absolute delight
The black currant balsamic reduction was not too sweet, just right
I ordered the seafood special with great anticipation
It arrived in a Creole tomato sauce creation
With my first bite I hoped to be brought back to the culinary wonders of New Orleans
I was left a little disappointed, the seafood was great, the sauce was a little weak (I mean, what rhymes with Orleans?)
In true New Orleans fashion we were stuffed by the time the main course was done
No room for dessert – really, none

Ah Les Bon Temps, I’ll be back soon
Despite my sauce disappointment, your character, charm and creativity left me humming a happy little Creole tune

I’ll give you 3 out of 4 stars this time
Maybe you’ll redeem yourself when next I’m in to dine

Coquette

2008-05-29T17:02:00.000-04:00

Dave's Take:
Coquette is a solid performer. First, the place has a great feel. Think of it as the love child of Sanson Street Oyster House and Beau Monde. It has that New Orleans, French Quater type feel. Very comfortable and very chill with a touch of class and character. The antesesis of Steven Starr.
We started out the dinner right. Martinis all around. My compadres got ambitious and went for the Oyster Martini's. I'm sure they will elaborate. Me, preferring to keep my oysters on the shell, opted for a Hendrick's up. Big glasses when filled to the proper amount went 3/4 up the rim. This makes total sense to me. Don't cheap out on the tiny glasses that spill over over the place when the server is bringing them over. Put it in a proper glass. Thanks Coquette.
The food is also strong at Coquette. I got a beet salad to start out. Wonderful roasted red & yellow beats with microgreens. Simple and Tasty, a great way to enjoy the breaking of summer. Would certainly suggest. I'm happy. My second course arrives, seared scallops. These were cooked well, and by that I mean seared, not cooked, with the tenderness and flavor preserved. They were served over little neck clams and a thin brith with sweet corn chowder and ample amounts of butter. It was very good.
The real winner here is the prix fix menue. Wade & Jess went with that and it was a steal. $30 bucks gets you an oyster app, an entree, a dessert, and a glass of wine. This is a great deal! Wade's steak frites were a little tough, especially for being med rare, but it was seasoned well and the fries were great. The desserts that came with the dishes were not memorable, but at $30 for the whole deal, you don't have to eat it.
To sum it up for me, Coquette, is a great place to have a comfortable dinner with friends or family. The feel is great and the food is good. I don't feel however that you will be blown away by anything so it may not stick out in your mind when thinking of all the places to eat in the city. But luckily for Coquette, the world needs solid performers and a bistro with a great feel fills that role perfectly.
Coquette joins the ranks of the select group of QV gems that prove there is more to that area than Fat Tuesdays (Ansil, Gayle & Latest Dish to name my other fav's)
3.5 out of 4

Miran

2008-04-18T14:44:00.000-04:00

Dave's Take:

I don't hang out much as 20th & Chestnut but now I have a reason to go. Miran is a great, fun, low-key place. The atmosphere is anything but luxurious. If it wasn't for the crazy vents hanging from the ceiling giving some visual interest, you think you would be in a Little Pete's or some other dirty lunch place. But the food and the prices make up for it.

The details: For apps, we got a Kimchee pancake. Think of the traditional scallion pancake you get at a Chinese takeout joint, but fill it with tasty, spicy kimchee and when combined with the soy-based dipping sauce made crispy fireworks in your mouth. The other app was very strange. Honestly, I forget the name but I would describe it as a playdough size rice noodle about an inch in diameter in a spicy sauce. The sauce was great but the noodle was too gooey.

Onto the main dishes. First we got the Dolsot Bibim Bap which is loosely translated as the Korean superior version of a fried rice bowl. First, the take an extremely hot stone bowl, fill it with rice, then veggies and some meat (we got beef) and top it off with an egg. The bowl is carried to your table sizzling and as that happen the rice is getting crispy. Wait a few minutes and mix it all up. The egg cooks and the individual tastiness's combine to form a taste superpower. A must have for my next visit. The rest of the meal was the Korean BBQ. This was fun. Not a culinary masterpiece but a good time. They bring over marinated meats (pork & short rib in our case) and you cook on this cool Butane grill built into your table. The meat taste great but is obviously not cooked to perfection. The social aspect makes up for it. I HATE the Melting Pot. You should not boil meat unless your planning on cooking it for a long time unless you want them to have the consistency of old tires. With grilling however, a quick cook under high heat is ideal so it is a much more enjoyable meal.

Not a date place (unless your in college) and not a place to impress clients, but a damn good spot for some fun tasty bites and some communal cooking. It's BYO, bring beer to wash down that spicy food and make you forget you overcooked your meat.

Wade's Take:
There’s something spectacular about cooking your own food at a restaurant. Even though it kind of makes you a sucker (think about it: you are going to a restaurant and paying $20 an entrée and they won’t even cook it for you?) it’s worth it for the interactivity and social experience of cooking meat with friends. Perhaps it takes us back to Neanderthal days, when flame and raw meat were the equivalent of myspace. Or perhaps it appeals to the control freak imbedded in all of us… “we don’t trust kitchens, so we will cook our own grub, damn it!”

Whatever the root, I love combining flames, food and friends. Miran is the place for it. This Korean restaurant tucked onto a block of Chestnut street with a pack of other asian joints is the best of the lot. It’s a BYO, so plan accordingly. We brought a bottle of Chinese white wine. Not a good pick on my part. I’d recommend finding some rice wine that drinks sweeter, like a Choujiu. Anyway, it won’t matter, because you won’t be paying attention to your beverage. The food will have you at hello.

Miran has lots of spicy dishes. There are a lot of subtle hot flavors in the pickling and chili sauces they offer. If you don’t like spice, advise them in advance.

We tried the Bibim bap, which is a rice dish served in a hot stone bowl with tons of veggies, a cooked egg and the meat of your choice dumped on top. Be sure to let it sit for several minutes once it’s served to you. This lets the rice get crispy brown on the sides and bottom of the bowl. Add a dallop of chili pepper paste to it and its set. Brown rice makes it even better.

The focus of Miran is the Korean BBQ. There’s a large recessed grill at your table, heated by a butane flame. We ordered the kalbi (short ribs) and pork kalbi (pork ribs). They give you a slew of veggies and sauces with them. It was great. Even the meat we overcooked a bit was delicious in its charred glory. Any meal with many tastes and textures is great for me. Hence, my love of Miran.

We ordered some appetizers as well, but they aren’t necessary. The Korean BBQ and bibim bap are enough food for most.

And Dave? I disagree. It’s a great date place, as long as she eats meat. When the conversation turns dry, you can talk about the broiling flame in front of you and how its reminiscent of your burning love for her (perhaps that is too strong of a come on for a first date, but you get the point). Places that keep you busy and working are great for dates with awkward long pauses in conversation. Trust me, I know!
Four out of four charred meats.

Hostaria Da Elio

2008-03-31T09:13:00.000-04:00

Dave's Take:

OK- I'm going to through it out there. The traditional Philly Italian with strong Sicilian influence just isn't my thing. I didn't grow up Italian (Irish) and didn't get the deep routed nostalgia of grandma's home made gravy (red sauce). So maybe I cannot appreciate it as much, or, maybe I'm objective. I'm not from Indonesia and yet I flip over that cuisine. There is some foreshadowing here......

OK- to the food. App. I got a simple green salad. It was good. Let's move on. I didn't want pasta and my ears perked up through the seemingly endless specials when I heard bone roasted veal chop in a mushroom sauce. Hot Damn! I thought. I can get over eating baby cows if they're tasty. The food looked fantastic when it came out but was just OK. It was not great. The sauce was one of those stock reductions that was so concentrated it would have overpowered rotting trash. Very salty and way too strong. No signs of thoughtful flavoring or attention to detail. The veal was cooked well and was tender. I will give it that, but overall, it likened going to someone's house for some mediocre osso bucco. Sure, it's not going to be bad, but it can be a far cry from the deliciousness it should be. At this point I'm thinking, I'll give it an OK review, until the check came. It was $30. Now, I don't have a problem order a $30 entree, but it better be damn good, not just mediocre.

Hostaria Da Elio, may we never meet again except when I pass you to go to Gayle or Ansill. 1 out of 4 sad Dave's

Wade's Take:
Hosteria Da Elio really ended up seeming like Hosteria Da NO-NO. Yes, it’s a bad pun, but I’m not investing the time to come up with a witticism on this one. I’m just eager to pound this review out and be done with it.

We didn’t like the place. I found some tastier items on the menu, but my companions weren’t so lucky. To be fair, the specials list was immense, which gives me the sense that we might have just ordered incorrectly. However, Jess’ pasta and Dave’s entrée were strong enough missteps to warrant this so-so review.

My appetizer was a beef carpaccio with capers, greens, and a reggiano cheese. You may know my rule with capers (“nothing can go wrong when caper are involved”), and it did prove to be a strong axiom once more. The carpaccio was sliced to perfection, and well balanced with the cheese.

My entrée was a wild boar sausage, grilled well and served with asparagus and mashed potaters. The sausage pulled salty on the tongue, but the smoked flavor was on target.

The atmosphere was great at first, with a personable, well spirited hostess, small tables and laid-back feel. Then the music started. We heard all the classic Italian orchestrated staples… including the Godfather theme. I felt like we had landed in Buca di Beppo, not a legitimate mom ‘n pop Italian joint. Such a small detail would be no matter normally, but coupled with the mediocre meal it was another unexpected disappointment.

2 out of 4 specials lists.

Las Bugambilias

2008-02-08T16:44:00.000-05:00

Dave's Take:
Las Bugambilias, aka, Tequila's 2 is a vibrant and tasty option. I say Tequila's 2 because the chef spent many years at the ridiculously scrumptious pillar of gastronomy but also because it had almost an identical feel. The food was very similar and tastefully prepared, the playfully kooky atmosphere was similar. Even the glasses were the same style (probably the same distributor, just a different color). Saying that, it does not exceed Tequilas in any way nor did it seem any cheaper. The Guacamole was great (a must of any self-respecting Mexican eatery) and my roasted pork entrée was very tasty but they would have been a Tequilas.Here's the deal- if you are in Old City, South street, Queens Village (watch out for exploding buildings), and craving some great Mexican go to Las Bugambilias. If you are anywhere else, go to the original. Las Bugambilias is Tequilas younger brother and will no doubt mature with age, but it needs to cut it's own path and stop living in the shadows (see Eli Manning). But like a sorority girl at a Union League meeting, I'm looking for a rich, mature sugar-daddy experience, and sticking with one of my all time fav's, Tequilas.3 Tecate's out of 4. Disclaimer- If I had not been to Tequilas before, Las Bugambilias would get a 4 out of 4, but like Iron Chef, you can be great and still not be the greatest (we love you Mario Batali). Now concludes my vague, pop-culture infused write-up.

Raddichio

2007-12-13T15:31:00.000-05:00

Wade's Take:

It was a somewhat Deb Downer that our last meal of the year was one of my least favorites. Now that I think about it, our first meal of the year was Cebu, another unappealing gastronomic adventure. Two of the lesser places started and ended 2007. That’s fine with me – let the less-fine places sandwich the rest of this year’ goodness.
I’d been hearing good things about the Raddichio café for years. Unfortunately, those whispers of good food didn’t pan out. The meal was fair to partly cloudy, not the joie de vie I had expected.

I began on an upnote with the insalata di mare. Take an orgy of squid, scallops, shrimp, mussels, and clams – toss them in some extra virgin olive oil, add lemon juice and you’ve got a party. It was light and the seafood was fresh (thank you to Sasha Isenberg’s “The Sushi Economy” for teaching me how to tell good seafood from the flash frozen stuff). The insalata di mare had me started in a good direction, despite the grumblings of one of my dining companions (rightly so) about his subpar appetizer and the waiter’s assault on Jess with her glass of red wine.

My entrée was Gnocchi ai funghi – potato gnocchi with spicy marinara and porcini mushrooms. It was a dish I could have easily prepared at home in 20 minutes with some basic ingredients from my local Trader Joe’s.

Although dessert set the bar higher (particularly a chocolate tartufo – dusted with cocoa and a crème center), I still cannot rate Raddichio above a 2 out of 4 italian accents.

In the end, I think the Raddichio Café is a place you’d take nervous traveler friends when they are in town. You know the type – those that only want to eat at Spaghetti Warehouse and any other “safe” chain restaurant when they have ventured into parts unknown.

Let’s see what guest writer Chris has to say. That Little Bit is full of sass, and I know she will have words about Radicchio’s lack of climate control (air temperature that went from burning to freezing and back again).

See you in 2008!

Dave's Take:

First I would like to start off with the positives. Radicchio is a very cute and comfortable. The prices are reasonable and the wait staff is very nice and attentive. If you want a nice place to go for a dinner with the family and do not need great, knock you socks off food, it's a safe bet. If you are looking for dynamic dishes with pronounced and interesting flavors, you might want to move on.

First we started off with some wine and they brought some bruschetta as an amuse bouche. The amuse bouche is always a favorite of mine because it's like a bonus taste. You didn't order it, you weren't expecting it, and bam bonus taste. The bruschetta was very nice. Plump tomatoes, roasted red pepper and onions obviously marinated in some heavy garlic and olive oil. Tasted great.

Things were looking up and I ordered a bruschetta for my app so I was very excited. The description read, Cannellini beans, arugola, onions, fresh tomatoes, oil and garlic and I'm thinking damn, that sounds awesome. I was anticipating a simple mix of those, perhaps with a nice flavor of rosemary and freshly ground pepper atop some petite bread slices. What I got was Progresso minestrone soup can dumped on some burnt white bread slices. Ok, maybe not actually progresso soup but you could have fooled me. It did not necessarily taste bad, but was not good. Would have been an OK lunch at the desk at work, but not an app at a restaurant. I guess for $6 I shouldn't be complaining, but I would have much rathered a smaller portion size and some more refined flavors.

OK, at this point I'm a little disappointed but still looking to my entree. Fusilli Positano. Long fusilli with jumbo lump crab meat, oil, garlic, arugola, fresh tomato sauce. Sounds tasty. It was just OK. Again, not bad, just not as exciting as it should be. The crab meat was top notch but the flavor were dull and the pasta was not fresh and a bit under cooked (not al dente). Tasted like something I would cook at home. Now, Jess's Whole Roasted Branzino was REALLY good. Although, I have not had a whole roasted fish that wasn't. I would certainly recommend that.

2 out of 4. I would go back with friends/family, but not if I'm making the reservation. For you Italian lovers out there, I'll give you a key. If you love Joey Italiano's Maplewood(s) (Jersey) then go to Radicchio. Food is on par or slightly better and prices are cheaper. Plus you can bring your own. If you are more the Osteria kinda person. Make another reservation.

AND... tonight we were joined by a special guest and good friend Christine Gronwaldt. And so, we are happy to present... our guest blogger:
Ok, ok, I know I’m only the guest blogger, so I should probably not be too over the top or critical in my first posting and be henceforth known as the “BitchFork”…but the Foodies know I am nothing if not blunt…
Radicchio is on the list of places that I‘ve heard most of my friends say they’ve been to and loved. And all I have to say to them is “what Radicchio did you go to?”
Feeling a little lazy in my ordering and wanting to just catch up with friends instead of reading and rereading a menu, I thought I’d just get the salmon. It’s nearly impossible for any restaurant to do salmon poorly. Sometimes you’ll even get the nice surprise of a great salmon dish that has an inspired flavor that’s enough to make you want to recreate it at home. This was not that dish. I was a little disappointed when my blandly, grilled piece of salmon arrived at the table. It was sitting in a pool of tomato juice and asparagus spears and none of the flavors tasted as if they were cooked together. The chunks of tomato and juice seemed more like they were poured in from a can and the asparagus was more than al dente. My salmon sat on top of this without much ado. I was unimpressed, and chocked this up to healthy eating since there was nothing creamy, cheesy, salty or otherwise unhealthy about my dish that would have made it taste better. At least I was happy that I hadn’t wasted a ton of calories on a mediocre selection.
I think Jess may have actually been glad to get the red wine shower that our waiter gave her since our table was positioned in front of a heating unit that could have doubled as a jet engine.
It’s always nice to end on an up note, so for a BYO, Radicchio is quant and spacious unlike many other BYO’s that try to pack the customers in like sardines. I loved the free little biscotti that came with coffee and our desserts. They were orange and nutty and a nice end to the meal. I also love when waiters have heavy accents so you have to strain to understand the specials. It somehow makes the food seem more authentic.
Thanks for the invite, Foodies, the company far outshined the food! Next time another friend tells me how great Radicchio is I’ll finally be able to correct them and point them to the much better Italian BYO selections in town like Porchini, Melagrano or Farmicia of which I’m still drooling over from last night’s portabella and eggplant dish.

James (on 8th)

2007-11-21T10:03:00.000-05:00

Jess' Take:
This place is amazing. I’d heard quite a bit about it, but was always discouraged by the location (8^th and Catherine) – a little too far south for me. But it was open on a Monday. And, we discovered, well worth the trek (which wasn’t actually much of a trek). The purpose of this blog is to comment on the food and not the atmosphere, but I’ll break that rule quickly here. It was so warm and cozy, with a fire place and chocolaty, warm colors, I wanted to stay all night. It may have had something to do with the dreary cold rain outside, but whatever it was I walked in and was right at home.
Although the menu calls for three courses, we opted for two each… knowing that dessert was a very viable option. I went for the braised rabbit agnolotti, muscat grapes & pecorino di fossa. Not something very typical for me, but I was feeling warm and fuzzy (maybe that was from my Hendrix & melon cocktail). I was not disappointed. The portion was small, but enough for this fairly rich rabbit ravioli. The grapes added a very interesting sweetness to the otherwise salty sauce. It was very satisfying, especially with a glass of pinot noir.
I ordered the butter braised john dory fillets, porcini & crisp apple for my second course. The fish fillets were meaty and delicious and complimented by thin slivers of apples. The dish was drizzled in foam of some sort – isn’t everything nowadays? Again, small portion but very rich. I should have been done here, but of course dessert was calling my name… specifically the pumpkin mousse with cardamom ice cream (homemade on premise) (pictured at top). I could have just had that ice cream and been satisfied for the rest of the week. It was delicious. The mousse was good too, moist and typical of pumpkin unsweet, but couldn’t hold a candle to its accompaniment.
Overall this was a great dinner. I left very full (no need to order three courses here) and satisfied. I would have happily stayed for another cocktail by the fireplace, but it was Monday and technically, that’s my “dry” day. Oops. I give it 4 happy diners out of 4.

Wade's Take:

James on 8^th, you made me happy.

I began with the butternut squash soup, poured together at the table, melded with bacon. The soup proved more salty than sweet. It left me thirsty, but feeling warm and effectively appetized.

My second course was the halibut in wrapped in a fennel nest, atop a saffron-basil sauce with celery. If I were a halibut, despite being dead, I would be most pleased to have been prepared some scrumptiously. The fish was moist, and perfectly cooked. The nest of fennel it was tightly wrapped in added more exquisite flavor. The celery was near impossible to eat, limp and stringy. Perhaps it was just an accoutrement to the main dish, not meant to be eaten. Nonetheless, I used it to enjoy the saffron-basil sauce that surrounded it.

As always, the most critical course was dessert. I ordered a chocolate terrine on fried bread (fancy pants term for buttered toast), rock salted with some fleur de sel. What it equated too was a rich chocolate goodness, dense and intense. Imagine an entire flourless chocolate cake, pressed into a 3 by 2 mold. Add some salt to the top, and lay the whole thing on some warm buttered bread. Hard to eat? Very. Worth ordering nonetheless? Absolutely.

The location was warm and inviting, almost like we were had a hipster friend’s house on a cold rainy Monday evening, commiserating over the start of the week amidst a dinner party. The sloped ceiling and comfortable, smoothly designed furniture added to our comfort.

The service was prompt and friendly. Our server’s exotic cheekbones were so sharp that she offered to slice our bread on her cheek flesh. Alas, we declined her offer.

James on 8^th, I’ll be back.

Three out of four Eighths.

Ansill

2007-10-08T09:08:00.000-04:00

Wade's Take:

This is a test of Ansill’s imprint on my foodie brain cells. We ate there weeks ago, and I’m only sitting down to write my review now. If it made an impression, I’ll have good notes below. If it didn’t, you’ll see a whole lot of white space. So here goes…

Ansill is about tapas. We seem to be in a pattern of tapas – although statistically it feels like every one in three joints in Philly is a tapas place. Odds are if you are dining in Philly, you have a small plate in front of you. This is sort of ironic, for a city known for its fat-a-tat-tat portions.

One of my life mottos is “Nothing can go wrong when there are capers involved.” This proved true when I ordered the bone marrow salad with capers. The bone marrow came out in three lumps, which I spread on a pressed, deeply buttered bread. I’ve never smeared anything quite so good.

Second up to the table was an order of large gulf shrimp and roe served alongside two herb butters. This was my most conservative order of the night, but it still hit the mark. The two butters were unique and complemented each other well. One was herbed with basil and thyme. The other was blended with roe and saffron.

My final entrée order was crispy lamb tongue with mint and chick peas. I have to admit, I ordered this as a sort of Fear Factor element to dinner. It demonstrated good taste and texture, however. It was done just right (it can be easy to over-cook tongue and make it rubbery), and the mint salad that flanked it was a light and zestful pairing.

Of the dishes my partners ordered: The scallops were the antithesis of chewy and satisfied with their zing. Dave’s charcuterie plate offered much to enjoy, from pickles to bread and spreads. Jess’ brussel sprouts were heavily flavored with strong smoky tones from apple-smoked bacon.

Dessert was a chocolate ganache that was dense but good. It was too rich to eat by myself and absolutely needed to go down with a coffee or cappucinno. We also tried a violet ice cream. Yes, it did taste a little like soap, but this made it even more invigorating.

The chef was on-hand all night at the bar, drinking, telling us tidbits about our food and turning up his alt-rock iTunes mix on the stereo to near deafening levels.

I guess I remember more than I expected. That’s a good sign for Ansill.

3 out of 4 drunkard chefs.

Osteria

2007-09-05T19:34:00.000-04:00

Dave's Take:

Marc Vetri turns out incredible food. Osteria is no exception. Take the culinary perfection of Vetri restaurant and throw in a Bistro-style atmosphere and reasonably priced wine list and you get a dynamite place. Of course, like Vetri, it takes forever to get a reservation but you do have an option to eat at the bar or counter by the kitchen which is nice. Now, on to the food. My first course was the salumi plate. All were very tasty and sliced fresh in the middle of the restaurant and most were made in house. The main course was a special of roasted pig. Obviously slow roasted, it was one of the best pork dishes I've ever had. Juicy bit of meat from various cuts, favorably seasoned with a mix of rosemary and other herbs. It came with a few roasted potatoes cubes to soak up some of the juices but they were overshadowed by the tastiness of the pork. I wish it was an everyday item because it was that good and I want to have it again. Then dessert. The waiter suggested the chocolate flan which we weren't that into until he explained that it wasn't the flan we're used to. This was basically a molten chocolate tort. Now were talking. It was very tasty. Nothing too special, but a solid performer. We also got a mascarpone based custard ringed by a shortbread crust, drizzled with a balsamic-rosemary sauce and accompanied by some fresh figs. OK, so it sounds a little weird and I cannot remember the name (I think it was a special) but it was great and was a combination of flavors you might not think would work but went done right, was an adventure. It was a nice change of pace from the normal dessert selection.

I love this place and hope it turns around North Broad. It ain't cheap, but it's worth it. 4 out of 4 rosemary sprigs

Wade's Take:
The paint smells like it is still drying on the walls of Osteria, it’s that new. The menu, however, feels like it’s been around eternally. The flavors of Osteria are done right. The dishes are well-balanced. The service was smooth. If you didn’t know better, you’d think this place has been around for decades. They get it all right.

Que? Yes, that’s right, I liked the place.

I didn’t want to like it. I wanted to believe the Philadelphia hype engine had gotten its hands on this place, too (like the “raved about” Rae and “can’t be beat” Carmine’s, which were somewhat disappointing). I expected snobbery, small plates and out of bound pricing. I got none of them in Osteria. Well, maybe the prices are a tad high.

I had a starter of wood grilled octopus, cured lemon, potato, and chives. Right on. The potatoes were small cubes of soft starch with deep and nutty olive oil overtone. The octopus was grilled with precision and topped with sea salt and lemon. I soaked up every ounce of food and liquid on the plate, using the table bread to my advantage.

My entrée was the rabbit casalinga with sage, pancetta, brown butter and polenta. Word up. I liked it. The trouble with rabbit, as is common with oryctolagus cuniculus, is that it is a bony mess to eat. The pan-fried brown butter goodness made up for the difficulties in getting to the meat.

My only regret? Not ordering one of the pasta entrees. They looked magnificent. Well, I guess I’ll just stop by and give it a try the next time I’m in North Philly looking for a hipster gourmet slightly overpriced meal.

3.5 out of 4, I say.

Jess' Take:

Our anticipation was high for this restaurant – especially because it took us nearly three months to get a reservation – a pretty ridiculous amount of time considering the number of tables the restaurant has. As soon as we walked in and I saw the cured meats, I know we were in Dave and Wade’s own personal heaven. Although our waiter tried to persuade us to order a pizza to begin with, we declined, which in the end would not have been such a bad idea. Instead, we each decided to order our own apps. I began with the grilled veggie plate, which was not on the menu, but apparently something they offer every night. It was simple but tasty and a good start to a fantastic meal. For the main course I ordered the wood grilled halibut with chanterelles, mussels and scallions, which was buttery and full flavored, if not a little small for the price. I happily sopped up what was left with the ample amount of bread that was brought to the table. There was definitely nothing healthy about that course. The highlight for me came with dessert. We decided on two, the chocolate flan with pistachio gelato (of course), which turned out to be a sort of molten chocolaty goodness, and the some crazy dessert with rosemary. I was definitely skeptical about the later, but it was one of the most amazing desserts I’ve ever had. When it was all over (the saddest moment of the night) we found ourselves satisfied but not incredibly full. The waiter was right; pizza would have been a good start. I would happily go back to this restaurant any day. Although, you can bet that I won’t be just “finding” myself in that neighborhood, unless I’m headed to Osteria.

Definitely a 4 out of 4!

Gayle

2007-08-15T09:08:00.000-04:00

Wade’s Take:

I didn’t expect to like Gayle. I thought it was going to be another quaint Philly buzz spot, with an over-attentive yet snob-erific staff. This is what I was told to expect, and I am happy that I was quite wrong. The staff was warm and conversational. The room was small and comfortable. The meal was exceptional.

Eli Collins – bless you for existing. This drink unique to Gayle was uber refreshing. Designed by Gayle staffer Eli Collins, it is fittingly based on a Tom Collins, but replaces the lemon and sugar found in a TC with cucumber and a lemongrass simple syrup. At first sip, thoughts of sushi danced in my head. The flavors were reminiscent of a cucumber roll initially, but as I got further into my drink it tasted simply refreshing. Healthy and spiked – I may start skipping coffee in the morning and replace it with an Eli Collins.

My entrée was the skate, liver and onions. Notice the comma after skate. I initially thought the dish was skate liver, and was intrigued. Lucky for me, there is punctuation behind skate, otherwise this dish would have been quite miniscule.

The skate was great. The liver delivered. It was a great pairing. The liver was a bit rare, which made it soft and flavorful. It wasn’t the tough, well-done (to kill the bovine spongiform encephalopathy) Pennsylvania Dutch liver I’m used to. The onions were perfect on the side, light and aromatic.

Dessert was chocolate donuts, unfortunately it’s not typically on the menu. It came with a pot de crème, also known in certain circles as a pot de awesome. I couldn’t get over this donut. It was a god among insects.

I’m interested to see what my fellow PF Bloggers say. I didn’t hear them raving too much about their entrees during the meal. But then again, I was too busy raving about my lunch date with Mademoiselle Margaret Kuo to hear them if they were talking about their plates.

Three donuts out of four.

Post script – The morning after, I awoke with a tremendous craving for donuts like those I’d indulged in the night before. I walked to Wawa in desperate hope to meet my ravenous desire for any hint of the prior eve’s flavor, and found none of it. Donut smashed all over my face in my hurry to indulge, I stood in the aisle of the store with a sad face and wept inside.

Post post script – Our media maven Jess is drafting a press release about our visit to Osteria later this month, we are that excited. Honestly, I think we expect trumpets to blare as we arrive. Hopes are high for a good meal… probably too high.

Dave's Take:

Without question, the best Mako I have ever had. Perfectly cooked. Juicy inside with a slight crisp to the outside. Not overseasoned and accompanied by very tasty yellow watermelon slices and thinly sliced yellow tomatoes then topped with little lightly breaded tempura potato wedges. Really, really good. To start, I had the White Asparagus soup with Almond Semi Fredo. The chilled soup was very refreshing but a bit bitter on its own. When you tasted it with the almond semi fredo (like almond sorbet) it had a really nice balance.

The staff were friendly, the place is as cute and comfortable as any of the top BYO's in the city (formerly Azafran), but here, they pour the booze. The wine list was small but had a nice range and good selection. They also had a nice selection of specialty cocktails that, thank god, were refreshing on a summer day and not the over-sugared crap most places try to push on you. Think a muttled cucumber and lemongrass collins take-off. Almost tasted healthy….hmmmm

A little pricey but worth it for an occasional comfortable celebration. Certainly a stark contrast from the overdone high-budget Rae but luckily the food is just as creative. Besides the awesome wine-paring dinners at Rae, I'm going to Gayle when I'm looking to experience Daniel Stern's awesome dishes.

So close to the perfect 4 out for 4 but due to the price/value, I'm going to have to settle on 3.5 of out of 4.

Tinto

2007-06-20T14:40:00.000-04:00

Dave's Take:

Dear Tinto,
You should not feel like the inadequate sibling. Sure, you're younger and smaller than your sister Amada, but you've got a lot on your side. For one, you're not in old city, you're in Rittenhouse kiddo. No need to fight off the club crowd with stretchy pants, glitter and the sense of privilege because they just paid $12 for a well liquor cosmo at Glam. You've got a good crowd. That Tria loving, Rouge brunching folk. Another thing you should be proud of is you're sense of timing. Sure, everybody loves Tapas. Little tastes of heaven that change with every small plate. But you've identified that most people spend a lot of time saying "hey what's that, when did that come, who ordered that, damn I didn't get to taste it, what's that over there" and solved it by coordinating like-minded items into courses. Sure, I would hate to be a dishwasher there, but I'll be glad to eat. Oh yeah, and the food is awesome. I'll let my compadres expand on that.

Props to the kitchen staff. They were cramped, seriously cramped and working hard, but turning out outstanding dishes with artistic flare.

Wait for it, here it is………4 Serrano's out of 4. Going back for sure.

Wade's Take:

Tempo. Rhythm. A good meal has these things and a good wait staff sets it for you. When we landed at Tinto, we found both.

It’s rare that you can slow my chow pace. Very rare. It doesn’t matter what the cuisine is, I will eat it quickly. If foodie society dictates that I should slowly and gently caress the flavors of a rare arctic penguin pate in my palate, I don’t care. I eat it quickly and savor the flavor between bites. I know it’s not right, especially as a food lover. But I can’t help it. Blame it on our have-it-now culture, blame it on my voracious love of food highs, whatever – I still can’t stop myself. Tinto changed this aggressive gastronom-ific pace, and I loved it.

Tinto focuses on pinxtos (I think it’s pronounced “peen choes”) which is the Basque region of Spain’s delectable version of tapas. That means they bring it out as part of a well-orchestrated plan to keep your taste buds dancing and tantalized all night long. Right on, I say.

I tried three beautiful pinxtos, each quite spectacular. The De Gambas was shrimp, grape tomato, chorizo and chile. They were giant, succulent shrimp and I loved every ounce. The Kobe beef pinxtos I gobbled was called De Ternera Kobe, also recommended.

My favorite? Clearly the Oxtail, a perfectly salty and rich meat, balanced on a bed of avocado, sweet flavorful tomato and airy bread.

Chocolate bananas hit us for dessert. Specifically, Bananas Y Azafran, a chocolate cake with caramelized bananas and saffron crema. A perfect end note to a beautiful song.

Zento

2007-05-25T17:20:00.000-04:00

Jess' Take:

This week it was just Wade and I for dinner, as Dave was stuck in NY traffic (not to worry, I brought him home some sushi, so he could share in the culinary experience). This was a tough one, because we had just recently eaten at Uzu, one of the best sushi joints in town. The look, feel and location of Zento were familiar to Uzu… small (although not quite as small), BYO, Old City. Unfortunately, the similarities ended there.

Wade and I shared identical meals, beginning with the Miso soup, which was good, but nothing to write home about (and what is next to Morimoto’s miso soup?). We then ordered several pieces of sushi and several of their more unique rolls. The first disappointment came when we tried to pick up the sushi. The rice fell apart almost immediately, splashing into the soy sauce. So we ended up eating a piece of sashimi and clumps of rice afterward. While the fish was good, it was not excellent (again, Uzu was fresh in our minds). The rolls provided a more enjoyable experience. However, I’m picky about my rolls (who isn’t?) and hate when tuna is in the form of small, left over pieces, rather than whole, cut pieces. I just imagine the sushi chef taking all of the remains from the tuna sashimi and sushi and mushing it together inside the roll… which may very well be what happens. Although we weren’t completely stuffed when we were finished (as we like to be), we decided not to order any more, but for a hot second did contemplate making a quick stop into Uzu for a roll… for the road.

Overall it was good, but not impressive. If you’re in the neighborhood, there are better choices.

I give it two pieces of fallen rice out of a possible four.

http://www.zentocontemporary.com

Rae

2007-04-25T10:28:00.000-04:00

Wade’s Take:

I don’t know what to think about Rae. It’s a schizophrenic place in a bustling, city setting. The food was as good as I expected, but I never felt comfortable inside its high-ceilinged, too new atmosphere.

It’s odd to be in the “best restaurant in Philadelphia” and hear 80’s music at the bar, and to have your dining companions be people strapped with luggage waiting for the Keystone train to Harrisburg. With the prices and the commuter patrons from across the northeast corridor, I felt as if I should have been dining with some small-talking, booze-loving business partners and expensing the whole deal on my padded corporate expense account. Alas, I have no padded corporate expense account, and my friends the fellow Philly Food Bloggers make no small-talk (thank god), but do love booze (from Thursday – Sundays only).

It wasn’t comfortable inside of Rae. I felt like a sniper could pick me off at any moment from one of the surrounding walkways, and the table was crowded. I hate crowded tables. It all truly made me feel that I was at the airport, waiting for a flight, not at Philly’s next great restaurant. Now that I’ve established that I’m a whiny prick, I’ll get to the real important part, the food.

The onion soup set my hopes high. The soup was textured with carmelized onions and a deep, hearty broth. It was good on its own, but amazing with its plate-side friends. Served with the onion soup were parmesan crisps and a rich onion fondue. Delectable. Had I not been in the company of my classy, sophisticated fellow PF Bloggers, I would have considered lifting the fondue vessel high above my head and letting its hot cheesified contents pour straight down my gullet.

For my entrée I ordered a beef tenderloin with braised short rib and marrow ravioli. I made a mistake by eating the small braised short rib (that was an accompaniment only) first. It set my taste buds dancing. The meat crumbled underneath my fork. A softer meat I have yet to know. Digging into the tenderloin afterwards was a disappointment, compared to the short rib’s success. The frenchie-french flavors in the reduction were done perfectly, but my meat was a cool lump of normality. The marrow ravioli sounds much cooler than it actually is in reality (although the thought of eating bovine stem cells made for a pleasant [albeit untrue] feeling of immune system enhancement).

The white chocolate mousse? Not my favorite dessert – but I am a victim of advertising. I see the word chocolate (white or not) and I still expected some hints of brown mocha on my mousse, or perhaps some flecks of dark cacao. What came out from the kitchen was a sweeter, albino version of my expectations. Did I still eat it all? Absolutely.

Did I mention expensive? I dropped a lot. Much more than usual. And then $22 to park in the Cira Center? Pshaw. Next month the PF Bloggers might have to eat at a diner to make up for lost cash. Maybe there will be real chocolate there.

Uzu

2007-03-23T16:02:00.001-04:00

Jess' Take:

Yum… Sushi….

I think all three of us would agree, there are many places in this city to get good sushi, but not many where you can get really good sushi. Luckily, your odds just got a little better with the addition of Uzu, which just opened two weeks ago at Front and Market. The sushi is amazing. And the price isn’t bad either. The restaurant is teeny tiny, so if you’re arriving with more than three people, I’d call ahead.

The ginger dressing is perfect, with a slight peanut flavor, and the “compliments of the chef” dish was out of this world. Torched fish with hot oil… melt in your mouth good. Our cardinal mistake: not realizing that one order of sushi is actually two pieces. So we actually ordered for six people, as opposed to three. Did that stop us from eating it all? Of course not! We stopped just short of finishing every last piece (two lone pieces remained on our platter), for fear of bursting at the gills. I’m certainly putting Uzu on my “must return to list.”

4 chopsticks out of a possible 4

Dave's Take:

You can be about 75% sure how good a sushi place will be when you walk through the door. Not because of the décor or what the sushi chefs look like, but because of the smell. If it smells like fish, walk on out. If they are touting a 1/2 price menu, call a doctor. If it smells of the distinct brininess of the sea and the fresh nuttiness of good green tea, you have yourself a winner. Once you walk in you can tell you have that 75% chance that Uzu is good. Once you eat, you can tell it's great.

Jess did a great giving you the lowdown so I just want to add a few points. First, it's a BYO which is great if you plan ahead. Bring you favorite bottle of Kirin or Sake and enjoy. Second, the chef was friendly and knowledgeable. When we order a few pieces that were not available, they waitress informed us so but the chef popped in to explain the reasoning was due to the fact that the season had not yet peaked and the good fish wouldn't be in from Japan until another week or two. That hinted that it wasn't poor inventory management, they just wanted to save on printing menus and for a small place like this, I'm cool with that. It added intimacy. Oh yeah, and the fresh live scallop was the best I have ever tasted. Why do we cook those things anyway?

Go to Uzu. Go early or call ahead because it is as small as you can get. Enjoy. Just remember, they are two pieces per order.

Wade's Take:

Uzu is the best sushi I've had in town for some time. F'real. We ate like royalty (accidentally over-ordering) but ate the whole darn feast, it was that good.

Uzu is a hidden (small) treasure hidden in Olde City. The owners, and the size, will ensure you have an intimate and delectable sushified experience.

Copper Bistro

2007-02-21T14:43:00.000-05:00

Daves Take:

I need to admit that I wasn't really that excited about going to Copper Bistro. From the website and reviews I read it seemed like just another American, Continental, whatever BYO, bla, bla, bla. To some extent that is true, Copper Bistro is very similar to a lot of the BYO's in Philly, but that isn't that bad of a trait and CU has a good thing going. A nice cozy interior with exposed brick and that intimate BYO appeal. The staff was also very friendly, comfortable and attentive. I ordered the Prix-Fixe menu they offer on Tues & Wed. I'm often scared to order something like that because it loosely translates as "this is a bunch of stuff we need to get rid of before the weekend shipment comes in" but it looked pretty good so I went for it.

The first dish was a cream of mushroom soup which would have sounded more appealing if they called it a wild mushroom bisque or something similar. It wasn't like campbell's cream of mushroom believe me. Great mushroom taste strong with porchini and it was thin showing the use of real cream without thickeners. Good start for me. My attitude about the place is changing. I tasted Jess's gnocchi which is one we aways critique hard. The flavors were very nice but alas, the gnocchi was not light and fluffy as we always hope for but rarly get. Saying that, I would order it again. Next up, one of my signature orders, roasted pork loin. It was great. Perfectly cooked medium rare, juicy and seasoned well. It was piled atop carmelized onions with smokey bacon giving it a complex but not overpowering festival of pork taste. My compadres entrees were also tasty. The bronzino was small but very flavorful and Wade's chicken (can't believe he ordered chicken) was also cooked to perfection leaving it tender and juicy. My opinion of the place totally changed. I'm digging it now. Dessert time. Wade says "I'm scared to order dessert because I don't want to be let down after having a great meal." We agreed but ordered anyway. Damn, he was right. Not worth the calories. The warm chocolate cake tasted like a betty crocker recipe you made in college in the microwave. The creme brulee tasted rushed as it was obvious the eggs were not tempered well before baking leaving a distinct scrambled taste that plagues disappointing brulees. But at least we know it wasn't the jello pudding crap with carmelized sugar that some places try to pawn off on you.

Overall, if you are doing the Philly BYO tour, certainly put CU on the list. If you can't get into Sovalo, walk a block down and try CU. It's a great find. Just don't order dessert. I'm going with 3 pennies out of 4.

Cebu

2007-01-26T08:18:00.000-05:00

This week we ventured to Cebu (123 Market St). The massive space previously housed World Fusion and Rococo. We were excited to try the restaurant because the chef was from Cuba Libre, one of Philly's best restaurants.

Dave's Take:

The building was very open and inviting so I was surprised when I kept needed to slide my seat in for people to get by, especially when there were only 3 other tables at the restaurant. The decor was cool at first glance but then you notice things like the half vase on the wall with extremely fake looking flowers. Wine list was reasonable with a good selection of Spanish and South American wine. Still very hopeful. The appetizers were a let down. Especially since I was craving some good Ceviche and got what was really just seared tuna with some sauce and little gelatin cubes that taste like gummy bears. Don't get me wrong, I love gummy bears, but not when billed ceviche. So far, not that big a fan. Here comes some redemption. The skirt steak entree was good. Marinated and grilled, piled on top of mashed potatoes that had a hint of wasabi and generous lumps of back fin blue claw. Final thoughts: 2 out of 4. Outlook: This is a doomed space and it needs a dynamite or creative revamp to survive. This is not it. Let's hope the next restaurant is.

Jess' Take:
We got an appetizer trio, or what they call the Cebu Trifecta, getting to taste the Shanghai Lumpia (by far the best of the three), Ceviche Kinilaw (which, as Dave mentioned, was really seared tuna) and Tokwa. This ended up being a most cost effective way to try the three appetizers. They were nothing special, but we were starving, so we scarfed it down. Also, they served guava butter with the bread... pretty tasty. My big mistake was ordering the Paella. I was intrigued by the description, but it turned out to be very unenjoyable. Very fishy tasting and dry. I ended up eating a good portion of Dave's dish (more than my allotted 20%!). No dessert included chocolate, so we declined, which was a good move once we got the check and realized how much pricey it was. Over all I give it 2 dry mussels out of 4.

Wade's Take:

It had me at hello. At first, anyway. Walking into Cebu makes you feel grand. The beams of colored light, enormously high ceilings, snaking wooden bar and gargantuan vases make the ambience memorable (with some cheesy details).

Cebu’s interior makes for great distraction up and away from your plate. I guess it's needed, because I liked only about a third of the dishes I tasted.

Of the three appetizers we tried – only the Shanghai Lumpia was memorable. There were three sauces served – one tasted like some Bath and Body Works product a sorority girl would rub on, the other was too tart, but at least the third was a spicy concoction to my liking.

When it came to the entrees – guess what? I only truly liked Dave’s skirt steak. Jess' Paella was subpar. The Kare Kare was good, but if I’m dropping these kind of bucks I want something more than what tasted like Philipino potroast.

We skipped dessert – where are the chocolate options, I ask?

Even after all that - I’d give it another shot. Cebu is one of those places that is your back-up to your back-up. When out-of-town guests demand ethnic food in Olde City, and Morimoto and Cuba Libre are full – I guess that’s when you head to Cebu.

Two oxtails out of four.