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Notes from the Weekend: Christmas Weekend Edition
Notes from the Weekend is a feature that sees the members of Team Meal Ticket compiling all the food/drink highlights uncovered during prime eatin' time, Friday to Sunday. (Friday to Monday this time, for the holiday weekend.)
Notes from the Weekend: Christmas Weekend Edition
Notes from the Weekend is a feature that sees the members of Team Meal Ticket compiling all the food/drink highlights uncovered during prime eatin' time, Friday to Sunday. (Friday to Monday this time, for the holiday weekend.) Consider this a place for good deals, great dishes, wicked cocktails, recipe triumphs (and tragedies), bizarro conversations and more. We're eager to share our notes, but especially excited to read yours.We encourage you to leave notes from YOUR weekend in the comments. Have at it! (View past NFTW installments at citypaper.net/notes.)
Adam Erace: AE
Drew Lazor: DL
Katie Linton: KL
Alexandra Weiss: AW
This is cheating because it technically wasn't the weekend yet, but I had lunch at Pub & Kitchen (1946 Lombard St.) on Friday to take advantage of their extended holiday hours. Got a barrel-aged Manhattan and the pot pie. Amazing. Everyone left the city Friday evening, but luckily for me some friends were having a Hanukkah party. I was worried I'd have to go and drink about it at El Bar alone, but instead I drank egg nog (ew, sorry I'm not sorry) with a room full of people. —AW
Since no local Italianos invited me to their at-home Christmas Eve seafood dinners (whatever AE), we decided to visit Amis (412 S. 13th St.) on Friday for a restaurant take on the ethnographically ambigious Feast of the Seven Fishes. Chef Brad Spence, who's Irish, killed it with plates like swordfish meatballs over polenta (they had a lil' meat in them; I think he secured papal dispensation allowing for the inclusion of fatback) and lasagna layered with all-tuna bolognese (unfair). Dessert saw traditional sweets like pizzelles and cookies, plus pistachio-ed rice pudding and egg nog semifreddo. Felt fat and happy as Fezziwig afterward and had to be rolled back to the whip. —DL
Whoops: Accidentally used some of Uncle Patt's $100 bottle of Mount Gay rum make egg nog on Friday. He got over it after tasting six beers from the Joe Sixpack variety case my boyfriend Howard and I got him for Christmas. We snacked on havarti and pears as we sampled each beer and rated them on a scale we created for the occasion (sample categories: "give it to the dog" and "preorder for next year"). Troegs Mad Elf and Corsendonk Christmas Ale were among our highest-scoring. We circled and re-circled the dessert table — my favorite offering was the iced sugar cookies. Sounds boring, but know that Two Smart Cookies in my hometown of Savannah, Ga. has the most delectable sugar cookies on the East Coast. Order them and see if you don't agree. —KL
Gingerbread house designers: Are you kidding me?! C and I attempted to construct an idyllic gingerbread village on Friday night and instead wound up with gingerbread District 9. Shit is hard! We got bored after half an hour and ate it. Sorry, gingerbread prawns. —AE
Had myself a bagel with cream cheese and avocado and a coffee at Milkcrate (400 E. Girard Ave.) while waiting for my dad to pick me up. We drove out to Ocean City, N.J. to spend the holiday with my mom and some family friends who bought a house out there. Listened to cautionary tales from dad's hitchhiking years before stopping at Bagliani's (417 12th St., Hammonton, N.J.) for some of their provolone, basil pesto gouda and asiago with espresso. Their meat-and-cheese man, Joe, informed us that Iberico prosciutto costs $119 a pound (!). DL later informed me that it's so expensive because the pigs are "hand-fed acorns and also get like massages and Ivy League educations before they turn into ham." —AW
You know when you go on one of those hours-long, drive-around-in-circles errand schleps and when it's done you feel like you don't have a damn thing to show for it? Did one of those Christmas Eve, but at least we got slices from Lazaro's (1743 South St.), which, when consumed in a vehicle (happens frequently en mi vida), is known as Carzaro's. Later was M's Polish family's annual Dec. 24 get-together — all-seafood like the Italians, but with the vital addition of pierogies. Some pickled herring was passed around and I was one of 1.5 people who enjoyed it. Cracked festive Belgians picked up from Brew (1900 S. 15th St.) once we finally got down to my hometown in Maryland. —DL
Saturday night, the Feast of the Seven Fishes became the Feast of the 14 Fishes as we split the night between my parents' and C's parents' houses. We started in South Philly first with mussels white, stuffed calamari, clams casino, bacon-wrapped scallops, crab gravy and more before heading north to Bucks County for fried smelts, crab-stuffed mushrooms, crispy baccala, seafood stew (and more). I passed out on the couch around 11. Allegedly I snored. —AE
I was apprehensive about Christmas Eve dinner because I was told in advance that it would be some sort of boiled meat thing. I love beef as much as the next red-blooded 'merican girl, but boiled? Turns out it was less "boiled" than cooked in wine. The recipe called for Barolo, but the guys at the liquor store laughed at us when we asked if they had a cheap bottle of that, so we subbed in Cabernet. I should never have doubted. It was amazing. —AW
My South Georgia clan began Dec. 24 piled onto the sofa, watching Elf and eating the sandwiches — dinner rolls stuffed with ham, Swiss, mustard and butter, then baked — my family reserves for Christmas and early-morning tailgates. My brother requested the Varsity for lunch, a Georgia hot dog/hamburger staple. My favorite side of theirs? Pimento cheese. That night we observed a Christmas Eve tradition by having beef tenderloin for dinner. The cut is lean, so my family always adds "a little butter" for flavor (see picture). Alongside the beef were a number of tasty items, including rutabagas, which you might know as "northern turnips." —KL
On Christmas morning, C and I woke up and opened presents (shearling-lined boots! automatic pot stirrer! Sour Skittles!) at the crib before churching it at St. Thomas Aquinas, where they do mass in FOUR LANGUAGES. Very multicultural but I wish they served roti for communion. Stopped over at my parents' for a Christmas brunch of bagels, poached eggs, lox and cookies, then rode back up to Buxco for dinner. C's dad makes these things called "perpetts," all-beef meatballs flattened into discs and shallow-fried in olive oil. SICK. Ate 17 of them or so, leaving room for lasagna, regular meatballs, sausage, braciole, unbelievable homemade escarole soup. Tart, refreshing rainbow sherbet made the ideal dessert. Rainbow sherbet is poised for a comeback I think. The frozen yogurt of 2012. You heard it here first. —AE
As a Christmas gift from my parents, I was allowed to take the chorizo out of the casing for this breakfast skillet we made. It also had eggs, spinach, shallots and roasted red peppers. Seriously good. I'm spoiled, though. My parents are incredible cooks, so whatever they make is bound to be great. —AW
Christmas Day was filled with funzo gift-opening as visions of eating eight to 11 Ferrero Rochers before noon danced through my head. Actually it wasn't visions, I legit scarfed those because I found them in my stocking. Rest of the 25th was amazing food-wise — my fam continued their tradition of putting up a CHEESE TREE, which contractually must be written in all caps. It's an idea my mom got from one of those chintzy recipe books stocked in the grocery checkout, but it's an ace one, as the CHEESE TREE is a Tannenbaum constructed out of queso that you chop down with Wheat Thins. Shoutout to Sister of Meal Ticket EL for employing the highly skilled CHEESE TREE mitts you see above. For dinner, another family tradition — a big bad rib roast and my dad's specialty, Yorkshire pudding, which puffed up so aggressively I almost jabbed it with an Epipen. —DL
It wouldn't be Christmas without having Chinese for dinner — we are Jewish, after all. Took my parents to Wong Wong (138 N. 10th St.) and split wonton noodle soup, Peking duck, bok choy with garlic and clams with pork. Real kosher. After they went home, I was worried once again about having to go to El Bar alone, but a friend told me that a bunch of them were going to the Khyber Pass Pub (56 S. Second St.). Drank another Manhattan there and ate a ton of artery-clogging bacon grease popcorn. —AW
Sunday: Howard and I began our 11-hour drive at 6 a.m., packing our cooler with some of the healthiest road-trip food I could muster. We knew that most places would be closed on Christmas Day. Gas stations were open, though, and one BP was giving out free coffee! Five hours into the trip I introduced my Yankee boyfriend to a southern road-trip delicacy — peanuts poured into a Coca-Cola bottle. I am glad he liked it. That might have been a deal breaker. —KL
Finally made a point Monday morning to bundle up and ride down to Federal Donuts (1219 S Second St.) to try the fried chicken. A good friend of mine works there and stayed at my place the night before to get to work on time (6 a.m.! WTF) so I couldn't NOT go. Got the apple walnut and the caramel banana donuts, as well as the harissa and the chili garlic fried chicken. A friend met up with me there, but like a nerd, I forgot he'd already eaten breakfast. So if anyone wants some fried chicken, I've got tons. —AW
Had the day after Christmas off, so headed to a quiet Tashan (777 S. Broad St.) for lunch. Stayed traditional with the entrée (bangin' butter chicken) but went new-look with my starter — skewers of beef served with a soy reduction and cuke-peanut relish. Very nice. Lovely service there too. I enjoyed playing with the iPad drink list but was a little bummed it didn't have Bejeweled 3 on it. —DL
KL, can you please elaborate on this Southern move of putting the peanuts into the Coke? What happens after that? Enlighten this Yank please.— Drew Lazor- whoops! responded down below. See full descriptive instructions there. — klinton2
- My eatin' weekend was srsly hampered by a case of Christmas Plague, but here are some highlights (/lowlights) nonetheless:
--Friday night we had family over for dinner for a Secret Santa exchange. Served Tunisian stew a la Moosewood, with Termini goodies (hello rum-soaked baba) for dessert.
--Saturday we took a bus to NYC for Rockefeller/Fifth Ave madness. Had lunch at a sweet Upper West Side Italian place called Bettola's (Italian eggs benedict!), snacks at Insomnia Cookies and coffee from a 30 Rock-adjacent bakery whose name I can't remember.
--Things get fuzzy from there, and I won't torture anyone with the details. Let's just say my mom made candied bacon and I hear it was delicious.— CarolynH - Christmas Day I was elected to make a Turkey. It was my first turkey made for my new family (got married in July) so the pressure was on to not eff it up. Used my usual recipe that calls for the bird to be roasted breast side down. This always ends in the juciest, most tasty breast meat on a turkey and this time was no different. Stuffed with veggies and herbs, teh bird takes on some great flavors. I saved the carcass so I could rock some turkey stock for soup, which is a first time for me. The soup will be made tonight. Needless to say, the house smelled ridiculous two days in a row.— Cropulis
- @ DL You shake that whole bag of peanuts into the bottle and then throw some back-- allowing a few peanuts to slip into your mouth with each chug. Let the sweetness of the Coke and the saltiness of the peanuts swirl around in your mouth for a minute before you chew the peanuts up and enjoy the flavor explosion. You going to try it, hm? :)— klinton2
- Drove to Boston for the holiday, leaving on Thursday night. Despite being in Boston, only got to go out twice. Friday night we hit up our usual in-town spot, Exchange St. Bistro in Malden. It's the only good place in that city to get a beverage. More specifically, multiple beverages. They have an extensive martini menu, which changes frequently. They've also delved into the tapas offerings, which range from $2-8. The pulled pork slider served pretty well to soak up all the Hendricks so cleverly disguised in my martinis.
Christmas eve we went bowling with my wife's brothers, and then to Kowloon. If you've never been in the area, Kowloon is a massive chinese restaurant with a capacity for a few hundred. The food, especially on a holiday weekend where the place was packed to the walls, reflected that volume. Fortunately they were pretty quick with the Singha, so it was bearable.— LouPerseghin - All that holiday goodness pales in comparison next to a slice from the mighty Lazaro's!— Marc Steel
- So we started XMas eve snacking on goat cheddar & soppresetta, then moved on to the 2.5# lobsters I picked up at the Asian Supermarket (no idea what it's called but it's the one 11th). I clarified some butter cut lemon wedges and made some black pepper pecorino biscuits YUM! with it we drank toad hollow sparkling wIne with it's thoughtful hinge-y cap closing thing. After we washed the lobster juice off the walls we settled down on the couch to watch the rest of It's a Wonderful Life with a box of Marcie Blaine chocolates ....the next morning after the cats opened thier presents we all had French Toast (Rics cinnamon bread soaked for 2 hours in homemade egg nog)and Cafe Estelle Honey Bacon which I cooked sloooooowly in the oven, plus fruit salad of blackberries, pomegranate, kiwis and raspberries plus some bourbon spiked whipped cream. We drank Blue bottle coffee with eggnog & bourbon and then poinsettias w the remaining toad hollow sparkling + cranberry juice+ bitters + pomegranate seeds.... We were in total sugar shock till we arrived for xmas turkey dinner in collingswood. Saved the traditonal Jewish Xmas dinner for boxing day ...
— Awaks - GUYS I take back what I said about having extra fried chicken. Had a stroke of genius and going to make baked ziti with it. Sorry for being an Indian giver.— aweiss
- @DL Love that description of your pop's York pudding.— AdamErace
- I lost my voice the Wednesday before Christmas as an early gift to the boyfriend (we decided that I sounded like Selma Bouvier and went around rasping things like "Jub Jub!" and "Turn on MacGuyver!") so he treated us to the usual spicy crunchy tuna and eel avocado rolls from Shan Chuan in East Falls Friday night.
Saturday we drove to my mom's in Bucks early so we could start drinking as early as possible. The brother-in-law brought beer, my mom supplied the wine as chosen by my knowledgeable brother who works for the PLCB, and we brought sake, whiskey, St. Brenden's, and champagne for mimosas. We snacked on the basics: brie with nuts and raspberry preserves, horseradish and bacon dip from DiBruno Bros, and spinach dip before a crazy dinner of turkey, stuffing, pineapple souffle, ham (blech), bacon mac and cheese, and then cookies and whiskey cake. So so gross and so good.
I got a cast iron skillet from my sister which I baptized with pepper bacon from the Amish market and then sausage gravy for biscuits that morning. Christmas dinner was a quick stop to my grandmom's in the northeast-I had fried shrimp and half a meatball sub, I was too busy eating my aunt's ricotta cookies. The boy and I left early so we could put on our new pajamas and bust out the egg nog.— JulieC
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