Notes from the Weekend: August 9

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Notes from the Weekend: August 9

POSTED: Monday, August 9, 2010, 11:43 PM

Filed Under: Notes from the Weekend

Notes from the Weekend is a Monday feature that sees the members of Team Meal Ticket compiling all the food/drink highlights uncovered during prime eatin time, Friday to Sunday. Consider this a place for good deals, great dishes, wicked cocktails, recipe triumphs (and tragedies), bizarro conversations and more. Were 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.)

Rachel Burgos: RB Adam Erace: AE Drew Lazor: DL

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Headed down to my ancestral home of Baltimore for the night on Friday to celebrate a good friend's birthday. Natty Bo from the beginning. Blue crabs were on the agenda; we read about a great deal (three dozen for $70!) on the back of Baltimore City Paper, then drove out to Dundalk to pick up the haul from Coveside Crabs. In our famished haste, however, we totally failed to realize that the price was so good because these suckers were all the way live. New mission: Locate a big-ass pot. We did, and with the help of a fellow reveler who also happened to be a seasoned crab seasoner, cranked out one of the dopest boils I can remember. Back next weekend? DL Friday: Went to The Khyber (56 S. Second St.) and Lucy's (247 Market St.) in Old City to celebrate a friend's bachelorette party. Danced away the couple of vodka-cranberries I drank; hated the drunken, obnoxious crowds milling about toward night's end. RB

Photo | Adam Erace

Friday, scored all kinds of on-sale barbecue swag at the Oregon Avenue Acme, including kitschy corn-on-the-cob holders and eight-packs of metal kebab skewers for two bucks and change. Raided Frangelli's for ice cream doughnuts (see Eat This Immediately) and later downed a quick lunch at Sky Cafe (1504 Ritner St.), an under-the-radar Indonesian spot on a block better known for Cacia's and Primo's. Copped crispy tofu salad bathed in ferociously spicy peanut dressing, followed by an herbaceous lime-colored coconut soup loaded with fried chicken and potato cakes. Bonus: the vastly underrated Jennifer's Body blaring on the ceiling-mounted flatscreen. AE

Photo | Drew Lazor

Back in Philly Saturday night to grab a great whole bronzino at Hoof + Fin (617 S. Third St.), which quite possibly boasts the nicest, quaintest, cutest, quietest outdoor patio area (above) in the game. After that, lots of liquor-swillin' at Adsum (700 S. Fifth St.) and Southwark (701 S. Fourth St.), plus a Jim's cheesesteak that I was apparently unable to hold like a human being. DL

Photo | Rachel Burgos

Saturday: Went to the Royal Tavern (937 E. Passyunk Ave.) for their wonderful meatloaf sandwich. Paired that with their version of an Arnold Palmer, made with black tea, vodka and lemonade. Then spent a low-key night in watching The Art of the Steal with a bottle of J.K. Scrumpy's hard apple cider. RB

Photo | Adam Erace

Spent Saturday eating Roman amounts of summer fruit dusted in lime sugar. DIY by zesting two limes into a cup of sugar, mix and sprinkle over watermelon, cantaloupe, peaches, etc. As powerful a summer condiment as mustard and relish. AE Sunday: In the morning hit up B2 (1500 E. Passyunk Ave.) for a mozzarella/tomato/basil sandwich on an everything bagel and an iced coffee. Strolled by the DooWop Car Show & Street Festival. Got a roasted pepper & sausage Marra's (1734 E. Passyunk Ave.) for dinner. It ruled. RB

Photo | Adam Erace

Sunday: Beached then barbecued, impaling chicken, salmon, zucchini, red onion and multi-color bell peppers with those on-sale skewers. Marinaded the meat and veg in EVOO, dijon, lemon zest, red pepper and backyard herbs that caramelized beautifully on the grill. Ate them with a salad from my container garden: sweet yellow Snowberry tomatoes over leaves of Amish Deer Tongue and Golden Tennis Ball, heirloom lettuces even an impatient klutz like me can grow. AE

Photo | Drew Lazor

Adam Erace's latest Top Chef Not So Quickfire got us in the mood for a bit of Ethiopian, so we ordered takeout from Almaz Café (140 S. 20th St.), in my opinion the tastiest and most slept-on Ethiopian joint in the city. The coffeeshop menu is tiny compared to the options at the big boys like Abyssinia or Dahlak, but they make up for it in flavor everything's good, but don't miss their vegetarian combo (above), their dorowat or the kitfo. For the American sweet-tooth in you, though, they make one mean-ass chocolate chip cookie. DL

rachelburgos

Posted 2010-08-09 20:24:46

I am way jealous of the weekends Drew and Adam had. I will most certainly dust any and all fruit that comes my way with lime sugar.

tim

Posted 2010-08-09 21:14:45

Friday night was at home with a Negroni followed by an IBLT (Irish bacon, lettuce & tomato) on Wild Flour Yards ESA bread.  And several homebrewed witbiers.

Saturday dinner: many Yards Saisons and a Standard Burger at the Standard Tap.  

Sunday, it was all peaches, all the time at Osteria. Started with a Siena cocktail, made with bourbon, Aperol and muddled peaches.  Then the *must eat* Pesca pizza -- peaches, chanterelles and lardo (I made sure to save some for Monday lunch).  For secondi I had veal shoulder roasted in hay with peaches, pistachio and radicchio.  Dessert was sweet ricotta fritelle with raspberry jam. Totally unnecessary but so good.  On the way out, we passed Jamie Moyer and family on their way in.

Michelle

Posted 2010-08-09 22:53:56

Tim, this drink you speak of sounds delicious.

Drew Lazor

Posted 2010-08-10 01:25:25

Pic! http://twitpic.com/27du30

Alex Moore

Posted 2010-08-17 19:09:28

Dear Drew,
  My name is Alex Moore and my parents own Coveside Crabs. We are so glad that you tried us and enjoyed your live crabs! We believe that cooking them yourself is just as much a Maryland tradition as the crabs themselves (plus it's actually pretty easy to do). We sell crabs until end of October/early November so we hope to see you again this year! Thanks for the shout out and posting your awesome pictures of our family business. 

Enjoy your week and hope to see you next time you have a craving for crabs!

Thanks,
  Alex

Coveside Crabs

Molly Eichel

Posted 2010-08-09 23:46:09

Cantina's breakfast burrito w/veggie sausage redeemed the restaurant from a I-don't-know-what-that-is-but-it's-not-chilequiles previous brunch experience. I didn't come close to finishing it but wasn't hungry for the rest of the day. Delish.

The dominator

Posted 2010-08-10 01:34:39

Haha Drew, glad my birthday could appease the crab desire, though minority chaotic we pulled off one of the best set of crabs I have had (26 year MD resident) so yes that needs to happen again, the sooner the better.

Tweets that mention Notes from the Weekend: August 9 :: Meal Ticket :: Food Blog :: Philadelphia City Paper -- Topsy.com

Posted 2010-08-09 19:00:37

[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Drew Lazor, Meal Ticket. Meal Ticket said: Latest NOTES FROM THE WEEKEND is LIVE. Read what @adamerace, @drewlazor & @negitron did, then share in the comments! http://bit.ly/bvLbuh [...]

danya

Posted 2010-08-10 07:29:23

Cafe de Laos makes a crazy duck curry. Crispy duck nuggets lie atop veggies covered in a brown curry sauce with multiple deep flavors and just enough heat to make you stop and pant every several bites. Although they forgot one of our appetizers in the full Sat night room, I'm def going back ASAP.

Neal

Posted 2010-08-10 11:56:35

Went to Sidecar for half off pork sundays! Pork Nachos and Sweet pulled pork bbq over cornbread. All for half off. 

The rest of the weekend was all applesauce, crackers and pepto. You can guess why.

poncho

Posted 2010-08-09 22:47:36

Sunday morning I had one of my favorite breakfast sandwiches, the egg and cheese from Ants Pants.  It has sharp cheddar, 2 yolk-oozing eggs and is served on the most delicious long roll.  Does anyone know where they get their bread? That roll and the honey wheat toast are some of my favorite breads!!!

Drew Lazor

Posted 2010-08-17 22:50:41

Alex, great to hear from you. It was only right to do my little part to spread the word, you guys do an awesome job. And you're 100 percent right about steaming the crabs themselves...I fell out of the habit for several years but am definitely back at it now. Thanks and cheers!

Andy

Posted 2010-08-10 00:06:38

I'm going to osteria is eat that pizza ASAP.

Adam Erace

Posted 2010-08-10 00:18:47

As am I.

brian howard

Posted 2010-08-10 12:16:46

Was in Michigan visiting family.

Friday: Hit the Hop Cat in Grand Rapids and did a flight of Hop Cat brews (Sage Against the Machine, Kodiak Killer, Red Panda, Hoppapotamus) and non-Hop Cat brews (Livery's Double Paw IPA, Arcadia's Hop Mouth and B Craft Black, and Short's Huma Lupa Licious). Left with a growler of Hop Cat's Sage Against the Machine.

Saturday: Hit Marshall's Dark Horse Brewpub, not far from the big oil pipeline spill (in fact, there was a smell of tar in the air). That didn't distract from enjoying a Double Crooked Tree IPA, a Sapient Trip Ale and a beer called Rod, a red ale brewed with herbs and apparent aphrodisiacs. 

Sunday: Ate many hot dogs and an Atwater Block Michigan Lager as the hapless Tigers trounced the even more hapless Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim at Comerica Park.

Meal Ticket’s 2010 in Pictures: August :: Meal Ticket :: Food Blog :: Philadelphia City Paper

Posted 2011-01-02 22:12:00

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Founded in October 2008, Meal Ticket is a City Paper blog about food, drink and assorted other things that make you go mmm. We do recipes, interviews, restaurant news, commentary and much more. We don't do restaurant reviews here — those are handled in print, mostly by our critic (and Meal Ticket contributor) Adam Erace. Got a tip, question, thought or concern? Just want to say hello? Please shoot a note to caroline@citypaper.net.

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