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Archive: February, 2013
Limoncello mistress Joan Verratti, who we've written about before, has been selling her water-based 'cellos at state stores (lemon and chocolate) and her East Passyunk tasting room (those, plus orange and lime) since the holidays. Today, she'll premiere her cream-based liqueurs in five flavors on the Ave.: lemon, orange, chocolate, banana and strawberry. That last flavor, says Joan, "perfect for Valentine's Day."
P.S. Joan and Tom are hosting a grand opening (read: tasting) party for their 1908 E. Passyunk Ave. 'cello-porium on February 23rd from 1 to 8 p.m.
Could this be our favorite Dude Food yet? It could! Chefs Jeff Michaud and Brad Spence walk you through the process of making the waffle recipe they pilfered from Paul Kahan and now serve at Amis (412 S. 13th St.) slathered in Nutella butter and ice cream.
In honor of Valentine's Day, watch the Dudes good-naturedly gripe at each other like an old married couple about who burnt the hazelnuts and whose sloppy egg-cracking is likely to result in shell fragments in the batter. And unless there was something off-camera we missed, it looks like Michaud can't even hear the word "batter" without giggling. (We're not judging, Jeff! We're right there with you. Unless you're laughing at something else, in which case, uh... us too?)
Sad news out of West Philly: If the lapsed liquor license and turned-off telephone is any indication, Zocalo is closing, the Insider is reporting. Greg and Mary Russell's cantina has been a Powelton Village fixture for 23 years—can you imagine 36th and Lancaster in 1990!?—but struggled in recent ones, evidenced by a visit from Kitchen Nightmares' Gordon Ramsay, who decluttered the space and de-Mexicanized the menu in November 2011. At the same time, Ramsay also filmed at Passyunk red-saucer Chiarella's. Should we consider them on watch as well?
V-Day gifts from the kitchen, a cocktail crawl through Old City, and a new happy hour for Amblerites, all on today's Afternoon Snacks!
Looking for some last-minute Valentine's Day gifts of the handmade kind? Food52 rounded up nine of their favorites, including the super-simple chewy chocolate meringues seen above, homemade Tootsie Rolls, and Thai peanut butter cups that sound outrageously good. Solid scientific fact: homemade sweets make people feel 1000x more loved than store-bought ones.
As the mid-winter calendar crawls by at a glacial pace, there’s not much to keep spirits from sinking. Well, how about some delicious free beer? No matter your neighborhood, check this schedule of samplings and tastings we’ve compiled for the rest of February (and one in early March for good measure). We can only hope that some complimentary sips just might reinvigorate at least a little of your lust for life.
It's official: Bryan Sikora is on his way out at a.kitchen (135 S. 18th St.), and the ownership there is starting a nationwide hunt for a big name to replace him.
What's not official is what's next for Sikora. Eater is reporting that he's heading to Wilmington, DE to helm a bakery-café called La Fia, but Sikora has yet to say yea or nay on anything specific. While Philly has plenty to celebrate diningwise, and has been doing well poaching big talent from other cities, this one would be a big loss (oh, and p.s. on the bummer front, sounds like John Shields has definitely opted for DC, too).
Sikora has been racking up the praise in his two years at a.kitchen, and of course before that was part of one of Philly's favorite erstwhile power couples, opening Django and Talula's Table with Aimee Olexy. We'll keep you updated on Sikora's next move and his replacement as things develop.
While it is age old romantic wisdom that food and love (sex?) go together, at no time is this celebrated more than Valentine’s Day. Candle-lit dinners, chocolates and conversation hearts are the conventional choices, but for the food lover in your life, may we suggest something a little more creative to express a tender sentiment?
Local craft and cute things shops are offering plenty of awesome food-centric Valentine’s stationary and gifts this year. Among our favorites are the cheeky “Like” cards by South Philly artist Cathy Cribb of Re.Mark. These minimalist images pair complementing foods into cozy duos that serve as sweet reminders of how you just know when something feels right. Re.Mark products can be found on Etsy, in Old City’s Smak Parlour, and Nice Things Handmade on Passyunk Ave.
The cupcake stars have aligned (we know that’s not really a thing, but it should be) and brought Philly a gift. Attorney-turned-baking-goddess Kate Carrara, who gave us the Buttercream Cupcake Truck (not to worry, it’ll return again this March), has opened a café and bakery by the same name in Pennsport (2015 E. Moyamensing Ave).
On Saturday, Carrara initiated her new place with an extravaganza filled with bourbon and free cupcakes, and now you too can get in on the fun by stopping by Tuesdays through Sundays to try her creations. They come in the $2.50 Standard varieties (like Red Velvet with Cream Cheese and Banana Cake with Nutella Buttercream) and the $3.25 Fancies (like Turtle Dulce de Leche and Sweet Potato with Fluff Buttercream).
Oh, and get this: if you can’t bear to leave the comfort of your tub (thanks for that one, Lena Dunham), Buttercream delivers (a minimum of two dozen treats at a time, with a $10 charge for locations within a five mile radius of Center City). Do what you will with that information.
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. We'd love to hear all about YOUR weekend eating adventures in the comments. Go for it! (View past NFTW installments at citypaper.net/notes.)
Adam Erace: AE
Caroline Russock: CR
Emily Kovach: EK
Mardi Gras plans, space food, and art going up at Cheu, all on today's Afternoon Snacks!
What are you doing tomorrow? Work? School? But you can get out of that, right? Because it's Mardi Gras, and the obvious way to spend it is with a day-long visit to Khyber Pass Pub (56 S. 2nd St.). To celebrate, they're throwing themselves right into happy hour when they open at 11 a.m., then doing a second happy hour from 4-6 p.m. All day, Louisiana-favorite Abitas will go for just $4, and of course there'll be no shortage of gumbo, étouffée, and beignets to fuel you through to last call.
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