|
|
|
Closings
Rich Landau and Kate Jacoby, who recently announced they're pulling the plug on their vegan restaurant Horizons (611 S. Seventh St.) after service this Saturday, July 2, are officially talking about their new Philly venture: Vedge (1221 Locust St.), a bar/restaurant they're characterizing as the diametric opposite to LA's temple of meat worship, Animal. The old Deux Cheminees space (at one time the target location of Stephen Starr corporate chef Chris Painter's Il Pittore) will feature a vegetable bar, where chefs will plate up cold fare like olives, antipasti and even vegetable "charcuterie" boards. Adajcent will be the hot kitchen, designated for roasting, grilling and smoking. Jacoby will still handle dessert ("fruit forward, but still sinful," we're promised). Vedge will also feature craft beer and wine lists and a selection of cocktails. Expect a "late summer" debut.
Rich Landau says Saturday, July 2 will be the final day of service at Horizons (611 S. Seventh St.), he and wife/partner Kate Jacoby's lauded vegan eatery off South. (We had the full backstory on the closure back in April.) Between then and now, Landau promises he'll cook both "classics from days gone by and some tastes of what is next." No official word on the couple's new restaurant just yet but they hope to announce more details sometime next week. Here's the rundown on that spot, from our April post:
That new vision will be birthed in the hugely hopping Midtown Village area — Landau says they've narrowed their search down to three spaces in the neighborhood, but are "very close to signing with one." It'll be a small, 50- to 60-seat liquor-licensed restaurant (no name yet) with a focus on small/medium plates, as opposed to the more traditional appetizer/entrée/dessert approach. It'll also mark a definite shift in cooking style for Landau, who's well-known for his elaborate treatments of proteins like tofu, seitan and tempeh — he wants to bring the focus back squarely on the great variety of vegetables available to chefs in the region."Beautiful, amazing vegetables are our passion and inspiration right now," says Landau, "and we want them to be centerstage."
Just came across this Facebook update from Tyson Bees, chef Tyson Wong Ophaso's popular West Philly-based food truck.
Hi Everyone, its been a pleasure serving all of you. It breaks our hearts to tell everyone that the Tyson Bees crew will no longer be operating the truck. Currently, the company is going through a transition. We are working on future plans and hope to see you soon. Thank you for all your support. We love you all and will keep you posted.
Pretty shocked to hear this news, considering Ophaso's big Philly following and positive press (here's Adam Erace's very complimentary March review) — the pic above is from the truck's participation in the Food Trust Night Market just a few days ago. Though perhaps this means the TB team is focusing the whole of its efforts on the Thai BYOB it's been working on for months now. We've got calls in to Ophaso and his people and will be sure to keep everyone updated.
UPDATE [12:05 p.m.]: Just got off the phone with Ophaso, who tells Meal Ticket that he and partner Cliff Asavadejpakdee are out of the truck due to a disagreement between them and the three partners with whom they launched the operation. "It's been a lot of back and forth, like a ping-pong table," says Ophaso of negotations between the two sides over the running of the truck and launching a proposed Thai restaurant at Sixth and Catharine.
Moving forward, the truck at 33rd and Spruce will continue operating, but without Ophaso and Asavadejpakdee inside; it's still unclear as of now whether or not they'll change the name from Tyson Bees, and Ophaso is not sure whether they'll change the menu. Meanwhile, Ophaso and Asavadejpakdee are hunting for a new opportunity — either a mobile operation or a brick-and-mortar storefront — to continue cooking in Philly. "Our efforts, talents and commitment are devoted to the consumer," Ophaso says of his local fanbase. "We have a lot of friends and support here, [so] we hope to get a [new] location in Philly. This is such a good town with the food truck scene right now."
Photo: Clare Foran
Stopped into James (824 S. Eighth St.) and snagged a pair of stools last night — though Jim and Kristina Burke originally planned to call it a day at this location in June, they announced earlier this week that this Saturday will be their final night of service. Get on it — I hear they're pretty booked up for tonight, but there are still some Saturday slots; regardless, you can always show up and hold it down at the bar like us.
For your reading pleasure, an except from my review of West Philly’s Moroccan quick-serve, Marrakesh Express (4407 Chestnut St.)
"Most of the dishes from the family recipe box, a homeyness underscored by uncomplicated flavors and straightforward preparations. Think everyday vegetables, steamed (carrots) or sautéed (string beans), tossed with garlic, parsley and ras el hanout. With so few ingredients, the normally overlooked rises ascendant. Regulation parsley, for example; It's lemony and bright and key on these veg. Or extra-virgin olive oil swirled through the surface of the creamy, ink-violet lentil soup, the double-dose of richness in this peasant's purée. Olive oil also anoints the hummus, second-best only to Zahav, whose chef and co-owner, Michael Solomonov, is a reported fan of Marrakesh's housemade couscous."
Aren’t you just dying to eat here?! Good luck.
Just heard from Matt Swartz, who just opened Farmers' Cabinet at 1113 Walnut with partners Colleen Swartz (his wife) and Matt Scheller, regarding the status of the team's East Falls beer bar Fork & Barrel (4213 Ridge Ave.) — which has been rumored to be closing — as well as their Emmaus gastropub, Tap & Table. Check out Swartz's full statement, in which he addresses the future of both venues, after the jump.
Rich Landau, who has run Horizons (611 S. Seventh St.) with wife/pastry chef Kate Jacoby since 2006, tells Meal Ticket he and his team will close their lauded vegan restaurant on or around July 4. It was both a business decision and a creative one — the owners have found a buyer (a pizzeria operation, according to The Insider) and were able to strike up an amenable agreement of sale, allowing them to move on to something new. "We have been wanting to streamline for a while now," Landau says. "Running a two-floor restaurant with our style of food has been a challenge. We have always said that if a serious buyer comes along that we will certainly entertain a fair offer — and this deal is pretty good for both parties. Originally, this new project was going to be a second space, but now with a buyer for our building it frees us up to go all out with our new vision."
That new vision will be birthed in the hugely hopping Midtown Village area — Landau says they've narrowed their search down to three spaces in the neighborhood, but are "very close to signing with one." It'll be a small, 50- to 60-seat liquor-licensed restaurant (no name yet) with a focus on small/medium plates, as opposed to the more traditional appetizer/entrée/dessert approach. It'll also mark a definite shift in cooking style for Landau, who's well-known for his elaborate treatments of proteins like tofu, seitan and tempeh — he wants to bring the focus back squarely on the great variety of vegetables available to chefs in the region."Beautiful, amazing vegetables are our passion and inspiration right now," says Landau, "and we want them to be centerstage."
That's not to say that he'll shrug off his old recipes altogether — he and Jacoby just want to reach out to a more mainstream brand of diner, one that can and should gain an appreciation for Landau's vegan cooking via his careful treatment of vegetables, and not merely preparing proteins to ape the feel of meat. So that famous barbecue seitan won't be an everyday staple, but it will make special, sporadic appearances. "That theme has worked so well for us for so long," says Landau, "but chefs need to cook from their inspiration these days, not their history."
Photo: Michael T. Regan
Followed up on a tipster's report that Unitea (265 S. 44th St.), the West Philly café on the same block as Tampopo and Local 44, had gone under. The shop's number is disconnected, and we're told workers have been clearing out furniture, equipment and décor. It opened up a little less than a year ago.
The restaurant business, she is a fickle mistress. Despite a trophy case's worth of local and national accolades, Jim and Kristina Burke's haute-seasonal temple James (824 S. Eighth St.) will close in June after a five-year run, as Michael Klein reported last week. One of my favorite restaurants in the city, if I can get personal for a minute. I can still remember the first thing I ever ate at James, a coral curl of buttery gravlax with green-apple matchsticks, a trapeze act of rich and tart, soft and crisp, and I don’t think I ever stopped loving the food there.
Jolly's Dueling Piano Bar (2006 Chestnut St.) closed Saturday night after roughly a year and a half. Late last night, reps for the piano bar's namesake, Jolly Weldon, shot out a note stating his operation would officially shift over to 1420 Locust Street, the Academy House space that was last Japanese restaurant Sakeya. Weldon's statement attributes the relocation to a need for more room to accommodate the crowds (no formal mention of the legal dispute that became public in November); all of the bar's regular performers will be making the jump, and there are plans to add expanded entertainment, Sunday brunch service and a Sunday-night "supper club." The new spot, which will be known by the slightly augmented moniker Jolly’s Restaurant & Rocking Dueling Piano Bar, will open to the public on Friday, March 25.
- barstool scientist
- Booze
- Brew Revue
- Chef Salad
- Closings
- Coffee
- Contests
- Dealage
- Dirty Dishes
- Don't Front
- Eat This Immediately
- Field Trip
- Food and Art
- Food and Holidays
- Food and Movies
- Food and Music
- Food and Politics
- Food and Sports
- Food and Web
- Food Blogs
- Food Books
- Food Events
- Food News
- Food TV
- Gifted
- Happy Hour Hopper
- How-To
- In Print
- Interview
- Meal Ticket
- Menu Time
- Not So Quickfire
- Notes from the Weekend
- On Wheels
- Openings
- Patio Drinking
- Philly Beer Week 2010
- Photos
- Private Chef POV
- Product Placement
- Recipes
- Snack Time
- Stiff Drank
- SUPPER
- Tea
- Testing
- Ticket Stubs
- Top Chef
- Vegan
- Vegetarian
- Video
- Weekly Candy
- Weird Regional Foods
- We're Here to Help
- Where'd We Eat?
- Drew Lazor's Ill-Advised Rant Factory
- Pregame
- Ill-Advised Ranting
- The Week Without Meat
- Philly Beer Week 2009
- Real Big
- Where'd I Eat Last Night?
- Top Chef Masters
- The Good Word
- Next Iron Chef
- Arterial Terrorism
- Food and Radio
