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Archive: January, 2013
It's probably worth mentioning that South Philly Review restaurant critic Phyllis Stein-Novack was a big fan of longtime Lombard mainstay Astral Plane. Unfortunately, Brick (1708 Lombard St.), the American eatery that took over did not measure up.
PSN and husband Edward's meal was a disappointment from the get go. Cocktails were pricy, duck nachos proved to be nothing more than ordinary and tuna wontons were a disaster on a plate.
A grilled Caesar arrived not only cold but limp, lacking in the smoke department and dressed with something that PSN referred to as a thin, sour, grainy liquid reminiscent of "the white icing which comes with Toaster Strudels."
Mains proved to be a disappointment as well. Under seasoned fries were the saving grace of a not medium-rare lamb burger topped with over-melted cheese. And a plate of pesto ravioli was sauced with something so bland and watery it would make someone from Genoa weep.
Even a glass of Pinot Noir was nothing special.
One gloomy tip of the toque for Brick plus this sage advice from PSN: "The menu should be scraped and a do-over is surely needed."
Due to popular demand sandwich-centric cafe Rybread is opening up a second location on the Brewerytown corner of 28th and Girard. Expect a familiar menu of made to order sandwiches, salads and house baked pastries. Foobooz is reporting that there's a drink in/ take out beer license in the works as well.
This is an important message from your friends at Meal Ticket. We would like to let you know that in honor of National Beer can Appreciation Day Percy Street Barbecue (900 South St.) is offering up their entire selection of craft beer cans at a fifty percent discount. In other words - CHEAP BEER!
And if you plan on sticking around post-happy hour there are $20 and $35 Restaurant Week menus to enjoy.
This week, we've been making our picks for those of you willing to brave the Valentine's Day crowds (our first two top menus are here and here, in case you missed them).
Of course, many people would rather stay in for a romantic, home-cooked meal on V-Day. But if you're short on time or not that skilled in the kitchen, it might conjure images of sharing tuna noodle casserole with your partner, which is admittedly not the sexiest thing we've ever heard. (Though, no joke—if you're not much of a cook but you put in the effort to make your significant other a casserole on the 14th, that's super-cute and they'll definitely love you for it.)
But if you want to eat seriously well at home without the stress, maybe you should just let Jason Cichonski's crew over at Ela (627 S. 3rd St.) come up with the menu and do almost all of the work, so that you can just finish up, plate the meals, and take the credit. The specs: $100 for a 3-course meal for 2 people, including a bottle of champagne. The menu has a firm grounding in the traditional holiday fare (choice of steak or lobster, a chocolate and strawberry dessert), but it's coming out of Ela so you know it's going to be far from boring. Better yet: you just have to order by Tue., Feb. 12 and then pick it up on Valentine's Day—no fretting over having forgotten to make your arrangements a month in advance.
Plus, you get the added benefit of being able to eat Jason Cichonski's food without risking your partner actually seeing Jason Cichonski, which might ruin your chances that night altogether (in case you haven't heard, he's a total dreamboat, way dreamier than mere mortals like us could ever hope to compete with).
Even better pie deals, drinking while dieting, and a little something for you commentroversy hounds, all on today's Afternoon Snacks!
Heads up: The professional smartypantses at Magpie (1622 South St.) have taken their Winter Warmer Wednesday deal (we just told you about this last week) and extended it into A Bunch of Days When You Can Just Eat a Bunch of Pie for Not a Bunch of Money. They didn't come up with a name quite as catchy as that one, but we forgive them—they're not writers, after all, like us. But the deal (a full meal of pie—one savory selection, one sweet selection, and your choice of coffee or tea—for $14) is now available through Friday this week, and will be on again from Jan. 29 through Feb. 1. Why? Because it's Restaurant Week and people are looking for deals, and also because we could use all the warming we can get right now.
Drinking on a diet and mega-commentroversy, after the jump! »
So the general consensus is that it's pretty darn cold outside so it's only appropriate that we share the news that The Igloo, a new frozen dessert shop is gearing up to open at 2223 Grays Ferry Avenue just off of South. The shop will specialize in fro yo, sorbets and water ice and is aiming for a March 21st opening.
If you're in the market for a career change, the folks over at South of South Neighborhood Association are reporting that The Igloo is hiring part-time employees and one of the basic job duties includes tasting the product to ensure that quality standards are met. Frozen dessert taste-tester sounds like a pretty sweet gig to us.
Listen up guys, the Big Ass Beer Fest is happening on Saturday and we've got two tickets to give away this afternoon! So we're like totally giving away free beer. And this isn't any old beer fest, all of the brews pouring at BABF are 8% ABV plus so it's certainly going to be an enjoyable afternoon. Look forward to samples of Wyerbacher Blithering Idiot, Dog Fish Head Burton Baton, Rogue Voodoo Doughnut as well as many other overproof pours.
All you have to do to win a pair of tickets to the Big Ass Beer Fest (a $90 value!) is tell us why you deserve free beer in the comments section. The lucky winner will be announced tomorrow!
COED Magazine caught wind of a curiously morbid photo project that we'd like to share with you. Photographer Henry Hargreaves took it upon himself to recreate and replate the last meals of eight infamous death row inmates and the results are both visually stunning and downright creepy.
We thought we'd post this one early on in the day as to not make for any nightmares, so here are some of the highlight, or maybe low lights.
Ted Bundy declined a choose-your-own dinner and was given the 'traditional' last meal (who knew that there was a 'traditional' last meal?) Anyway, what's the 'traditional' last meal? A hearty breakfast of steak and eggs with hash browns, toast with butter and jelly plus glasses of milk and OJ.
There's quite a bit of fried chicken and pie on these last meal menus but kidnapper/murderer Victor Feguer's final plate wins for number one head scratcher: a single pit-in black olive.
Head on over to COED for a slideshow of all of the photos.
New food trucks, expanding bars, and one very healthy recipe to add to your snack repertoire.
Food truck hounds, get ready for a great new one. The Cow and the Curd has made a few appearances in the area so far, but their first event in the city is this Saturday, Jan. 26. On the menu: deep-fried cheese curds and various dipping sauces to go with. These are, of course, the same squeaky cheddar cheese curds you may already know and love from various appearances atop poutine—but here they get the Midwest fair food treatment. Get a taste at the Food Truck and Beer Bash at Bottle Bar East (1308 Frankford Ave.) this Saturday from noon to 7 p.m. (You'll also see Lil' Dan's, Just Jackie's, and the Sweetbox truck there.)
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