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Archive: November, 2011
In last week's CP we gave you the rundown on Celebrate Vegan, a new holiday-themed vegan cookbook from local author/blogger Dynise Balcavage. Although Turkey Day is out of our collective system, there's still plenty of festive cooking left to accomplish before the end of the year — that's why we want to give away a poppin'-fresh copy of Balcavage's book. To win: Simply leave a ONE-SENTENCE COMMENT on this post explaining what you plan on doing with the book. Make it noteworthy! We'll choose a winner at noon on Wednesday, Nov. 30. Have fun.
UPDATE [05dec11]: Congrats to commenter capasshl, who vows to use the book to make vegan treats for her kids. Aw!
Next time you pop into Ms. Tootsie's (1312 South St.), you might notice something a little different about the upcale soul food restaurant. Owner Keven Parker has decided to give his girl a makeover, starting with a slew of new dishes. Beginning this Friday, Dec. 2, diners will be able to dig into new menu items like herb-crusted grilled lamb chops with fried apples, bourbon-braised short ribs with sweet home fries and fried "soul rolls" filled with chicken, yams and cabbage. Space-wise, Parker's introduced three additional floors to the restaurant — while the ground level remains largely the same save for the addition of a "love lounge" catering to couples, head upstairs and you'll be greeted by a new R&B room (second floor), sky bar (third floor) and luxe lounge (fourth floor), all catering to a music- and nightlife-seeking crowd. That's not all, either — Parker's taken it upon himself to launch KDP Lifestyle and Luxury Suites (1310 South St.), a housewares store and boutique hotel, right next to the restaurant.
Photo: Courtesy of Ms. Tootsie's
Partners Paul Davis and Steve Renzi are working on launching Kung Fu Hoagies, a sandwich and noodle bowl cart, by March of next year. Davis, a Pittsburgh-native kung fu practitioner who's cooked locally at Monk's and Whole Foods, says the martial art was a partial inspiration for the business, which will offer an almost entirely vegan menu — proposed dishes include a traditional banh mi; an orange barbecue seitan sandwich; coconut lemongrass seitan over rice noodles; and sesame peanut chicken seitan. They're still nailing down a specific location for their cart but plan on vending in both West Philly and South Philly. Peep them on Facebook and Twitter.
Monday, November 21
Mike Stollenwerk is cooking a feast of the seven fishes at NYC's James Beard House.
Which Thanksgiving hoagie is better, Primo's Pilgrim or Wawa's Gobbler?
Speaking of Stollenwerk: He's opening a new bistro in his soon-to-be-vacant Fish space.
Tuesday, November 22
Jeff Bridges' doppelganger, bluefish and all kinds of vegan cooking in Notes from the Weekend.
Adam Erace shares his recipe for Thai-style T-Day cranberries.
Kinder's Happy Hippos get the Weekly Candy treatment.
Wednesday, November 23
Running down all things food and drink in the Nov. 24 issue of CP.
Hop Sing Laundromat is legally ready to serve alcohol; still no official opening date.
Kris is open in the old Kristian's Ristorante space in South Philly.
Renowned cocktail writer/historian David Wondrich is visiting The Farmers' Cabinet on Nov. 28.
Thursday, November 24-Friday, November 25
Gobble gobble.
This was mentioned in What's Cooking this week, but here we've got room for more soused chatter: This coming Monday, Nov. 28, David Wondrich, preeminent American cocktail historian and author of Imbibe!, will hold court at The Farmers' Cabinet (1113 Walnut St.) for an evening of strong, strong punches.
Running from 7 to 10 p.m., the pay-as-you-go event will feature seminal many-boozed admixtures like The Professor's Orange Punch (cognac, rum, Seville orange, sugar and water), which originates with bartending godfather Jerry Thomas, as well as Philadelphia Fish House Punch (peach brandy, cognac, Jamaican rum, lemon juice, water), one stiff cup our city can officially call its own. Head bartender Phoebe Esmon and the rest of the F-Cab crew will be mixing cocktails, as well, including The Buck and Breck (cognac, absinthe, bitters, Champagne, sugar and a twist), a Thomas recipe featured in Imbibe! There will be a light spread out for all drinkers. Wondrich will join Esmon and Co. behind the bar to regale the curious, serve the eager and fancifully flag the overserved, so be sure to come equipped with your best cocktail-based queries.
Here's one we unintentionally missed in the thick of this month's opening madness: Kris (1100 Federal St.), the redo of Kristian's Ristorante we first told you about way back in July. The spot's namesake, Kristian Leuzzi, closed his Italian fine-diner in 2009; the Stogie Joe's owner reopened the liquor-licensed space last week with a warmer, more casual look (no more tablecloths). There's room for 50 inside here, with seating spread out between a bar and rear dining room (the bar-area tables you see will soon be replaced by standing-room rounds). I swear I didn't ask the super-nice floor staff to pose in thoughtful tableau like that. They just did it naturally!
Chef Gregory Dooner's food reflects both Kris' South Philly roots (tripe and veal parmesan; potato gnocchi; risotto; fettucine bolognese) and some decidedly non-Italian touches (a hummus plate with charred artichokes; speck-stuffed rainbow trout with pomegranate/Brussels slaw). See the menu in full after the jump (click to enlarge). On the way in the new year: weekend brunch and outdoor seating. Hours right now: Mon.-Thu, 4-11 p.m.; Fri.-Sat., 4 p.m.mid; Sun., 3-10 p.m.
Photos: Drew Lazor
Who-needs-a-last-name publican Lêe, who's been stringing Philly boozehounds along for months teasing out his Chinatown cocktail bar Hop Sing Laundromat (1029 Race St.), tells Meal Ticket that he's passed his PLCB inspection and is now legally capable of serving alcohol. Of course, that doesn't automatically mean he's flinging open the doors to his dressed-up watering hole right away. In classic slickster fashion, Lêe was unresponsive to a guesstimate request on an official opening date. "Within the next five to six years," he avows. See you and your robot bartenders in 2016, dude!
UPDATE [3:10 p.m.]: Lêe says he'll announce his official opening date on Twitter (@hopsinglaundry), and that he will select 50 of the bar's Twitter followers to invite all-inclusive for the debut. I wonder if Lêe wants you to follow him on Twitter ...
Photo: Drew Lazor
- Adam Erace takes in the scene at the chic, shimmering Tashan, from Tiffin owner Munish Narula and chef Sylva Senat. AE's not really one to gush, so take him at his word when he says the kitchen is putting out "some of the most exciting food to debut this year."
- We cook a few recipes out of local blogger Dynise Balcavage's new Celebrate Vegan, a vegan cookbook designed specifically around holidays. Vegan Santa Claus will surely be pleased with the choco-chip cookies.
- In Feeding Frenzy: Opening word on Route 6, Vedge, Tapestry and others.
- In What's Cooking: Crappy kung fu flicks at Hot Diggity!, David Wondrich at The Farmers' Cabinet, Pumking at Devil's Den and more.
- Need foodish gift ideas? Check out the "Consume" section of agenda editor Josh Middleton's excellent Holiday Gift Guide. Peep it in its entirety too.
Photo: Neal Santos
OK so we don't really rock this feature on a weekly basis anymore, but we're gonna keep on calling it Weekly Candy, in the same spirit of Conan O'Brien continuing his "In the Year 2000" bit well after the turn of the century.
IN QUESTION: Kinder Happy Hippos. The hippo character was originally created for Ferrero (which makes Nutella) in 1987 by artist André Roche to be placed in "Kinder Surprise" choco eggs, and soon became so popular that the company decided to turn them into their own snack. First released in '93, Ferrero takes the famed hippo-shaped wafer cookies and injects them with a milk-and-cocoa cream on top and hazelnut cream underneath. To top it off, tiny bits of meringue coat the exterior of the cookie, giving it a slight crunch.
AVAILABLE AT: The hippos are probably all over the city, but I've only spotted them at The Foodery (324 S. 10th St.) and Old Nelson (701 Chestnut St.).
HOW MANY DO WE EAT IN ONE SITTING: One package yields five hippos but they're pretty small. Maybe I like to overindulge when it comes to candy, but I ate all five in 5 minutes. Let's just say they’re just as addicting as Nutella.
FINER POINTS: In case eating a whole box wasn’t satisfying enough, check out the brain-cell killing commercial that made Happy Hippo a star in the first place.
I'm not Thai, but if I was, this is how I imagine I'd incorporate Southeast Asian ingredients into an American holiday. Lemongrass and the incomparable kaffir lime leaf (both available at 11th and Washington's Hung Vuong or your favorite Asian supermarket) add exotic citrus-y tones to this Thanksgiving staple, while a single split chili provides a sneaky undercurrent of heat. Is your family picky and ethno-phobic? You can make this recipe sans-exotica and it'll still be miles better than anything you’ll find in a can.
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