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Archive: November, 2011
Wedge + Fig (160 N. Third St.) is giving everyone an excuse to get a little cheesy with its first-ever pairing contest. The Old City cheese/light fare shop invites all to submit their own original cheese-and-something-else combo; they give playful examples like roasted rutabaga with roquefort and peanut buter with Pierre Robert. The judges — Wedge + Fig chef Rebecca Torpie, cheese blogger Tenaya "Madame Fromage" Darlington and Melanie Fortino of Di Bruno Bros. — will select the three pairings they deem most worthy, prepare them according to your specs and select the most delicious one. The cheese-off champion will receive a Wedge + Fig gift basket complete with a selection of cheese and crackers, One Village Coffee, Gilda's Biscotti and various accoutrement. In addition, the winning pairing will get on the menu during the shop’s Friday/Saturday dinner service throughout the entire month of December. All submissions are due by Friday, Nov. 18 via pairingscontest@wedgeandfig.com.
Photo: Drew Lazor
Shoutout to seminal Internet art critic Hennessy Youngman (aka Jayson Musson) for sharing a drink that "you don't gotta be Tom Cruise in Cocktail" to put together. Peep the how-to for the Sun Over North Philly, a real back-to-basics two-ingredient beverage in these heady academic drinking times.
Miran, open for years at 2034 Chestnut, now has a new chef and new management — Wa Joe Korean Restaurant has been bibimpbapping for about six weeks under chef/owner Moon Lee, who's cooked at both New York's multi-location KungGangSan and Upper Darby's Pocha Pocha. They do the traditional barbecue here, as well as hot pots and rice plates; lunch, served Monday to Friday from 12:30 to 3 p.m., comprises a bunch of combos topping out at $12.99. Full menu after the jump (click to enlarge).
On Monday we dropped mention that Ela (627 S. Third St.), the "artful American" corner restaurant from chefs Jason Cichonski and Chip Roman, would be opening this weekend. Today we ran through the completely refurbished space to snag some photos and food details.
UPDATE [14nov11]: Check out our photo sneak peek of Route 6.
It was way back in '08 that murmurs of a New England-themed oyster bar called Littleneck floated around town. Soon, that Stephen Starr seafooder comes to fruition, not as Littleneck but as Route 6, and not in the Angelina/Blue Angel space to which rumors attached the concept but in the new 600 North Broad building that will also house Marc Vetri's Alla Spina and already houses Joe Volpe's new ballroom, Vie.
- Brion Shreffler goes long, profiling restaurant dishes that take time, energy and patience to prepare. Among his highlighted chefs: Jeremy Nolen at Brauhaus Schmitz, Ben Puchowitz at Matyson, Pierre Calmels at Bibou and more.
- Adam Erace visits South Street's Hot Diggity!, where he's charmed by the tubesteakian surroundings.
- In Feeding Frenzy: Birra, Molly Malloy's, Rival Bros Coffee and more.
- In What's Cooking: Forgotten foods, staff meal for dinner, "snails" of approval and more.
Photo: Neal Santos
A lone pint of groundcherries hung forlornly by the register at the Fair Food Farmstand (Reading Terminal Market, 12th and Arch) on Monday like a bumped passenger on an overbooked flight. They needed to get home, and I was glad to give them a ride. Home was my stomach.
A few weeks back Lou Mancinelli told you all about the hard cider coming out of Desiato Vineyards, aged in Laird's applejack barrels by main cider man Rich Smithson (above).
While English-style hard cider is characteristically tart, Desiato's 7 percent ABV rendition is fashioned after the old-world French version. It's a thin-mouthed concoction made from a combination of apples — including Granny Smiths, Galas and heirloom and cider varieties — pressed off-site, fermented and aged in oak applejack barrels. When poured, it bubbles like a soda, resembling a Chardonnay in tint and aura. Upon first whiff you can detect a hint of whiskey generated from those barrels, which Smithson landed courtesy of Laird & Company ... the taste is light but substantial, like apple juice spiked by something strong, with a tang subtle enough to drink a few.
Now you'll have a chance to try the stuff within city limits: Tonight at 7, The Buxco-based beverage drops at London Grill (2301 Fairmount Ave.), where they'll tap a firkin of the brut-dry double hard cider on the bar.
Photo: Jessica Kourkounis
This Sunday, Nov. 13, David Katz's Mémé (2201 Spruce St.) hosts Marissa Guggiana, the Cali-based butchers' advocate and food writer (and editor of Meal Ticket fave Meatpaper) who's just released Off The Menu: Staff Meals From America's Top Restaurants. The book highlights the tradition of the simple meal that restaurant employees sit down and share pre-service; Guggiana features spots from around the country, highlighting Katz (plus Marc Vetri and Jose Garces) here in Philly. Expect family-style portions of meatloaf with macaroni, egg, reggiano and black pepper (from the book); spinach/potato/gruyere frittata; potato gnocchi with lamb neck ragu; Canuck-style pork pie with prunes; and Katz's dessert "secret weapon," jelly doughnut bread pudding with coffee cream. Seats are $55, which includes a signed copy of Off The Menu but excludes tax, grat and booze (though they will be selling $20 bottles of wine); 215-735-4900 for tables.
If Scott Schroeder wasn’t the chef at SPTR (1509 Mifflin St.), he’d have a career in developing press-release intros like the attention-grabbing gem above. Today, he dropped word of his upcoming two-part Allagash dinner with former 10 Arts chef Jennifer Carroll and Collegeville's Longview Center for Agriculture, the first part of which takes place at SPTR on Wednesday, Nov. 30 at 7 p.m. Schroeder and Carroll will be taking diners on a culinary drive up 95 with seven courses inspired by New England. Think scallop carpaccio, clam chowder with milk-braised bacon (a la Southwark's Nick Macri), short rib pot roast and more, all paired with Allagash beers. (Full menu after the jump.) The dinner is $80-plus-plus, and reservations can be made starting tomorrow at noon by calling SPTR at 215-271-7787. The second part of this dinner series will be held at the Longview Center; stay tuned for more details.
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