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Archive: December, 2011
- The best hair of the dog drink, just in time for that excruciating morning-after-NYE hangover. Oddly enough, this Electric Current Fizz and its accoutrement, a variation on a Prairie Oyster, both seem like they'd require a strong stomach. Bottoms up, friends.
- Continue to nurse that hangover and warm up at the same time with this "tea rex." Someone please place a rush order of this for me.
- If neither of the aforementioned remedies help, I suggest succumbing to the forces that be and accepting your painful hungover fate. It'll probably look something like the video above.
- Japan is getting its first-ever Wendy's and, of course, they've got a ridiculous burger on tap. Following in the footsteps of Burger King Japan's pizza-sized burger is the foie gras hamburger. Whoever is buying me that tea rex, please tack on a plane ticket to Tokyo. Thanks in advance.
- Look at this sushi version of the CHEESE TREE!
- Skeeball leagues exist, and they exist in Philadelphia. And guess what? You can drink while you skee, too.
Before Brad Spence joined the Vetri family, eventually becoming chef/partner at Amis (412 S. 13th St.), he cooked at Mario Batali and Joe Bastianich’s Spaniard Casa Mono in New York. (That's actually him on the far left of the NYT photo above.) The C.M. crew will be coming down the Jersey Turnpike on Jan. 2 for an Industry Night extravaganza featuring whole animals. Mono’s got goat (liver-stuffed artichokes, loin tartare with cardamom yogurt, olive oil-poached with creamed Tuscan kale, neck paella), while Spence's squad is turning goose into ragu and cotechino and serving the bird's crispy leg with blood orange marmalade. For dessert: pizzelle sandwiches filled with semifreddo and gooseberries. Usual Industry Night rules and times (10 p.m.-1 a.m.) apply.
New Year's Eve is up there with Valentine's and Mother's Day in terms of restaurant cashcowitude, so opulent tasting menus with hefty prix-fixe price tags and shmancy wine pairings is often the move. But two local hangs are pulling a casual 180 for Dec. 31.
If you're one of the many Philly drinkers who've loudly lamented that there's nowhere in the 215 to acquire dangerously powerful drinks of the Polynesian persuasion, cast your hazy orgeat gaze to spring 2012 — that's when Philly's first proper tiki bar will be arriving. As of Jan. 1, Matt Scheller and Matt and Colleen Swartz of The Farmers' Cabinet (1113 Walnut St.) will have a lease in hand for the huge Frank Furness-designed building at 600 Spring Garden, most recently operating as a club called 90 Degrees (Transit and The Bank before that). While they'll dedicate the ground floor to an as-yet-undetermined concept, the basement of the space, which resembles the inside of a ship, will be all tiki all the time. Bartenders Phoebe Esmon and Christian Gaal, both of whom work behind the F-Cab bar, will design the entire cocktail program, consisting of around 10 tiki classics and 10 originals. You should also expect huge shareable tiki bowls (think Flaming Volcano) and an "American dimsum" menu (think pu pu platter). Get geeked.
New Year's Eve is always pressure cooker, but for some reason, the culmination of 2011 feels like it’s arriving with the speed of a runaway train, transporting a side order of stress in its caboose. The rush to plan, plan, plan to be somewhere special when the clock chimes 12 can be a killer. So consider the alternative: staying in this Saturday. Chill down a bottle or two of Prosecco and cook up this easy, expensive-sounding menu of oysters, lobster and exotically spiced bread pudding. It's a helluva lot more relaxing than scrambling for plans, and a helluva lot cheaper too.
Matt Levinson has opened The QUICK FIXX (1511 South St., 267-273-1066), the "chef-inspired takeout" joint we first mentioned a year ago. The Colorado native, who was on the opening management team of AC's Borgata (his wife's job brought him to the Philly area), wanted to establish an affordable, accessible fresh-food concept "in between where people are working and where people are living." His South Street location accomplishes that, while chef Charles Reinhardt's menu plays within recognizable categories — salads, flatbreads, pastas, sides, daily sandwich and dinner specials. They also highly encourage customization; "if you can think it, we can build it," Levinson promises. Italian-born Reinhardt, like Levinson, is a luxury hotel veteran; he cooked for the Swiss-based Kempinski hotel group in exotic locales like Dubai and Djibouti before landing in Philly to work at Center City's Sofitel. Pictured above are his Parma salad, with mixed greens, prosciutto-wrapped cataloupe, red peppers and Terra chips in a pink grapefruit vinaigrette; the "Retro Pesto" flatbread, with pesto, grilled marinated chicken, fontina cheese and red pepper crema; and the signature "Fixx" flatbread, with white sauce, bacon, caramelized onions and gruyere.
The restaurant is easing into its regular schedule for right now — they'll open takeout, eat-in and delivery till 1 a.m. tonight and tomorrow before closing up shop on Dec. 31 and Jan. 1. Come Jan. 2, they'll run 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday to Thursday and from 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. (or later) Friday and Saturday.
- Intrepid CP restaurant critic Adam Erace put together his top 10 dishes of 2011 for the last issue of the year. Check out what plates stuck in Adam's mind — spots like The Farm and Fisherman, Tashan, Opa and Sbraga made the cut.
- Continuing with the food list fun — here are five of the most significant openings of 2011 (and why), plus five to look forward to in 2012.
- In Feeding Frenzy: Hickory Lane and Lemon Hill are new in Fairmount, while Han Dynasty and Rocchino's/Azione are rolling out elsewhere.
- In What's Cooking: Some last-sec NYE options, new brunch at The Trestle Inn and the first Amis Industry Night of 2012.
Photo: Neal Santos
Just in time for the broke-ass account-depleted days following Christmas and Hanukkah, The Corner (102 S. 13th St.) has rolled out a new happy hour. Running weeknights from 5 to 7, chef John Taus is doing all his starters at half-price. That's dealage enough on its own, but for the thirsty they're also offering $3 Kenzingers and Pikeland Pils; $5 glasses of Cabernet, Chardonnay and Marquis de la Tour; and $5 Hemingway daiquiris and Mother's Little Helpers (bourbon, maple, pumpkin, lemon and bitters, a Corner original).
Word from on hoppy high is that the first in-the-city-limits brewpub for Iron Hill Brewery, at 8400 Germantown Avenue in Chestnut Hill, will open next Wednesday, Jan. 4. (Adam Erace first mentioned it way back in March.) City Council members Bill Green and Cindy Bass will host a ceremonial toast an hour before the 5 p.m. launch time for Iron Hill's newest location, which will serve lunch and dinner seven days a week. The brewing part of the equation will be overseen by Paul Rutherford, who's doing a blog about the project; he'll oversee six house brews, plus regular one-offs and bottled reserve selections. It's the ninth overall location for the 15-year-old brewpub brand, joining existing branches in Lancaster, Maple Shade, Media, Newark (De.), North Wales, Phoenixville, West Chester and Wilmington.
View galleryThe majority of the food photos that appear in City Paper and in our various Meal Ticket-branded print issues and glossy publications are taken by Neal Santos, CP staff photographer, urban farmer and all-around lovely fellow. Neal was kind enough to hand-pick some of his favorite food shots of 2011 (including many unpublished outtakes), which we've compiled for you above. Peep the captions for links and info and check out more of Neal's work at nealsantos.com.
- barstool scientist
- Booze
- Brew Revue
- Chef Salad
- Closings
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- Dealage
- Dirty Dishes
- Don't Front
- Eat This Immediately
- Field Trip
- Food and Art
- Food and Holidays
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- Happy Hour Hopper
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- Menu Time
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- Notes from the Weekend
- On Wheels
- Openings
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- Philly Beer Week 2010
- Photos
- Private Chef POV
- Product Placement
- Recipes
- Snack Time
- Stiff Drank
- SUPPER
- Tea
- Testing
- Ticket Stubs
- Top Chef
- Vegan
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- 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
