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Archive: December, 2012
Photographing food is one of the bigger parts of my job at the Philadelphia City Paper. Week after week I get to document chefs in their habitat along with their creations and follow Adam Erace's hungry tummy. Here are photos posted in chronological order, some that ran in print and some that didn't from the paper, the Meal Ticket glossy magazine and special inserts. Enjoy.
Editor's note: Like what you see? Follow Neal on Instagram for more!
On today's edition of Afternoon Snacks, New Year's EVe is finally here, and we have just a few more words to say on the subject.
First up: if you don't have plans for tonight, Percy St. BBQ (900 South St.) helpfully reminds us that while they don't have any special NYE packages planned, this one does happen to fall on all-you-can-eat rib night. Whether you're starting a diet tomorrow or not, ringing in 2013 with literally all the pork you care to down for $23 (including biscuits and sides) sounds like a pretty smart idea.
Free champagne and other New Year's treats, after the break! »
Late December isn't really synonymous with al fresco drinking unless you live someplace like sunny San Diego but Graffiti Bar (124 South 13th St.) is embracing the cold weather with plenty of heaters and a menu of specials for when the temperature dips below freezing.
When the barometer drops so do the bar snack prices at Graffiti Bar with shrimp and lobster dumplings, duck egg rolls, Kobe beef hot dogs and Berkshire bahn mis all going for $4 and under.
Wednesday, December 26
Brad Spence and Jeff Michaud mix up holiday cocktails for Dude Food.
Stateside lands the numero uno spot on Philly mag's 50 Best Restaurants list.
Grub Street lines up some pretty silly made-up food words.
Thursday, December 27
Star Chefs asks local restaurants for their New Year's resolutions.
Brunch-meister Marshall Green is making his comeback at the revamped NoLibs Jerry's Bar.
Friday, December 28
Buttercream cupcake truck opening up a brick and mortar spot in South Philly.
Drew Lazor and Adam Erace round up their top 5 favorites of 2012.
If you're feeling flush with cash and leisure time, here are a couple of events coming up in February at the Beard House you might want to put on your calendar: Brauhaus chef Jeremy Nolen will headlining on Sat., Feb. 2 with Bold German Cuisine, and Le Virtu's Joe Cicala will be heading up on Mon., Feb. 25 for Treasures of Abruzzo. (This will mark the first Beard House dinner for Nolen; Cicala has headlined there before.) Either dinner will set you back $170 and a trip to NYC. Of course, you could just visit their restaurants any time you want, but this will make for a fancy-pants, big-deal kinda night for hardcore fans.
Over the holiday weekend, Michael Klein clued us in to what's in store for the ex-Basic 4 spot in Reading Terminal Market, and it's already generating some excitement. (ed. note: in my house, anyway. I.e., I left the tab open when handing off my laptop to my boyfriend, who promptly yelled, "LAMB DELI?!")
Yup, looks like the new tenant is Border Springs Farm, a Virginia-based lamb farm. According to The Insider, the shop will sell fresh and frozen lamb in addition to ready-made items like stew, shepherd's pie, and sausages; opening date is currently set for the end of February. We guess we can wait.
In the print edition of this week's paper we've got our resident restaurant critic Adam Erace and former food editor Drew Lazor lining up top five favorites from the past year. Here's a top five from yours truly:
Meal: There were some pretty serious contenders for most memorable meal of 2012 but I've got to give the number on slot to Fork (306 Market St.). From the mini cheese-filled pretzels and bialys with cream cheese that begin the meal to gorgeous scallops with parsley kimchi and lovely rabbit agnolotti, chef Eli Kulp is transforming the Market Street standby into a serious destination dining spot.
Restaurant: Le Virtu (1927 East Passyunk Ave.) is a little too close to my house for comfort and that's both a good and a bad thing. The combination of chef Joe Cicala's superior salumi and perfect pastas with pastry chef Angela Ranalli's inspired Italian desserts is unbeatable.
Cocktail: I'm a sucker for a Negroni so when I first laid eyes on Vernick's (2031 Walnut St.) New-groni I knew that we were going to be fast friends. It's a lighter take on the Italian classic made with gin, grapefruit, Aperol and a frothy egg white.
Cookbook: Back before I took over Meal Ticket cookbooks were my main gig, namely reviewing them for Serious Eats. Zach Pelaccio's Eat With Your Hands was easily the most fun cookbook I encountered in 2012. His Southeast Asian-inspired recipes are spot on but the real reason I love this book is Pelaccio's irrevent, awesome dude narrative and wise decision to include handpicked beverage and music pairings for each recipe. After all, who doesn't want to drink a Manhattan with a Hollandaise-topped lamb burger or listen to Tame Impala with a grilled hangar steak salad.
Cheap Eats: For just about $20 you can get a square pie and a pitcher of beer at Stogie Joe's (1801 East Passyunk Ave.) and that's much a pretty perfect dinner for two if you ask me.
Swedish delicacies and plenty of ways to diversify your cooking repertoire, on today's Afternoon Snacks!
Maybe we're just suffering from Swedish food deprivation, but we always think the food-related events at the American Swedish Historical Museum (1900 Pattison Ave.) sound awesome. But they don't happen every day, and our Swedish food options are otherwise pretty much limited to the IKEA cafeteria at the moment, so take matters into your own hands with a Swedish cooking class! Class is in session Sat., Jan. 12 from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.; it costs $40 and you should call to reserve a spot.
More Swedish snacks and educational opportunities, after the break! »
Gearing up for the inevitable effects of New Year's Eve revelry Sam Dean has rounded up an international glossary of terms for hungoverness for Bon Appetit's blog. Some are familiar like the Mexican cruda (raw) or French gueule de bois (wooden gob? What does that even mean?). But there are plenty of hilariously accurate terms for the after effects of a few too many. There's másnaposság, Hungarian for "next-day-ish-ness and the little used Italian postumi della sbornia translating to "after the death of drunkenness." Hike on over to Bon App for the full rundown of international hangover terminology.
We've known that former Striped Bass chef Christopher Lee is making his way back to Philly for a little while now. He'll be transforming East Passyunk's Salt and Pepper (1623 E. Passyunk Ave.) into a new American concept called Sophia's and we're going to get a sneak peak of the new menu on New Year's Eve. Lee is debuting some of what's to come on Monday evening with a four-course prix fixe. The 6 p.m. seating goes for $45 with Champagne aperitif and the 9 p.m. is $45 with festive party favors and digestif. Wine pairings are on offer for and additional $25.
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