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Archive: June, 2011
Taste of the Nation, the annual restaurant event raising funds for Share Our Strength, is happening tonight at the Loews Hotel at 1200 Market. We already went over the particulars in the latest What's Cooking, but know that tix, no longer available online, will be sold at the door this evening ($95 GA, $145 VIP). Head right here for the full rundown on who's participating; beer drinkers should note that the Belukus importers are providing a bunch of Euro brews (Lefebvre Blanche de Bruxelles, Wells Bombardier Ale and Banana Bread Ale, Young’s Double Chocolate Stout, etc.) rarely, if ever, seen in the States. Lastly, you can still show your support for SOS even if you can't make the event tonight. Check Meal Ticket tomorrow for a photo recap of the cheffy fun.
On July 12, Brian Ricci, chef of quaint Queen Village saloon Kennett (848 S. Second St.), is teaming up with two Toms for a special four-course collab dinner. One is Tom Kehoe of Yards Brewing; Ricci and Kennett co-owner Johnny Della Polla both worked for Yards' tasting room. The other is farmer-to-the-stars Tom Culton, who supplies Ricci with gorgeous local produce from his Lancaster acreage.
Nothing's finalized yet, but "Tom [Culton] is fattening up two young lambs for this event, as well as keeping some guineas around for the charcuterie," says Ricci. "I'm working with Yards on some special beers — blends of ales, firkins with chilies, firkins with herbs and spices." For the menu, we’re hearing guinea hen-and-pistachio pate; gnocchi with pork belly and baby artichokes; and lavender/hyssop lemonade intermezzo pinked with Culton's intense Alpine strawberries. But really, Brian, you had us at fattening up lambs.
There’s seating for 50, with about 10 percent already booked. Price is not set, but figure on $60-$65 a head.
Photo: Drew Lazor
Over the past couple weeks we've noticed Bocca (236 Market St.), right down the street from City Paper HQ, converting into Lulu's Pizza Bar. The owners — Luciano Lamberti and the folks behind Fairmount and South Jersey's Luigi's Pizza Fresca, hence the name — have had the space since mid-April, but just pulled the trigger on the name change a few weeks back. Right now they're offering apps (tuna tartare with avocado, jalapeno, pineapple and sesame oil; shrimp risotto; Spanish mussels with chorizo and peppers in a spicy marinara), pastas (orecchiette, linguini, lobster ravioli, gnocchi) and sandwiches in addition to their seletion of "thin-crust tomato pies," which come in 10- and 14-inch sizes. For pizzas, expect straightforward flavor combos like sausage/roasted red pepper/fresh mozz and prosciutto/arugula/fresh tomato. Along with a planned expansion of the bar, expect the pizza selection to grow moving forward; they'll soon do calzone and stromboli, as well. Lulu's serves food Sunday to Thursday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Friday and Saturday till midnight.
This coming Wednesday, Fork (306 Market St.) kicks off its very own Sustainability Dinner Series. Chef Terence Feury will team up with authors Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough to prepare dishes from their most recent cookbook, Goat: Meat, Milk, Cheese. While most may not be aware of this, goat is the most-consumed meat on the planet and one of the most sustainable choices out there, and the book addresses the animal's influence and versatility, providing recipes along the way. Join Feury, Weinstein and Scarbrough as they create a three-course, $45 tasting menu that highlights goat in every way. The meal will feature dishes like hand-rolled gnocchi, grilled/braised goat and goat yogurt panna cotta. Here's the full menu; call 215-625-9425 for reservations.
Here we've got a PDF of the opening menu for Serafina (130 S. 18th St.), the glossy New York City brand opening its first Philly location in Rittenhouse tomorrow night. Vittorio Assaf and Fabio Granato's restaurant, which we toured you through last week, starts with some pretty straightforward app and salad selections, moving into a huge pasta section (gluten-free and whole-wheat options are available), then fish, veg and meat entrée options — and finally pizza. That's the portion we're most amped for. Yes, there is a Philly cheesesteak pizza; elsewhere on the pie front, though, you've got choices like the Porcini (with a bunch of imported-from-Italy mushrooms), their signature Bianca (arugula, parm, fontina, mozzarella) and Al Caviale (boiled sliced potatoes, caviar and creme fraiche).
Photo: Drew Lazor
Monday, June 13
Gemelli on Main is opening in the old MangoMoon space late this month.
The results of the inaugural A Full Plate Chili Cook-Off.
Philly will get its own Shake Shack in 2012.
Tuesday, June 14
Sweet Elizabeth's is cranking out high-quality desserts in Manayunk.
The University City District has launched its new Sustainable Saturday series.
Spots are filing up fast for the July 18 pig dinner at Mémé. Check out the lineup!
Wednesday, June 15
Chef Kevin Sbraga shares some details about his upcoming Center City restaurant.
Take a walking tour of the best street food in West Philly.
Café Estelle is putting together its own garden.
Check out the chocolate avocado cookies at Pure Fare.
Thursday, June 16
The seafood hot dog at The Corner is one wiener you should eat immediately.
We recap the Great Chefs Event benefitting Alex's Lemonade Stand.
Pics inside Serafina, Rittenhouse's latest high-profile opening.
Rich Landau and Kate Jacoby set a closing date for Horizons.
Friday, June 17
Hey so we're up in Boston for the weekend chillin' in Charlestown with Benfleck and Slaine and the homies, robbing banks while wearing rubber nun masks, etc etc. No more posties today. See y'all Monday. Have some good Notes from the Weekend for us!
- Adam Erace shoots up to Mica, Chip Roman's currently-BYO restaurant in Chestnut Hill, to see what the Blackfish owner and his chef Jason Cichonski are working on. He discovers "surgically precise" cuisine that suggests it could become "one of the area's most exciting restaurants." He also describes as a lady as a "jeweled flamingo in a green pashmina."
- If you'd like to chug real-deal cider make to strict colonial specifications (small batches, local apples, natural fermentation), check out Revolution, a new cidery out of Northeast Philly.
- in Feeding Frenzy: Revolution House, Sweet Elizabeth's, The Peoples' Republic and word on Philly's upcoming Shake Shack.
- In What's Cooking: Goats! Cupcakes! Goat cheese! Wine! Goat milk! etc.
Photo: Neal Santos
Rich Landau says Saturday, July 2 will be the final day of service at Horizons (611 S. Seventh St.), he and wife/partner Kate Jacoby's lauded vegan eatery off South. (We had the full backstory on the closure back in April.) Between then and now, Landau promises he'll cook both "classics from days gone by and some tastes of what is next." No official word on the couple's new restaurant just yet but they hope to announce more details sometime next week. Here's the rundown on that spot, from our April post:
That new vision will be birthed in the hugely hopping Midtown Village area — Landau says they've narrowed their search down to three spaces in the neighborhood, but are "very close to signing with one." It'll be a small, 50- to 60-seat liquor-licensed restaurant (no name yet) with a focus on small/medium plates, as opposed to the more traditional appetizer/entrée/dessert approach. It'll also mark a definite shift in cooking style for Landau, who's well-known for his elaborate treatments of proteins like tofu, seitan and tempeh — he wants to bring the focus back squarely on the great variety of vegetables available to chefs in the region."Beautiful, amazing vegetables are our passion and inspiration right now," says Landau, "and we want them to be centerstage."
Italian magnates Vittorio Assaf (left) and Fabio Granato expect to open the Philadelphia branch of Serafina at 18th and Sansom this coming Tuesday, June 21, with an official "pasta-cutting" ceremony. The partners, who have Serafina locations in New York, the Hamptons and Brazil in addition to other restaurant projects, first announced their intent to break into the Philly market in the spring of 2010.
This big corner space (130 S. 18th St., 215-977-7718) seats nearly 200 between two floors, the second accessible via elevator; there's a bar accomodating 14 on the ground level, plus al fresco dining (watch for the signature yellow umbrellas). Food-themed frescos adorn multiple walls. The focal point of the kitchen operation is the wood-burning oven, where Serafina pizzaioli will crank out thin-crust heat-blistered pies, as well as seafood, poultry and other meat items (apps $7-$19; entrées $17-$28). The restaurant will also have a café operation offering coffee, pastries, sandwiches and so forth. They'll be open daily from 11:30 a.m. to midnight; the café will operate daily from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
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