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Archive: July, 2009
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| Photos | Drew Lazor |
Paul, the Pine Street BYO from sisters Effie Bouikidis-Schweich (of Effie's, across the street) and Christina Jimenez, opens tonight, and Meal Ticket has some pics and the menu to share with y'all. The small 28-seater (1120 Pine St.) has a bright, clean, nearly Mediterranean feel, thanks to a big latticed street-side window, comfy cream chairs and orante sconces. The centerpiece of the dining room is a framed photo of Paul, the owners' father, who passed away this winter. (Having a bit of trouble with an embeddable slideshow currently, so for right now check out more photos of the restaurant on Flickr.)
Chef Adam Merlin, late of Georges' in Wayne, is offering a small contemporary American menu � six starters, six entr�es. Check it out in full after the jump.
Hours: Tue.-Thu., 5-10 p.m.; Fri.-Sat., 5-11 p.m.; Sun., 5-9 p.m.; closed Mon.
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| Click to enlarge |
[...] meaning you can get a three-course meal for just 20 bones. Effie Bouikidis-Schweich, who opened the Pine Street BYOB in July with sister Christina Jimenez, tells Meal Ticket that chef Adam Merlin will switch up the courses [...]
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Parc (227 S. 18th St., 215-545-2262) is doing a few special things to ring in the final week of the 2009�Tour de France, which climaxes this Sunday in Paris. All week behind the bar, they'll be doing $4 Kronenbourg drafts, $8 Grey Goose French martinis and $6 Chambord Kir Royales. For eats, chef Art Cavaliere is putting out a daily special starting tomorrow � lineup after the jump.
Oh yeah, the bistro's also giving away this sick 2009 Jamis Ventura Sport, courtesy of Trophy Bikes. Inquire at the host stand.
Wednesday: Coq au Riesling $24
Thursday: Cote de Boeuf $32
Friday: Crispy Zucchini Blossoms $12
Saturday: Frog's Legs $16
Sunday: Lapin aux Olives $26
Stephen Simons and Dave Frank's Cantina Dos Segundos (931 N. Second St., 215-629-0500) is celebrating its first anniversary in NoLibs tomorrow night with music and priced-down booze.
The Rocktits and Broadzilla DJs will start spinning around 9, at which time Dos will start handing out El Jimador blackberry margaritas for $3, Herradura reposado shots for $5 and pineapple punch (served in a pinapple!) for $7. By 11, it'll be time for their regular late-night happy hour, with half-off pitchers and $2 off draft beers, Mexican bottles and 'ritas. Oh, and since this is a fiesta de cumpleanos, they'll have cupcakes from Vegan Treats available all night.
I don't know about you, but this half of Team Meal Ticket is suffering from some serious Restaurant Week Fatigue. When the geniuses behind September's Center City Restaurant Week announced that the semi-annual event would now bloat to two weeks of sullen service and warmish par-cooked salmon, my Prix-Fixe Paranoia was joined by a wicked case of the eye rolls. Those not so afflicted may take advantage of the superior savings and bohemian bonhomie of the incipient University City Dining Days, which runs Thursday, July 23 through July 30.
Choose your level of cash commitment � $15, $25 or $30 �� at restaurants of every stripe across the river. Real deals include Vientiane Caf�'s $15 three-courser that features favorites like green papaya salad with chili and peanuts, spicy bamboo shoots stir-fried with veggies and a banana chocolate spring roll; or sample a spring mix salad, fine hardwood-fired pizza and cannoli or tiramisu at Dock Street. At� Distrito, $30 snags you five Mexico City-inspired small plates from an expansive selection; or get your last taste of chef Erin O'Shea's sophisticated Southern before the chef departs Marigold Kitchen in August. PDF menus from each restaurant are available on the Dining Days Web site; hopefully one of them has the cure for my persistent Starrgurgitation.
University City Dining Days kicks off Thursday, July 23 and runs through the 30th, visit ucityphila.org/diningdays
CP restaurant critic David Snyder, whose polished quotability has been tapped by the New York Times and the Associated Press, among other outlets, contributed a soundbite to this Forbes Traveler piece on the best street food in America. He's asked about cheesesteaks, naturally:
Cheesesteak-serving stands are all over Philadelphia but are especially concentrated in the area of University City. One favorite of students and tourists alike is Abner�s at 38th and Chestnut Streets. "Cheesesteaks are as much of an institution in that part of town as the Liberty Bell," says Philly-based restaurant critic David Snyder. Snyder believes that street food is such a large part of the city's eating culture that it's not viewed in a special way, rather it is just accepted. "People don't look down on carts here as they might in other cities," he says.
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| Imagine how much cuter he will be after a few craft brews. |
The hippopotami will be enviously eyeing the sweet craft beers pouring at the Philadelphia Zoo's first Summer Ale Fest this Saturday, July 25, when a variety of local breweries will share their wares amid the Zoo's verdant gardens and animal attractions.
$75 scores a luxe VIP pass to the evening event, with access to a private educational seminar with an as-yet unnamed brewer, a souvenir pilsner glass and goodie bag. A more proletariat $45 gets you tastes from local favorites Sly Fox, River Horse, Roy Pitz, Lancaster Brewing, Yards, Dock Street, Victory, Philadelphia Brewing Co. and others in your souvenir pilsner glass.
The likes of Pierogie Kitchen, Bar Ferdinand, Tommy Gunns BBQ, Restaurant Taquet, Machismo Burrito Bar, London Grill and Rembrandt's will provide eats to complement the free-flowing brews. Designated drivers are rewarded for their restraint (and $20 contribution) with tickets for non-alcoholic beverages and complete grub access. A portion of proceeds will go to support educational and conservation programs at the Zoo, so do your drinking part to keep the penguins swimming, not singing, for their supper. Purchase tickets here.
Summer Ale Festival, Sat., July 25, 6:30-10:30 p.m., The Philadelphia Zoo, 3400 W. Girard Ave., 215- 243-1100, philadelphiazoo.org
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| thepenthouseclubphilly.net |
"The steakhouse image gets paired up pretty snugly with strippers," says chef Bill Elmer, who'll head up the kitchen for the upscale Penthouse Club, opening August 7 at 3001 Castor Avenue in the Great Northeast. "It's a gentleman's club, so the first things that people think of [are] steak, cigars, cognac, Hugh Hefner in a smoking jacket."
Though Elmer (Waterworks, The Omni Hotel, Hinge Caf�, Union Trust) will offer some manly cuts to the clientele he describes as "the guys coming down in suits" � a 16-ounce ribeye, a 10-ounce filet, a surf and turf plate with Australian cold-water lobster tail � he's going to be doing a lot more than just seared meat. For starters, there'll be a selection of global small plates � crab cakes, wontons, ceviches, octopus, panko-crusted smoked oysters served with spinach fondue. Also expect some more reasonably priced bar-inspired eats, like cheesesteaks, mussels and a 10-ounce black angus burger.
Yes, the chef's aware that most people aren't going to file into Penthouse for the grub alone. "I understand going into this that the food is an amenity," he says. "The guys are here for the club atmosphere and the beautiful women." But hey, guys get hungry. More soon.
[...] When the Penthouse Club opens August 7th, chef Bill Elmer will be cooking up more than just steaks. [Meal Ticket] [...]
We are planning a Bachelor Party for a good friend for Saturday night August 29 th. We are renting a large van & all meeting over in Roebling, N.J. about 6 pm. & want to have dinner about 7:30 pm or there abouts. What kind of a deal can you work out for me ? We will probably have about 15 dudes attending. E-mail me back about what you might reccomend for having dinner @ your place & a few beers & some gal dancing for us etc. Need costs.. cover charge ( hopefully waived) Cost of dinner & beer $$$$ etc. etc. Thank you so much, Dancin Doug Endres aka KD Medford, N.J. Ps: Make it worth my while & I'll get you lots of business
Dear Doug, Since everyone is very busy at the club (it was a crazy VIP party last night and tonight's general opening will be even more crazy) and they might not even see this site and your comment, you'd be better off calling the club 215-423-6000 and asking for the info directly. Have fun. Jeff Penthouse Magazine
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| Tuesday is Market Cocktail Day at Chick's Caf� |
Chick's Caf� and Wine Bar will introduce their new high bartendress to Philadelphia next week at Weeping Phoebe's Debutante Ball, also known as Chick's Summer Cocktail Dinner.
Phoebe Esmon was hand-picked by former head bartender Katie Loeb (now at Oyster House) to enlarge the Chick's tradition of complex cocktails loaded with fresh produce and herbs. Every Tuesday, Esmon shops the farmers market for likely ingredients for her Market Day Cocktails, which recently featured a muddled blueberry, cilantro and jalapeno concoction of cachaca and lemon juice.
The dinner on Monday, July 27 will pair five of Phoebe's original cocktails with chef Jim Piano's Medi-inspired cuisine. Expect an aperitif made with house-infused chamomile and cherry blossom vodka topped with Prosecco; a Plymouth gin, cucumber and green Chartreuse elixir matched with Italian crudo; and a spicy rye whiskey, orange pekoe tea and muddled mint cooler accompanied by a Spanish-influenced barbecue plate.
Chick's promises "surprises, liquid and otherwise," as well as stand-up comedy from local John Conor. Tickets are $45 per person, plus tax and tip. And that spectacularly evocative name? The teary moniker comes from Esmon's cottage industry, Weeping Phoebe's Bitters.
Summer Cocktail Dinner, Mon., July 27, 7 p.m., $45, Chick's Caf� and Wine Bar, 614 S. Seventh St., RSVP to 215-625-3700 or chickscafe@gmail.com.
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In late June, Otolith launched a CSS (community-supported seafood) program � just like a CSA, but for fish. For the first go-round, they're offering three five-pound deliveries of fresh-caught Alaskan sustainable salmon (king, coho, sockeye and pink varieties). Shares cost $180, which works out to $12 per pound of fish all told. The deadline to sign up is Aug. 2; more info on the CSS on Otolith's Web site. Come fall, Bossard says, they plan on instituting another CSS program offering halibut, sablefish and rockfish.
- Rockfish
- Pacific Cod
- Sockeye Salmon
- Dungeness crab
- Sweet Pink Shrimp
- Smoked Keta strips
- Smoked Sockeye, �Squaw Candy�
- Sablefish, �Blackcod�
- Smoked Blackcod
- Nova Lox
[...] week, we told you about Otolith Sustainable Seafood’s relocation, and its plans to launch a CSS (community supported seafood) program out of its new digs [...]
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Due to what they're characterizing as overwhelming regional demand, Taco Bell's mobile taco truck � the Twitter-based promo tool that some people think is fake � will apparently stop in Philly on Wednesday, September 9 to hand out free tacos and burritos at the 24-Hour Blame-A-Thon event benefiting cancer research (more on that here and here).
You know, we heard Joe Buck mention the Taco Bell Truck by name during last week's MLB All-Star Game, which would seem to legitimize its existence. But strangely enough, a Twitter search reveals a suspicious lack of after-the-fact reports (e.g. "Yum, just ate some free tacos from the Taco Bell Truck!") � and we cannot find a single photo of the truck itself. Is this vehicle's elusiveness simply a result of a hyper-regulated marketing campaign? Or is this some sort of elaborate conspiracy ... that involves Joe Buck?
If you've placed eyeballs on the Taco Bell Truck in another city, or you have photographic evidence, please speak up in the comments.
UPDATE: So the Taco Bell Truck has checked in with some rather compelling photographic evidence of its existence. Pics after the jump.
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| Taco Bell Truck at TwitPic |
Impressive reporting. For reals.
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