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Archive: September, 2011
Wingstop, the Troy Aikman-backed chicken wing franchise (boooooooo Cowboys) has announced its intent to blanket the Philly metro area in 20 additional locations "over the next several years." Reps from the Texas-based chain are coming to Philly in the middle of next week to chat up potential franchisees. (No word on whether or not there'll be free Gliders.) Right now Wingspot has one Philly restaurant, up on Temple's campus (1600 N. Broad St.), owned by Owl alum/current Seattle Seahawks DE Raheem Brock.
Photo: Wingstop on Twitter
Philly's Restaurant Week has officially begun — Pizzeria Stella (420 S. Second St.), however, is takign the opportunity to celebrate Pizza Week from Sept. 12 to 16. Venture to Headhouse Square to grub on three courses — antipasti/salad, pizza and gelato for dessert — for $25 (not including tax/tip). The deal is available for both lunch and dinner.
Photo: Drew Lazor
Got a little more info on Matthew "Feldie" Feldman's plans to launch a mobile burger-and-fry truck ahead of his in-the-works Newbold jazz venue Lucky Old Souls. (The deal was first mentioned on Critical Mass.)
Feldman tells Meal Ticket he first got the idea to launch a food truck about four months back, but decided it wasn't the right time — but that was before Renaissance Sausage announced they were unloading their wheels. He checked out the vehicle and put down a deposit on it the same day.
Feldman's collaborating on this aspect of the LOS brand with his wife, Quavin Johnson Feldman. She designed the new LOS logo (right) and was integral in recipe development, especially the veggie burger, which will be offered along with patties made with beef from Rineer Family Farm in Pequea. The truck will feature a sweet sound system, too; peep Icepack for more on what Feldman will be playing.
No launch date has been set for the truck just yet. Feldman adds that his bar/restaurant/venue (1713 McKean St.), which also has no opening set in stone, will feature a more extensive menu than the truck, but it'll also focus on "comfort food made with fresh ingredients from small, local farms."
Elbowing your way into the always-stuffed-to-capacity Village Whiskey (119 S. 20th St.) typically requires patience, aggression, smooth-talking skills, patience, at least one cocktail at The Franklin, sprinting-friendly footwear and patience. Pour one out as an offering to the single-malt gods, then, that V-Dubs has decided to accept reservations for the duration of Restaurant Week. Though the first-come first-served Garces bar is not official RW participant, they will reserve tables for up to six heads between the hours of 5:30 to 10 p.m.; they'll book rezzies from today through Friday, Sept. 16, and from Sunday, Sept. 18 through Friday, Sept. 23. Call 215-665-1088 to give it a shot.
Photo: Drew Lazor
Monday, September 5
Happy Labor Day.
Tuesday, September 6
Eulogy/Beneluxx owner Mike Naessens is opening a Chinese/German concept in Old City.
Double Shots, also in Old City, has changed its name.
Wednesday, September 7
Munish Narula's new upscale Indian restaurant, Tashan, is open for business.
The venerated Palm gets a fresh new look.
We've got the latest on Rich Landau and Kate Jacoby's Vedge.
Thursday, September 8
Mémé is giving out free fried chicken to celebrate its third birthday.
Check out our recipe for zha jiang mian, aka Beijing bolognese.
Grubwithus is a new social media tool that brings strangers together to break bread.
More details are emerging about Mike Stollenwerk's relocation of Fish.
Friday, September 9
- Mexico is probably second only to Japan as far as interesting ice cream flavors go. You can get the best in Kennett Square, but if you can't make that hike, Midtown Lunch discovered a place right in South Philly that has some: El Pueblo offers up elote, guaya con crema, and arroz con leche.
- Be still my heart: Laudrée has opened up a store in New York City. The legendary pastry shop now offers Madison Avenue shoppers a place to pick up some of the most celebrated pastries in the world. Macarons, tartes and gâteaux of astounding beauty stare out at you from irresistible window displays. If I’ve started to sound like an obsessed pompous snot, it's because I've just turned into one.
- Wouldn’t you just love to smear some on some UMP (unidentified meat product) to soothe your poor chapped lips? Hormel is now offering a Spam-flavored lip gloss, as well as other doodads such as air fresheners and beachballs.
- Stop judging The Cheesecake Factory — they’re just trying to feed the common man. Founder David Overton, who has shockingly not suffered a fatal heart attack yet, claims that he’s giving Americans what they want: enormous portions of over-salted, over-sugared food. He also claims to understand the taste of the common man and is not the least bit humble.
- The 10th anniversary of September 11 is this Sunday. (See Critical Mass for a roundup of local tributes and events.) If you weren’t sure what wine to drink to commemorate this, Lieb Cellars in Long Island has just the bottle for you. They're selling wine made with grapes grown 90 miles from the site of the World Trade Center. Not only that, they came up with the idea mere days after the tragedy. Talk about opportunistic.
- Forget Muppets in space — it’s gardens in space! NASA is developing a way to grow food on space shuttles in anticipation of five-year round trips to Mars. It will provide the astronauts healthy, fresh food as well as producing oxygen and removing carbon dioxide.
Photo: latimes.com
A couple local chefs have appointments at the prestigious James Beard House this fall. First up on Oct. 25 is Robert Aikens, Brit-born chef of Stephen Starr's jolly good show The Dandelion (124 S. 18th St.). He’s teaming up with his twin brother, Tom, of Michelin-starred Tom Aikens in London, for a seven-course, booze-included modern English feast involving poached pigeon with winter truffles, cider-glazed pork belly and the chicken liver/foie parfait we love sososomuch at Dandelion. (Find the menu, in its full, $205-per-person splendor, after the jump.) On Nov. 9, look for Aimee Olexy of Talula's Garden (210 W. Washington Square) and Talula's Table (102 W. State St., Kennett Square) at the Beard House. No menu yet ... maybe because ex-chef Matt Moon is still listed on the invitation?
Photo: Drew Lazor
Chicken, shrimp, eggplant, potatoes of the Russian banana fingerling variety. This is the motley crew I had to work with for dinner the other night. The solution? Cioppino, the San Fran invention whose whole reason for being is using up random ingredients (seafood traditionally) by "chip"-ing them into a big ol’ pot. Think of cioppino as the brash American cousin of bouillabaisse. Find out how to make my version after the jump.
Tonight at 10:30 p.m., tune into Food Network to catch a "phreakin' phenomenal" Philly-focused episode of the Duff Goldman-hosted Sugar High, featuring Brown Betty and the Sugar Philly truck. If you want to watch outside the house, head to the Italian Market's Rim Café (1172 S. Ninth St.), which will also be highlighted on the show, at 9 p.m. for a free-to-the-public viewing party. Brown Betty will serve Southern rice pudding, Sugar Philly will be passing out their famous milk-and-honey macarons and Rim will be serving a pistachio hot chocolate dessert called the "Magnum Volcano," a trumped-up spin on the Volcano recipe that'll be featured on TV.
This Saturday, Sept. 10 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., head to Liberty Lands Park (913-961 N. Third St.) for the fifth annual A Full Plate Rib Cook-Off. The event has three categories of competition this year: Ribs, Vegetarian Quickfire (competitors must whip up a veggie dish using items revealed at the beginning of the event) and "Anything Goes" (any grilled dish other than pork ribs). The Ribs bracket will feature both amateur and professional teams; participating in the pro division are neighborhood competitors like Darling's, PYT, Blind Pig and Gunners Run.
The afternoon's judging panel will feature Collin Flatt from The Feast, Ann Karlen from Fair Food, Anna Goldfarb from Shmitten Kitten, Taylor High from Mac & Cheese, the NLNA's Matt Ruben, radio personality Bill Anderson, certified BBQ judge Brian Gralnick and yours truly.
The event costs $20 and features all-you-can-eat ribs, as well as a buffet of vegetarian-friendly food from A Full Plate and sweets from Flying Monkey. Toss up a little extra for a bottomless Philadelphia Brewing Co. cup. A portion of the events proceeds will be donated to Teens 4 Good, a local org that works with youth to convert vacant lots into urban gardens/farms.
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