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FD: Felicia D'Ambrosio
MD: Marie DiFeliciantonio
AH: Alexandra Harcharek
DL: Drew Lazor
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| Photo | Drew Lazor |
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| Photo | Alexandra Harcharek |
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| Photo | Drew Lazor |
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Notes from the Weekend
Filed Under: Notes from the Weekend
So Friday I planted a bodacious container garden on my deck (which I will write about on notes from the weekend hopefully in july to sept), after planting i was scolded to come inside and get ready for Daniel's Gluten free dinner as you're not allowed in with dirt under EVERY fingernail. So I washed every other one for effect and enjoyed a killer gluten free feast. Double dinner on Saturday was a family in town for my birthday that was last week situation. Bitar's + Zahav + The Pope + Bed + Cafe Estelle = Fat, happy, and a pleasant year older. I will now fast until next weekend. Bogus -Johnny
Banana and water before running Broad St. Vaca frita burrito from El Vez after, with a Sly Fox Dunkel Lager. Waited a couple hours, hit up Tria for Sunday School. Birchrun cream cheese and strawberries on baguette with a couple glasses of Arneis. Then polished off most of a Kennett from Zavino and a couple slices of the Rosa. Successful day. I'm blotting out memory of Saturday. Rittenhouse Row festival was super crowded, and some restaurants (looking at you Prime Rib) are charging too much for mediocre product. It shouldn't be a profit center, more of an advertisement. Skimpy portions and escalating prices mean this might be one I skip next year.
I finally got to 500 Degrees (1504 Sansom) on Friday. I could eat 500 500 Burgers, medium-rare (as recommended), with truffle fries. The burger is sized awesomely, it was juicy and either the special sauce or the crisp bacon added the perfect salty note. Saturday we hit up Sabrina's Café (1804 Callowhill) for breakfast and I devoured the Apple & Cheddar Omelet. One word: YUMMY. Two more words: hipster central! Saturday night we went to one of my all-time favorite suburban spots, Parc Bistro (4067 Skippack Pike, Skippack). Food coma brought on by Aaron's Arrogant Mussels, Wagyu Beef Brisket Boeuf Bourguignon & Lemon Tartlet. City food in the burbs â go get it, kids!
I hate on them all the time, but Vesuvio's all-beer-for-$4 deal is pretty sweet, considering how huge their list is ($4 Fin du Monde? Yes, please). Also drank too much Franzia Crisp white because I'm a baller. On Sunday, my brother made softshell crab po' boys and plantains with some kind of green, ungodly good mayo. How come he can do that and I can only make popcorn?
Friday: Post-work cocktails at Continental. I started with the Sweet Manhattan and my gf the Sidecar. We got our tumblers confused and on our second pour, ended up with a strange, yet not repugnant, Manhattan/Sidecar hybrid. Followed that up with an aviation, another sidecar and a plate of Korean tacos. Had less interesting fare at Campbell's field for the Riversharks home opener, but was pleased that there was a choice of Yards — Brawler and Philly Pale Ale (I think) — on tap. Saturday: Trekked out to West Chester to see Lidia Bastianich speak at a WHYY event. But first we hit WHYY where Mike McGrath took a break from his show and the station's pledge drive to take pity on my pathetic gardening attempts and plied me with tomato plants. That evening we transplanted his Brandywine, Tie Dye and Strawberry tomatoes and put our sickly little rootbound seedlings into their own pots in hopes that maybe they'll rally. Sunday: Hit the opening of the Headhouse Farmers Market which was crazy packed. Bought salami from Talula's Table, incredible fig and gorgonzola bread from Wild Flour, strawberries from AT Buzby, radishes from Culton Organics (whose Tom Culton wore a pheasant-feather fertility headdress), cheeses from Birchrun and Hillacres, pea shoots, mushrooms and scallions from Queen's Farm. Waited in line for the way-in-the-weeds Renaissance Sausage and it was definitely worth it. After hitting up Zoe Strauss' final Under I-95, wandered over to Hawthornes' way-packed IPA block party and got a pint of Russian River's Pliny the Elder not long before it kicked.
I was treated to a delicious lunch by my live-in-lover on Sunday before the ridiculously good Koresh dance show. We ate pan-roasted grouper with lemon and thyme and salad with english peas, radish, tomato, cucumber, carrots and bleu cheese and polishes it off with glasses of Crios rose.
if you're like me and prefer to drink your breakfast, lunch, and/or dinner, might I suggest a delicious shot I learned this weekend at a friends engagement party (i was told its called "the wedding shot" but google is really shitting the bed on that one). it is as follows : pour yourself a shot of tequila, grab a slice of lime, cover one side of said lime with sugar, the other with finely ground espresso beans. take shot, eat lime, repeat, repeat, sleep in. just in time for cinco de mayo (which is Spanish for frat party).
Lunched at the POPE Saturday -- split a breakfast sandwich, brunch burrito and scrapple, plus lots of water since it was a million degrees. For dinner ate Cinnamon Toast Crunch and peanut M&Ms. Yeah. Sunday woke up early to cheer on the Broad Street Runners, and grabbed an iced-coffee-extra-ice and a croissant from Green Eggs Cafe. Saw at least one runner eyeing me jealously; felt kinda mean. Grabbed a vanilla Rita's to cool off en route to Hawthorne's block party, where I drank a Lost Abbey Devotion and pet lots of cute dogs. Pizza made with farmers-market-bought ingredients for dinner.
Had lunch on Friday at Kanella. Delicious. I opted for the scramble special and the chef obliged to my request of egg whites. Scramble came out with the aforementioned whites, dill, fennel, asparagus, artichokes and feta. It was delicious and what I plan to make for dinner this week on Wednesday, subbing pasta for the egg whites. Boyfriend had the standard Kanella breakfast. Went to Franklin Fountain midday for some peppermint chip ice cream and a root beer float with ginger ice cream for the boy. Dinner on Friday night was at Snackbar. It was fantastic. We told the staff we were celebrating something special and the chef agreed to a tasting menu. It was interesting because we were served different dishes for every course so we got to taste a total of 12 dishes! Some of the highlights included curried octopus with pickled mango, mango puree and jasmine rice; a bowl of delicious, plump mussels with kimchi on top; flat bread with egg yolk, peas, cheese and bacon; lobster roll on brioche; and venison carpaccio with blueberries. They also have a delicious peach belini and good people watching outside. Saturday morning breakfast was at Sabrina's where I had the egg white omelette with pears, brie, sundried tomato and caramelized leeks. Boyfriend had the veggie Rueben which was not as good as my omelette but the sweet potato fries stole the entire show. Coffee was weak. Saturday lunch was found at Citizen's Bank Park at the Phillies game and dinner was at Whole Foods' Cold Point Pub in Plymouth Meeting. I just love the wine setup there. Sunday was a stay at home and eat a lot of salad kind of day. :)
Friday night had wine at Vintage because Zavino was too crowded - hour wait for an outside table but looked fun. Saturday ate a yummy and over-priced crab cake at Butcher & Singer stall at the Rittenhouse Row Festival. Drank Bluemoon Summer Ale as we walked and people watched. Another beer at Varga. Roasted tomatoes in the oven all day even though it was WAY too hot for that- still great. Sunday checked out Headhouse and was bummed no tacos from the Taqueria truck. Walked down to South Philly to find them and they are sadly different tasting at the store itself. Luckily, tacos will be back next Sunday for those who love. Keep it up! I love people dishing on their weekend eats...
well...i know this is notes from the weekend and all, but my weekend was spent not eating crazy or much, because I indulged during the week while in San Diego, and I think its worth noting the left coast nommings. First night dined at neighborhood (San Diego's sidecar) - ate something called the local animal, which I still dream about. An open faced sammie on A toasted over-sized hotdog bun, melted guyere, arugula, fried egg, berkshire dog and topped with pork braised with peppers and onions and mustard-molasses glaze. Side of sweet potato fries. absolutely insane. Made even better when washed down with lost abbey's angel share a most potent american strong ale. a nice night cap of four roses bourbon sealed the deal. day 2 included a fantastic crab cake BLT for lunch at the historic hotel del coronado on coronado island. sidled by an interesting watermelon cocktail. Two strange things - the T on my crabcake BLT was seriously like 2" thick; and the seagulls ate leftovers off the tables. Kinda skanky for a really posh beach front dining patio. Because work was light that day...I headed over to Mission beach for an early dinner and beach stroll. after walking a few miles on the beach, I hit up PB Surf for a beer and tacos. one shrimp and one fried halibut taco. Went perfectly with a Stone IPA as I watched the sunset over the ocean. Tacos were good...but nothing amazing. day three...back in the gaslamp district for dinner. started at la puerta, had these insane carne asada covered french fries. Sauted steak, pickled penos, cilantro crema, salsa, guac....absolutely gut-busting! being my last night, I had to go back to neighborhood one more time before I left San Diego. I had fennel frites, another angel's share from lost abbey and avery's imperial IPA. perfect. couldn't recommend neighborhood enough. I also love the fact that they consider themselves a beer bar and will only make TWO different cocktails. that's it. A great beer/whisky selection and some funny jesus motifs make it a place I would frequent constantly if it were in Philly...
rascal b. schuylkillian: Neighborhood definitely sounds awesome and like a place I would like too. That sandwich sounds ridiculous! I was just in SD in February for the first time. My favorite spots that we visited were The Linkery, Burger Lounge, Aero Club and Hamilton's, the latter two being the bars with some badass Philly-caliber craft beer selections (moreso Hamilton's...Aero more had a nice whiskey lineup). Would love to go back...G and H, are you listening?
Better late than never! Saturday morning, hit up the Collingswood Farmer's Market and picked up a basil plant. Went to my mom's house later to find that she had bought (a much more lush) one for me that day, also. The family had a Pre-Broad Street Run pasta dinner with supplies from Georgetti's in Cinnaminson (even better than Severino - trust). We dined on regular and whole wheat pasta, marinara sauce, meat sauce, pesto sauce, roasted chicken, salad and fresh baguettes. Fantastic! Sunday, peanut butter on wheat toast and ten miles of torture, followed by a beer-b-que back at my parents' house. Light bites and more brews at the Pour House in Collingswood. Back at my place, I passed out WITH A BEER IN MY HAND on the couch while watching the Phils. My boyfriend rescued the soldier from my grasp and drank it himself. Just another reason why he's awesome.
Filed Under: Notes from the Weekend
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FD: Felicia D'Ambrosio
MD: Marie DiFeliciantonio
AH: Alexandra Harcharek
DL: Drew Lazor
Dragged a bunch of Di Bruno's goodies to an impromptu picnic at Wissahickon Creek Friday afternoon. Discovered the ideal blue cheese for those who tend to avoid its inherently superfunky nature — the friendly, accessible blu di bufala, made from the same milk used for buffalo mozzarella. Hard to hate. —DL
Loved the tasty pineapple margarita at National Mechanics (22 S. Third St.), which gets its kick from jalapeno-infused tequila. If you think you can take it, ask for extra heat. —AH
Friday I met friends at the cougarlicious Redstone American Grill (500 Route 73 S.) for a few glasses of Pinot Grigio and Sauvignon Blanc. We exited a few hours later and shifted gears at Ott's Green Top Inn (588 Route 73 N.) for a few rounds of shuffleboard, greasy bar food and Blue Moon drafts. —MD
This weekend's eating itinerary was literally stuffed due to boyfriend Mike Persico's birthday festivities. Kicked off excessive consumption at Village Whiskey (118 S. 20th St.) on Friday and was gratified by both the burger and the fact that a drink mixmaster Stephen Seibert made up for me, the Cellar Door (Rittenhouse Rye, Carpano Antica vermouth, lemon, orange and mole bitters, rosemary), has made the new official list. —FD
Mealed at Mémé (2201 Spruce St.) slightly late on Friday night. Delicious as always — but please pay special attention to David Katz's agnolotti, with mint, lemon and English peas. It's so spring it should come to your table wearing gingham. —DL
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| Photo | Alexandra Harcharek |
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| Photo | Felicia D'Ambrosio |
Spent all afternoon Saturday at the Manayunk Brefest, PBC Fleur de Lehigh (ginger and lemongrass) stood out in my mind, needless to say didnt do much Saturday night
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Drew Lazor and Allie Harcharek, Meal Ticket. Meal Ticket said: Here are Team Meal Ticket's eating/drinking NOTES FROM THE WEEKEND. Leave your own in the comments! http://bit.ly/d8HZao [...]
Spent all day Saturday @ Shadfest soaking up the sun, good vibes, music, shad served up by Johnny Brenda's, and the all-you-can-drink PBC brews. Fleur de Lehigh was my dominant choice for the day....yum. Saturday night rolled into my closest neighborhood spot Devil's Den for a "daycap" and the bangin' braised pork sandwich.
The grilled cheese sliders with gazpacho at 12 Steps Down were decadently good (an attempt to make them at home later in the weekend didn't turn out half-bad either although we used string cheese and replaced gazpacho with hot sauce ⦠because that's how we roll). Why no one told me to go to Moe's Hot Dog House at Grays Ferry and Washington before is a tragedy — I could only eat a bite of the Connie Mac (mac 'n' cheese on a pup) but that was all I needed/could take. This weekend, I also came to the steadfast conclusion that Taqueria Veracruzano at Ninth and Washington has by far my fave guac in town.
Hit up David's Mai Lai Wah in Chinatown after seeing Human Sounds play at the Troc. Let me say that the tea, the shrimp egg roll and the Squid with Broccoli I had was fantastic. Fresh, tasty and satisfying.
Sunday night... did lechon asado and some sort of lump crab soup at Cuba! in Chestnut Hill. Far and away, the best Latin food I've had since I left Florida. And way too much homemade Sangria.
Alex, if Domino's inflates your lips my dinner and beauty conundrums are solved in one fell swoop.
On Sunday I attended a family lunch and ate delicious homemade mac n' cheese and a deep dish pizza made in the deep dish pan I got my parents for Christmas. Gift giving success should always be punctuated by delicious pizza!
Spent all day Saturday wandering around Passyunk and drinking Gaffel Kolsch which is my most recent warm weather beer obsession. Went into the Flavors of Avenue tent around 2:30 (it was sold out until then) and there was basically nothing left! Looked like it was a lot of fun though. The taqueria on the corner of Passyunk and Morris was selling steamed crabs- 2 for $5. My day drinking turned into night drinking. Birthday party and then celebrations at PYT. It was my first time there and it will hopefully be my only time there. The bartender scoffed at my boyfriend's request for a PBR and then suggested an $8 beer and shot special (!!) Eventually he settled on another beer and we walked to the dance floor... only to find that they serve PBR at the back bar. So yeah, that place is corny.
i went to shadfest and i waited in a long line and looked at cute little dogs and moms dancing with babies. it was fun.
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Homemade cupcakes, chicken wings and potato salad plus other BBQ food on Saturday, sorry it isn't available for the public!
Friday night started off at the Devil's Den for Happy Hour, I had a few Spaten Maibocks and half a dozen oysters. Promptly fell asleep on my friend's bed. Oops. Saturday I walked around the city all day, stopped by Maoz on South Street but it was overflowing with people so we decided to walk to the Walnut Street location. Falafels! yum. Sunday I went to brunch at Lucky 13 where I got a smoked salmon, dill cream cheese and egg sandwich (du jour) and some bloody marys. Delicious. Stopped home, watched Back to the Future and went back to the Devil's Den for more Maibocks and Kenzingers during the Phillies game. Foraged on to the Royal, where I drunkenly ate half of a black bean burger that was just as tasty cold today. Fell asleep on my couch with my cat. Woke up bloated. Good weekend indeed.
Friday night was an exercise in the routine. watched phillies at sidecar and scarfed a whole margherita pizza while talking to the chic next to me who did the same. saturday. worked til 4 then spent time at cantina(which reminded of "old cantina") then on to oneil's to meet friends and remember why oneals is one of my top 3 bars in the city. sunday = friend home from iraq, big breakfasts at taproom then makeshift "specials" at cantina. from there to devils den (which isn't the same without my girls on the bar) then to zavino for polpettini pies and old company. closed out sunday with the usual banger management at drinkers rittenhouse. best dollar tacos in the city and you're playing street fighter on widescreen and best crew in the city runnin your drinks. my mondays hate me.
Friday- Drank a few beers (Yards, Yuengling) at a housewarming and snacked on those delicious waffeletten picked up at Food & Friends (http://www.chocablog.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/bahlsen-waffeletten.jpg) then stopped for a nightcap at the Sidecar where the crowd was a little rowdy but the tunes were good as usual Saturday- [work all day, punctuated by Skippy Natural Crunchy PB on wheat toast with slices of banana] Sunday- visited TJ's Everyday while out in the burbs and got a Brooklyn Dark Matter brown ale. It was lighter in body than expected and I wasn't craving the vanilla and somewhat fruity flavors coming through. I also sampled the Flying Dog Kerberus tripel and enjoyed the saison qualities of that beer. However I found that one a bit too sweet as well. Also-- had the nachos at TJ's. They're decent but could use some more fresh ingredients. Monday- Spent some of the afternoon at the Yards tasting room enjoying their Old Bart Barleywine (a delicious bellywarmer) and the Philly Pale.
Knew I liked your taste, Felicia -- I've been evangelizing about Stella's Pistachio Pie since the week they opened. Incredible.
Friday- after running the loop at Ridley Creek State Park, celebrating by re-acquiring every single calorie I burned at the hands of local beer brewing god Bob Barrar (Iron Hill Media)...freshly-brewed double wit and maibock...spring is good. Saturday: finally got to try the new menu/chef at Xochitl...great new take. The charred onions with the arrachera are amazing. Monday: Got to try lunch at El Rey...there is just nothing wrong with short rib enchiladas. I don't know who started the short rib wave going through Philadelphia right now; but, I love him/her and would like to vote for him/her for mayor.
[...] put you on to this in the latest edition of Notes from the Weekend, but here’s a reminder: Preston Eckman, beverage manager at APO Bar + Lounge (102 S. 13th [...]
Filed Under: Notes from the Weekend
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FD: Felicia D'Ambrosio
MD: Marie DiFeliciantonio
AH: Alexandra Harcharek
DL: Drew Lazor
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| Photo | Drew Lazor |
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| Photo | Drew Lazor |
Did not resist the fried Saganaki cheese to start off a delicious meal at Effie's on Pine Friday night. Did not resist the baklava, either, to end it. Split a bottle of Red Bicyclette pinot noir before sitting through a two-hour dance performance. Not a bad idea. After a Saturday full of gardening and feeling sick from too much Saganaki, ventured out for some late-night bun at Viet Phuong. Char-broiled pork and spring rolls: somehow soothing.
Friday Night: Ordered pizza and salad from Gianfrancos Pizza Rustica in South Philly (yes, they're delicious and yes, I have them on speed dial). Gawked over wedding photographer portfolios all night. Saturday Night: Ate half gallon of ice cream during "Father of the Bride"-Marathon-induced panic attack. After parents drove an hour from Pottstown to calm me down, took them to Penrose Diner for pie. Sunday Night: Took future-in-laws to Continental (spur of the moment decision after Tinto and Village Whiskey had 2-hour waits). Enjoyed my jumbo lump crab pad thai whilst sitting next to Johnny Whitworth (more affectionately known as AJ from Empire Records). Resisted the urge to quote my favorite film all over his salad, and instead sat there staring at him for an hour. Johnny, if you're reading this, I'm sorry.
Friday night I tried out a Smash (lemon/mint/spirit) with rum at the classy little Franklin Mortgage and Co. A little sweet, but sophisticated and appropriate for the Franklin's speakeasy vibe. Next time I won't wear jeans. After that we hit Village Whiskey to wait forfuckingever for that amazing hamburger. Damn you, big huge amazing hamburger cooked exactly the way I wanted it.
Tilapia tacos were worth forgoing the usual carnitas at Cantina Los Caballitos, although I wish I had more room for the following birthday cake (courtesy of best bud Caitlin), which had some of the most decadent icing I've ever eaten. The night ended with too much Coors Lite (isn't any Coors Lite too much Coors Lite? Silver Bullet!) at Westy's Tavern, which hosts some of my fave karaoke in the city — you can read a bit more about in Critical Mass' Been There/Done That. Also: Percy Street's Mac 'n' Cheese makes me rethink my distaste for pasta. Sooo decadent.
Friday: No better way to start the weekend than with Govindas Chicken Cheesesteak (on a spinach wrap) and variety pack from Intercourse Brewing Company. Bareville Pilsner win. Saturday: Frenetic Web design fueled by Mumu's Spicy Orange Lentil Dip and chips from Weaver's Way co-op, plus more Bareville Pilsner. Do I need to stop capitalizing Web now too? Sunday: Brunch alive at Memphis Taproom! The "Vegan Rooster" comes with vegan blood sausage, which brunchmates and I concluded gets its moistness (and namesake) from real vegan blood. Also, their implementation of toasted-coconut-as bacon-alternate succeeds here as it does in the Club sandwich.
Molly: "distaste for pasta" ? I *wish* I had that. Would help with the waistline. (Agree on the Percy Street dish's awesomeness.)
I'm intrigued by AH's Druid's Keep outing. Definitely going to check that out soon! Saturday: Dinner at Paul. Very hit or miss as far as I was concerned. After-dinner drinks took place at Smokin' Betty's upstairs bar. Sunday: Bobby Chez crab cakes, lobster mash and cucumber and tomato salad for dinner. Especially delish when paired with a Flyers win.
This weekend I discovered my newest favorite Capogiro combo: Sweet basil and Avocado. SOOOOOooo good!!
Friday night - French fries and $1 off Founders IPA at TIME for happy hour + jazz. Nightcap at South Philly Taproom for more delicious brews and an amazing Grilled Caesar with fresh artichokes and polenta. Saturday - coffee and to-go beer at Ultimo cafe Sunday - mediocre brunch at Green Eggs Cafe. Orange Chicken dinner at Terryin and Dark Chocolate and Sweet Amish Milk Gelato at Capogiro on Passyunk.
On Friday I ate awesome fried smelts and a smoked trout salad with beets from Standard Tap. Yan Beck, who joined me, got the fried chicken sandwich which was the biggest sandwich I've ever seen. Seriously. And he ate it all. After that, I hung out in a dirty warehouse and drank fancy beer. Saturday, I went on an ill-advised, caffeine fueled shopping spree at the Cherry Hill Mall. Drank more coffee there and left with way more clothes from Forever21 than a 27 year old should have. Ate white pizza from Gianfranco's and drank some ice tea vodka that night. Sunday I made whole wheat pasta with cauliflower, onions and feta. Yum!
[...] @ The Barbary 4/15/2010 Meal Ticket• MAY 14: Green Aisle Grocery and Spinal Tapas collide• Notes from the Weekend: April 19• Get goaty at Talula's Table today• Saturday: Reading Terminal Market gets in on the [...]
Friday- Phillies game in the cold rain (minus one) two hot dogs and too many beers (plus 3) Saturday- Lunch at Landmark by Penn. Delicious guacamole, decent salads, almost spontaneously combusted by the fire pits outside. Dinner at Zavino. Seriously this pizza is the nectar of the gods. Get the sausage. And the linguine with spicy tuna confit... I would have bathed in it.... fish smell and all. Sunday- Breakfast at Famous 4th Street. Ate a veggie omelette that was bigger than my face. Flyers game at Misconduct Tavern. Love that place-- crab and artichoke bruschetta, grilled skirt steak sandwich. Delicious food, and the least obnoxious sports bar I've ever been to.
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Late lunch Sunday strolling down Market St in Old City... found just-that-day opening of Old City Asian Bistro (next to old Snow White). Had most amazing sushi - fresh fish, not too much rice. Dining partner had gigantic and beautiful bento box. Not-too-sweet hot and sour soup, too. Service was efficient and the price....could not find any cheaper, especially in old city! Watch out Mizu! Finished off with ice cream at Franklin Fountain... what a way to enjoy a sunny day!
Friday - Drank BrewDog Tokyo Stout (tiny but tasty), a Furthermore Thermorefur (sour ale with beets and black pepper) and shared Aventinus mussels and wings with friends while watching Roy Halladay pitch and the Flyers lose at Devil's Den. Saturday - Bit the bullet and planted most of our seedlings in the garden: lettuces, strawberries, peppers, oregano, basil, fenugreek, artichokes, romanesco. Also seeded peas, cucumbers, carrots, dill and wormwood alongside the garlic and rosemary already thriving in the planter. Put the fig tree purchased a few weekends back at Greensgrow into a proper pot. Celebrated with my first Negroni (after drinking way too many Boulevardiers since getting my first bottle of Campari). Sunday - Moderated a panel about alternative transportation at the GoGreenExpo then hit the Iron Hill Brew Pub in Phoenixville and had two flights of very drinkable — if not mind-blowing — beers, including a nice Irish Dry Stout on nitro I quite liked and a Chocolate Stout and a Belgian Honey Beer that the gf was quite fond of.
Fun column! I'm already excited to see what next Monday's post will bring...
Filed Under: Notes from the Weekend
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FD: Felicia D'Ambrosio
MD: Marie DiFeliciantonio
AH: Alexandra Harcharek
DL: Drew Lazor
Sunday 5 course tasting at Fish was flawless. Unbelievable that perfection costs $28.
uncklejason, seriously! Best deal around.
Felicia - it's a Rittenhouse-crowd thing, not eating in front of others. Or do those rail thin ladies eat at all? Not sure.
Is that EVERY Sunday at Fish? That place rocks!
Danya -- there were even teensy chocolate-filled cookies individually-screen printed with tiny anime pandas! I did eat three of those while no one was looking.
Ridiculously good quadruple layer mousse tart thing at the dessert place at 6th and Passyunk (sadly can't recall the name right now).
friday i don't even remember what i did for food. saturday met one friend who came up from DC only because he found megabus tix for $4.50 + he wanted nan zhou. Finally tried the hand shaven style with the pork soy sauce. Felt very happy and very full. That night, met another friend up from DC (both staying in the same hotel too. weird). Was going to introduce her and her new boyfriend to the village whiskey burger, but the wait was insane and they didn't bother to tell me they stopped seating the outside tables at 10 pm (boo! and they told me i'd get an outside table around 9:30. Double boo!!!). Fortunately, while waiting for VW, was getting properly boozed up @ the bar at noble. And then we said screw it and ate there...burger was awesome. Not as juicy as VW, but I love the beet and the bun more than VW. Also had the absolutely amazing gnocchi, the homemade chorizo, and a taste of the braised pork belly. Noble ftw. Sunday barely ate anything before dinner after crazy saturday. Dinner? Some pop n fresh biscuits (so bad, yet so very, very good) and leftover collards and ribs from bebe's. conclusion: still slamming after 3 days in the fridge. Only disappointment was the lack of mac + cheese leftovers as well.
I seemed to eat a lot of onion rings this weekend but the ones at Sidecar were clearly the best. The outside is so crispy, while the inside is so slimy. And that aioli is awesome, but the rings are even better when paired with the delicious tomato concoction that comes with their grits-in-bar-form (which are also good, but not as good as those tomatoes).
Swung by Phoenixville's Farmers' Market bright-and-early Saturday for their last day of their winter market. Sue Miller manned her Birchrun Hills' Farm table proud as the local community proudly mobbed her after her recent raved review. (Of course, I was one of 'em, grabbing some Red Cat + Birchrun Blue.) Another love I developed from this market visit was from the goat cheeses of Shellbark Hollow Farm of West Chester. The honey chevre spread is pure bliss, especially paired with apples and Asian pears.
Sunday was by far the day of eating... after fasting off a hang over for a few hours (not recommended) I picked up a slew of stuff at DiBruno Bros. cheese shop and made sandwiches for me and a friend. Scooped out long roll, oil, fresh mozzarella, prosciutto de parma, turkey breast, tomatoes, onions and balsamic. NOM. (served with an assortment of locavore favorite Herr's Chips) At one point this weekend I tried the new Domino's pizza. I was checking out the website and before I knew it I had ordered a pizza and knew the name of the person making it. FTR, thin crust with ham and pineapple. My curiosity satisfied, I am so back on the Lazaro's wagon, for now and forever.
Didn't do much eating out this weekend...but I did have some wicked roast pork and egg noodle soup for lunch on friday during Reading Terminal lunch time run. Sang Kee has some terrific soup, especially if you don't mind people putting their hands on just about every element of your meal. Despite the questionable sanitary standards there...they somehow turn what looks like a huge vat of bathwater into a huge savory bowl of soup with a heap of brined and roasted pork on top. Perfect meal for a chilly day. Enjoyed a few sazerac rye whiskeys on the rocks at home friday night, no major chowing. Saturday night was kind of the same after a long day of fishing, house work and gardening. Sunday, after another long day, got a case of sierra nevada summer ale because the distributor was 30 seconds from closing, and it was the first cold case of decent beer i found. I am not much for sierra nevada or summer beers, but was pleasently surprised. It went great with some grilled sweet potatoes, turkey burgers, radish/arugula salad and a smokey aioli i whipped up.
@ Paul: Yes, the five-course tasting for $28 is every Sunday at fish. Only problem is getting a table! Gotta do it in advance by quite a bit... @ Chrissy Chimi: Golosa! That place rules. It was in last week's NftW.
Great evening in the city Friday night with Mr. Drew Lazor. Great whiskey and trans fat crawl from Village Whiskey to Snackbar to The Franklin to Bar and finally to Time. Enough whiskey to pickle myself twice over, and more money than I would have liked to spend, but hey, I only get to Philly once in a blue moon right?
Felicia-I've known Bela for ten years and when its party time, its conversation, and drinks. Food always takes a back seat. Sounds like a swell time
Saturday: fat kid alert! Lunch @ Paesano's yielded a "mamma mia" special - turkey, sharp prov, arugula, tomatoes, hot & sweet peppers and garlic mayo. Ate half and guiltily ate the rest after my football game. Date night with my man started at Bistrot La Minette (tres fantastique!), followed by drinks at Chicks (FAB!), The Saloon and Southwark. Oh yeah, and cheesesteaks (wiz wit) at whatever random place that was least crowded on South. Sunday: Self-loathing soufflé which consisted of a salad, grilled chicken and a 6 mile run/walk. And, a Flyers win. Booya!
Saturday we Philly Spring Cleaned Up and then treated ourselves to Cafe Estelle bacon at Green Aisle Grocery, and may or may not have eaten it all for breakfast. Ahem. Hit up the Grid Philly party later in the afternoon, where Mugshots Coffeehouse was serving up yum vegan-tastic snacks, and Birchrun Hills Farm had a crazy-delicious cheese spread. Seriously, a giant heap of goat cheese on a platter. This is to say nothing of the Yards on tap -- I went with the Saison (two thumbs up) and the Brawler (one and a half).
Sunday bbq drink of choice: gin infused with lemon, honey, tea leaves and mint. Add tonic water for a great sunny afternoon cocktail.
Filed Under: Notes from the Weekend
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Notes from the Weekend is a new Monday feature that sees the members of Team Meal Ticket compiling all the food/drink highlights uncovered during prime eatin' time, Friday to Sunday. Consider this a place for good deals, great dishes, wicked cocktails, recipe triumphs (and tragedies), bizarro conversations and more. We're eager to share our notes, but especially excited to read yours. We encourage you to leave notes from YOUR weekend in the comments. Have at it!
FD: Felicia D'Ambrosio
MD: Marie DiFeliciantonio
AH: Alexandra Harcharek
DL: Drew Lazor
Did a backwards-dinner thing on Passyunk Avenue Friday night — salato e caramello (salt & caramel) 70 percent chocolate shake at La Golosa (806 S. Sixth St.) with espresso (and a surprise glass of dessert wine that Palator importer Mark Monaco shared with us!) first, thence to Royal Tavern (801 E. Passyunk Ave.) for their "April Collins" with Bluecoat and St. Germain, and the most tater tots $4 can buy in a restaurant. Classy! —FD
Experienced the first real cheesesteak of my life on Saturday during a "crawl" hosted by my blog, AFoodComa.com. We rounded up a crew and stopped at the top three places voted on by our readers: Jim's, Pat's and Dalessandro's (John's Roast Pork was also among contenders, but they're closed Saturdays!). My arteries are still reeling. Perhaps we'll do a salad crawl next time? —AH
Saturday afternoon we lunched at Village Whiskey (118 S. 20th St.) with a friend who was visiting from Brooklyn. I devoured a medium-rare Village Burger with a fried egg, smoked bacon, Jasper Hill cheddar and caramelized onions minus two bites I reluctantly gave up for the group to sample. A-maz-ing. Also tried Coronados Idiot Double/Imperial IPA which the bartender described as a "nice, heavy, hoppy smack across the face." I'll take two! —MD
After lunch we drove to Long Beach Island for more food. My family had dinner reservations at Raimondo's (1101 Long Beach Blvd.) under "Felix party of 7." We use "Felix" to eliminate the frustration of spelling out "DiFeliciantonio" every time and also to avoid corny jokes like "What's that short for?" or "I bet you're champion spellers." —MD
After three weeks of swearing and banging about, my father finally finished building his homemade greenhouse and raised beds. I got my hands dirty while having a lesson about this year's lawn-to-table crops. Among many others, we've planted swiss chard, two kinds of potatoes, peppers, lettuces galore, and pineapple and chocolate mints (heyyy mojitos). —AH
Sampled a Champagne-washed, Champagne cave-aged triple creme fromage that Tom Peters had just purchased at Di Bruno Bros. while working lunch at Monk's on Saturday. Then frantically snarfed an entire order of our homemade chicken fingers with Cattleman's Choice (zee premier barbecue sauce, IMO) between serving tables. —FD
Early Saturday, went to Noble (2025 Sansom St.) and The Franklin (112 S. 18th St.) to visit barkeeps Christian Gaal, Colin Shearn and Al Sotack, all of whom took us up on the Jeppson's Malört Challenge we wrote about last week. (We'll be posting about the surprisingly palatable results throughout this week.) Non-Malört drinks consumed included Cigar City's Maduro Brown Ale (on draft behind Noble's bar) and the Franklin's Old Fashioned, our hands-down favorite one in the city. —DL
Grubbed on some of David Ansill's menu items at Ladder 15 (1528 Sansom St.) for Saturday dinner while watching Duke wax West Virginia. Especially dug the rock shrimp with a very very cheffy fishy lobster roe aioli. —DL
Sunday, Easter, was spent with girlie's extended Polish family, feasting on the cold spread traditional for the holiday (bunch of kielbasa and other sausages from Krakus Market, babka, farmer's cheese, eggs, etc.) plus surprisingly drinkable Costco brand hefeweizen (if you put this in some sort of cheeky-labeled craft beer bottle the nerds would say it was great, we're sure of it). Her "babcia" (grandmother) said I looked fat, then said I looked muscular like a professional wrestler. (For the record = kinda fat, not even remotely muscular.) All other family members instructed that it should be taken as a big compliment. —DL
Easter Sunday was spent slowly working through an immense basket of pre-staled Peeps, Zitner's buttercream eggs, Cadbury mini eggs and Whoppers robin's eggs. I include the brand names because they are iconic and store brands cannot compete on this holiest of candy holidays. Did not eat: the ham, the ambrosia, the pineapple bake, the four-bean salad or anything that did not have "sugar" listed as its first ingredient. —FD
Sunday = Chocolate fest. After 40 days and 40 nights of no sweets I went a little overboard and pretty much only ate chocolate all day. My diet included Gertrude Hawk peanut butter smidgens, chocolate-covered pretzels, Reese's peanut butter eggs, chocolate chip cookies, Hershey's special dark and, of course, a Peep or two. —MD
A weekend of perfect weather meant we had our simple Easter dinner served al fresco at my parents' house in Princeton: leg of local lamb, roasted potatoes and parsnips, braised tarragon carrots, the first harvest of peas. For dessert, the adults tucked in to a glistening tarte tatin while my four siblings devoured Cadbury eggs the size of their heads. —AH
Tried a slice of meat pie from A Little Bite of Italy (1419 Long Beach Blvd.) in Surf City — layers of hard-boiled egg, ricotta with parsley, prosciutto, pepperoni, capicola and mortadella, all baked into a an egg-washed pie shell. It made me regret overdosing on chocolate and not leaving room for meaty seconds. —MD
Remember how we were talking about Doritos 1st Degree Burn last week? Well, copped 2nd Degree Burn last night. Will report back. —DL
While celebrating a friend's 21st birthday at Dave & Buster's, I was appalled, though not entirely surprised, to discover that the majority of their menu items were upwards of 1100 calories, including one monstrosity clocking it at 2758. Negligible points were earned by the appearance of several bottles from Yards and Victory at the bar. But we only go there for the Mario Kart anyway. —AH
Tried all three varieties of new signature hot dogs at the Phillies game saturday, Old Philly dog with pickle and pepper hash was my fav
Another person with a penchant for stale Peeps, yes!
Ate too much delicious pie at the Twin Peaks art exhibit at Piranha Betty's on Friday and raised an ice cold Schlitz at a friend's rooftop screening on MST3K's Mitchell because that's all Joe Don Baker drinks in the movie (and he drinks a lot of it). We rounded all of these up and more arty things on Crit Mass' Been There/Done That. Tell us what you did too, you don't want people to think all you do is eat all weekend ⦠fatties.
On Friday I ate pie and drank coffee at the Twin Peaks art show. Then I ate burgers and suicide rings (so good!) at Memphis Tap Room. Saturday, I drank my dinner because I am an adult and I can do that. Sunday I spent all day thinking about how delicious the dinner I was going to cook would be and then procrastinated on going to the store to pick up some important ingredients. By the time I got around to it, everything was closed and I ended up eating tombstone pizza, bought from the 24 hr CVS. Sad!!
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Friday - DiNic's Italian Pulled Pork....WHOOAAAAAH! Sat - Mr. Pi's Sushi in Edison, NJ ......WHOOOOAAAAH! Sunday - Some Awesome Pulled Lamb Shoulder Dish at a Lebanese Spot Called Zeina in Highland Park, NJ........SIIIICK!
My brother, his wife, and I conned our way into Han Dynasty Saturday night. A big 8 top was all that was open so we convinced some strangers to eat with us. We over-ordered, and when we asked to have our leftovers wrapped, they brought back a fraction of what we left. Shady. But still, the food was unreal. The Founders IPA we brought from Eulogy was a perfect foil for the spice.
Friday - Did some al fresco munching on the roasted red pepper and feta dip at Continental Midtown followed by one or two (three?) specials at Bob and Barbara's (Always keeping it classy...) Saturday - devoured the classic burger at Ladder 15. Solid burger with good fries. After sampling my friend's short rib Korean taco, I need to go back for my own. Sunday - Smoked salmon omelette at Green Eggs Cafe. Dig the food, wish the service was better. Followed by an Easter dinner with friends of lamb, rabbit, and French cider. Sides of roasted veggies and asparagus in lemon butter (with shallots and pine nuts) made by yours truly.
Had a little bbq at the beach Saturday night, featuring Tommy Gun's pork ribs, pulled pork, corn salad, beans, and corn bread. Outta control.
Friday: Great Divide Claymore Scotch Ale before hitting First Friday. Saturday: Tuna hoagie from Cosmi's with a San Benedetto Red Orange soda for lunch; Dinner at Cochon where we had the escargot and country pate for starters and the chicken and pork shouder for our main and brioche chocolate pudding and a strawberry rhubarb crumble for dessert. Brought our own: Pretty Things' Baby Tree quadrupel with plums and Lagunitas' Wilco Tango Foxtrot jobless recovery ale. Sunday: Early Easter dinner at the mom's with: antipasta from Claudios (mozzarella, prosciutto, olives, grilled marinated artichokes); lasagna, eggplant parm, ham, asparagus, sweet potatoes for dinner; ricotta cheesecake, shoofly pie, apple pie for dessert; Italian meat pie for later/breakfast.
Renovation / pizza weekend: Friday - All fancy Deep dish pizza (more like a tart) at Garces Trading Co with wild mushrooms and cipollini onions. So so good. Also artichokes, and chef's cheese selection were slamming. Saturday - Tired Dock Street vegan pizza. Old standby. Trio fries! Sunday - Exhausted Left-over pizza. The bottom. Self loathing. 30rock.
Friday: kicked off the weekend in style with banana chocolate pancakes from Sabrina's. Ate at Novita Bistro which was good, sardines special followed by mushroom ravioli. Saturday: early brunch at Morning Glory, then Easter Pie from DiBruno Bros. for dinner. (kind like quiche) Sunday: corned beef and swiss cheese omelette from Kibbitz Room, dinner was grilled boneless chicken thighs from Cannulli's, which were excellent.
I popped over to my favorite patisserie, Miel on 17th below Walnut, and had their lemon blueberry tart...incredible. Then I couldn't sleep so I went home and made mini chocolate bundt cakes, which I've been told are pretty good :)
Friday: Chicken Fried Steak at O'Hungrys in Old Town, San Diego, CA. Its kinda like a Waffle House. Saturday: Jack in the Box Jr. Bacon Cheeseburger & curly fries, followed by papa johns delivery during the basketball games.. then Tomato Basil soup for dinner. Sunday: Homemade Veggieburger fried rice burrito. Dinner: Lovely chicken breast in mustard mushroom sauce from Buon Appetito in San Diego's Little Italy.
Friday was a day for David Ansill beet salad, which then became night at Varga Bar with some Stone Ruination. Luckily I was there for a birthday party and felt compelled to continue my drinking in honor of the guest. For the first time in a long time, no shots were consumed. Sunburn wipes you out and gets you that much drunker. Saturday was all about kickball in the park while consuming copious amounts of Yahhhds ESA and being courted by a couple borrachos latinos. We followed that with a trip to the Foodery for sandwiches (weird that I didn't already know the foodery made sangwiches) and bombers of Avery Mahraja and De Ranke Cuvee. We ended the afternoon in the backyard of Druid's Keep. The night held copious amount of Asia @ Cafe scallion pancakes and hong kong wonton soup. Sunday was all about random barhopping and Easter with the POPE. Also Easter with the SPTR. Drank a Moylan Hopsickle, a Dark Horse Double Crooked Tree, and finished with a palate cleansing Stoudt Kolsch. I think I ate a brownie too.
This weekend I had Sunday off for once due to Easter, so I definitely tried to make the most of it. Saturday - Koo Zee Doo for brunch and it was SO delicious. New favorite brunch in town, I have to save some cash to make it back for dinner. Then lots of afternoon drinking at the dog park led me to North Third where not even my drunkenness could save the lackluster food... although the onion rings were pretty tasty. Sunday - Went to Sonata since they only do brunch on Sundays and it was really good, but having Koo Zee Doo the day before had upped my brunch standards to new and unachievable heights. Then I had Easter dinner at Han Dynasty haha. The food was awesome! Met Han himself and had a cigarette with him. He's hilarious and was talking about possible menu changes coming up.
First foodie weekend in some time... Friday dinner @ Memphis Taproom - Beef pasties and fried pickles to start, then chicken fried chicken. Stoudts pils to wash it all down. I wish the CFC came with gravy. Saturday bbq cookout with friends. Lots of cheeseburgers, brownies, and a mini-keg of bells two hearted. Us girls made a beer run around 9 and stopped for a pitcher of margaritas at Johnny Mananas before heading back. Sunday lunch @ Squareburger. Good enough for $4.25 but not worth the wait. Good char on the burger though. Dinner @ Amada. So. Freaking. Delicious. As always. I am pretty sure I had a dream about the patatas bravas and pulpo last night.
Friday: Phils Game with Beautiful Godchild Erin, Aunt & Uncle Bubba. Cotton Candy, Hot Dogs, ice cream in little helmet. After the purchase of a tiny pink Philles hat for said angel, no money left for stadium foods. Nicks Roast Beef in Springfield after. Ordered Roast beef combo, overboard, on the outs. (if ya don't know, now you know...how to order that is) Saturday: Phils Game with Cousins. Too Many High Lifes while tossing washers, and a few 16oz Budweisers inside. Left early to throw more washers and rip a few more High Lifes AND to finish off the incredible sunburn I left with. Did I eat Dinner? No, but I will be cooking dinner this Friday for a lovely lady I met there... Sunday: Easter Brunch with the fam. Sleep. Early.
@mollyeichel unfortunately all I did was eat. or maybe that's fortunate. oh, I DID watch Inglorious Basterds on Friday and played half a game of Scrabble on Sunday. but I think that's it for non-food related activities! @everyone who BBQ'd....good call. can't wait to get my grill (I've gone a lil overboard trying to find the best one for the best price and i will probably just end up with the very first one I laid my eyes on)
Friday - bottle of Sparkling Brut from Pinnacle Winery at the Gazebo behind the Art Museum - Nachos at London Grill - Ceviche and Pork Tacos at Xochitl - Exit 16 for dessert. Saturday - Oregon Diner for Sausage and Onion Omelet - Bottle of 1806 at POPE for lunch - Dinner was sweetbread ravolis and braised shortribs - Sunday - Growler of Iron Hill Black Ale, Filet with corn casserole and green bean casserole (from Percy Street, special order), key lime pie and cheesecake and Chocolate Easter Bunny.
Saturday: dinner with the family followed by snacks and brews at Iron Hill Maple Shade. The India Black Ale was fantastic! Sunday: family dinner at 1 p.m. (no joke) including some of my favorites made by my gram (pierogies, German potato salad, kielbasa, etc.) followed by a long nap and second dinner at Pizzeria Stella, which I looooooooved.
friday: bottle of sauvignon blanc and spreads from grocery in the park. grocery prepared foods are kind of meh. at sunset, picked up a six pack of yards IPA and me and my gal had a ridiculously jumbo chicken parm 'boli from Angelinos. For $15, we got enough boli for dinner and multiple leftover sessions. This was nothing super gourmet, but it was a good quality stromboli with a nice sauce, mozz, ricotta and fresh chicken breast. Saturday: spent the day getting my backyard crops in order. Cleaned out the grill and had my first BBQ of the season. No gas..charcoal only. As the coals were turning red, we cracked open some bottles of Sammy Smith's cider. I am not a huge fan of hard cider, but Sammy Smith's is just perfect. Crisp, not sweet and really refreshing after a long day digging in the dirt. I grilled up my favorites: grilled sweet potatoes, tomatoes, chicken thighs, onions and a briefly charred head of romaine. delicious. Sunday: standard easter dinner..ham etc. The only good thing about it, is left over ham for ham and egg sammies.
Filed Under: Notes from the Weekend
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span class="tailnote">FD: Felicia D'Ambrosio MD: Marie DiFeliciantonio DL: Drew Lazor
Friday, tasted a bunch of hothothot hot sauces (more on that later) before dropping by Percy Street Barbecue (900 South St.) for double-downs (two meats, two sides, $17) and a few Caldera IPAs off the new canned beer list. (Have you had Erin O'Shea's new jalapeno/cheddar cornbread yet? Ridiculous.) Also learned that Four Roses bourbon distiller Al Young will be in the house tomorrow, March 30, from 5 to 7 p.m. Four Roses flights for $9 and mint juleps for $6. —DL Saturday, continued on a smoked-meat quest with chef Gene Giuffi's insanely good pork ribs at Cochon (801 E. Passyunk Ave.). Served with crispy tempura-battered onion rings, Giuffi's ribs are house-smoked then cooked sous-vide at 138.6 degrees Fahrenheit for a full day. We benefit from G's patience, as the technique results in a perfect gnaw-off-bone texture and a smoky clarity that's hard to come by in this town. Eat 'em. —DL Parading from the Crane Arts Building to the Piazza waving plywood weapons and wearing epic amounts of fur alongside Dennis McNett's print-covered Viking Ship on Friday sure worked up a thirst in our crew. It could've been the apprehension that cops would lump Wolfbat Studio's antics in with flash mobs, or perhaps the detonation of 20,000 Chinese firecrackers on the Piazza's spotless pavers that made us hungry, but once the vessel had been torn down, we decamped to the 700 Club (700 N. Second St.) for cocktails before mowing down 10 plates at Bar Ferdinand (1030 N. Second St.). —FD Friday night, we attended Wine 201: The Next Step at the Wine School of Philadelphia (2006 Fairmount Ave.). We learned a few things about labeling, serving temps and glassware. Our instructor warned us about the terms "vinted by" (this has no real significance, and likely means the wine came from a large corp that outsources its graces) and "reserve" (it doesn't hold much merit in the U.S., but it'll run you a few more bucks), and bottles dressed with folklore-ish backstories in an effort to distract you from what's inside. —MD Saturday morning began with coffee and a Miel ham-and-cheese croissant at Benna's (1236 S. Eighth St.) before hitting the Italian Market for a surgical-strike grocery trip (i.e. strategize ahead of time, get in, get out.). After picking up some specialty items (silken tofu, vegan cheese) at Whole Foods, we spent the day perfecting vegan marinara, vegan pesto and vegan Caesar salad dressing. All in all, the vegans were pleased with our dinner-party effort, declaring that they would "pay money" for the resultant pizza. —FD Over some Old Fashioneds and neat Booker's pours at Supper (928 South St.), learned about chef/owner Mitch Prensky's sweet escape: Right now he's in Portland, Oregon, doing a Plate Magazine-sponsored cooking presentation for 50 chefs. What's he demo-ing? His housemade hot dogs. Cross-country all-expenses-paid trip to prep wieners? Whatta life. —DL At the Royal Tavern (937 E. Passyunk Ave.) Saturday night, witnessed a bizarre and generally awesome interaction: Our boy, Royal regular Jesse (@jessecornell on Twitter), was a bit salty about getting "ousted" from the bar's Foursquare mayorship by Helene, aka @phillybeergirl. Helene came over to our table to say hello IRL, and though she could've been totally TD celebration dance about it, was very sweet and altogether cordial. Jesse is currently plotting his revenge. (Still don't understand the appeal of Foursquare.) —DL Traditionally, to cure an Atlantic City hangover, my friends and I stop at the McDonald's by the Expressway entrance before we head home. Most visits are the same (large #3 with a Diet Coke), but this time we noticed something new: a posted sign that read, "No loitering. 30-minute time limit." Get your fast-food and feast fast, peoples. —MD - Sunday, lunch/brunch at the never-not-amazing Cafe Lutecia (2301 Lombard St.). Americanos, Lutecia sandwich with ham and a bowl of lentil puree with saffron and Thai coconut milk made us forget the gross drizzle outside. —DL - 1st Degree Burn Blazin' Jalapeno Doritos are pretty spicy by Doritos standards. Now we gotta try 2nd and 3rd Degree Burn just cuz. —DLOne note I forgot to include! Saturday after Cochon, stopped into Golosa (806 S. Sixth St.) and hit up a mug of Salata Speziata — super-thick drinking chocolate with vanilla, spice, salt and chili notes — and a trio of Capogiro gelato (Thai coconut milk, bittersweet chocolate and blood orange).
Saturday - Reading Terminal to pick up six types of Jerky and Landjäger from S&B meats; one apple; a coconut, chocolate and macademy nut Hope Cookie; one smoked shortie with cheese (mini pig in a blanket) from Miller's Twist; then to Rite Aid for some Tums. Oyster House for Shucking Contest, ate two oysters that had been shucked by participants with a Yards ESA. Finally to Village Whiskey for a Surf and Turf Burger (Horseradish Crab salad topped burger) and cheese puffs - JH
Stopped in for lunch at Han Dynasty the other day. Had the dan dan noodles, beef and tripe in chili oil, and pork belly. Also ate sauteed pea leaves from the next table who left without touching them. They looked like clean people... Han was very amused and charged us $500 on the cheque for "2nd hand pea leaves".
Saturday night - Pho on a chilly rainy day from Pho Hoa. Always go for the brisket, steak, fatty steak, and tendon combo, number 45. Sunday night - A BIG ASS BUCKET OF KFC. Today - bloated.
@ Sam: At my first restaurant job, I was appalled to see an old-head waiter eating half a steak off a customer's abandoned plate. He informed me of his rule: If the person was hot enough to make out with, he would eat their leftover food. Gross, but practical (I guess).
Haha...that's a rule worth thinking about I suppose! I would never do it with something that was half eaten, no matter how hot. But we literally sat there while they didn't even touch the plate! Now this reads like I'm trying to dig out of a hole ;)
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@Felicia and Sam, that is hilarious! Han is the man. Friday: Late night happy hour was on and poppin' at Fish. One guava margarita with salt, two UFO's and an order of crab frites. Mmm. Saturday: Football game in Fairmount Park followed by the sweet taste of victory and beer at The Institute. Kenzinger and Walt Wit for me, plus a stuffed chicken sammie with fries. One friend ordered the hangover sandwich (chicken fingers, mozzarella sticks, chicken cheese steak and fries on a long roll) and killed it. Sunday: Baby shower followed by a drink at the bar at Seasons 52 in Cherry Hill. It was totally lame so we bolted for the Pour House in Westmont, where we enjoyed cheap brews and samples from Boak's Brewing Company.
i think I would eat ants before I eat at MC Donald's, hangover or not my friends ate ants in Mexico City they said they were tasty I read that a nutritionist left a cheeseburger unrefrigerated on a shelf for one year and it hardly changed at all there are 38 ingredients in a chicken Mcnugget. Shouldnt it be just flour, chicken and oil? @ felicia - once saw a waiter replate a leftover antipasto dish for another table at a well known Italian BYOB in Old city. Never have gone back
Friday: Dinner at my sister's with a sampler case from Duck Rabbit. Later that evening, I hit the P.O.P.E. with some CP peeps and drank wayyyy more than I realized — so much that I can't remember what I had (I do know there was a Lagunitas Wilco Tango Foxtrot strong ale involved). Saturday: Brunch at Hawthorne's where I got an order of S.O.S. that didn't blow me away, and a growler full of Brooklyn Dark Matter Bourbon Brown Ale that did. Dinner with visiting family at Noble: An American Cookery which was one of the best meals I've had this year. From the cocktails (Dry & Rusty, Kansas City Cardsharp), to the appetizers (oysters), entrees (incredibly tasty hanger steak with farro risotto) to dessert (a killer semolina donut special served with caramel, ice cream and a square of Root jello), it was all top notch and incredibly tasty. Sunday: Grilled for the first time this season: mesquite-smoked burgers and dogs consumed with Dark Star Brown Ale brewed from a kit from Home Sweet Homebrew. Then to the POPE for a surprise dissertation defense party where a Six Points Sweet Action cream ale, Founders Backwoods Bastard and a Moylan's Hopsickle imperial IPA finished off a long weekend of eating and drinking.
in san francisco for the weekend... friday night - slanted door. had an amazing squid salad, spring rolls, clams and pork belly served with the most insanely good ponzu-type broth. main course was sauted prawns and also kobe beef stir fry. washed down with a delcious bottle of champagne. Definitely one of my favorite restaurants in the country. Saturday - lunch in mission at papalote grill for some basic gauc, salsa shrimp tacos and a chicken mole burrito. Fantastic food, but no better then the mexican I've had in Philly - except for their salsa, which had the right amount of spice and smokey flavor with a slight creaminess. Later that day had drinks at a few establishments along embarcadero drive. Gordon Bierch was meh. Marketbar was a perfect place to share a bottle of wine and people watch. Also tried a ridiculously simple, but delicious app of slightly burnt french bread, goat cheeese, smoked salmon and diced pickles. fantastic.
Had Southern Tier's Big Red. Hands down the best red ale I've ever had. Each sip was like drinking 3 beers. Pricey though, as are all the big beers in their Imperial series. 9% abv.
Filed Under: Notes from the Weekend
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Notes from the Weekend is a new Monday-morning feature that sees the members of Team Meal Ticket compiling all the food/drink highlights uncovered during prime eatin' time, Friday to Sunday. Consider this a place for good deals, great dishes, wicked cocktails, recipe triumphs (and tragedies), bizarro conversations and more. We're eager to share our notes, but especially excited to read yours. We encourage you to leave notes from YOUR weekend in the comments. Have at it!
FD: Felicia D'Ambrosio
MD: Marie DiFeliciantonio
AH: Alexandra Harcharek
DL: Drew Lazor
On Friday, after a coupla Yards IPAs at P.Y.T. (The Piazza at Schmidts, 1050 N. Hancock St.), preceded by a coupla IPAs at Old City's Triumph (whatevs, tourney time excuse!), kinda passed out at our desk for like 35 minutes. Woke up with weird mark on face and terrifying craving for sour candy. Hit up the new Philly Sweettooth (630 S. Fourth St.) and loaded up on sour Cherry coke botles and and Crybaby Tears. Owner Scott Lean knows how to work a crowd, and made a mom giggle by telling her her son looked like lil' Doughboy from Boyz n the Hood. —DL
Friday night we dropped by Cadence at the Kimmel Center (300 S. Broad St.) before the 8 p.m. show featuring Danilo Perez. Our foursome enjoyed drinks, snacks and insane views, and we learned something, too: You can save a few bucks on the check by showing your concert tickets. —MD
After the show we headed to Mémé (2201 Spruce St.). Had my heart set on the roast chicken for two, as DL told me it was not your ordinary chicken. Unfortunately, we were too late — they were out for the evening. Instead, I ate oysters, sizzling mussels in a small iron skillet, agnolotti wrapped so thin you could see its Swiss chard innards and duck breast with a layer of caramelized fat the color of a sunset. Chef/owner David Katz popped by our table to talk about cooking whole goats, late-night dining and the ridiculous schedule chefs follow. (Happy belated birthday to his now 3-year-old son.) —MD
Saturday daytime, checked out the new brunch menu at Distrito (3945 Chestnut St.). Felicia D, who visited separately, really liked the jicama salad, but we were most fond of the fried-egg chilaquiles, featuring a zippy green chile sauce that was scrape-the-crock good. —DL
Passyunk Avenue came alive in a vernal frenzy on Saturday, and the weather seemed just right for tacos and tequila. Tacos al pastor at El Zarape (1648 E. Passyunk Ave.) preceded a pace down the length of the Avenue to Xochitl (408 S. Second St.) to try a few of GM Sergio Ruiz's new cocktails. His Chespirito even blended our favorite 500-year-old spirit of the moment, Chartreuse, with poblano-infused tequila and St. Germain. —FD
Joined 500 of the e-foodie elite at Yelp's Philly Homegrown Party. Gussied-up guests wandered the floors of CITYSPACE, where dudes got straight-razor shaves, Supper served up not-quite-kosher crab cake latkes ("You should see the bacon version," they said), and National Mechanics gave us shots of jalapeño tequila to wash down Frito chili. Also bumped into chef Eric Paraskevas of terra, who mentioned a possible vodka-themed dinner in the works for late spring, stemming from the success of the restaurant's rum and bourbon dinners. Somehow, this variant seems a bit more dangerous. —AHAfter scarfing down the always-excellent Reuben at the Sidecar (2201 Christian St.), traipsed down to the P.O.P.E. (1501 E. Passyunk Ave.) on Saturday night for Maker's on the rocks and nachos that counterracted the inherent effects of Maker's on the rocks quite nicely. Biked home, slowly. Used hand signals. —DL
My dining companion called it a "fancy grilled cheese." I called it "goddamn orgasmic." Either way, Tria's (123 S. 18th St.) panino stuffed with banana, mascarpone and goat's milk caramel was luscious. —AH
Shaking our heads at the estimated 2-hour wait for an outdoor table at the Swift Half (The Piazza at Schmidts, 1001 N. Second St.) we settled indoors for a Sunday lunch of veggie pizza, pounded chicken sandwiches and a fried-egg-topped B.E.L.T. Three-dollar drafts kept the crowds drifting in. —FD
Sunday afternoon meant it was time for the Real Ale Invitational at Yards Brewing (901 N. Delaware Ave.). The lineup of cask-conditioned beers was ridiculous; our faves included RCH Brewery's Pitchfork Bitter, reco'd by Collin Flatt, and Berwick Brewing Co.'s Molly's Best Brown Ale, reco'd by our boy Rick that we hadn't seen in a minute. Also snagged some gorgeous cheeses on the cheap from Birchrun Hills Farm, who'd set up a stand. Event photos here. —DL
Headed north to New Brunswick's Makeda (338 George St.) for my first taste of Ethiopian cuisine. We enjoyed sopping up braised lamb and fragrant sauces with spongy injera, small bites of Moroccan meatballs and a sweet honey wine called tej. The generous waitress (in between speaking rapid-fire French with my mom) didn't laugh when I mangled the pronunciation of "D'jaj Bi Balsa," a marinated chicken dish with a surprising onion cinnamon spice. —AH
Late Sunday night: Washed down a flank-steak taco special at Resurrection Ale House (2425 Grays Ferry Ave.) with one of all all-time favorite IPAs, the Big Eye from San Diego's Ballast Point. —DL
Usually when I eat salmon at home, I use my Le Creuset grill pan and call it dinner in 10 minutes. On Sunday I wanted a change: I cut the fillets down into chunks, and seasoned flour with salt, black pepper, curry, cumin and cayenne, before dusting the salmon and sautéed it in oil. Served the crispy fish bites over a salad of couscous/green pepper/tomato/cilantro tossed in lime juice, white wine vinegar and honey. Good stuff. —MDNothing is better than Sarcone's (I chose the Sinatra) while sitting on the Schuylkill River paired with Rita's, made more delicious by the fact that it was free.
Saturday: Brunch at RESURRECTION ALE HOUSE. Sampled spicy-ass Bloody Mary, wheat beer mimosa, ridiculously good/simple French toast, and extremely filling sausage biscuits and gravy. Yums. Spent the afternoon on the Schuylkill River like everyone else, and picked up a satisfying iced coffee at TASTEBUDS. Late-night dinner at BENELUXX, and by "dinner" I mean fondue. Tried Left Hand stout and something really hoppy I can't remember. Sunday: Brunch at ANTS PANTS -- resisted those sweet potato fries and "just" got the French toast. Aussie Iced Coffee = ice cream scoop and whipped cream in iced coffee. Thanks, Australians. Late lunch outside at South Philly's SLiCE, where a slice 'o plain costs $3 and is as big as my head.
After extensive research scouring citypaper archives for a place to eat Sunday night, I hit up Village Whiskey this weekend. Duck fat fries, Artichoke pickles, and the Burger medium rare with the Chevre. The beer on special was the espresso beer. Best dinner I've had in a while. Also saw the dude from Swimfan and Bring it on. Yum all around.
Celebrated St. Patty's Day by gorging myself on a traditional Irish meal - Back bacon, cabbage, champ (mashed potatoes with scallions and a lifetime's worth of butter), and brown bread fresh out of the oven. No corned beef nonsense for my family - we special order the bacon and pick up a variety of Irish goodies from McKenna's Irish Shop in Havertown (1901 Darby Road - 610-853-2202). For anyone who's ever spent time across the pond, McKenna's stocks all sorts of goodies you won't find anywhere else in the area!
Headed out to Myung Ga Korean Restaurant in Cherry Hill on Friday night. While their website address is iliketofu.com, I prefer their kimchee pancake and the japchae over their soon tofu. If you want delicious Korean tofu head over to Tofu House in North Philly. Spent Saturday afternoon cooking up a Cambodian inspired version of the Vietnamese classic noodle soup, pho.
Friday: Beers at Khyber including Great Divide Claymore Scotch Ale. Saturday: After spending the morning painting and then showing up late for the foldy-bike race, had an Italian Tuna hoagie (seeded roll) with lettuce, tomato and pickles plus a bottle of San Benedetto lemon tea from Cosmi's. For dinner (after more house painting), ordered the Italian hoagie stromboli from Is-A-Bella's fancy new web site. Sunday: Hit Brew in the morning for my first cup of Ultimo coffee and picked up a four-pack from the just-open bottle shop: Pretty Things' Baby Tree quadrupel and its Yorkshire-inspired St. Botolph's Town; Dogfish Head 120-minute IPA and Lagunitas' Wilco Tango Foxtrot.
What a crazy busy weekend! Feast or Famine! Sunday my son wanted to go out w friends for brunch, last day of spring break for him, so I took them to Resurrection Ale House, which I've done before and been able to avoid the usual brunch pitfalls, GREAT as usual, with really good coffee, good bloody, fluffy pancakes, real maple syrup, farm eggs and great bacon.
Friday: Worked my serving gig then hit Prohibition Taproom to unwind. Two bloody Marys, one Belgian brew and fried green beans did the trick. Saturday: Brunch at Sidecar. Huevos rancheros and a bellini, followed by a halfmosa (1/2 Belgian beer, 1/2 OJ) and some of my boyfriend's biscuits with spicy chorizo gravy. I was extra hungry. A visit to Fitler Square then off to Fairmount Park for PSSC football. That night: Yelp party at Cityspace, a great start to the evening. Later on, nachos and margaritas at Baja Room and a front row seat to the flash mob/rioters. Thankful for the quick-moving Baja Room owner, who blocked out the crazies by closing the gate, keeping our crew safely out of harm's way. Late night happy hour at Fish, which was off the chain. Sunday: Brunch at Pub & Kitchen â their classic BM is a hangover cure-all. Spicy pulled pork on grilled brioche (hold the mayo and cheese) hit the spot. I heart that place.
Banana whip from Essene on Fri afternoon. Tofu burrito from Santa Fe on Fri night. Royal Tavern Nachos with vegan beef for Saturday "linner." Sunday Clark Park Farmers market followed by amazing chilaquiles and Dulce de leche torrijas at Distrito.cafe de Laos takeout of pad Thai and wild Ginger for Sunday dinner.
A little under the weather this weekend, but I got out probably more than I should have. Friday happy hour at Swift Half, my first time there. I think I prefer the Good Dog burger. Saturday, Yelp party at Cityspace and then a bite to eat at Snackbar. Split the gnocchi with hen of the woods mushrooms and the chicken cordon bleu. Took it easy on Sunday and had a pizza from my in-laws wood-burning pizza oven out in the 'burbs. Oh yeah, my buddy from NYC came in and brought cupcakes from Billy's Bakery and Butter Lane for me and my wife to try. Butter Lane is probably better than any cupcake I've had in Philly, but I think Brown Betty (and maybe more) are better than the Billy's cakes.
@ Shao, what do you mean by a Cambodian-inspired pho? Tell us more!
After reading Trey Popp's review on Green Eggs Cafe, I went for brunch on Sunday. He was right about the best dish: Quinoa Porridge. Loved the place and can't wait to go back.
Friday - Alice in Wonderland at the Bridge, Sour Patch Kids. Saturday - Got irresponsible at a family Christening party, then headed to Bonnie's Capistrano Bar, the been-there-forever dive across from Ippolito's you always pass by and wonder about. My boy Mike bartends for the chill mix of hispters and lifers. There's a jukebox, cheap drinks in 1986-catering hall glaassware and a rare smoking ban exemption. The night was hazy. Literally. Sunday - Late-late brunch at Cantina. Surprisingly only 15 minutes to grab a table in the sunshine. Eggs benedict on jalapeno cornbread. 1 Paloma. 2 Bloodies
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Friday: After work I consumed too many Baltimore Zoos at 12 Steps Down. Made for an interesting Double on Saturday. Saturday: I LOVE TACOS FOR STAFF MEAL! All the fixings provided. Always thank your chefs for staff meal kids. Sunday: Charlies Hamburgers with a black and white milkshake. Pool and Budweiser at the Frontier. Drank around a fire in a friends backyard before eating a pint of ben and jerry's strawberry cheesecake ice cream. I love Sundays.
Filed Under: Notes from the Weekend
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Notes from the Weekend is a new Monday-morning feature that sees the members of Team Meal Ticket compiling all the food/drink highlights uncovered during prime eatin' time, Friday to Sunday. Consider this a place for good deals, great dishes, wicked cocktails, recipe triumphs (and tragedies), bizarro conversations and more. We're eager to share our notes, but especially excited to read yours. We encourage you to leave notes from YOUR weekend in the comments. Have at it!
FD: Felicia D'Ambrosio
MD: Marie DiFeliciantonio
DL: Drew Lazor
MD: Marie DiFeliciantonio
DL: Drew Lazor
Voyaged north on Friday evening to Paul's Bar & Bowling in Paterson, N.J., for the annual Osprey Bartenders Outing. Paul's Bar is owned by Osprey substitute 'tender Paul Awramko, who delivered our yearly dose of pierogies, wings and camaraderie in anticipation of another summer spent pouring Jagerbombs with both hands. —FD
At Jay-Z's sold-out show at the Borgata Saturday night, I swayed (and threw up the ROC) while noting his frequent lyrical food imagery. He always knew it'd be like this when he was in the kitchen. He checks cheddar like a food inspector. He's a good dude, you know we love him like cooked food. This is food for thought — you do the dishes. —MD
Caught a pint of Sly Fox Seamus Red Ale at Sassafras (48 S. Second St.) Saturday night and watched the green-garbed masses stumble by. Thanked Irish God that we were inside the Irish-owned respite. —DL
Speaking of Erin Expressers, caught this gem posted outside Pub & Kitchen (1946 Lombard St.) while walking to ...
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| Photo | Drew Lazor |
... Amis (13th and Waverly), where they serve food till 1 a.m. nightly. We would be willing to carry out a series of federal offenses if it meant unfettered access to the restaurant's baccala and its insane tripe stew. Bartender Joann is a total sweetheart and mixes a mean-ass drink. —DL
Any trip to A.C. must include a beer or four at Firewaters bar in the Tropicana. Among the drafts we sampled were Chimay White, Southern Tier Creme Brulee, Kona Pale Ale and Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA. The sprawling beer selection isn't the only attraction, either: Day-shift bartender Nancie provides boisterous commentary and philosophical reflections on women who order chocolate martinis and her quest to remove High Life from the draft wall. —MD
One more tidbit from Nancie: In light of the weekend's horrendous weather, the St. Patty's parade in Atlantic City (previously slotted for March 13) has been rescheduled for Sat., March 20. It heads out at 1 p.m. from New Jersey Avenue on the Boardwalk. —MD
After taking in painter Heather Jo Wingate's fan-titty-tastic show "My Humps" at Amberella Gallery, we walked just 18 feet for a satisfying round of P.Y.T. burgers and onion rings. Our bartender was so sweet, she didn't even make faces when I asked for Diet Coke at the bar. —FD
Slightly impossible for us not to drop a chunk of coin at Parc (227 S. 18th St.), no matter how many times we repeat the "one drink and something small to eat, that's IT" mantra over and over and over. That's what happens when you suck down a handful of solid Sazeracs in the early afternoon. Whatever, it was raining. —DL
On Sunday, under the assumption that deep-frying something could only make it better, I ordered the Sunshine Roll — a battered and fried Philly Roll — at Wild Ginger (657 Cross Keys Road) in Sicklerville. I assumed wrong. Perhaps some things are better sans fryer. —MD
Sunday afternoon, I brewed a French press of Burlap and Bean's Peru La Florida for two law students, who sucked down black-as-night mugs of the stuff faster than I could offer them sugar. —DL
Skipped the crowds that mobbed the Sidecar (2201 Christian St.) Friday and Saturday nights for IPA's Greatest Hits, opting instead to swing by on the late-night tip Sunday. Had Anderson Valley 20th Anniversary Imperial IPA on hand pump, a Stone Ruination and an awesome short rib and cheddar/bacon grits dish. —DL
Friday: Lunch at Handynasty in the OC where I had the amazing dry-spicy Kung Pao Chicken and crazy-delicious cold pork belly appetizer. After work, I hit the Founders Brewery Philly Beer Weekend night at the SPTR where everyone was still foaming at the mouth about the recent PLCB crackdowns. Founders had purportedly planned to tap some rare kegs, but this did not come to pass. Saturday: Braved the rain for a trip over to Green Aisle Grocery for a complimentary cup of Ommegang Witte and an (expensive) bottle of Fee Bros. Whiskey Barrel Aged Bitters. Later, I cracked open a 1-liter bottle of Mr. Beer West Coast Pale Ale and played some ridiculous Xbox war-is-hell game, then watched The Hurt Locker on Netflix before heading over to POPE's rare, aged Dogfish Head night for aged kegs of the Delaware brewery's Fort and Burton Baton and topped it off with a Great Divide Yeti. Sunday: A bit rough around the edges and an hour later than planned, recovered with Green Eggs Cafe's massively satisfying cast iron skillet-prepared and -served Kitchen Sink (cheddar eggs, potatoes, biscuit and sausage gravy)
Friday: Founders night at SPTR - ALL Founders drafts were $3-4 and that was ridiculous. Paired the beers with excellent food per usual. Heard the rare beer was Kentucky Breakfast Stout (!!!!!!!) and will be tapped at a later date. SPTR was followed by drunken times at the Dive & karaoke at Ray's Happy Birthday Bar. Saturday: Tried the new Xochitl. Loved the late night happy hour in the basement lounge ($5 for bangin', strong 'ritas), the famous and artery clogging but delicious queso fundido, and chicharrones. Sunday: Spent most of the afternoon at Devil's Den for brunch and Bell's beers - Hopslam, Van Twee, Consecrator were all on tap and amazing. This week will be spent at the gym, dudes.
Three words: Porkslap Pale Ale. In a can, at Percy Street, Sunday happy hour. (After a $3 half-price pint of Slyfox Rauchbier.)
Saturday brunch at Distrito — had the Torta, which was less pretty than anything else we'd seen served, but likely just as delicious. Saturday dinner at Beau Monde — crazy-expensive (and not-that-impressive) cheese plate, veg-stuffed crepe. Sunday brunch — pancakes and crispy scrapple at Green Eggs. Sunday dinner — leftovers. Lethargy.
Saturday night dinner at Zahav. Loved it - merguez was my favorite. Could mainline that hummus. Sunday brunch at Memphis Taproom. Friendly, and a good bloody mary, but didn't love their take on chilaquiles.
Sunday brunch at fish., Fried Oyster omelette, Lobster grilled cheese, best bloody mary in the city.
Partook in the Turista Menu at Modo Mio. I'm not huge on Italian but it was delish. Fave part = the meatballs.
Sara, I might see you at the gym if I can ignore that fried oyster omelet that's calling my name. Or is that you, lobster grilled cheese? Bloody mary?
Dinner at Lolita on Saturday night...what can I say? It was heavenly, as usual. Had the Pechuga de Pato, aka duck...perfectly cooked. Also, my body decided I can longer drink tequila, so I mixed the blood orange margarita with Makers Mark. I wish I could rewind and do it all over again.
On Saturday, I had a great lunch at Garces Trading Company (Locust between 12th St & 11th Street). It was a fantastical experience. Food and service were excellent, and everything was fairly priced. I started off with the Vichyssoise Chaude ($9.00 - potato, leek, bay scallop, chive, bacon) this creamy soup was just delicious, and the scallop were sweet and fresh. For my 2nd course I had The Spaniard ($9.00 grilled chicken, bacon, almond romesco aioli,manchego cheese, romaine). This sandwich was out of this world good...crisp, bold flavors, all combine on a crusty bread -- the almond romesco aioli was definitely a different pleasurable experience for the taste buds. And if you forget your wine, this is a BYOB, there is a well equipped State Store with some great wine selections -- at very reasonable prices. Definitely a great spot to visit for a nice lunch, or dinner on the go. I highly recommend it!
Friday: Work and self-imposed house arrest to clean and get ready for... Saturday: Family arrives to pre-game for the Flyers game. Stromboli from Georgetti's and pretzels from Cass' Soft Pretzel Bakery (both located in Cinnaminson, NJ). Chickie's crab fries at the game (natch). Post-game celebration at Tom Fischer's in Westmont. Passed out on the couch at approximately 8 p.m. Sunday: Met the boyfriend's parents over brunch at Parc. Warm shrimp salad with avocado, parmesan and lemon beurre blanc. Two bellinis. Mmm. Sunday school at Tria featuring a buffalo cheese and pinot noir. Leftover stromboli for dinner. This morning: +4 lbs.
Sunday brunch at Morning Glory Diner consisted of hot coffee served in tin mug, smoked salmon frittata with asparagus, goat cheese and chives, soft biscuit, and grits. Their homemade ketchup was sweet and smokey, which I prefer to anything store-bought. Enough food to keep you satisfied all day.
-Fuqi fei pian delivered from Szechuan Tasty House a equally spicy alternative when it's raining too hard to make it over to handy nasty. -Phooey to all the people who say you have to measure precisely when baking. Whole wheat chocolate chip muffins with inappropriate amounts of milk, eggs, sour cream, and baking soda still came out handy tasty. -Chuckled over comment cards with a server at Fond as they were closing on Saturday night. One customer complained about the servers explaining the dishes as they brought them out. And yes the veal sweetbreads were awesome.
Who complains about a server explaining the food they're serving? That is stupid. I've witnessed some "drops" get out of hand but for the most part, I like to know what I'm eating. It's fun!
Agreed. Even if I have the ingredients nerdily memorized from when I peeped the restaurant hours before going in, I still like to hear it. FYI, said customer also asked for "more non-chocolate dessert items" on the menu. 3 out of 5 clearly wasn't enough. My hot date, who typically hates on cheesecake, drooled over their chevre and citrus-ed version.
no dining out this weekend due to various committments...and a desire to cook. Friday I made a banging homemade pizza. Dough made from scratch topped with an arugula salad, a little bit of fresh mozz, chicken sausage and pecorino. One of of my favorite pizzas to make. Saturday I made tilapia and whole wheat pasta with a roasted fennel and sundried tomato sauce. side arugula salad and flatbread. Both nights dinner was accompanied by a mixed case of dogfish head beer.
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Friday was spent at home in anticipation of the Craft Beer Express and Pliney the Younger tapping at Tria. After standing outside in the rain for 30 minutes at Tria I got my one allowed glass of Pliney and enjoyed it very much. Then I headed to Johnny Brenda's for the Stout brunch and the beginning of the Craft Beer Express. Hopped the bus to Kite and Key for a flight of 60, 75, 90 and 120 min IPA to go with my bowl of Wild Boar chille. After filling up on wild boar, we headed to Sidecar where I enjoyed a Pliney the Elder - and thus had both the Younger and the Elder in one day. Ended the crawl at Devil's Den, drinking water at first and then enjoying the Ommegang and Duvel flight and cheese plater pairing. Finished of with some mussels. Sunday morning I spent recovering, then headed to Brewers Plate Sunday night, for what was to me the best beer and food event I've ever been to. Southwark's porkhead and salad was amazing, as was the cheese in the VIP room, paired with Vicotry Old and New World beers. I left this weekend full, and tired and loving Philadelphia.
Thanks for sharing. I made hotdogs last night so I haven't had the mood for dining out. But I still want to visit this place. Thanks for the post! It's quite exciting to see that there are a lot of places left to have a good time.
I guess I really enjoyed myself more than I spoke of at Firewaters this weekend....Nancie=Nanci. forgive me!
saturday i went to hawthornes and drank more than half a growler of brooklyn cookie jar porter to myself... it was awesome but headache the next day was not. really love hawthornes. next day was AMIS...which was amazing... i highly recommend the oxtail gnocci and the riccotta app. and the escarole salad. amazing. only thing i cannot recommend are the stuffed clams. way way too salty. but everything else was amazing. great service too. definitely going back. and they had cookie jar porter on tap haha which was ironic since i had way too much the night before. oh well. had dessert at garces trading company. love that place. it feels very new york. get the vanilla bavarian cake it's the best one.
I got a little out of control over at McCluskys on 43rd this past weekend. Not in my drinking, but I ate WAY too much and was hurting seriously the next day. Not many people know about it, but it's a great little hole in the wall with awesome food.
Hi! I just thought I would let you know that yours is one of the few websites which display ok on my phone in Tenerife (DON'T EVER BUY ONE!). So I'll probably be checking returning lots more lol
Filed Under: Notes from the Weekend
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Notes from the Weekend is a new Monday-morning feature that sees the members of Team Meal Ticket compiling all the food/drink highlights uncovered during prime eatin' time, Friday to Sunday. Consider this a place for good deals, great dishes, wicked cocktails, recipe triumphs (and tragedies), bizarro conversations and more. We're eager to share our notes, but especially excited to read yours. We encourage you to leave notes from YOUR weekend in the comments. Have at it!
FD: Felicia D'Ambrosio
MD: Marie DiFeliciantonio
AH: Alexandra Harcharek
DL: Drew Lazor
Was treated to a peek of the remodeled Doc Watson's, set to re-open as Sherlock's Tavern in early summer, on Friday evening. The ownership team (also behind Zavino) teased it had another restaurant project coming up, but we were too distracted by our no-rules game of shuffleboard to ask prying questions. —FD
Locust Rendezvous (1415 Locust St.) is so slept-on as a neighborhood joint. And the servers there navigate a bar crammed full of rowdy beer swillers, all while juggling dozens of full pints, better than any staff in the city (also up there: our peoples at The Sidecar). —DL
My favorite part about home entertaining is menu planning. As I brainstormed a menu of small plates for six friends, I uncovered a tasty combination for stuffing dates: goat cheese, pecans and roasted butternut squash. —MD
One of the keenest things about The Franklin Mortgage & Investment Co. (112 S. 18th St.) is the staff's willingness to mix up whatever you want. You just have to know what to ask for. Friday night, we requested the "Improved Genever Cocktail," off the brand-new menu that launches today. Head bartender Al Sotack's riff on the Improved Holland Gin Cocktail is potent — genever (that's the malty Dutch take on gin, closer to whiskey than most top-shelf botanical bombs), maraschino liqueur, absinthe, sugar and orange bitters — and drinkable as hell. —DL
Cocktails singing in our heads, we found ourselves helplessly lured toward dry-aged sliders at Barclay Prime. A superlative bartender armed with powerful Armagnac put us to bed on a heady note. —FD
Could probably eat about 90 of those Philly cheesesteak balls at Maru Global Takoyaki (255 S. 10th St.) — shaved sirloin, caramelized onions, cheddar sauce, toasted sesame seeds. Can't even deal. —DL
While wandering around University City Friday night, a random dude stopped us on the sidewalk to recommend White Dog Café (3420 Sansom St.), "because it's, like, the best food in West Philly, yo." How could we resist? I'm glad we didn't: the spicy lamb bolognese and pan-seared ahi fennel and roasted vegetables did not disappoint. —AH
Sour Cream 'n' Onion Chex Mix exists. Fuck yes. —DL
Saturday, I threw a vegetarian dinner party for five girlfriends. On the menu: pesto-dressed barley with roasted portobello mushrooms and halloumi; shaved celery root and apple salad; homemade pumpernickel bread. Using Felicia's alcohol-bottle-as-rolling-pin method (see last week's NftW), I made Earl Grey shortbread cookies for dessert, which we munched on once the party inevitably devolved into drunken Chatrouletting. —AH
Where do you take grandparents, babies and food writers out to dinner in Lancaster County? One word: Carraba's. —FD
The "Mar y Tierra" tacos at the new-look Xochitl (408 S. Second St.) are a tremendous snack for sodium fiends like us: scarily tender chile-braised beef brisket, a heaving spoonful of bacalao and pickled fennel, all on fresh blue corn tortillas. Twelve bucks for three — not bargain-basement, but you won't be disappointed. —DL
Spent the weekend snacking on grass fed burgers at the Piazza Farmers Market Saturday followed by volunteering at the Philly Craft Beer Festival at the Navy Yard. Sunday granted me outside beers and snacks at New Wave Cafe, while the sun was hitting that side of the street at least...then home for dinner from Saturday's market.
Friday: High Seas "Holy Sheet" über abbey ale at the Khyber; stronger than anticipated. Drunken Maoz visit — I have less shame about this because it's (sorta) healthy (kinda). Had dinner with friends Saturday night at Lovash on South Street — crazy-eager service, super-fresh samosas and killer chicken tikka masala. Also, complimentary papadum. Yum. Sunday brunch at Green Eggs Cafe at 13th and Dickinson — surprisingly packed, but worth the wait for smoked salmon omelette topped with a dollop of cream cheese and a rosemary sprig, plus multigrain bread in its own cute little metal carrying case and some fruit for good measure. Will go back, regularly.
Saturday night, 9-11pm at Noche. Great drink specials, $4 nachos (not too great) but half off pizzas and they are awesome. The veggie and the buffalo chicken being standouts. Advice to all pizza places that have buff chix pizza: put slices of celery on that shit!!! Wings come with celery and blue cheese for a reason, because its effing delicious. I'll go back routinely, until I'm kindly escorted out because I've had a few too many $4 Stoli and clubs.
Although Giorgio on Pine's grilled calamari appetizer stuffed with spicy shrimp & scallop was very tasty, they tried to bring it out to me 3 different times during our meal (I had ordered an app as a main course.. mon dieu!). That was offset by the discovery that the Coppola Black Label 2007 Merlot I brought along is entirely worth the $20 the PLCB charges. And also by the fact that the next evening I made hugely successful sriracha-semolina crusted fried chicken.
Oh! And how could I forget, Friday night take out from Jose's on N.10th Street. Definitely my favorite spot for really cheap and authentic tacos, tostados, chile rellenos etc. All delicious and essentially everything on the menu is under $10.
Tried out Distrito's new brunch. I was pretty bangerang. The man himself was in the house too.
Bangarang, Peter! BANGARANG!!!
I received an edible education of cheesemaking from a few licensed craftsmen (and women) of Chester Springs. On Saturday morning, at the PA Association for Sustainable Agriculture, I dabbled in Birchrun Hills' young baby blue, Yellow Springs' black walnut and red Sycamore tree-wrapped goat cheeses, and Highland Farm's variations of their delectable sheep's milk blends. All the fromagers do sell around the city at various farmers' markets and cheese shops, and they are all most definitely, worth the sampling.
Friday: Las Bugambilias for the best soup in town (kermit-green crema poblano), proper shrimp ceviche and chocolate-cajeta crepes served on pretty hand-painted earthenware dishes. At home, Stumptown Anniversary blend. Saturday: Homemade chili capped with greek yogurt (better than tradish sour cream), washed down with the last bottle of summer's Sunshine Pils (still good) in an effective tribute to the weather. Sunday: Aunt's gravy, followed by steakhouse review in the dirty Jerz, not as chaintastic as expected. I'd go back for the blue cheese mashed potatoes.
Friday - dinner at meritage, where I dined on some of the new menu items, like the kobe beef carpaccio, quail salad, pork buns, and artic char with my girlfriend. Everything was exceptional. The pork buns are off the charts and totally worth a stop in by themselves! I'd eat those jawns anytime of day. Forget mass-produced tony lukes steaks, I want mass produced meritage pork buns so I can get my nom nom on anytime of day. As a side note, I had previously tried the korean tacos at meritage and just recently I stopped in at ladder 15 for a beer and korean tacos. Not only are the korean tacos at meritage a much better value at $3, they are much more delicious. The korean tacos at ladder 15 were sloppy, greasy and poorly engineered. The amount of grease pooled in my plate was enough to make me not want to finish them. The kimchi, while authentic, was just 2 giant peices of pickled cabbage which detracted from the functionality of the taco and basically meant the ingredients were not equally distributed across each bite. I had two mouthfuls of excessively cold spicy korean pickled goodness, and four bits of greasy slop. Admittedly, the pork belly variety at ladder 15 were better, they weren't good enough for me to ever order them again.
There is a small bodega on 17th and wharton. I watched the owner and cook, Jimmy, take over 15 orders, never writing anything down, and deliver each one to perfection. My Turkey Bacon BLT light mayo and an over easy egg was delish. Not 4 Bell cuisine but 4 Bell service. Thanks Jimmy.
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Friday night: Yards ESA on the Khyber beer engine, Tröegs' Nugget Nectar, Boaks Two Blind Monks, Laphroaig 10 year, followed by Maoz falafel. Saturday: Lovash lamb vindaloo and vegetable pakora; then to Devil's Den for Orkney Brewery's Skull Splitter and Pretty Things Baby Tree. Sunday: Calzone from Marra's then, at the Oscars party, chevre from Green Aisle, snax from Trader Joe's.
Friday night: Heavenly cassoulet at Bistrot La Minette. Saturday: An orgy of goodies from Green Aisle Grocery, including Zahav's hummus, chili from Cafe con Chocolate, Ekta's chicken korma, a Wild Flour baguette, various cheeses and one of E's whoopie pies. Sunday: The gym.
Saturday's dinner was a Maoz falafel with sweet potato fries. The fries were SO GOOOOD, first time I've had nice crispy sweet potato fries. and yum for their garlic mayo
Saturday lunch: Tonkatsu, cabbage salad, and pickles (big enough to share) at H-Mart (technically right on the border of Philly on north 611)
Adam - Fully agree that the poblano soup at Las Bugambilias is incredible. Love that spot. Best Mexican in Philly.
Just to note, Franklin Mortgage and Investment Co's use one mammoth (hand-chipped) ice-cube in some of their drinks rather than their tray-formed cousins. Adds also to the underground London pub motif, clocking in around WWII, if I had to choose an era. At one point, I'd say that Apothecary, known also for their ingredient-rich libations, would have stood rival to FMIC, but Apothecary paired down their drink menu significantly if I remember correctly.. Next time you go into FMIC, ask to try some of there more uncommon spirits/liqueurs neat. Whole other world; it's almost as if they want you to have a part of your palate specifically reserved for them, which I have no problem doing.
Social comments and analytics for this post... This post was mentioned on Twitter by mealticket: Here are Team Meal Ticket's eating/drinking Notes from the Weekend. Add your own in the comments! http://bit.ly/bCkI07...
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Notes from the Weekend is a new Monday-morning feature that sees the members of Team Meal Ticket compiling all the food/drink highlights uncovered during prime eatin' time, Friday to Sunday. Consider this a place for good deals, great dishes, wicked cocktails, recipe triumphs (and tragedies), bizarro conversations and more. We're eager to share our notes, but especially excited to read yours. We encourage you to leave notes from YOUR weekend in the comments. Have at it!
FD: Felicia D'Ambrosio
MD: Marie DiFeliciantonio
AH: Alexandra Harcharek
DL: Drew Lazor
We were two sandwiches, a square pizza and way too many drinks into the night at Stogie Joe's (1801 E. Passyunk Ave.) when we learned that the bar did not accept credit. But we didn't mind using the on-site ATM: They have it worked out so you get a free pint of Coors Light or High Life if you show the bartender the receipt. If you're gonna drop $2.50 on a surcharge, don't do it thirsty. —DL
At Los Amigos (461 Route 73 North, West Berlin, N.J.) on Friday, I quickly ditched my appointed seat on a long banquette for a bar stool after realizing a scary ex-boss and his catty wife were snacking on pre-dinner chips and salsa next to me. This put me in prime position to receive fear-numbing margaritas. —MD
Grabbed an early bite at the bar at Meritage (500 S. 20th St.) on Saturday, where we learned that based on popular demand, they'll begin offering their Korean tacos as a special every Wednesday. Also tried a crazy-good new menu item: a fresh crab and papaya salad served with pomegranate-seed-studded avocado purée, passion fruit sauce and fried lotus chips. —DL
The misreading of a biscuit recipe left me with a Stoli bottle covered in sticky dough (I really need to buy a rolling pin) and the post-bake realization that nowhere did the recipe instruct to "roll out the dough." It's a good thing that virtually any bread project can be saved with butter and honey. —FD
We hit up the Vintage Brunch at Cantina Dos Segundos on Saturday, where we watched people paw through racks of dresses from Sweet Jane while DJ Kyle Miller spun reggae and soul. In between bites of berry- and caramel-topped hot cakes, friends fought over whether Dos Segundos' bacon-infused Bloody Mary or blood orange Mimosa was superior. In the end, though, it was a guava-infused margarita that won my heart. —AH
Not sure why this hasn't earned more fanfare, but chef Mike Stollenwerk has rolled out his infamous $28 Sunday tasting menu, a staple at Little Fish (600 Catharine St.), at his newer, boozier fish (1708 Lombard St.). Pretty convinced there's no better deal in the city. The highlight of the five-course meal for us was a perfect carrot bisque poured tableside over chilled mussels and citrus segments. So orange, so good. Make reservations. —DL
Sunday was spent learning how to make the anthracite coal-miners' cure for anything that ails you, Boilo. My mom taught me this recipe that her grandmother used to make with local moonshine in Mt. Carmel, Pa. Lacking homemade hooch, we purchased two gallons of 190-proof Everclear and earned much ribbing from the liquor store staff. My favorite line from the hand-written instructions: "at this point in the recipe the Boilo may explode." —FD
Prior to Snoop Dogg at the TLA on Sunday, delivery from Los Jalapenos at Bob and Barbara's. Fish tacos and the enchilada were excellent. Other items in the platter less memorable. But two of us for $22 (including delivery tip) + $3 for a Pabst and Jim Beam is a fine night out.
Had lunch this past Saturday at Ants Pants Cafe on 22nd and South. It's a neat little place that gets a lot done with a small space. The food was cooked well, I had the Bacon Stack which consisted of wheat toast, bacon, arugula, two eggs sunny side up and a sprinkle of Pecorino on top. Creme Brulee french toast and sweet potato fries are also highly recommended.
Went to Hoof + Fin on Sunday. It was delicious, well priced and super cute inside. The beef empanada, however, tasted just like taco bell. Not so awesome. Also, I discovered that whiskey and birch beer when put together tastes like cough syrup. I do not recommend.
Had the foie gras scrapple at Silk City finally. Enjoyed, but I'm not the biggest scrapple guy. The root vegetables with it were delicious, as was the homemade bacon on the bacon/parsnip salad my girlfriend got. Took the extra bacon home. Making bacon + PB sandwich tonight. Am excited. Also bought some neck bones and other ingredients from Spring Garden market and made our own pho for the first time. Broth wasn't clear (I didn't simmer at the right temp), but man was it good.
Saturday - Had a glass of chocolate milk from Green Aisle - then headed to Reading Terminal to pick up my first pan pudding piece (had to preorder it from one of the Amish farmers) - told it was like "liquid scrapple" and it is! Took the hunk over to Zavino - the chef made us a pie with it, topped off with two eggs and caramelized onions OMG! For dinner, a visit to Zahav to try the new duck kebab, and I think for the first time, didn't order Hummus (regretted it later) Yesterday - Turkey Melt from Paesano's (with Tuna salad, argula, roasted tomatoes and sharp prov on long roll) and sushi at Izumi for dinner.
I promise to have less chain-y meals to report on in the future, BUT: After we got back from a weeklong vacation in a developing country, all I wanted was a gigantic, head-sized burrito. (Chipotle, natch.) We headed up to the Main Line location, and what's notable (other than how delicious my barbacoa/corn salsa/guac-on-the-side 'rito was) here is that the staff, perhaps through some new HQ-mandated politeness initiative, was CRAZY NICE. Like, asked-me-how-I-was-doing nice. Paid-attention-when-I-asked-for-just-a-little-hot-sauce nice. Came-to-our-table-to-see-if-we-needed-anything nice! It was weird. And nice.
Spent the weekend making gravlax from the One Day Deal for wild Alaskan sockeye salmon fillet I purchased at Whole Foods. Couldn't pass up the $7.99/lb special. First time making gravlax, so hopefully it will turn out good.
Went on a pizza/beer crawl with my high school friend who came down from NYC. Hit up Stella/Zavino/Slice/Osteria/Tacconelli's. My favorite is still Tacconelli's white. His was the Kennett at Zavino, followed by the Tartufo at Stella. Beer is pretty much good wherever you drink it, but the Kwak on Sunday School special at Tria was a highlight.
Dinner on Friday: Sang Kee at 36th & Chestnut. Big (BIG) bowl of broth noodle soup with roasted pork, and some steamed soup dumplings on the side. Still dreaming of it!
Social comments and analytics for this post... This post was mentioned on Twitter by citypaper: RT @mealticket: New feature: NOTES FROM THE WEEKEND, where we round up our Fri-Sun food/drink highlights. Share yours in the comments! http://bit.ly/9XoJvg...
@ Andy and Jennie: Whoa. Big weekends! Thanks to everyone for commenting! This is shaping up to be a fun regular feature. Tell all your overeating friends.
[...] salad; homemade pumpernickel bread. Using Felicia’s alcohol-bottle-as-rolling-pin method (see last week’s NftW), I made Earl Grey shortbread cookies for dessert, which we munched on once the party inevitably [...]
[...] Monday's Meal Ticket, a fascinating detail was revealed in Drew Lazor's account of a dinner at South Philly's Stogie [...]
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