Eggs Chizmar c/o Bolete

The next day I had to do some work, but got up early enough to do most of it before M&A even awoke. This worked out perfectly, as M. suggested we go to Bolete for brunch. Though I'm out in that general area rather frequently, I am most often alone, and so generally do not go out to eat, which means that the last time I enjoyed Bolete's cuisine was pretty much the last time I saw M&A. So it had been a while, and even longer since S. took me, A. and H. out to brunch back in 2011. The brunch menu was slightly different, but I was pretty much drawn to what I enjoyed that last brunch time: Eggs Chizmar, which features crisp oysters, mushrooms, bacon, mizuna, house-made buttermilk biscuits, chive, and hollandaise sauce. I also ordered a Bloody Mary, which I had forgotten I was rather indifferent about the last time I ordered it. It remained stiff as far as alcohol content, but was a little thin in terms of actual texture and spiciness. I like me a little more horseradish.

While the beverage wasn't a big happy-making success, the eggs held up better. My plate was basically clean - minus the stray potato - by meal's end. The oysters hold up well, even when their crispiness is lessened by the eggs, mushrooms and sauce that are piled on top of them. I'd definitely recommend this dish if you're into Eggs Benedict but what to fancy them up a bit.

A lovely meal with lovely folks. Though I would say that Bolete is better, on the whole, for dinner and not brunch. 

Happy Hour c/o Fare and Gingerbread Madness c/o The Green Room

CPM and I made plans to hang at some point a few weeks back. This was pre-holiday times. We decided to check out the happy hour options at Fare. I tried the "Really Clean Martini," which was made with citron vodka and white grape juice. It was a tad too sweet for me and mainly tasted like grape juice.

We shared the truffle fries, which were good.

It was their mushroom flatbread that won as far as food that we enjoyed.

After happy hour we decided to do one more stop before going our own ways. And that stop was the Green Room. There we had some beers - they had Youngs Double Chocolate Stout on tap, which I just couldn't say no to. The bar was having a bit of a holiday fete, with complimentary food and treats on a few tables. We didn't really try the food, but when a gingerbread house competition was announced, we did want a piece of that action. Problem is...we didn't do a very good job. Our pre-formed house parts had serious cracks in them that the icing simply wouldn't keep together. We tried and tried to get our walls to stay up and to put a roof on them, but it just wasn't to be. So, instead, we went with a slightly different approach. At some point CPM declared that we had made a Tiger Woods...in that he was standing on a pile of destruction of his own making. Below you can see our Tiger (with candy cane golf club) and one of our competitors' far more successful constructions in the background. While we tried to plead our case to the judges, we were awarded nothing.

And here we are at the end of the evening. Good times. I'm wearing a scarf that B. gave me for Christmas and earrings my father gave me for my birthday. Gifts!

Dinner c/o Paper Canoe in Duck, NC

At one point the idea was had that all 20 of us might find a way to go out to dinner as a group. This was a lovely theoretical plan, but it did have a few glitches. The largest glitch was simply that there weren't many restaurants that could cater to such a large party, and those that did could only seat us at a time that would conflict with a desire to get all the kids in sleep mode before 11:30. But the idea of going out - sans kids - still appealed to one and all, which led to a plan of shifts between the parents and grandparents of the youth. Dad and I weren't really on kid duty, but I think we ended up in the 'late shift.' We went to the Paper Canoe. We were a little early so we sat at the bar for a second for a warm up cocktail. I went with a dirty martini with three olives.

We were then seated with a lovely view of the sound/bay enhanced by a not-yet-set sun, the rays of which delightfully played across the olive oil we were served along with bread. We

Dad also ordered a bottle of wine with crab in its name and though I took a number of photographs of the bottle, I took none with the label facing entirely towards me. The laughing crab? The hesitant crab? The happy crab? One might never know.

We also ordered one of the specials of the night a mushroom, duck and brie puff pastry served with a bit of pesto and red pepper coulis. I think it was coulis. It was coulis like in any case.

It was definitely above average. The mushrooms were perfectly seasoned, the pastry flaky and not so doughy or heavy, and just the right amount of brie to pull it all together.

I leaned towards the crab stuffed shrimp for my main dish. And they were not bad. The crab meat itself was a little too shredded overseasoned for my lump loving purist self.

Dad had the scallops with an Asian-ish bent to it, with sesame soba noodles and a rich broth. The scallops were tender and perfectly seared. Nice work.

It was a nice meal and much quieter than the many shared with such a rag tag group of folks. Both are good experiences, but very different from one another.

Four Course Dinner Plus Extra Treats c/o Marigold Kitchen

A good amount of time ago CPM and I made our way to west Philly to enjoy a dinner at Marigold Kitchen. It was spectacular. We oohed. We ahhhed. We altogether enjoyed ourselves. Soon thereafter LW and I discussed how we ought to go to Marigold for her birthday. And then somehow we didn't. I forget what exactly prevented us from an August visit, but it never came to be. Months later we picked up that dropped ball and traveled on over to enjoy the restaurant's new format. When CPM and I went it was an a la carte design; it was up to us whether we enjoyed proper appetizers in addition to an entree and all their delightful amuse bouches. Now, after getting a lot of good press (I imagine this was a large contributor to the menu change) visitors to Marigold Kitchen have the option of deciding between a few price points and levels of coursed meals. We went with the minimum, but perhaps maximum returns. I must admit that this post will not include a photograph for each and every dish we were given. The lighting was extremely low and while I tried my best not to use the flash and keep my hands steady, the truth is that some photos just aren't at all up to par (and some that I'm including are iffy nontheless). For example, I'm not showing you the opening popcorn we were given that had been frozen/treated in such a way that the first few bites could give you the ability to exhale and have your breath be like steam. Wasn't able to capture that moment. Nope. Similarly, the light was so low that many of the photographs that I am sharing with you aren't entirely similar in appearance. Color correction under these conditions was difficult...but I hope you can see past these issues to the wonderful meal we did indeed enjoy.

This was some kind of tuna with foam.

I've completely forgotten what this was.

Butternut squash soup with foam.

Ravioli with chocolate.

Head cheese terrine with House Pickled Local Fruits & Vegetables, Toasted Baguette, Braised Mustard Seed.  

Hamachi with Wild Mushroom “Forrest,” Puffed Sticky Rice and Mushroom Tea.

Painted Hills beef filet  with Turnip-Horseradish Puree, Seared Foie Gras, Baby Turnip, Pear, Arugula, Caramelized Onion Pudding.

This was a truly tasty plate. The beef was perfectly medium rare, the foie nice and creamy and the radishes were just heavenly.

A little mint chocolate ice cream sandwich.

Carrot almond cake with Goat’s Kefir Ice Cream, Blood Orange, Candied Carrot  

We were seated on the second floor at a small table by a window. We both thought our main server dude was a little brusque, a little less excited than some of the other servers when it came to the magic he was putting down in front of us. Probably just an off day. I can't remember if LW just wanted to high five one of the other servers or if they actually did. I'm sort of leaning towards actually did.

Dinner c/o Isabel with CP

It's been a few months since CPM and R's wedding. And I hadn't gotten the opportunity to see CPM since, which was sad making. She's doing a serious weekly commute to Maryland for graduate school, so the amount of time she's actually in Philly - and in a position to hang out with the likes of me - is limited. So I was glad when we began forming a plan to have such a face to face. In the end we took advantage of a Groupon I purchased a while back for dinner at Isabel. I enjoyed my last meal and dining experience at the establishment, but I hadn't found the opportunity to return so the deal (one appetizer, two entrees and dessert for $25) was tantalizing. CPM and I met up at my apartment before walking over to the restaurant. Almost on cue, it began torrentially raining. While we shared an oversized umbrella, we were both quite damp and dripping by the time we safely arrived at Isabel. We were quickly seated by the front window, which gave us a lovely view of just how rainy it was going to be (very rainy).

CPM supplied us with tequila for margaritas. We were curious about a few different options that Isabel provides, but took the advice of our server and ultimately chose the guanabana variety. We both struggled to describe what it actually reminded us of as far as taste, but we were in agreement that it was to our liking. Sweet, but not too much, and a nice mixer for the tequila.

We went with the mushroom and chorizo fundido, which I pointed out had many a similarity with our erstwhile pizza fave, just without the bread. It was a shallow bowl of melted cheese with plenty of chorizo and mushroom chunks, served with tortillas. So ooey gooey.

I debated what entree to choose and, again, took the advice of our server and went with the scallops.

This was a goo choice. I was surprised by just how many scallops I was given and the mango salsa accompaniment was bright and lively. The scallops were also nice and tender. I haven't tried cooking scallops in years, but I recall that when I did, they often ended up rubbery. These were nothing like my sad attempts.

And for dessert we shared the bread pudding, a warm sweet mess of tastiness with malted vanilla ice cream. Rich and hearty, a good dessert for such a rainy night.

It was great to catch up with CPM, and good to go back to Isabel.

Tapas c/o Jamonera

In April at some point, or even late March, I sent out an email to some of my Philly folks asking if anyone had interest in going to a Santigold show with me in early May. Tuffy Winky (formerly BC) responded with a resounding yes. I suggested that we have dinner before the show and in the end we decided on Jamonera, which was on the list. It will come to no one's surprise that I ended up in the neighborhood early. I chose to kill a few minutes looking in at the Open House Store, which is owned and operated by the same business partnership as Jamonera and Barbuzzo. Basically, the duo has a lockdown on most of the block of 13th Street between Chesnut and Sansom. The store was chock full of cute things you couldn't imagine ever ending up at Q Mart, but still struck me as just a lot of stuff (some of which I'm sure I'd covet far more if I owned a house with the room for such things). On the other hand, who pays $14 for a chicken stapler? Not me.

In any event, when I finished killing time I entered Jamonera through its imposing black door and found myself face to face with a guy standing in the entry way. We made eye contact, but I wasn't quite sure whether he was a patron waiting for someone, or a host. This would have been easier to determine if, you know, he had said something along the lines of "Welcome to Jamonera, how can I help you?" but he didn't do that, which then made me feel awkward about telling him I had a reservation. It was weird and not the most auspicious of beginnings, I must say. Once seated, I took a look at the cocktail list while I waited for Tuffy. I had read that their vermouth cocktails were a nice change of pace, so when the server came up and asked if I'd like anything to drink, I went with the "Blanco Especial,"  which was a Bodegas Montana-Perucchi Vermouth "served in a traditional vermuteria style" with chamomile, lemon verbena, ginger and mint. Definitely a change of pace from many a Philadelphia cocktail. Sweet, almost cloyingly so if not for the balance of the verbena and lemon. I didn't want another, but I'm glad I gave it a go. Once Tuffy Winky arrived she ordered the Bizet,  which sounded like it was going to be too sweet (vodka, passion fruit, clementine, fresh tyme), but was actually just right and refreshing.

Tuffy Winky's a good sport about my craziness when it comes to food, and gave me a lot of freedom when suggesting the meal that we would enjoy. I'm not sure if I ended up making the best decisions or not. The first two things that arrived were the shishito peppers with a little salt and perhaps another slight accompaniment. I liked the blistered skin and the taste of the peppers on their own, but Tuffy Winky preferred them with a dose of the restaurant's sherry vinegar hot sauce. The presentation was simple, but appealing.

At the same time we also had the papa frita: crispy skin potato, wood smoked garlic aioli and brava salt. They were good and crispy, and the potato chunks were nicely proportioned, but somehow I wasn't overawed. It was dish that, like the peppers, seemed to rely on its simplicity and the quality of its minimal ingredients. In this case there wasn't enough pizazz. I'm not sure what was missing. Not salt. Maybe a little more of the aioli? Or perhaps a little more garlic zest to the aioli?

I knew that Tuffy Winky isn't a fan of fish, but I still wanted to check out the "Wedding of Anchoas," one Cantabrian anchovy, one Boquerone with charred peppers, goat cheese and arbequina olive oil.This may actually have been my favorite dish of the night. Actually, it was. No 'may' about it.  The contrast between the straight up fishiness of anchovy compared to the slightly more mellow flavor of the boquerone was an interesting one, and the cheese and pepper foundation grounded the difference between them quite nicely. This was the best realized dish of the evening.

We also ordered the ham croquetas, which I'm not sure were the same as the online menu's description, which is: iberico ham croquetas with horseradish crema, pickled mustard seed and ham fat. Ours seemed to have a little piece of onion, some kind of pepper, and a waxy/honey quality to them. I've gotta say that while the first half of one's first bite was quite enjoyable (nice and hot, a little salty), the finish that these little guys left was not as enjoyable. There was a waxiness (from the honey?) that coated both of our mouths and the taste that went with that coating was not a pleasant one nor was it easy to part with...cleansing one's palate of a waxy compound is a challenge. If the wedding was a 'hit,' then these were a definite 'miss.'

You'll note that I chose to take photographs with a flash but with a funny shutter speed. I like the look of the photos, but they're definitely a little 'moody.' Next up was the Foie y Setas, seared foie gras with wild mushrooms, amontillado sherry, maple buttered toast and roasted chesnuts. This was Tuffy's first foie! I think she liked it, which was a relief. The size of the foie was fair, given the $12 price. The mushrooms and the sweeter maple notes were earthy and successful contributors to the overall presentation. This was a good dish, not astounding, but not disappointing either.

When I went to Barbuzzo with Mr. Ass a while back (a full year and a month back, actually) we ordered the meatballs. Here, too, meatballs (albondigas) were on the menu...but I can't find them on the online version, so I can't tell you exactly what they consisted of. That said, they were extremely reminiscent of the Barbuzzo balls: very tasty but not as complex as you might expect.  During our meal we also enjoyed glasses of red wine...but I'm not sure the online list mirrors the choices we made.

So my overall feeling about this visit was so-so. While the host's opening left me feeling strange, our actual server's attitude and demeanor were great. She answered questions, suggested wines and was generally on top of her game without attitude or pretense. Food came out at a nice pace, though there was abit of a lull at one point that had me a little worried. When I go to any restaurant - high or low end - I go because I've heard good things about the establishment and want to enjoy those good things. Jamonera received a lot of great press during its opening months, and I very much enjoyed my Barbuzzo experience, so I did expect Jamonera to live up to that combined amount of hype. Unfortunately, it didn't. I guess I really am looking for those dishes that make your eyes bulge a little from the sheer surprise and enjoyment of whatever it is that is dancing across your taste buds. My eyes did not bulge. My buds did find some joy, but for the overall price tag (about $55 for each of us before tax/tip) I would have expected  more stand-outs. The ratio isn't right; for every dud/dish that needs just a little more fine tuning, you should have at least three dishes that are going to make your patrons swoon. I felt this was reversed. For every swoon-worthy dish, there were three that just barely missed the mark. Of course, if I were a professional reviewer with a better budget, I'd go back three or four times before writing it off, but as it stands, I'm not a reviewer. I can only tell you that at the end of the meal, Tuffy Winky and I both felt like we had a nice experience with good enough food, but we weren't really thinking about coming back or recommending it to others.

Lunch c/o Cichetteria 19

The Wednesday before my Bahamas departure I had a few errands I had to run in order to be totally prepared for the vacation that awaited me. It was also 65 degrees and gorgeous. So when I found myself in Center City with most of my errands complete, I decided a last minute Restaurant Week lunch was in order. I got in touch with LW, who also took the day off, and we ended up meeting at Cichetteria 19 (now being rebranded as C19). The deal for lunches during restaurant week is that you get a 3 course meal for $25. Or I think it was $25. I ordered a cocktail, the main notes of which were aperol and seltzer. I liked it though the orange garnish was a little withered.
We both chose the soup option for our first course...peas and rice with Porcsalt bacon bits to boot. An above average rendition of split pea soup.
We also both opted for the "Jonathan King Burger," which was prepared with roasted leeks, Lancaster mushrooms and Gorgonzola dolce. It also came with fries.
A hearty burger nicely seasoned. Didn't go overboard with the gorgozola, which is good because that stuff was riiiiiich. Not really capable of competing with Village Whiskey's wow factor, but definitely a cut above the standard.
And there you have it, basically my last meal worth mentioning before the Bahamas.

Chicken in Morel Sauce

The New Years Eve/Day weekend is always a pretty crazy time for me and my coworkers. The work we do is very deadline oriented, and a lot of deadlines come in around the 3rd or 4th, which means the days leading up to those deadlines are ridiculous. This has - in tandem with my own reluctance to set myself up for disappointment - in past years led me to simply stay in on New Years Eve. Last year a nice balance was struck when I joined M. and A. and S. and A.'s family in the country. I was able to enjoy myself and feel like I was part of a group, but without the crazy crowds or, let's face it, the expectation that I would be kissed as I rang in the new year...and also with the ability to get up relatively early and get down to doing some work. So I was glad when I learned that M. and A. were once again going to be on the east coast for 2012, and happily joined the same bunch for another new years weekend. I arrived Friday evening, just moments before they sat down for dinner. M. and A. had made chicken in Madeira cream sauce with morel mushrooms. It was delicious. Delicious! We also had a salad and cheese course, but I was too busy enjoying it to photograph it.

Foie Gras Mushroom Tasty Treat

After returning back to Philadelphia I tried to organize my house a little bit (never really sticks) and lie down after all the great meals and late nights. At some point, however, LW and I decided to meet up for a drink and snack at McCrossen's. I was drawn to the foie gras mushroom tasty treat on toast. That is what was written up on the specials board (not really). It was delicious. The bread kind of had the consistency of French toast, having soaked up the balsamicky sauce and mushroomy juices.
Ugh. Tasty stuff.

Mushroom and Parsley Ricotta Lasagna

On Labor Day proper I got myself together and made a lasagna. It was a success. I added garlic and parsley to the ricotta, made a bechamel sauce minus the nutmeg, sauteed the mushrooms and did a few other things to make this a delightfully decadent dish.
We're talking at least six layers folks.

Dinner c/o Twenty Manning Grill

Months ago I purchased a Rue La La deal for Twenty Manning Grill and after months of not using it, L. and I finally made use of it. We met on perhaps one of the hottest of days back in July. The restaurant has this system of misters for outdoor seating, and they were on, but not a soul decided to brave the heat even with that system in place. No matter. I started with a Gold Headed Ben, which was described as "a warm weather take on our fall Rye Street cocktail, Rye Whiskey, St. Germaine, fresh lemon juice, orange bitters topped with Cava Brut. It was refreshing.
L. and I had serious discussions about what our choice of meal would be. In the end I opted for their heirloom tomato gazpacho with pineapple sorbet. And I'll tell you what, it may have been one of the best of the season, fresh as could be, not too bready, and the basil pineapple sorbet was a really interesting twist. The sorbet was quite sweet, not all that savory, and yet managed not to overwhelm the tomato goodness of the main event. Good work.
For my main course I decided to try their pan seared butternut wild mushroom ravioli, which came was described as "wild mushrooms, fresh ricotta, parmigiano-reggiano, caramelized onions and crispy sage-brown butter. The presentation was a little surprising, as the ravioli seemed to have been sauteed a bit. They actually reminded me a little of potstickers, which somehow made a little more sense once I learned that the chef was Asian. Does that make me a racist? Maybe. They were good, but not all that mind blowing and perhaps a little steep for $16.
L. had the tuna burger and wasn't overly in love with it. Too fishy somehow. She also learned that she doesn't like cornichons...her loss, my gain. I had two glasses of a really nice red wine. Let me see if I can remember what it was. Maybe the Pinot Noir? Or the Malbec? Either way, I liked it a lot. I wish I could track down our receipt. Alas.
Afterwards L. and I made momentary friends with a man outside the restaurant who then bought us both glasses of wine, which we enjoyed while sitting on the bench outside the restaurant. We met a whole cast of neighborhood characters, and I think we both had a moment of 'huh, maybe living in Center City would be fun...if we had millions of dollars.' While not every element of the meal was a raging success, it was a great night and the establishment definitely has charm and verve. We asked the guy to take a photograph of us, but with L.'s camera and I haven't gotten a copy. Photo proof fail.