Five Courses c/o Fond

T. contacted me soon after I posted my list of New Year's Restaurant Resolutions and gave me an idea of a few she was interested in checking out. From there I went with Fond. When the original date rolled around I think we both had kind of forgotten about it. So we rescheduled and refocused, and this time we actually followed through. I took the Broad Street Line subway down to South Philly and then made my way to East Passyunk. I was a little early so I walked in large loops until closer to the time of our reservation. It was a very nice evening. South Philly is weird to me. Not bad, just different I guess. Somehow the houses feel even closer together. And do any of them have any green space? In any case, I arrived first at Fond. The main server was sort of just standing at the door, looking up and down the street. The space inside is kind of small, so I wondered if this was his routine for being kind of 'out of the way' while his tables are eating. In other words, he stands by the door to avoid the appearance of hovering? But the flip side of that is that when you're walking into the restaurant you're immediately noticed. Once T. arrived there were some decisions to make. I had taken a look at the menu and saw a few different things I'd like to try, but the five course tasting menu seemed like a pretty good deal. We asked our server what was included in the meal, which he was happy to tell us more about, and at the end of his recitation we decided that it was a great way to go. The first course was a small shot glass of butternut squash soup. The soup itself was nice and rich, but frankly I'm never as blown away by butternut squash soup as others, and the shot glass presentation, while a nice serving size considering the other dishes, wasn't particularly original or inventive.
Next up was a tuna crudo. Or I believe it was tuna. Nice presentation. Delicately cut slices of fish. A nice little sauce and smattering of watercress. I didn't totally dig the seeds.
Next up was the special pate of the day. This was quite a generous portion, as we each got our own slab. I very much liked it and gobbled up a majority of it on crispy chewy pieces of toasted bread with a daub of the accompanying mustard. I did manage to save just a little, which they were happy to wrap up for me (it became part of a rather eclectic lunch the next day).
We then tried - a fish. I think it might have been skate? I'm hoping that T. can help me out. It was in a five spice foam broth, which reminded me more of old bay seasoning than anything else (this also was the overall taste I got from Morimoto's similarly described spice concoction). I remember thinking the fish was nicely cooked.
Then there was the palate cleansing rasberry cardamom sorbet. A delightful little treat. The cardomom was especially surprising. I also lusted after their spoons a little.
Next up was the Berkshire Pork Belly with Okinawan sweet potatoes, escarole and dijon jus. The pork belly itself was quite rich and fatty. I'm not as accustomed to its having one side with a definite crunch - the top layer was quite solid. I actually peeled it off and ate it separately from the lower, softer and fatty levels of the meat, and I'm not sure how I could have managed it better. While it was a different protein and restaurant, the pork dish reminded me slightly of the meal I had at Noble a few years back. The meat itself was good, but the accompanying elements of the dish (sharing the Okinawan sweet potato as an ingredient) didn't really make it pop for me.
And finally dessert two ways. Tangerine cheesecake and warm chocolate brownie. I was a much bigger fan of the chocolate brownie with coconut chai sorbet than of the cheesecake. I can't recall if T. felt the same or the opposite.
I'm a little confused about my overall feelings for the spot. I liked the atmosphere of the place (it's very, very small) and attitude of the staff was quite friendly. It was a Wednesday or Thursday, so we were one of only about four or five tables, and I do wonder if I would have been as happy with the atmosphere if the place had been packed. It was clear that the menu had a passionate chef behind it, but I'm not sure that I was as blown away by the entirety of the meal as I might have hoped. The pate and the fish courses were my particular favorites.

Work Lunch

From time to time I actually make my own food. These days even when that happens I don't really document the meals, even when successful. In this instance, I made myself a little work lunch of olives, cucumber, horseradish artichoke tuna fish salad, one pickle, half an avocado and a handful of carrots. When I have lunches like this I feel slightly better about myself.

Birthday Karaoke at Locust Bar

Upon my return to Philadelphia I spent a little time doing stuff at my apartment before heading back out into the world to celebrate A.S's birthday at Locust Bar. I met up with BC and BA just as I arrived, so we walked in together. A.S. was rocking a great outfit and some fantastic jewelry and was very enthusiastic and excited about the karaoke element of the night's festivities. There were a few other semi-familiar faces from high school, other friends of AS I don't really know, and then the rest of the bar. A nice crowd.
I forget what BC sang, but she did it was gusto. I sang a Weezer song and did not do it with gusto. I was a robotic off-tune version of Rivers Cuomo. He would weep if he knew.
Mr. Ass did quite a good rendition of a country song that I now forget.
I asked C. to take a photo of the three of us and he told me only if we didn't smoosh our faces up next to one another, so here we are showing that there is space between our faces.
Birthday girl and friends.
Photos. Photos. Photos.

Dance. Dance. Karaoke!

On our second evening in Gettysburg we wen to Appalachian Brewing Company for dinner. I too photographs but none of them were too great and, really, the best offering this establishment has is its beer, not its food. Though the soft pretzels and accompanying cheese dip were pretty tasty. I particularly cared for their lager.
Afterwards we returned to the hotel where we enthusiastically supported OSU's final four game in the NCAA championships. They won, so everyone was pretty pleased.
The next morning we all got ourselves packed up and had one last meal at the Lincoln Diner. I chose to go the poached eggs and sausage links route and was entirely pleased with what arrived on my plate. While I think we were all pleased with our breakfasts, our waitress was a little on the surly/unhelpful side. Granted, it's a diner and usually your server has a little of that disinterested and weary air to them, but generally they're still pretty good about refilling your coffee and water cups and not acting like every request (when they're not unreasonable like asking for hot sauce) is a personal strike to their dignity. All I know is that K. at one point actually got up and got another waitress to come give us coffee because ours was standing at the end of the counter talking to someone else. Not running around so busy and stressed. Talking. There lies the difference between understandably troubled customer service and customer service that I feel the need to grumble about. If you're truly in the weeds and super busy, yeah I'll be a little sad that it takes a while to get whatever it is...but if you're not super busy? If you're just not to be bothered? Ok. Enough grumbling. It's Easter after all.

Lunching at Ernie's, Day 2

After breakfast I went back to my room and read Jane Austen until I got the text that said that the Ohio contingent was amassing and moving to Ernie's for lunch. I met up with them there and decided to revisit the beef tomato soup I so enjoyed as a kid. Sad truth is that this soup did not hold up well to my memory or current taste buds. There was a metallic taste to it, the beef was rather dry and though I like beef jerky I'm not really all that fond of it in soup form. I tried to get past it, but the majority of this soup went to waste.
I had a simpler dog too, just mustard. E. realized that he could order 'one with' and then scoop some of the excess chili and onions onto a second simpler dog. Clever. Thrifty. We met up with our Gettysburg cousins F. and N., and an epic round of 'let's show each other photos of our grand kids' began between E. and N. Sweet kids all of them (I only know E.'s).
After that we went to the Gettysburg Visitor Center. It continued to be an extremely gloomy day and the walk from the parking lot included a consistent drizzle and dampness I could have done without. The visitor center is huge and relatively new. We went the whole hog and had tickets for the introductory movie, cyclorama and admission to the exhibits. The movie, narrated by Morgan Freeman, traced the events that led up to the Civil War as well as some of the particulars of Gettysburg. I was tearing up during the opening scenes. Hearing about the stupidity of the situation in the first place (ie: ever thinking slavery was a good idea, mixing the rights of human beings with the profits of business etc etc) and then reflecting on the sheer loss of life. And then. I don't know. I couldn't help but think about the Trayvon Martin story and while yes, things are markedly improved from the days of slavery, the ramifications of that time period and the Civil War clearly haven't abated entirely. Men fought and died over something as dumb as race, and men continue to die over it whether they want to or not. I'm not a scholar. Nor do I have an incredibly nuanced view of race politics. It just made me so sad to think that all that blood spilled on both sides, and we haven't really grown all the way up as a nation on that specific topic. I'm not someone who has a fully rational or informed academic position on the true causes of the Civil War nor the true impact it had on our society. I was, however, struck by one part of the film that mentions the incredible destruction of the south's buildings and infrastructure, and how long and hard the process of rebuilding was, which of course played a role in subsequent decades of interaction between north and south, black and white. After the movie we took an escalator up to the cyclorama, which really is something to see. Oil canvas all the way around, the way they've set it up there are moments where the canvas stops and the rest begins. Then there were the exhibits and relics of the massive cleanup and burial process that all Gettysburg citizens had to deal with post-battle. Thousands of corpses taking months and months to properly bury or return to their families. The smell in some places must have been something.
Ok enough of my ill informed thoughts on the Civil War. We spent a nice chunk of time around the facility before braving the continued rain to pile into our two cars and go to the Outlets. Except I stayed in the car and read Pride and Prejudice while they shopped.

Breakfast c/o Sharpshooters Grille

The next morning I woke up just a little bit after the others. They'd already eaten and had plans to go to the Gettysburg College bookstore...I think, or maybe they went somewhere else entirely. I decided I'd try a new place for breakfast in the area. There are lots of options and this may not have been the most obvious, but Sharpshooters Grille had a website that said it had a dart board so I was interested in seeing what it looked like. It was a miserable, overcast and rainy day so making the one mile drive was a little gloomy. Once I pulled in and entered the place I felt a little funny; it's clearly more of a dinner/beer/pool hall kind of place and other than the waitress, a manager and the kitchen staff I don't think there was another customer. That said, I didn't feel uncomfortable and the waitress was really nice. I went with two fried eggs and sausage patties. They weren't reinventing the wheel with it, but I enjoyed the breakfast sans bells and whistles.
On my way back to the hotel I took a little detour on a different section of battleground.


A nice but very rainy morning adventure.

Battlefields and Monuments

After lunch we decided to make the most of the gorgeous weather and take a drive and walk around a few of the battle sites. I'd passed this memorial a few times in the past, but this was the first time I actually got out to take a proper look. It really is dramatic.
I'm not a very good history buff. When I visit the battlegrounds I understand how soaked with blood and death it must have been, but the specifics of what battalions were killing what other battalions and all the other nitty gritty details of the war don't exactly interest me. Or they do, but when I'm actually on the fields I'm more taken by the beauty of the land. The sheer destruction and death that took place on it, that is terribly sad and it's not that I forget it. But the result of the Gettysburg battle, as far as the land is concerned, is that it will never be torn asunder or built upon. No McMansions will ever grace these fields. No Wal-Marts will ever hawk their wares where so many thousands of men died. And I think that's pretty good.
From the top.
A. pointing something out to W.
The Ohio crew.


My face.
Me and the cuz.

We then drove up to Little Round Top. Red bud. Pretty bud.


E. giving something the stink eye.
Round Top from Devil's Den. There's a little stream in front of the rock formation that makes up Devil's Den. I took a little stroll along it, hoping to see some frogs or turtles. I saw one or two frog-like splashes, but not the actual frogs themselves. I also heard something that was quite reminiscent of a bullfrong, but no proof of body could be found.
Afterwards we were all a little hot and decided that Rita's water ice would do the trick nicely. I went with a cherry/mango/peach combo that, at times, froze my brain something awful.

Donut 2 and Lunch at Ernie's Texas Lunch

Originally it seemed like my fam (uncle, aunt, cousin, cousin's bf and his two kids) and I would arrive at roughly the same time. But with the wrench of no fried chicken, I ended up embarking on my drive to Gettysburg a little earlier than initially expected. I opted for not taking 76 for the majority, which meant smaller roads, more stoplights, the occasional ugliness of strip mall mentality and glorious sunny fields, country roads and red buds blooming. Once in Gettysburg I checked into General Lee's Headquarters (formerly Larson's). I had a room that faced the main road on one side, and the edge of a battlefield on the other...two windows! I decided that while I waited for the rest of the crew I'd tried out the S'mores donut while enjoying the sunlight. Seriously it was easily 70 degrees and marvelous. The donut wasn't that bad either, though I liked the simplicity of the hot sugar donut a bit more.
Once the Ohio contingent arrived we made our way to Ernie's Texas Lunch. This spot has been a favorite of my family since the beginnings of time. We sat at the big back table and those of us over the age of 21 enjoyed ourselves a lager each.
French fries for the table. Extremely hot, extremely crispy but with a nice inside, well salted. No complaints. Ernie's knows what it's doing when it comes to French fries.
My past experiences with having the Texas-style dog with everything have always left me feeling like I really don't need the chili or quite the pile of onions that Ernie's feels is the best. And this time I remembered that outlook and asked for two dogs with cheese, mustard and a little bit of onion. They were big and juicy. I ended up eating the meat more than the buns.
Seriously a beautiful day.

Cocktail, Donut and Traffic c/o Lemon Hill, Federal Donuts and Philadelphia Respectively

The Thursday before this past Thursday found me yet again enjoying Lemon Hill's happy hour. This time I met up with AS. The discounted cocktail of the evening was, if I recall correctly, the Mark Twain: a famous grouse blended scotch, with fresh lemon juice and angostura bitters, served up. I ordered a second full-priced Fairmount Project, which was a mix of bluecoat gin, bonal, luxardo maraschino, fresh lemon juice, house blackberry syrup, bitter truth mole and fee’s aromatic bitters, served up. This was a little more my style. Blended scotch/scotch cocktails aren't really my bag. While we were catching up and enjoying our drinks (AS went with the house white), there was a camera crew documenting the scene with an extremely bright light attached to their camera. We tried to act hip, happening and not blinded. I have tracked down the video and you can see AS' back for about 1 second, so hipness was achieved. Sort of.
The next morning I got up at a reasonable hour and enjoyed the fact that I was taking the day off. I planned on meeting up with family in Gettysburg a little later in the day, but I first was on a mission to enjoy donuts and fried chicken from Federal Donuts. I knew I was potentially going to run into trouble on the chicken count, as I arrived around 10:30 and I had a feeling they didn't actually fry chickens til closer to noon, but I wanted to give it the good college try nonetheless. I couldn't really be all that disappointed when it turned out that chicken wouldn't go live until 11:45. So I made due by ordered a hot lavender vanilla donut, one S'mores donut and one oatmeal raisin donut. Compared to the madhouse of a weekend, the place was almost deserted, just one mother and child sitting at the counter, me, and a couple who came in just a little after me.
With one donut in my belly I decided that it was time to head out of town. I took Columbus to 95 to 76 instead of snaking my way over to 76 through the city proper. It was a gorgeous, gorgeous day. Definitely in the 70s, sunny as all get out. A good day for a country drive, but less entertaining in shitty traffic on 76.
Eventually the traffic I encountered thinned and I enjoyed a nice pace to Gettysburg.