Holly Moore

As one who is often anti-chain - make that almost always and especially the national chains - one of my very few exceptions is Chick Fil A* * When the sandwich is freshly made and hasn't been sitting around the holding bin for half the after noon. And yes, the pickle is an essential ingredient.

Pardon the heresy, but are any of the other places doing sugar free ices?

The question is, where don't you go. You can find that in most every state. Even New Jersey. My first two pics would be the upper extremes of the continental U.S. - Maine or Washington. Next the Carolina's if they can count as one state. I'll often pick a state and drive around it for a week or two. Haven't been stumped yet. But if I had to pick one, especially in September when the summer folk have departed, Maine.

South Philadelphia, SE corner of 11th and Wharton, opposite the police station. Open from 8AM to 2 PM from Friday to Monday and the occasional Thursday. Reservations recommended for the weekends, accepted only the day of the reservation.

HUGE restaurant reservation no no.

Agree. Pancakes are perfect mediums for "savory." Carman does a savory pancake every month or two. I said elsewhere but her corn meal pancakes with fresh corn served last month are one of my all time favorites. There used to be a place here that served chipped beef on pancakes. No longer, but the Melrose will do it for me. And whenever I here of a place serving Chicken and Waffles I keep hoping it isn't a Roscoe's ripp-off (an LA restaurant serving a waffle and fried chicken combination) but rather like my mother used to make with creamed chicken or more commonly left over creamed turkey topping the waffle. Comfort food you can jump into and snuggle around in.

Was there this morning too. I had the eggs and the smoked pork loin recommended as a side. Agree with mrb... on the fabulous part.

Oh, he gets that he's a narcissist. And that it's about HIM and it's HIS name on the awning. What's funny (well, ironic, anyway) to me, is that the Rocco/Chowderhead impasse mirrors exactly the FOH/BOH division. The "You wouldn't last for a moment without ME" attitude. The absolute failure of one hand to appreciate the work done by the other. Chowderow wanted a rock star chef, so that he could cash in on some free notoriety, and he got a guy that works much harder on the notoriety part than the cooking part. Rocco wanted someone to provide all the cash for a big, splashy vanity project. He got what he wanted, too, except he also got someone who actually wants a return on the investment. I'm mostly surprised Laurent hasn't stepped up to the plate. I bet he could work both sides of the impasse (and make his own life much less complicated) without even working up a sweat. He get's that he is a narcissist. But he also thinks he is a great chef. He may be a great cook, but he must have cut all the kitchen management courses. I wonder if someone familiar with both the Union Pacific Rocco and Rocco's Rocco could do a compare and contrast. I'd be amazed if he was as clueless at Union Pacific as he has shown himself to be at Rocco's.

The thing is, Rocco will never get what is so, so wrong with him. Most telling to me - three things. 1. On this evening's show, more than once, he walks through the entire front of the house during set up without saying hi to anyone, without even making eye contact. 2. On the first evening the kitchen is functioning without the executive chef he walks out mid-rush and never returns. 3. When his manager confronts him about being there, (duh!) you can almost see the light bulb turning on over his head. A revelation. Then the light splutters and goes out when he musters up all his mettle and says I'm going to stick it out - "two days, three days, even a week, whatever it takes." This should be a mandatory course at the CIA for wannabe celebrity chef's - what not to do if you want to outlast the 10 minutes of fame Andy Warhol has allotted to everyone.

Since GBredBen asked that the more traditional spelling of "country" be substituted I have used my mystical and awesome moderator powers to do so. Not that there's anything wrong with the original spelling

I'm speaking in general here and not directing this at Chloe, as I don't know all sides of the story. But to my way of thinking, for a restaurant to turn away a customer who arrives well within its stated hours under these circumstances: is more serious than typical restaurant lapses such as serving a diner an over cooked piece of fish or making a diner wait 15 minute for the check. The difference is that closing early and turning a customer away is a deliberate act. The other two examples, while upsetting, are probably unintentional. Many people state they won't return to a restaurant because of single instances of bad cooking or poor service. It is just as reasonable for a customer to state that he won't return for a single case of inhospitality. Here's what I think probably happened. Even though the restaurant was 80% full, they hadn't sat any/many people in the past hour. The diners at the tables were in the latter stage of their meals. The restaurant management made a business decision that it wasn't worth staying open. Dollars and cents. Or the servers, who work on tips, sensing there wouldn't be enough business the rest of the night to make it worth their being there, pressured the management to close. No matter what the case, closing early showed little empathy or regard for customers. Though I am sure the restaurant did not see it as such, it was an act of intentional, inconsiderate inhospitality. What a lot of restaurants - many businesses in fact - often don't realize is the negative implications of a single incident above and beyond the involved customer. There is both good and bad word-of-mouth. A customer who feels mistreated is going to tell his friends who will tell their friends. Nowadays that same customer can go onto a food discussion forum such as eGullet and spread the word to a much broader audience. In this case, a deservedly positive discussion of a very good restaurant has evolved into a discussion of a customer’s bad experience. Hundreds or thousands now know of it. Further, eGullet is read by many professional food journalists. They too now know of this bad experience. That doesn’t mean it will influence their writing, but it is now part of their knowledge of the restaurant. My point is that restaurant management always needs to look at things from the customer side of the table. They must sense how a policy or decision will be viewed by their customers and potential customers. And they have to understand that an unresolved bad experience with just one customer may have significant down-the-road impact on the overall good will and reputation of their restaurant. Carrying this just a little further, they didn’t loose just that one table for two for one meal. They lost it for any repeat meals that might have resulted from a good experience. It is hard getting people through your door in the first time. Getting them back as repeat customers is easier. All you have to do is treat them right. And going just a little bit further. Assuming the person turned away has some influence over his base of friends, the restaurant lost a bunch of other potential repeat customers too. All by closing the kitchen an hour early on a wintry night.

It's really hard for me to get beyond steaming or grilling and then melted butter and salt. It's too small a window for farmstand fresh corn for passing up boiling and gnawing a few ears and apply some fancy embellishment. But on those rare occassions when there is some left over, corn pancakes the next morning. Even better Carman's (Carman's Country Kitchen) savory corn pancakes made with corn meal.

I scooted by and did the same. Lobster Thermidor AND Veal Holstien. Two guaranteed visits. I wish their prices were a bit more "neighborly" though.

A few more pics.

Made it to Evergreen Chinese American Restaurant today. Ordered two cheesesteak egg rolls. I had a better experience than spikemom. Yes, ground beef instead of sliced rib eye, And not CheezWhiz. But no gristle in mine. A little bit of lettuce or cabbage and the ground beef and what I'm guessing is processed american. $1.20 each. Heck of a deal. Tried one plain and one with the traditional condiments - hot mustard and sweet sauce. Preferred plain. And discounting the egg roll crunch, pretty much tasted like a cheesesteak.

I'm hoping they're open tomorrow, Sunday, cause I am there. Thanks for the update, Mark.

One of my all-time favorite soups. Snert. Also known as Dutch Pea Soup. It was my first meal on my first trip to Amsterdamn and a passion ever since.

I, for one, welcome a Lobster Thermidor, assuming it is classic and well-prepared. It used to be my favorite, as a kid, at the Rockaway River Country Club. Old Original BB used to sell it, but it didn't measure up to Rockaway River's. Are they doing a fruit cocktail with lime sherbert too? That was another favorite from the Rockaway River Country Club.

I don't know how you can find my feelings unjustified; Of course, I don't blame them for the parking-- I'm not an idiot-- and vacations are another thing, that would have been an "Oh, well" feeling and certainly I would have tried to go back. But closing earlier than normal is NOT a professional business practice, and I was putting my story in context. Old City is not the wilds of Alaska, and the place was 80% full anyway. It was just cold, no snow or storms going on (dead of winter??) I'm glad you enjoy the food there, but your lack of empathy for my feelings and your defending the restaurant's undefendable behavior is puzzling... Great food does not excuse bad behavior. I am siding with menton1 on this one. In my restaurant days I sometimes got in trouble with my staff for seating someone a couple of minutes after closing. Unless we're talking blizzard or the kitchen roof caving in (as happened once for me), I'd never refuse seating to someone who arrived well within our stated hours and especially on a freezing night. It is not a greed thing. It is hospitality. And it is gratitude. Out of the thousands of restaurants in Philadelphia, menton1 chose my restaurant. And he braved the nasty weather to make it to my door. An evening when many of my regular diners had stayed home. He ventured out. He came to my restaurant. And I'm going to slam that door in his face? I just met the owners of Chloe at the Moshulu affair (Bravo Tim, by the way. And thanks!) Very nice folks. I have only heard raves about their cuisine. I am hoping that this was a sole lapse in their otherwise fine hospitality.

I "owe" Michael Klein both for that line and for labeling me a foodie.

Got me curious so I searched up the thread, here. I thought we had a decent discussion. I'm not sorry this happened. It was a funny experience. I have a great tale to spread - over and over and over, as is my way. And it had a happy ending.

As Carman has been spaming me for the last week with links to Samba's website and as Katie has assured me that there will be no audience participation dancing, I'm in.

Sal is in town and doing some consulting work.

Heats off thanks to Michael Klein

as in "Holly and the other old geezers" Deja Vu in its time was one of Philadelphia's finest restaurants - especially grilled meats as I recall. Deja Vu had an extraordinary wine cellar. After some friends and I dined there as Chef/Owner Sal's guest, he gave us a tour of the cellar, and then left us there because he had to attend to something in the kitchen. In his absence we talked about how great the food is and how Sal's ego may have been even greater. Perhaps urban legend, but I suspect not - I later learned that Sal supposedly had the cellar bugged and often left people there while he listened to their conversations from above. Sal never let on that he heard our comments, but I'm thinking he did.