Holly Moore

Kind of going full circle. I remember early visits to Maine when the general store also pumped gas.

Real world here. Owned a restaurant. Worked in a bunch more. They both would have been fired after turnout. Before or during if I had anyone else I could bring in. Hopefully, in a real kitchen, I would never have hired either in the first place. To screw up and screw your boss may be human. So is being a professional. One sounds a lot better on reference check. Note: Edited to add Joiei's quote and a bit of a re-write.

Sansom St. Oyster House and Amada - sort of like the ghost of Katie past and the ghost of Katie present. Both good ideas. I headed to the ghost of Katie past pluperfect today, Rouge. Had a wonderful salad/ cold plate - cold large scallops that had been seared with pernod, fresh anchovies, white asparagus, greens and one of their fantastic rolls for sopping. That's what I'm talking about.

Today was a salad day if there ever was one. Come lunchtime my only top of mind choice for a luncheon salad was The Palm. They do great salads. Instead I decided to explore about. I won't name the place but I had the absolute worst salad ever - sounded good - shrimp and calamari over mixed greens. But the calamari was breaded and deep fat fried. As soon as it hit the cold greens it turned the whole mess greasy and wilted. My quest is for a cool, crisp refreshing luncheon salad. Some protein, hopefully available in mid afternoon. Center Cityish. The aforementioned Yann's lobster salad sounds perfect. And probably more than a salad from one of those lunch soup and salad places. Table service and great iced tea. Apamate comes to mind. Where else?

Center City commercial rents are getting way, way out of line - at least for a restaurant. I can't think of any viable restaurant that could survive in such a small space at $5m a month or 60,000 a year rent - most likely net net net. Best affordable location for restaurants nowadays is probably South Street above Broad. But lunch business is likely to be an issue that far from the business district.

If it's one thing Philadelphia has not enough of, it is Italian BYOs. Are there no other viable cuisines?

Looking for a really good breakfast tomorrow morning. Staying in the area of 31st and 6th. Nearby would be cool, but greatness comes first.

Bruni got a lot right. But his typical, non-Cincinnatian reaction to Cincinnati Chili shows he is really not cut out for such a eating quest. Too fixed in his expectations.

Neat John. Sounds like a hot dog-rific summer.

Jason32 said: Dave and Stephen had three choices once the teams were set. Most admirable: Make the best of an unpleasant situation and perform at the best of their professional ability. Admirable: Refuse the assignment. Walk. Stephen can't really do this as he volunteered to work with Tiffani. Least Admirable: Show up drunk, not commit yourself fully, talk behind the chef's back.

It is good that Harold won. He has the skill set including team building. Any chef who can not inspire employees will not last long. I also had a problem with Tiffani's answer that she cooks for herself, not her customers. My greatest problem though was with Dave and Stephen. Getting drunk the night before and showing up drunk for the final cookoff - immature, disloyal and totally unprofessional. In real life they would have been fired on the spot. I lost any respect or appreciation I might have had for either Dave or Stephen.

Hi Victor, Can you provide any details as to the reason for the first posted report being in error?

I always have a lot of fun with the folks at Tony Luke's - as real as it gets. In fact, in all my eating about at order and pick up windows, I don't think I've encountered a single cretin.

In today's Inquirer Food Section, in a short blurb congratulating John's Roast Pork for it's Beard American Classic Award, Craig LaBan declared, Being called "touristy" is not praise. And in Tony Luke's case at least, and I submit for Pat's or Geno's too, it is totally inaccurate. Sure, because of Tony Luke's reputation, tourists head there. But Tony Lukes is no more "touristy" than Le Bec-Fin which has it's fair share of out-of-town diners too. Far more Philadelphians than tourists eat at Tony Lukes or even at Pat's or Geno's. In fact I'll wager far more South Philadelphian's probably eat at any of the three than at John's Roast Pork. I'm still wondering how the Beard judges settled on John's Roast Pork. And I'm still thinking that LaBan directly or indirectly pointed them in that direction. I'm happy for John's Roast Pork and did not realize it is third generation and has been around for 74 years, but I still believe that Tony Luke's is more deserving of the award, better represents Philadelphia eatin'.

A chef is as much a manager as he/she is a preparer of great food. Looking at the final three from the viewpoint of a line cook (which I was way back when) - Dave is the chef I would least like to work for. Too much confusion. Every time a piece of equipment broke, we ran out of a staple or the owner passed on a customer complaint, Dave would buckle. He strikes me as best suited for a one or two person kitchen. I think I could work for either Tiffani or Harold. I'd probably prefer Harold because it would be a freindly, teamwork kind of kitchen. Tiffani would probably be tougher on me. There would be times I would hate her. But as long as that momentary hatred didn't evolve into my losing all respect for her, she might get the best performance out of me.

For now at least, we're talking about one minor councilman looking for some ink, not the City of Philadelphia. If this dies in committee or doesn't pass if voted upon, the city will look just fine.

SERIOUSLY? OK, then I want to see all food with a certain fat content banned. ← Perhaps the good councilman should propose a ban on cheesesteaks if he is concerned with fat content. I can see us returning to the days of prohibition. Gaggles of geese raised in basements. Bath tub foie gras - so named because that is where the geese are slaughtered. Then the mob will get involved - pigeons will be substituted for geese. Pigeon foie gras will not be quite the same, but these will be hard times, and there will never be a shortage of pigeons in Philadelphia...

Just found their take out menu: 1620 South Street (horrible location for the time being - scaffolding blocking th sidewalk on one side and a portapotty on the other. Phone is 215-790-1620 Went back yesterday for ham croquettes (6 potato-ish croquettes with bits of Serranno ham) and a mixed salad with calabres blue cheese, vinegar and lemon dressing. Both excellent.

Bringing this back to food - and please let's do - Stephen attended the Culinary Institute of America before going to the Cornell School of Hotel and Restaurant Administration. It is not clear whether he graduated from the CIA or merely transfered to Cornell. But in any event, it is an impressive pairing within the hospitality industry. That, and some work experience that shows he knows how to apply what he has learned and possesses an ability to play well with others, will get him a long way in the corporate world. Fortunately, as playing well with others (translate to suffering lightly the fools that plague the corporate world) is not one of Stephen's strong points, the Cornell Hotel School also provides one of the best educations in entrepreneurial business skills. Stephen, again with some experience under his belt, is well prepared to follow his current dream of opening up his own business.

Does he say he went to the Ivy League? He went to Cornell which I thought was not traditionally referred to as an Ivy school. ← Ahem. Stephen and I both attended the Cornell Hotel School. Cornell is definitely one of the Ivy League Schools. And yes that makes us superior.

It wasn't that Stephen insulted Ken. No big deal. But out of all the great insults he chose the class insult "white trash," belying his humility charade. Agree the episode sucked, but the reunion, before or after a winner is announced, is a reality cliche that no production company could ever pass up.

I don't doubt Philadelphia Magazine. Nor do I doubt that there are errors in a city report - especially one based on a large amount of data entry. One other possibility, perhaps, is that once violations have been corrected and approved by the Health Department, the City is no longer permitted to publish that violation. Anyway it doesn't make sense to me that the editors of Philadelphia Magazine would publish a blatant mistruth - especially one about a statement by a city agency. I also don't believe that Philadelphia Magazine is all that concerned about pissing off small restaurant advertisers or even the Starr organization. They need Philadelphia Magazine as much as Philadelphia Magazine needs them Canceling an ad that brings in business to the restaurant because of a link in a web site that not all that many people will see goes well beyond shooting one's self in the foot.

My guess is that someone with press / PR savvy got ahold of Stephen and that his wardrobe and demeanor for the reunion was nothing more than image rehab. Like a PR photograph of VP Cheney hugging a warm, cuddly puppy. A glimpse back to the real Stephen came when, at full snit, he called Ken "white trash."

Apamate opened on the 1600 block of South Street. The menu is Spanish as in Spain and is a combination of light dishes, sandwiches, and salads along with coffees, hot chocolates and churros. Breakfast too. Most everything priced between $5 and $10. I was there for lunch today. Had the chef's "Desgustacion de pintxos." It changes with the whim of the chef - today four small one to three bite tastes including crabmeat salad, a clam with manchengo cheese, a pan seared scallop and sauteed spinach. All but the clam were served bruchetta style on small slices of toasted bread. $5.75 My waitress also pointed me to her favorite - "La Cantalena con Jamon de mi Edgar 'Par amb tomaquet" - sections of a baguette are toasted, dipped in a tomatoe, garlic and olive oil marinade, and topped with slices of serrano ham. $6.95 The churros are a dessert pastry - they look like extruded choux paste, but the waitress said they were donut like in texture. They come with melted chocolate for dipping. Other home baked Spanish pastries too. A selection of espresso drinks, three kinds of hot chocolate (Spanish, Mexican and and Americano) and limonatda or clementine juice. For breakfast, huevos con chorizo, an omelet with potatoes, onions and garlic, pancakes with fresh fruit and some other choices. The Grad Hospital neighborhood is looking tastier and tastier.

Also possible that employees would be less likely to wash hands if no hot water is present.