philadining

I've been seeing beef (or lamb) with cumin on a lot of menus at restaurants that purport to be cooking traditional Sichuan food, so I wonder if it's something that has migrated into that tradition? I've also seen it at (non-Uighur) Northern Chinese restaurants, so I think it's a pretty well-dispersed recipe, at least in northern and western cooking. I'm sure Liuzhou is correct that it's not originally from Sichuan, but maybe it is considered a "traditional" dish now? In any case, it's delicious, you should make it...

I've never cooked them, but I've been served them several times, and I find the braised versions to be the most appealing. I'd recently had them grilled, but the texture was very odd, so I think the low, slow, break down the collagen thing is the way to go. I'd like to hear about successful recipes/techniques too...

Nice write-up, those are generally the places I try to hit when I roll through the Terminal. One note: you didn't see any "Dutch Pancakes" at the Dutch Eating Place, because the "Pennsylvania Dutch" aren't actually Dutch. The Amish originally emigrated from Germany, but apparently Pennsylvanians couldn't pronounce "Deutsch." So Amish cuisine is somewhat influenced by German cooking, but is mostly just heartland farm food. In any case, not Dutch.

FYI, many of you probably know that Pojangmacha closed. Then they moved to 55 Garrett in Upper Darby. That location has closed as well... I'm told that they are looking for a location outside of UD. ← Was 55 Garrett the underground bar/lounge place? They had signs for that spot on the Pojangmacha location after it closed. Incidentally their original building is being torn down right now, so sadly there will shortly be no evidence of that odd little place...

I've been grabbing take-out lunches from time to time, but sadly hadn't been here for dinner for a little while. Grabbed a few old favorites: the Chinese Sausage with Garlic, Noodles with Spicy Meat Sauce, Beef with Pickled Peppers, and Pork Stew. It was all delicious as expected, especially that beef with pickled peppers, which was amazingly tender, behind a pleasingly blazing spice. I'd forgotten how much of the pig ends up in the pork stew! It had great flavor, but the tripe and intestines and pork blood, and various other ingredients might be a bit beyond the comfort zone for some folks. I'm pretty open to unfamiliar ingredients, but I just don't really enjoy the congealed blood thing... Still, I liked the broth, and many of the meats and vegetables, so I'm not recommending against ordering it, just be aware of what you're getting! It's huge, and really spicy, so if you have a group who likes that stuff, go for it! The most exciting thing came for dessert. No, not the watermelon, which was indeed a welcome ending to a very spicy meal, but the name and address of a new place they've taken over in Royersford! New Asian Bistro 70 Buckwalter Road Royersford, PA 19468 (610)792-9600 Apparently our friend Han is up there overseeing things, and and they're very excited about their chef, who is from mainland China. I'm not sure where exactly, but I think I heard them say that he had been a cooking instructor over there... I think they opened this new place specifically to be closer to Percy's house!

Thanks for that report! And I know what you mean about the rolls - my first thought was that a serious Italian roll like from Sarcone's would be so much better, but now I don't think it's true. These are almost exactly like you'll get in New Orleans, and there's something about the airyness, combined with the crust, that makes them perfect for a PoBoy, especially, as you said, one filled with fried stuff.

Oh, and speaking of fried rice, I think the best I've had in a long time, maybe ever, was recently at Zhi Wei Guan. The texture of the rice was just great, and it had a smoky flavor from some ham, along with various other meats. We got the mixed one, but you can get it with just beef or chicken or shrimp. Americanized Fried Rice is so often just a big, dry, soy-soaked mess that we don't often think of the dish as having the potential to be sophisticated. But this was absolutely delicious, with delicate rice and complex aromas. Zhi Wei Guan 935 Race St 215-873-0808

No, there's something else going on with the fried rice, it's too yellow for it to be just eggs. But I can't imagine it being saffron either. But Ken's does make really good fried rice, especially if you get it with sausage and ham! As for the fried clams - there were two tricks to this. First, yes, it's kind of a special, it wasn't just clams, it was Geoduck Clam (or Giant Clam) and I'm not sure that they have them all the time. I've seem them being served semi-regularly, but it really might come down to day-to-day availability. Second, we got a combo of sashimi and fried bellies, and I'm not sure you can get one without the other. Both parts were quite good, but it's way too much for two people, maybe too much for 4, better for 6 or 8 people. And it's not cheap. I don't recall how much it cost exactly, but it wasn't like just getting a plate of fried clams at a seafood shack! But you did the right thing to ask for them even if you don't see them on the menu. There's lots of stuff available that's not on the menu. I'm surprised that they said they only had batter-fried oysters (although that sounds good, I think we'll have to try those!) We recently had a big heap of tiny batter-fried fish, "Chinese French Fries" is how Ken jokingly referred to them. There were some nuggets of fried eggplant around the edge too. As for other things at Ken's that are great: Eel with XO sauce Ask if they have live scallops, and if so, get them steamed with garlic, or with XO, or with black beans. The whole fish is really excellent, steamed or fried. We got a Dungeness Crab "Hong Kong Style" that was really delicious, if a bit messy... My dining companions seem to love the shrimp from the tanks, salt-baked if they're small. We had salt-baked squid there the other night. It's a not-uncommon dish, but especially well-executed here. We also really liked the Pork Belly in a clay pot, I think it might be under a "casseroles" section... Half a roasted chicken The Peking Duck is very good, served with spongy buns. Jellyfish with Cold Meat It is called Ken's Seafood, so you're almost certain to do well with something from the tanks, whether it's a whole fish, or some shrimp, or an eel, or fresh scallops. But as you can see, there's plenty of other stuff there that's really delicious too.

I intellectually understand the motivations for using pdfs for menus, but like Holly, I just have a visceral aversion to them. It does indeed interrupt the flow of the web browsing experience, and the pdfs very often don't display as well as a web page does. When I'm clicking through a restaurant's website, I want information to come up quickly and smoothly. If I just want to take a quick look at a menu and my browser starts opening Acrobat, I tend to close the window and move on, and the odds of my going to that restaurant just went down. There's a simple solution: offer both. It doesn't take that much work to put the text of a menu into basic html that maintains the look and feel of the original. I'd suggest that it's more important that the on-line menu presentation is integrated with the rest of the website design than whether it perfectly mirrors the printed version. Give me something that loads quickly and looks like the rest of the website. Serving up text is one of those things that websites do quite efficiently. Then also link to a pdf for customers who want to print it out, or see it exactly as it was designed.

Michael Klein reports that Parc is now open for breakfast, 7:30-11am weekdays. Some terrible impulse makes me want Holly go at 11:01 and watch what happens...

Oh man, not only are there soft-shell po boys this weekend, but the Gumbo is Cohon de Lait! And I'll be out of town. Somebody please check these out and report back. Or maybe I'd rather not know...

A friend mentioned seeing signs in windows, and he thought that they said the 13th, for what that's worth. There are definitely moon cakes in the bakeries already, plenty of signs advertising their arrival!

Well, our intent was to make another jam-packed assault on New York's dining establishments, but the capricious logistics gods were not on our side. First, we lost half our crew to scheduling problems or ill health. Second, we got a late start from Philly, then ran into terrible traffic on the turnpike and at the tunnel. Third, we found a few places closed for vacation. Still, even with just two of us, arriving late, we did our best. 4pm: Hakata Ippudo Pork Buns Wow, the first thing we sink our teeth into, and it might just be the the favorite of the whole day! These are structurally pretty similar to the Momofuku pork buns, which we love, but these are even better. That caramelized edge gives a great smoky-sweet flavor, and adding mayo is genius. The only thing we were not so thrilled with is the lettuce, which wilts down to nothingness. Momofuku's use of cucumbers is much better. Kara Age (and pickles) Yeah, yeah, we know this is a ramen shop... we're getting there! The chicken is really delicious: juicy with a light, crisp coating. Akamaru Modern Ramen I honestly think I could eat this every day... That broth is just great, and while I may have had more exciting noodles, these are very good. Draft Kirin and Sapporo are served in large, frosty mugs. The day is off to a good start. Then a dash across town for some more porky explorations. 5pm: Fatty Crab Steamed Buns with Pork These are actually much more tasty than they look, especially when drizzled with some of the sweet-and-hot sauce. The meat is obviously a bit heftier than at Ippudo (or Momo) but it's tender and tasty. But sampling them back to back, there's really no contest, Ippudo wins. Pickled Watermelon Salad with Crispy Pork Belly We can totally see why this is such a popular dish. The combination of flavors and textures, the fatty, crispy pork, the fresh sweet watermelon, the sour pickled rind, made for an exciting and surprisingly refreshing sensation. This food seemed to cry out for beer. Sadly, we just weren't hungry enough for deeper exploration of the menu this time, but there's lots more I'm eager to try. Soon. What we really needed was something light and cold and invigorating. We became fixated on granita. Cell-phone google searches were futile, but we were hoping GROM would have some. 6pm GROM (Bleeker) Indeed they did. Lemon was the flavor that day, and although it was not quite as intensely citrusy as we expected, nor as grainy and chunky in texture, it was still pretty good, and served the purpose. I couldn't resist gelato, especially when the special selection was salted caramel. Unfortunately, that flavor was rather muted. The espresso gelato packed more of a punch, and both had a pleasing creaminess, but they just seemed a little too restrained. Of course I may have simply become acclimated to Capogiro's sledgehammer flavors, but I do prefer them... In any case, both the granita and gelato were good, and hit the spot on a warm day, and there was no line, so no complaints (except that GROM makes Capogiro look like a bargain...) We then did some entertaining wandering around the Village. We'd intended to grab some Pollo a la Brasa at a Peruvian place, on 7th, but it had changed names, and while still Peruvian, had no chicken... Right about then, for some reason we became obsessed with a lobster roll. So we hiked over to Pearl Oyster bar, but found it closed for vacation. No worries, we headed over to Mary's Fish Camp. Closed... We then decided to make some calls, and found that Ed's Lobster Bar, BLT Fish (downstairs) and The Mermaid were all open, so we figured we'd try to hit one or more of those. Ed's was closing first, so we headed there. 8pm Ed's Lobster Bar Lobster Roll I know we're not in New England, so the prices are going to be higher, but in terms of actual execution, this sandwich doesn't seem like it should be all that hard. The Legal Seafoods in my local mall makes a pretty darn good one... While this wasn't bad, it wasn't really large enough for the $27 price (didn't I just read in the Times about Lobsters being cheap right now?) The lobster itself was a bit on the chewy side. More importantly, it just didn't taste like much. I'm all for a minimal approach to this sandwich: good lobster, a little bit of mayo or butter, toasted roll, done. I'm actually not expecting it to live up to the ones I've gotten in Maine, but it shouldn't be too hard to be as good as what I can get at The Mermaid, or jeeze, Legals at the mall or in Logan Airport! But this was just a bit blah. Not terrible, just not scratching the itch. We also got Fried Clams These were technically perfect: very fresh, tender clams, just barely cooked in a light batter. But they almost seemed too polite, too delicate. We wanted a bit more of a crunch, a little more heft to the breading. So I can't say they were bad, just not what we were hoping for. With a glass each of a very tasty Muscadet and a Bourgogne Blanc, our bill came to about $85 before tip. That's for the appetizer of fried clams, a single lobster roll and two glasses of wine. Not the best value of the day... Sadly, by the time we were done, we realized that we weren't going to make it to either of the other places for a comparison tasting, so we'll have to wait for another day. I'd had the lobster roll at The Mermaid a few years ago, and while it was on an entirely inappropriate roll, I remember it as being quite delicious. We might have to try that again, or just give up and go to Maine. Although it as getting late, we weren't giving up yet, and headed uptown to Hill Country Barbecue. Despite being rather confused about how exactly we were supposed to get our food, we somehow managed to score a small sample. It's a little perplexing, especially if you decide to sit outside: you can order drinks from a waitress, who will bring them, but if you want food, you'll need to leave your beers out on the table and go inside yourself and get your own food, and then - wait - are we supposed to pay for it now? or can we go back outside and eat first? And have passers-by been drinking our beers? 10pm Hill Country Barbecue We got a little "moist brisket" a couple of ribs, and a sausage. You're not going to find that cut of brisket in most places in Texas, but you know, they really ought to start serving it, it's pretty awesome... It was very moist indeed, and tender and tasty. The ribs too had good solid smoke flavor, and a pleasing chewy density. The sausage was a little odd, I think I'm just not used to that style. It was a little more crumbly and dry than I'd expected, but I did like the taste of it. The only thing that bothered me was that, although I know Texas barbecue is not really a sauce-based style, I felt like the ribs especially could have used a little something, and I just didn't care for the one sauce they provide, which tasted a bit like thinned-out molasses. Even so, a little slick of that, a drizzle of hot sauce, it was pretty tasty barbecue. I'd like to try it again, and maybe if one sits inside, it doesn't feel so weird to do self-service and deal with "meal tickets." At that point, we decided we'd hit the wall in terms of food, but felt like hanging out a little longer, perhaps grabbing a couple of drinks before heading home. As we had wandered around the city, it felt pretty quiet. It wasn't quite as abandoned as I thought it might be on sunday of labor day weekend, but we hadn't even seen lines or crowds anywhere (except for a significant line-up at John's Pizza in the Village at about 6pm, and a predictably long line at the Shake Shack at after 10pm.) So we thought there might be some chance that the cool bars wouldn't be too crowded. Wrong. I guess it makes sense, although it was a sunday night, with Labor Day, it was more like a saturday, so if you're in town, you're probably out drinking. We dropped by Death and Company a little after 10, and while the guy at the door was very nice about taking our name and number just in case, he was honest about there being little chance that we'd make it in before they closed up. He suggested we try over on the next block, apparently The Bourgeois Pig had just recently opened at 111 east 7th. That too was jammed, but we happened to stroll up at exactly the right time, and scored a couple of seats immediately. It's a funny place, it feels a little like it should be on a back street in New Orleans, with its antique chairs, velvet couches, funky chandelier and dark lighting, except for the red cast blaring from the neon sign at the back. It felt like the sound system should be programmed to only play Nick Cave tunes. I actually have a sneakily-snapped photo, but there are some recognizable faces, and I don't like posting photos of people in bars without their permission. I thought that the long exposure necessary in the dark space would have blurred all the faces, but apparently some of the patrons are very good at staying very very still for long periods of time. Who knew? The bar serves just beer and wine, and cocktails concocted from beer and wine. Oh, and fondue. A surprising number of people were getting fondue, and I must say that it looked pretty great, the array of accompanying dipping things was pretty impressive. We stuck to drinks, I don't recall exactly what my friend got, except that it was a champagne-cocktail variant, with star anise and (probably) Peychaud's bitters (and was quite good.) I ordered the Scarlet Swindler: Carpano Sweet Vermouth, Carpano Put e Mes, Paolo Cortero Sherry, and orange bitters. On first taste, it seemed like it might have been some sort of Victorian medicine: harsh, bitter, but sure to cure the gout, or protect you from the plague or something... But it really grew on me, after a few sips I warmed to it, and would probably have ordered another one, but we were feeling like moving. We headed over to Angel's Share, and although it was busy, there was a little bit of room there. We got a couple of classic cocktails, a Sazerac and a very fine Manhattan. I love the vibe of that place, even though it gives me the disorienting feeling of being in Tokyo, surrounded by people who are pretending to be in NY. Or maybe that's what I like about it. After one drink there we figured we should probably head back to Philly while we had a little stamina. So we didn't accomplish quite as much as we'd hoped, but we certainly had a fun day, and managed to get a few good things to eat and drink. We'll be back...

The Inquirer's Rick Nichols visits Cajun Kate's.

OK, the Espresso Granita is prettier if you get the whipped cream, but I like it better plain. But- we were contemplating how this would be with a scoop of Dulce de Leche gelato, or Burnt Sugar, or Flan. Could be like a frozen Vietnamese Coffee!

I have a secret word for you: Granita. It only works at 20th Street. OK, it's not really a secret password, it s just an obscure menu item. It's not even hidden, it's right there on the menu board, and even on a little sign tucked into the corner next to the gelato case, but I never see anybody getting it. Last night the guy who scooped it out for me commented that he didn't understand why more people don't order it. I join him in his bewilderment. This stuff rocks. I've only tried the espresso flavor so far (there are usually a couple of others, I'm not sure if they change, I think there might have also been a grapefruit and a coconut?) The default serving is to later the granita with whipped cream. I think this is a bad idea. Even though the espresso flavor goes nicely with the cream, the best attribute of granita is its clean, icy, granular mouth feel. The whipped cream undermines that refreshing quality. I've had it both ways now, and I much prefer the version with no whipped cream. It's intense, sweet, and very stimulating, especially the espresso version! So just ask for it with no whipped cream. And, hang onto something, it's only $3.75 I didn't see any evidence of it at 13th street last night, so they might only have it at 20th Street. If you try any of the other flavors, please report back!

Of course, everyone's preferences vary, and the exact product that gets dished-up at any given moment varies, so I won't argue too much with Buckethead about the Duck gumbo, except to repeat that the batch I got is not all that smoky, but it is delicious... The duck has cooked down to shreds, the mushrooms are still fairly intact. I am in complete agreement about the Mac and Cheese, that stuff is insane! We sampled the sweet onion and Andouille Sausage version, but I'm sure the crabmeat and tasso recipe that's offered more often would be just as good. They sometimes have a bacon and corn flavor that I'm eager to try. Buckethead - which one did you sample? I've had the same experience with other restaurant's attempts at this: the crust is good, the inside kind of uninteresting. But Cajun Kate's is really great, the creamy interior would be pretty amazing alone, but the crispy outside really adds another dimension of both flavor and texture. It looks burnt, but it isn't, it's just right up to the line - another second or two in the frier and it probably would taste charred. But then, the final touch makes it even better - they drizzle it with a sweet and spicy tomato glaze that perfectly compliments the oily-creamy-cheesy thing. I'm not sure the smoked brisket po boy has made it to the permanent menu, but they promised to offer it frequently... I sure hope it's available every time I'm there, I love that sandwich. The only downside is that it's very filling, and I'm in severe danger of never trying anything new, now that I'm addicted to the Mac and Cheese, and the gumbo, and this po boy! I really wish they were open more days of the week, and were closer to me, but hey, at least I have a couple of quarts of gumbo to tide me over...

The duck gumbo sold out early, thankfully we'd reserved some! I'm not completely sure whether there was just one huge batch, or a few smaller ones, but whatever we sampled was delicious, not overly smoky. And the smoked brisket was crazy good. More details to follow...

Yeah, there's no particular logic to it, other than the fact that they have a Peruvian Chef and a Portuguese chef. That's it, no cultural fusion, no obscure culinary connections. That said, the food all tastes pretty good together! Philly also has a Cuban-Columbian restaurant (Tierra Columbiana) that came up with the combination in the same way: they happen to have two chefs from two backgrounds and they take advantage of both!

I could have sworn there was already a thread about this place... but I can't find one. A few of us eG folks finally managed to get coordinated enough to call-ahead and order some Pollo a la Brasa (Peruvian Rotisserie Chicken.) The thought of pre-planning one's chicken consumption always feels a little weird to me, but it was totally worth it. This chicken uses a complex marinade that gives a great flavor and a crispy, herby skin. The marinade seems to involve chile paste, the Peruvian herb huacatay, and citrus. You have to order ahead, because it marinates for several hours, yielding both a delicious outer coating, and juicy, tender meat. And what's more, fries even Holly could love! We got lots more food: the charming thing about this place is that they have both Peruvian and Portuguese food. We partook of Croquettas de Bacalao, Chorizo and Clams from the Portuguese side. And we got the roasted chicken, ceviche, and Lomo Saltado from the Peruvian side. They also have tostones filled with seafood, which reputedly were inspired by their Dominican customers... It was all really good, I'd get any of it again. But that chicken... oh my... that's really something. Sorry, the eG image posting thing is really getting on my nerves today for some reason... More pics and comments on my blog>> Major thanks to Katie and Pedro for Spanglophonics, and to Dave for getting this search started in the first place!

Cajun Kate's is celebrating their 2nd anniversary this weekend. The gumbo this week is smoked duck and wild mushroom! They were taking advance orders a couple of weeks ago, so I'm not sure how much is already spoken for... They're also running that smoked brisket po-boy that I absolutely loved when I had it a couple of weeks back. I'll be there, hope there some gumbo left for the rest of you!! Weekly specials are posted at: http://www.cajunkates.com/ ETA - thanks for that report, Buckethead. I have a pretty high smoke threshold, so we'll see how the gumbo goes over... I've got a couple of quarts reserved, so I hope I like it!!

Jeeze, you're totally right Karen, I don't think Ken's does lunch, they're probably not open until 3 or 4. Good catch! So, umm, nevermind, unless you'll still be around for dinner! But Dim Sum Garden, Rangoon and Penang should all be open for lunch.

Hey Pan, The Dim Sum Garden selection is fairly small, it's not really a comprehensive Shanghainese menu. I like their food, but there's a limited number of things to choose from. They do have good seaweed, a stewed eel, (huge) steamed vegetable buns, scallion pancake, etc, you could definitely construct something for a fishetarian. But the best stuff there is more meaty: soup dumplings, meatballs, pork chop rice, etc. Given your dining constraint, unless you're totally fixated on Shangainese, or dim-sum, I'd strongly recommend checking out Ken's Seafood at 1004 Race. It's not a dim sum place, and it's stylistically straight-up Cantonese, but it's got absolutely stellar seafood. Their Eel with XO sauce is one of the best things I've eaten in years. They do great basic steamed or fried fish from the tanks at the front of the store. My dining companions rave about the salt-baked shrimp (be sure to ask for the live ones). They usually have fresh scallops that are out of this world, served with garlic, or XO, or black beans. On the vegetable side, the Ong Choi with bean paste is crazy good. Most of this isn't on the menu, just ask for Ken, and he can hook you up. Just be sure to tell him about any dietary restrictions, and have him recommend some fish and the best preparation. But if you're really feeling like Shaghainese, or dumplings, you'll find enough to make a meal at Dim Sum Garden, even staying within the fishetarian realm. If you or your friend can speak or read Chinese, there's also Shanghainse food to be found at Empress Garden on 10th street, near Arch. You wouldn't know it, the regular menu looks like just plain old Chinatown standards, but there are Shanghai specialties on the Chinese menu. So it's a little hard to get-at, but that food's well-done if you can convince them to give it to you! If you have any further thoughts about what you;ll feel like eating, feel free to ask for refinements in our advice, I'm confident we can steer you somewhere good. You in particular might be interested to know that there's a good Burmese restaurant called Rangoon right in Chinatown. And if you're Jonesing for Malaysian, there's also an outpost of Penang that's really quite good (I hear there's a lot of variation between the branches) and a spin-off called Banana Leaf that's almost identical. (ETA: Andrew is stealing my thoughts again...)

Hey Doc, it hasn't even been that long since my visit, but this account out your trip is making me NEED to get back to New Orleans, like, immediately... so glad you managed to get shots of the dishes at MiLa, we'd enjoyed the food, but were sitting at the bar and just couldn't find any good light! Thanks for taking the trouble to ask for a better-lit table. (And yeah, I don't think there's any way to get a good shot at Chris's bar with that back-lit glass!) I loved that Crab Tian - as you said, subtle but wonderful. And I'd been having a hard time describing that barbecue lobster, which we enjoyed, even as we wished it had a little more of a kick. Great to be able to point people to pictures to aid the always-insufficient verbal descriptions. It's also great to have a few different accounts of the same dishes and/or places. They point out an interesting phenomenon I think we often forget: cooking is an ephemeral and unpredictable art form, the final result can vary so widely based on the specific product chosen at the moment, the attention paid to the preparation, and so many other uncontrollable factors. Combine that with the personal preferences and varying moods of the diner, and any given dish can have a widely-divergent impact. Your reactions to the Sweetbreads and grits at MiLa, and to the Pork Cheeks at Cochon are exact mirror opposites from mine: I still dream of Cochon's pork cheeks but was not especially enthralled by MiLa's sweetbreads. I suspect it has less to do with differences in our perceptions, and more to do with the inherent variability of the culinary arts. A skilled kitchen should be able to be very consistent, but on any given day, that particular sweetbread lobe or pork cheek might be of better or worse quality, the pan and oven may or may not be at the exact perfect temp, the grits might or might not have gotten the precise number of stirs required... The upshot for me is, based on your reaction, and my trust of your palate, I think I'll try those sweetbreads again the next time I'm down there! And I still recommend the pork cheeks at Cochon. Thanks again for the report, and look forward to the rest!

Phoodie.info proposed a battle of the steamed juicy buns, pitting Dim Sum Garden against Zhi Wei Guan... So far the response has been... ummm.... quiet... Personally, I vote for Zhi Wei Guan, but if you feel strongly one way of the other, tell them. There doesn't seem to be a poll widget or anything, so I assume one just leaves a comment.