philadining

OK, I didn't actually see any naked people there, and it's a classy place, so Fenton, don't get any ideas. I'm guessing they're referring to the often unadorned, unobscured chocolatey goodness... www.nakedchocolatecafe.com It's at 1317 Walnut, which is to say, just around the corner from Capogiro, which presents a real dilemma when looking to quiet the yearnings of a sweet tooth. As the weather cools I suspect the decision might increasingly point this way, especially given that Naked Chocolate Cafe serves some seriously decadent hot chocolate. That's a gargantuan "Frozen Drinking Chocolate" on the left, which they say can be for one or two, and sure enough one normal person would likely be overwhelmed. eGulleteers? might need two. This was sort of like an extremely intense chocolate milkshake, but somehow even more chocolatey that any milkshake I've ever tasted. On the right is a "petite" Sipping Chocolate, which is hot, thick, creamy, amazing... The big frozen drink is $6, the petite sipping chocolate is $4.50. They have 4 different types of hot chocolate, coffee, teas, and combinations of the three. (Yes, they offer chocolate teas!) Much of the store is taken up by cases that contain their chocolate candies, baked goods, mousse, puddings, pots de creme, etc. It's a little overwhelming. Suffice it to say: chocoholics, make your way there immediately. I was a bit choco-saturated by the drinks (no, I didn't drink BOTH of them....) so I didn't try anything else, except for a sample of pistachio bark up on the counter, which was pretty tasty. But I'll be back for more. Looking at the photos later, I had to laugh at an accidental reflection from across the street: So, I guess there are always other options too....

I'd just like to go on the record as saying that I like the term "un-ass that chair" and I think we should all try to work it into our daily conversations.

You know, if the Capogiro folks opened a Capo-Jell-O, I'd go! Great name, Karen...

Or it could just be an over-zealous copy editor who sadly hasn't yet experienced the wonders of gelato, and assumed it was a typo. I'm just surprised it made it past any level of editing, I mean, who uses the term that way, as in, "I'm really in the mood for some gelatin?" And are there places people go for Jell-O? I'll bet this was a copy editing mistake at Forbes, or as Buckethead suggested, a case of a misunderstood phone conversation, not a gaffe by Ms. Sless-Kittain.

Stopped into Chung King and had a few favorites I'd been missing since the crew left Exton: Cold Chicken with Spicy Sauce This has an amazing flavor, and I've always liked the contrast of the cold temperature and the hot spice. This is significantly hotter than the version across the street at the Szechuan Tasty House, but a little coarser too, the STH slices the meat thinner and there seems to be a bit less of the cold chicken skin.... but I think the Chung King version is my favorite. Still it's going to be hard to not get this every time. Spicy Chile Oli Wontons From the description I was thinking that finally we'd get the dumplings in chile oil rather than broth, but no, it's broth, with chile oil. Still they're good wontons, and this is more of a soup than just wontons in sauce. Spicy ZhaJiang Noodles Not all that spicy, but every once in a while you'd hit a chile or a szechuan peppercorn or both, which announced their presence loudly! Still good stuff though, I'll be eating this all the time this winter. Lamb with Cumin Pretty much the same as the version this chef used to serve at Tifco, not quite as incendiary as some I'd gotten there. The meat is completely coated in ground cumin, seems like it would be too much, but it really sits nicely with the lamb and onion. One of my faves. Pork with Pickled Peppers Not super-spicy, but very flavorful, the tender shreds of pork mixed with fresh, pickled and dried peppers. I couldn't stop picking at this even long after I was full. Three of us couldn't finish all this, and it only cost $45 before tip. We really liked all our food, the only complaint I have is that the wontons came out well after everything else, I thought they'd forgotten them. That was not a huge crisis, except it would have been nice to have them early... I still have a fondness for the Tasty House across the street, but this place is going to get much of my business when I'm in a mood for serious spice. Oh, but then those wontons Percy got at 4 Rivers looked pretty rocking! But I'm sticking with the Jha Zhiang Mien here at Chung King... We could have worse problems than trying to decide between Chung King Garden, Szechuan Tasty House and 4 Rivers!

Whoops, right, Rick's, dunno why I called it Steve's. That's the sense I had from the last time I had one there, which as a long time ago, that it' wasn't terrible, but just not the ultimate cheesesteak, and there are so many other great things to eat in the Terminal... Thanks for the update!

Yeah, I agree with Holly, nice job! Sounds like a great trip. So, we often sneer at Steve's Prince of Steaks in the Terminal, but how was it?

He might need to be slapped for "Lutesse".

Nice review in the City Paper, by A.D. Amorosi, that does eventually say a little something about the food.

This might not quite fit your "new" window, but lunch at Amada is not to be missed. And while we're thinking Spanish, Apamate has gotten good reports, although I haven't made it there yet.

Somehow, I think that "either brilliant or insane" is an assessment Andrew has encountered before...

Wow, Ed, let me just say that I found that a persuasive argument....

Andrew, I think this is an important step in the under-explored realm of savory cocktails. Thanks for doing the careful research. And please report back on the cheesey drinks. But while you're in the groove, do you think this would work with different sausages, or preserved meats? It seems like only a small tweak could get us a BratHattan, or maybe some Slim Jim experiments could produce a killer Jerquiri. Any advice, some guidance on what worked and didn't for you?

Sockii, you've got way more resolve than I do, I don't think I could walk out of there empty-handed, even if they were only selling half-gallon containers. For example, despite being completely stuffed from a huge dinner at Lolita, two of us couldn't resist the siren's call: (A classic raspberry with dark chocolate, and a summery peaches and cream.) In our defense, we did burn a couple of calories by hiking up to the 21st street store...

Hey, careful, that's exactly what's on the car stereo if I give Mummer a ride home...

It was called Waloo on the menu we had, but Escolar on their website, and I had the sense that the two terms got used interchangeably for the same fish pretty often. But then the "proper" naming of fish in the commercial realm always seems to be a bit fluid.... And I've had escolar, or whatever it's called, a few times, and so far, no, umm... digestive issues.

Made it back to Lolita tonight, and had a really thoroughly enjoyable meal. Service was very friendly and helpful, actually downright generous, and the food was quite good. Started with: Tamale filled with Huitlacoche and Shredded Chicken. Very tasty, comforting, complex. Recommended. Fundido con rajas y chorizo I'm often disappointed in this in other restaurants, but when it's good... it's really good, so I figured I'd take a chance. And I'm glad I did, it was primally satisfying goopy, drippy, stretchy cheese, with great crusty edges, studded with roasted peppers and chorizo. It was great smeared on warm, fresh tortillas, and not bad on the fried chips either... I think it succeeds because it's based on good Oaxaca and Chihuahua cheeses. Loved it. Oh man, those crunchy, burnt edges.... I was so busy scarfing-up melted cheese that I forgot to take a picture of the carnitas appetizer, which featured good shredded pork, gaucamole, and I think it was a roasted tomato salsa.... The meat is more shredded and saucy than you'd get at the basic taqueria, but it was quite delicious. Waloo with Chayote, Jicama, Hearts of Palm Salad Waloo, Escolar, Butterfish, whatever you want to call it, it's a mild, indeed buttery fish, that took nicely to the tropical sauce. Very nicely cooked, and simply served with good compliments, gotta love that. Pork Chop I apologize that I don't remember the specifics of the prep, but the important part is that it was tender and juicy, and quite good. I'd get it again any time. I guess that's not the most illustrative angle for a photo either... anyway, it was good. Sadly my photo of the Carne Asada is pretty ugly, but it might have been my favorite entree: very tender, juicy beef, with an assertively smoky spice rub, doused in a creamy sauce, topped by a fried plantain. Some creamy/crunchy fried yucca accompanied. I might just barely prefer the version across the corner at El Vez, but this was very close behind. The one entree that was a a bit disappointing was the Echiladas Verdes The enchiladas themselves were very good, but the whole dish got a bit soggy and sloppy, as beans and rice and sauce and everything mushed together in the deep bowl. On top of that, the grilled shrimp were extremely salty, I'm told... Still, this could be really good, the cheese-filled enchiladas were delicious before they got soggy, and the combinations of flavors is good. Just could use a different plating, I think, and maybe a little QC on the shrimp seasoning. We also had a pitcher of the traditional margarita mix, which hit the spot on a summer evening. Overall, a very enjoyable dinner, almost everything was right-on, and even the enchiladas weren't bad, just a touch off-center. As I posted before, this really fills a good niche, when one wants to step-up a little from the basic taqueria, but still not spend too much money. It's such a pleasant surprise to be able to choose among a range of Mexican options, and this place stays up toward the top of the list. I suspect a few more of those pitchers of margaritas might disappear before the summer's out...

For what it's worth, Philadelphia has a very good Burmese restaurant (referenced upthread), that has been doing quite well for many years now, and I don't think there's any especially large Burmese community in the city. Everyone I've taken there has just loved it, so people don't seem to be too intimidated by the unfamiliar dishes. In fact, describing it as somewhat Thai-Indian-Chinese usually makes it a pretty easy sell. And they do make a pretty killer tea leaf salad, although the spring ginger salad is my particular weakness... eG thread in the Philly forum here>>

Got some take-out the other day, which was solid... Looked pretty bleak by the time it got on a plate, so I'll spare you the images. Pork in Black Bean sauce was almost indistinguishable from the double-cooked pork, maybe it had a touch more sauce, and that sauce might have had some black beans in it... but no matter, it was really good, featuring thick slices of pork belly, leeks, fresh chiles, garlic, and a dark, salty sauce. The sichuan style string beans were, again, a bit over-cooked, but still pretty good, with ground pork and pickled vegetables giving them some kick. I don't know what I was expecting, but I was in the mood for noodles, and ordered a small container of "chicken rice noodle" which ended up being an incredibly blah dish of thin rice noodles, chicken, and no discernible flavor. Live and learn. The Szechuan menu is still not as broad as it used to be, but they did add a few things back on, like the lamb (or beef) with cumin, which I'd missed... and there's now a spicy frog, and a szechuan spicy pork stomach, so they haven't totally abandoned the traditional stuff.

Figured I'd try my luck again, and ended up with a really enjoyable quick bite: Sandwich Jibaro Ok, the roll is totally lame, just a soft, nothing-y supermarket roll. But I don't care! Because inside it it has juicy, tasty slices of pernil, a little lettuce and tomato, and the crucial component: peeking out from under the top of the bun, a warm, soft, gooey, sweet plantain. Just to rub it in: OK, it wasn't loaded with pernil, but the pork was nice and juicy and flavorful, and with the plantain on there, the sandwich was quite filling. If it was on a killer roll, I'd be there every day... It's about $7, and I thought it was worth it.

One time when I was on the stand-by list (and missed it by ONE person!!!) I ran out to what I think is the closest place: Pho75. It was quick, cheap, and pretty darn good. It's right on Washington, just a block or so east, on the south side of the street. But Pho is pretty much all they have, so if it's a noodle soup kind of day, you're in luck! Otherwise, the other recommendations all sound good to me.

I've never had to wait, even when they've been moderately busy. I think on a weeknight, especially in the summer, you'll have no trouble at all. On the off-chance that they're totally jammed, if you're OK with it, the bar is pretty comfortable for eating too....

Greetings Domaine, thanks for posting, always good to hear more reports! And BTW, congrats on the best wine bar award from Philly Mag...

That's a good point about the fries, katbert. I had the same thing happen at Five Guys, there was a pretty outrageous pile of fries in the bag, so the portion was quite generous. And I'll pile-on in the love-fest for Standard Tap, now that I think of it, I probably already have, but their burger is one of my faves. And I'm not sure that I posted it in this topic, but the "Kobe Burger" up the street at Deuce is pretty rocking.

As is probably not surprising, I too met Matt at Pegu, where he was perched comfortably on his favorite stool, enjoying a cocktail and making clandestine Manni olive oil trades with shadowy characters. And within a few minutes we ended up in a deep conversation about food and drink and eGullet and human nature as a whole. And as many have stated, his depth of knowledge about restaurants and cuisine in particular was amazing. Within a few minutes of conversation, it became clear that he had to come to Philly for a StudioKitchen dinner, and he not only did so, but also immediately, smoothly, comfortably, became something of a regular. He was always at the top of my list of people to invite, and I'm really pleased he was able to join us in Philly a few times. It somehow didn't seem at all unusual for him to drop in from out of state for dinner. I always enjoyed his company, and his obvious enjoyment of the events was gratifying. After his first SK dinner, Matt, Katie Loeb and I went out for a couple of drinks (of course...) and over the course of a few cocktails, he left me absolutely stunned by his encyclopedic knowledge of EVERY minute detail of eGullet history. It was his ability to pull those arcane details to mind instantly, as well as to reference recipes and restaurant dishes effortlessly that made me think of him as a professor that decided academia was just too dry for him. (But then, his tweed jackets were always a bit too perfect for him to be a rumpled scholar....) I'm not sure I was aware of his exact age, I certainly felt he was a few decades wiser and more centered than he had a right to be. It's rather amazing to discover that he wasn't a burnt-out academic, just an amazingly curious and intelligent self-motivated searcher. As others have noted, I too expected to see great things from Matt, and am saddened that we won't get to see what he would have done. I'm sure it would have been interesting. I didn't know him well, but I liked him a lot, and I'm really glad to have had the opportunity to meet him and share some good food, drink, and conversation a few times. He was a truly unique guy, and I'll miss him.