philadining

Wow, a scrumptious appetizer as my guest?!?! I've been out with many in the eGullet crowd, and I'm not sure any of the long time established CC restaurants could handle our blinding fabulousness... plus, they seem overly whelmed. Could we submit our avatars, rather than a head-shot?

While I think the owner of Geno's is welcome to express his opinions, the overall vibe has gotten obnoxious enough that I'm not eating there anymore. There are plenty of places in the city for a good cheesesteak, and I don't want to be seen as winking and nodding and laughing along with whatever exclusionary stance they're taking today. But that's just me. It doesn't look like the various controversies have reduced (or increased) his lines significantly. Making people feel unwelcome seems like bad business to me, but hey, it's not my shop.

Hi Sam, thanks for joining us here! And don't worry, I think mrbigjas liked the o-toro very much, he was just being funny. (edited to add) Katie and I loved everything you made for us when we were there, especially the Ika!

Hey Vadouvan, I wasn't there the same night, but my reaction to the food was pretty similar to yours, except that I seem to have stumbled on a couple of things that I rather liked. I didn't get the sense that your post was mean-sprited, i read it as constructive criticism. I mean, the ablondigas are listed under "Tapas Calientes," you'd think the kitchen might be interested that they were cold when they got to you... But it does bring up that old debate about the nature of criticism/critique/reviews. I've had reasonable disagreements with other folks on this board, and elsewhere, about the propriety of negative comments in a public forum. There's a perfectly respectable school of thought that runs along the lines of "if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all." There's a similar view that new restaurants deserve a break, as they are getting started. I happen to be in the school that sees forums like this as serving more of a Consumer Reports-style guide, and that negative comments have a place along with the plaudits. I have some sympathy for the new-place excuse, but if they're charging full price for the food, it seems to me that they ought to have worked that stuff out already. If friends are going to spend their money and time going out to dinner, and ask my advice about a certain place, I'd feel guilty keeping quiet about it if my experience was that it was bad. In a more public space like this, I still feel like I'm giving advice to friends: personally I take no joy in saying that a place is bad, I just want to share my experiences, and hope they're helpful. I doubt this happens much, but one would hope that the critiques might have some constructive effect if the restauranteurs are paying attention and are open-minded at all. So, personally, i want to hear both good and bad about a restaurant, but I also want to hear why you think that, maybe I like that kind of thing you hate.... So, Vadouvan, even though your post wasn't exactly a glowing rave, it didn't stop me from going. And I hope my post doesn't stop anyone from going, but I also hope my descriptions might be some guide. I think it would be mean-spirited to criticize the food in some little hole-in-the-wall with modest ambitions. Not to mention that it's just not interesting if a place that nobody thought would be anything special is, in fact, nothing special. But a place like Bar Ferdinand is the subject of a lot of buzz and anticipation, and is expected to be a place worth going. So I think we do a service here on eGullet by letting people know if a place stands up to the hype. And so far, it seems to me like there's a rough consensus on this board, even the comments with a more positive spin stop short of enraptured raves about the food. I for one hope that the kitchen can take these comments as they are intended, as constructive criticism, and make some tweaks. I'll go back and find out. Does a restaurant really want to hear that everything is great, as people stop returning because they were just being nice?

If you're unclear on some of the vocabulary, I've found that the Krusty Sushi website to be very helpful. For example: katsuo As they are cutting-edge purveyors of mail-order sushi (freshness not guaranteed) they wouldn't steer you wrong...

Indeed grape pies are pretty common all over Naples, NY, but pretty rare outside of that immediate area. One would think they'd be made anywhere there are grapes, but I don't think I've seen one outside of Naples. My grandmother used to make them from time to time, but most of the grape pies I've had were as HdB said, from farm-stands, or home-based businesses, just drive around Naples, you'll see signs.... I don't have any good food recommendations in Penn Yann, Cooperstown or Corning, but if you go down the west side of Keuka, Heron Hill, Konstantin Frank and Bully Hill wineries are practically next door to one another, and each have something to offer. Bully Hill has always been kind of weird, but back in the day it was an idiosyncratic, psychedelic Walter Taylor weird. Lately they've made it more mass-market silly, with the tours and tastings descending into shtick. And sadly, I haven't been impressed by any of their wines in quite a while. But they have a lovely patio overlooking the lake, and serve some pretty good food, it's a really nice place for a relaxed lunch. And you can get a Love My Goat hat.... Konstantin Frank makes some ridiculously good wines (Parker recently gave the '05 Rieslings a 90 point rating) and is worth a quick stop and taste. Heron Hill makes a few good wines too, and they have a little cafe and a nice patio where one can relax, have a bite, and look out at the lake... www.bullyhill.com www.drfrankwines.com www.heronhill.com There are a few more wineries on both sides of the lake... In Cooperstown, if you have any affection for Belgian-style beer, you'd have to go to Brewery Ommegang. In Corning, there are a few nice-looking places along Market Street, but I haven't eaten in any of them...

Excellent news about the A/C. I really enjoy this restaurant, so it was somewhat heartbreaking to walk out of there less than thrilled with the evening. On the evening in question, it was indeed a hot and humid evening all around, so I have little doubt that it was a bit warm throughout, but I could tell as we left the restaurant that it was especially bad in back, and particularly right next to the kitchen. Hope that does it, because you guys have some more hot days coming!!

Found myself in Northern Libs, and wanting just a bite or two, and despite the mixed reviews so far on this thread, couldn't resist giving Bar Ferdinand a try. I think my reactions are pretty similar to others so far, it's a cool looking place, nice vibe, too F&$%#ing LOUD!!!, refreshingly reasonable prices, and the food was, well, mixed. I suspect if I lived in the neighborhood, I'd drop by semi-regularly for a drink and a couple of the tapas that I liked. But as a destination... maybe not. We started with Sangria This was pretty similar to most sangrias I've gotten in my life, which is to say, not all that great, and not even close to as good as Amada's, at least to my taste. Date Bacon and Cream Cheese Empanada This arrived so alarmingly fast that it had to have been pre-baked and held, yet it was somehow light and flaky and warm, and quite good. I'll agree with the comment upthread, I prefer fried empanadas to baked, and something more doughy than the puff pastry used here, but I still really liked this. The mixture of sweet and salty and the contrast of crunchy and creamy worked really well. Monkfish and Pork Belly Pincho This was pretty simple: a grilled chunk of monkfish and cube of pork belly, both dusted with rosemary. That fish always seems to like some bacon, so it's a good combo, and this was nicely done. There were three skewers of this, making for three good bites, not too bad for $6. Croquettas de Bacalao Earlier descriptions made me think I wouldn't like these, but I saw a plate of them on my way in, and curiosity got the better of me. Guess what? I didn't like them.... They had a nice crunchy exterior, but the filling had no trace of cod at all, in fact it didn't taste like much of anything. There was a slight lemony edge, which would have been a nice accent to a fish flavor, if there had been any. I thought the texture of the filling was just kind of gummy, so I wouldn't get these again. Cerdo Frito Sorry, bad pic, we were losing the light... Anyway, this sandwich of "slowly fried pork" with Mahon cheese, mustard, roasted peppers and onions, was totally delicious. The pork itself was tender and juicy, and all of the other elements complimented it beautifully, causing it to cycle slowly through different flavor sensations. The bread was good too. Total winner. THIS I'd make a special trip for. Roasted lamb, dates, onions, raisins, mint The lamb loin was a bit over-cooked,and a little, well.. lamby. On its own, it was rather dull, seemingly unseasoned, and paradoxically, juicy while having a dry texture. The sweet compote that accompanied made it lots better, but still, there's only so much fruit can do if the meat is lackluster. Calamares a la Plancha These were nicely cooked, very tender and piquant. For some reason, this still didn't knock me out, although there was nothing at all wrong with it. I guess I thought the paprika flavor was a bit one-dimensional. But I could see people really liking it. Oh well, we'd already strayed past our original thought of grabbing a few small bites, what the heck, might as well check out dessert.... Bruléed Apple Bread Pudding The bread pudding had a really lovely texture, but was absolutely drowned in sherry. I usually think of this as a good thing, but the brash booziness overwhelmed any other flavors. The almond ice cream was good... Churros con Chocolate These too had a great texture, the light and crispy ridges making good scoops for the rich bitter chocolate. Sadly, the interior of the churros were a little pasty, giving a hint of uncooked batter at the center. These were really close to being excellent, I'm glad they weren't dry, and they were nice and fresh and warm, but I suspect my batch needed a few more seconds in the frier, or needed to cook at a slightly lower temp, or something. I'd risk it again, because even with my complaints, I liked these a lot... (Edited to add:) I ordered an espresso, and got a standard coffee cup's worth, which was what, a quintuple shot? This explains why I was awake, posting at 2am, and why I might have been jabbering incoherently on my cell phone on the way home. My apologies to anyone who got a foodie call... So, all in all, the food was OK. I've never been to Spain, so I can't comment on authenticity, and I'm not that interested in that if the food's delicious. But many of the flavors seemed a little timid, or when bolder, unbalanced. But I loved the pork bocadillo, and would get the date-bacon empanada again. I thought the rest was decent, if not thrilling. We got all this food and drink for $50, so it's a good value. Personally, I'd rather drop a few more bucks for the more assured cooking, and larger portions, at Amada, but I can see Bar Ferdinand as a good place to hang out, get an affordable drink, and a few bites, if culinary thrills are not the main goal of the evening. There's some very good food elsewhere in that neighborhood, but maybe not much in that small-plates style, so perhaps they'll do fine. And it's early days, they could still polish the food a bit... I'll look forward to more reports.

You're killing me Percy: "the usual pantry staples... trumpet mushrooms, truffles, etc." But I'll concur with D and P, it would be interesting to know about some dishes that can be really dramatic, but made without long multi-stage prep, exotic gear, or special skills. What do we need to make something quick and good? Are there vital pantry supplies, and if so, where in Philly can we find them? Or are there techniques (like your salmon cure) that aren't all that complicated, but give great results?

I've been to other excellent frozen custard places that also made fresh product, and had more to choose from. And often in smaller facilities... Heck even the Ted Drewes stands, from which Zwahlen's seems to have taken their inspiration, seem to offer way more flavors. Still, Zwahlen's makes good custard, and it's pretty easy to keep amused by adding toppings, or making sundaes, or putting it between cookies, so I'm not complaining, I'm just surprised...

So, how about some of that good Zwahlen's Frozen Custard in between peanut-butter cookies? I have no idea why they call it a Yodeler but I'll wear lederhosen if that's what it takes to get more of these... they usually also have them made with chocolate chip cookies, but had run out this particular night. The custard itself was quite good, although I'm a little surprised that they had as few flavors as they did, just chocolate and vanilla and one special. Although I guess with the large variety of toppings available, one can add a lot of variety.

I don't know, for Indian food, I've always found Tandoor out on 40th street to be good quality, and at a decent price.. And Kabobeesh certainly offers good value. In other cuisines in West Philly, it seems Vientiane and Dahlak offer some pretty great eats per dollar. It's true enough that it would be nice to get some good basic Mexican places in West Philly, but, give it a minute or two...there are a lot of places opening, it's only a matter of time...

Wow, looks like an awesome meal, if you'd only had a little cheese to serve with that St Julien...

Great report, thanks CtznCane! I was out that way in the spring, and hit a few of the same places, and had similar reactions. Amity was a big fave of mine: I liked the vibe, liked the wines, didn't resent the tasting fee for the more interesting single-vineyard Pinots. They let me keep the glass (great... one more thing to worry about breaking on the plane...) and they kept my tasting fee even though I bought several bottles. Still, it was the most interesting wine I had on my brief tour. I found a couple things I liked at Erath, and they did refund my tasting fee, even though i just bought one bottle. Sokol Blosser is a lovely spot, but I didn't find much of interest to drink. Argyle was a surprise in that I enjoyed the sparklers, but ended up buying only some of their "Nut House" Merlot, of all things. It was a rather unusual wine, rather tannic and woody, but pleasantly distinctive, and cheap too... We stopped at a few others, nothing worth mentioning... I was pleasantly surprised that most places we drove by were open on a tuesday before Memorial Day. And most had a few wines available to taste for free, but charged for the higher-end reserve stuff. This might have been an advantage of being there on an off-day, during off-season, if they're open at all, perhaps they're a little more generous. Thanks again for the report, I'm eager to get back to Amity some day, and will add Drouhin and some of your other highlights to my itinerary next time!

Official Address: 640 Water Works Dr. 215-236-9000 www.thewaterworksrestaurant.com

Rick Nichols, on the side...

We recently checked out the long-awaited Waterworks restaurant, in the historic Waterworks buildings behind the Philadelphia Museum of Art. At least at first glance, it seems like a welcome addition to the Philadelphia dining scene. None of the food we had was earth-shakingly original, in fact the menu is surprisingly conservative, especially on the entree side. And I suppose that this is actually a wise move, the space itself is a bit more swanky than I'd anticipated, and Waterworks is clearly positioning itself as an upscale destination restaurant, likely to appeal to the well-heeled, less-daring among us. But it has an interesting location, and at least for some of the space, beautiful, distinctly Philadelphian views, an attribute oddly rare in the city. There aren't too many nice restaurants in Philly that really show off the city, and Waterworks jumps to the head of the line. Well, depending where you're sitting.... The building itself is lovely, and the views can be stunning. There are at least four separate dining spaces: the large main room which, while quite opulent, has no view whatsoever, and really could be a ballroom in any fancy hotel anywhere; the Atrium, which is where you really want to be, with views up the river to the boathouses (but there are only six 4-tops in that room); a small room between the main entry and the bar, I'm not sure if it has a name, that has two comfy curved banquettes and a couple of tables for two, and an OK view of a bit of the river and traffic on rt76, (but is good for people-watching); and depending on the weather, the prime spot - the patio overlooking the river. No doubt the patio and the Atrium are going to be tough seats to get, but it's worth booking-ahead if you want that dramatic experience. On the culinary side, the good news is that the food featured good ingredients and was well-executed, if not thrilling. The flavor combinations on the plates had some ambition, but were still playing it fairly safe. Based on what we had, I'm not hurrying back for the food, but that's not to say that it was bad at all, it was actually pretty good, it just wasn't especially interesting, which is probably a selling point for most people outside of the eGullet community! To start: Seared Watermelon It had refreshing chunks of melon, just barely touched by heat, with feta, mint and a little balsamic. This was a very nice preparation, hurt only by the relatively flavorless watermelon. I suspect this will be a killer dish when the melons are more vivid. Grilled Octopus This has become my acid test for restaurants these days, it's easy to screw this up... I'm happy to say Waterworks did not, and while this hasn't taken the crown for best octopus, it was very good, a generous portion of tender tentacles, with good olive oil, cilantro, and something else. I was almost suspecting a bit of anchovy or something in the dressing, it had a thicker mouthfeel than a simple vinaigrette, and carried a slightly stronger (pleasantly) fishy flavor than most of the grilled octopus versions I've had lately. Again, not a destination dish, but I'd order it again if I found myself there... Mains: Rack of Lamb with mint-yogurt sauce and goat cheese pillows. This was probably the best dish of the night: fairly straightforward, but very tasty. The chops had a flavorful, crunchy crust that we both liked quite a lot, the creamy mint sauce was a complimentary accent, and the sharp arugula cut the richness well. The "pillows," effectively fried dumplings filled with goat cheese, were good, not amazing, but good... Pepper-Crusted Duck This was nicely done. The picked fennel shavings were a bright counterpoint to the duck, the sweet potatoes were creamy and luxurious. Again, really pretty good, but maybe a bit less intense than it could be. (Not for nothing, but if it's called "Pepper-Crusted Duck" you might want some indication of pepper on it... ) It was solidly good, it's just not calling me back, I'm not dreaming of this plate. (Yes, I dream about duck dishes, what of it?!?!) Despite the fact that were were rather full by this time, we decided, as a public service to you folks, to check out dessert. You're welcome. Waterwheel Sampler Lemon tart, Chocolate-Ouzo Beignets, Carrot Cake, Chocolate Ganche with Fig mousse. These were all very tasty, well-executed, with some good extra touches. The carrot cake had an assertive cinnamony filling, the fig mousse had a segment of caramelized fig on top, the beignets were served warm.... I think our faves were the beignets, although we couldn't really detect any ouzo flavor. No matter, they were rich and warm and chocolately. And as a parting gift, an apple-citrus somethingorother... This was really quite delicious, with warm, soft apple, a dollop of creamy cheese, a tart sliver of orange peel. A very nice way to end. Over the course of the meal we sampled a watermelon mojito ( which seemed to garner mixed reviews...) and a few glasses of wine. A fruity German Riesling was a nice aperitif, as well as a good companion for both starters, and somewhat surprisingly, the duck. We also indulged in a big, bold Montepulciano, and a Pinot Noir with the entrees. There's a decent array of wines by the glass hovering around $10, and a large selection of bottles, mostly on the pricey side, but with a few choices in the $30-40 range. They do a very silly schtick trying to sell you bottled water, they offer a rather alarming number of them, which seems ironic in the building built to provide clean public water to the citizens of Philadelphia. So we passed on the $50 bottle of "Bling H20" and the other dozen or so more reasonably-priced choices, and got some ice water from the public water supply... In the end we spent a bit more that we'd anticipated, but I suppose $140 (before tip) was fairly reasonable for four drinks, two apps, two entrees and dessert. Apps are priced from the high single digits to the low teens, pretty typical, as are the entrees, mostly in the mid-twenties. So it's just pricey enough, and the food isn't quite thrilling enough to make it part of the regular rotation, but it certainly has its place. All in all it was a very pleasant experience, with well-made, if not exciting, food. I'd have no reluctance to recommend it as a place to celebrate a special event, or impress an out-of-town guest, or to take someone who likes good food, but is not especially daring. It's a place where I'd love to sit out on the patio, have a drink and an appetizer or two, I'm not sure if the restaurant would be thrilled with everyone in the place just having a drink and a starter, but i think that kind of thing might be just fine on the patio. So, it struck me as a nice place for a special occasion, which can be a very valuable thing. And it's a relief that it's not JUST about the location and view, the food's pretty good.

The Guelaguetza restaurants (there are at least two of them) serve Oaxacan Mexican food. The moles rock. But I'm guessing that regional food might not be so hard to find in Texas?

I had never heard of disco fries either, but I want some. It's almost poutine...

I doubt there are any hard and fast rules, I see Whiz offered randomly at places out in the burbs and beyond. You can get Whiz at Tony Lukes, but not at John's Roast Pork. It doesn't seem like many lunch trucks or carts have it, I assume they don't want to kill the burner real estate keeping a can hot. I was a provolone adherent for a long time, but a careless order at Pats resulted in my first Whiz experience, and I was converted. At least for a simple, purist "cheese with," Whiz is still my preference.

That's too funny, I think i saw you folks on the segways over by the Art Museum. Pity about the soggy pretzel, there are great ones in the Reading Terminal, unless Fishers is closed mondays and tuesdays? I didn't think so... Anyway, you stumbled on my favorite crêpe place, and Jim's isn't a bad way to get introduced to a cheesesteak. My condolences about the american cheese... But I think you may have planted a seed, next time you'll have better luck talking her into more.

If you're in Pasadena, it only seems right to stop by the Pie 'n Burger. I'd recommend getting a burger. And pie.

While I'll agree that most of the winelist is a bit pricey, I've managed to drink decently there without spending too much. This last time, they were out of a certain selection I'd enjoyed before that was in the $60-70 range, and I was steered to a less expensive one, an Ontario Gewurtz, which I really think was only about $40, and quite nice with the dishes we were served. Kelly also poured two of us short glasses of red to cover a heavier course early on. So they're really rather accommodating, I thought... It just so happened that my dining companions were not big wine aficionados, and the menu we experienced didn't cry out for a unique pairing with each course, so it was easy to go simple, but I don't think $65-75 is out of line for a coordinated pairing. I'd do it. And just for the record, we had no unusual gaps between courses, it seemed paced rather well.

I'm just kind of amused at how circular this could get: apologies if this somehow creates a data black-hole that sucks the entire interweb into its spiralling self-referential gravity. This restaurant M topic was recently mentioned over at FooBooz, so you can check them out, which will just send you right back here... But seriously, there's some good food and booze tips at FooBooz,. Thanks to Diann for the heads-up.

Just a quick warning: Majolica is closed for vacation through August 4, if I remember the sign on the window correctly. But yes, once they get back, it's the best place for dinner in a broad radius...