scase805

Not to get off track on this topic, but we do carry Saba at DiBruno Bros. in Philadelphia as well.

I tried the most ridiculous rice pudding today - a friend at a local restaurant made rice pudding with saffron and midnite moon (an aged goat's milk gouda) and brought over a few samples. I'm not sure if he's putting it on the dessert menu, but if he does, I'll let everyone in Philly know!

Well, my girlfriend left for a week-long trip to Italy tonight , but she was kind enough to leave me a whole plateful of bread-pudding. We both work at a specialty food store in Philly, so we got a bunch of bread, including Raisin-Pecan, Honey Fig Nut and some left-over Panettone from the store. The gf made some homemade caramel, so all I had to do was heat-up the pudding, scoop a little ice cream on that bad-boy and drizzle away with the caramel. i would have taken a photo of it to share, but I ate it too fast - oops!

I'm sooooo not the expert on this (Holly Moore and Katie Loeb come to mind), but since no one has mentioned Philly yet, i've got to mention two amazing areas in Philly: 1) The Italian Market, with a melange of Italian, Mexican and Vietnamese restaurants, not too mention an open air market with fresh produce, two awesome cheese shops, and did I mention that Pat's and Geno's are just a block away? Not the best cheesesteaks, but worth checking out if you are a tourist, or want to see hundreds of people waiting in line at 2 in the morning. Some other favorites within walking distance of the Italian Market: Sarcone's bakery (amazing bread, and the deli around the corner makes incredible sandwiches, the kind that make you have to take a nap after eating , Sabrina's for breakfast/brunch, Ralph's, the oldest family owned Italian restaurant in the country, etc. I could go on, but I would point you to the aforementioned Holly Moore's website, Holly Eats Philadelphia, as i've said before, he's the real expert. 2) Holly also covers the Reading Terminal Market. Truly amazing. I took my parents on their last visit; we sampled some great cheeses at Downtown Cheese, had delicious roast pork sandwiches at DiNics, and basically had a great time getting lost among the stalls and the history of this Philadelphia landmark. Check out their website here. In addition to the market, Chinatown is a couple of blocks away, including restaurants specializing in pho, hand drawn noodles, peking duck, etc.

I was reading that those in the know pour marc on top of their Langres cheese. I had never heard of marc before, and I was wondering if it would be something that was readily available in liquor stores in the Philadelphia region. Thanks for your help!

My cheese of the moment: Rogue Dairy Oregonzola, a creamy, sharp blue. I especially love it crumbled in a simple salad with dried cranberries, candied walnuts, some spinach and a good balsamic vinaigrette. My favorite cheese anecdote: Mimolette, a wonderful, nutty aged French cheese, was once used by the French Navy, at a time when they ran out of cannonballs. Allegedly, they loaded the mimolette boules, which are incredibly hard on the outside, into their cannons in a moment of desparation. Probably the first time that a cheese has ever been used to defend a nation!

sooooo, the girlfriend and i just decided to stay in for valentine's day and cook dinner together... ok, really, this was her decision, since i'm a big wuss and apparently she wears the pants in this relationship thanks for the suggestions (Katie, i had forgotten about panorama - i truly love that place! definitely gonna save that idea for a future date). anyway, i hope this topic proves useful for other hopeful romantics! cheers, scott

friday saturday sunday is definitely a solid pick. i've taken past girlfriends there and its always gone over pretty well. i guess i could add it to the "potentials" list for this year, since i'm pretty sure that the current girlfriend hasn't been... Keep those recomendations coming!!! btw - what about marrakesh? that's kind of a neat experience, definitely something out of the ordinary, but i've always gone with a large group... think it would be nice for a romantic evening?

Any suggestions for Valentine's Day this year in Philly? I'll probably call to make reservations in a day or two for Friday February 11th, since my girlfriend is a student at St. Joe's and probably won't be able to go out on the real Valentine's Day. On my shortlist: Overtures (maybe too expensive?) Bistro St. Tropez (wonder if I can reserve a table by the window? prob not...) maybe Matyson... Any other ideas? Thanks, Scott

I'm heading up to NYC from the friendly confines of the Jerz on Wednesday night to catch a fellow South Jersian, Amos Lee at Joe's Pub in East Village. My question is this: how is the food at Joe's? Is it worth it to eat there and get good seats for the show, or should we look into something better close by? Also, I'm looking for something relatively inexpensive, as the Whole Foods bonus has not kicked in yet Thanks in advance for your suggestions! Cheers, Scott P.S. here's a link to Amos Lee's website , he's pretty great, definitely worth seeing in such an intimate setting as Joe's!

ok, i have to plead ignorance. "mustard fruits"? what are they? bear with me, i'm a food newbie...

So I've just recently come into some delicious speck, mortadella and prosciutto (thanks to Severino's here in Westmont, NJ). As usual, I was a little over-zealous at the counter, and I've come home with more than I know what to do with! Any suggestions on what to serve these three wonderful cured meats with? Pete at Severino's suggested some cheeses, such as Parmesan Reggiano, Pecorino Toscano and Taleggio. Any other ideas? Cheers, Scott

Can't wait for tomorrow night - going to have some friends over for dinner, drinks, then a quick train ride into Philly for fireworks over the Delaware River! So what's everyone going to be drinking tomorrow before the clock strikes midnight? Got any fun ideas/recipes for gettin' boozy??? Cheers, Scott

Another vote here for DiNic's! I stopped by Reading Terminal just the other day to check out Downtown Cheese and grab a roast pork sandwich - sadly (for me, but great for DiNic's!) they were closing down early because they were completely sold out of all of their inventory Anyway, I've been to Tony Luke's a few times (I'm a transplanted New Englander, and I wish I had grown up on the food down here!), but never to John's. Looks like I'll be visiting HollyEats.com for some more info... Cheers, Scott

Not sure if this message board is still active, but there are some great food scenes in the film "Defending Your Life" (which coincidentally is one of my favorite movies!). Pretty funny stuff - basically revolves around the food in the afterlife - everything tastes great, and has no negative effects (fat, cholesterol, etc.). Oh, and you gotta love Albert Brooks dryness to really appreciate this film! Anyone else seen this movie???

Tony, You may know water-ice as "italian ice." here in the philadelphia region, the two are pretty much synonymous (being a transplant from CT, I was unfamiliar with the concept of water-ice as well). There is a slight difference I think between the two - my best guess is that the consistency of water-ice is smoother than that of italian ice. Could be wrong though, as its been some time since my last italian ice! Anyone else have a better definition? Scott

Thanks Jackal! Sounds easy enough...when i open my first water-ice stand, the first scoop is on me!

Hi all, this is my first post on eGullet. Woohoo!!! Anyway, my question revolves around making water ice at home. I was hoping to surprise my girlfriend with her favorite - vanilla chocolate chip - during these cold winter months (trust me, she craves it, despite the weather!), however I don't own an ice cream maker. Anyone have any suggestions/recipes for how to make authentic water ice at home sans ice-cream maker? By the way, I wouldn't be opposed to investing in an ice-cream maker if I absolutely need to, although I am on a rather limited budget, so i would have to buy a manual model as opposed to the schnazzier automatic brands. Suggestions on where i could find one for around $25? Thanks in advance for your help, and I'm looking forward to hearing back! Cheers, Scott