mod*betty

I read the review in my early edition of the paper last night, and was pleased at how the eG'eers had such an effect on this restaurant being reviewed! A couple of thoughts: * Philadining's photos have always helped me to try new foods that I might not have normally ordered, but he makes them look so damned tasty- thanks Jeff! * I admit I was surprised when Han told us himself that he doesn't personally think his American Chinese food is all that great. If I were not knowledgeable about authentic Chinese (which I am not) and knew what to order from reading the Gullet, I may not be favorably impressed with the restaurant to even try some more adventurous dishes, if a simple one that I ordered was less than impressive. * Glad the mention of Sly Fox was highlighted, as CH and I have made it a ritual to get a growler or two on the way over to HD2. Hope to see the lines out the door!

Word about town is that HD2 has been visited by LaBan and will be featured in the 4/19 paper!

CH and I went here last night since he missed the gathering last Tuesday. Definintely recommend Tuesday paired with the growler special at Sly Fox. Had the dumplings, dan dan noodles with pork- closer to the noodles at Exton that I remember craving, and also chicken with dry peppers- something I would not have thought to order prior to the EG event, but had a hankering for it as soon as my husband mentioned it. Food was delish, really hit the spot, and Han was nice enough to chat with us for awhile. Do your best, spread the word, this place rocks, especially for the 'burbs!

Thanks for a great evening and giving the opportunity to try some dishes I might normally not have known to order, but now are on the list for sure! I also shared Jeff's great photos with my husband who would have loved to be there, and we're already planning a future Tuesday night out in "Rofo" with a visit to HD2 with our $6 Sly Fox growlers- thanks Rich for the reminder of that- the Phoenixville SF doesn't have as many specials as that location.

I have read the initial flurry of posts from when Apothecary opened in May and was wondering if anyone has been there recently and could give an update if there have been any major changes- I am planning on heading there on Saturday night for a Rhum Clement "tiki" event and wanted to get the latest word on the place so I know what to expect. (I have a soft spot for Tiki/Polynesian stuff since I come from the land of Kowloon in Saugus, and there doesn't seem to be any of that type of thing in the PA area.) Not sure if anyone here is interested in Tiki drinks but I am sure they are going to be much better than your run of the mill Mai Tai!

Depending on the time of day, it should only be a 15-20 min drive each way, so depending on how bad your craving is..... You might even get lucky if he is smoking some ribs and butt. ← speaking of SatchMo's and time of day- I found out the hard way that they are closed on Sundays! To save an EG'teers the same disappointment, I copied down the times as they were listed on the chalkboard today M/T 10:30-3 (3:30?) can't read my own writing! W 10:30-7:30 R/F/S- 10:30-10 Sun- CLOSED Got me some chicken at Specks, and the leftovers sure are hitting the spot right now!

thanks for your input everybody- I will be putting the places mentioned on my googlemap!

I don't know if there is any bar that offers this service but it just occurred to me that it would be good for folks new to the "serious cocktail" scene to be able to try a small sample of a variety of drinks, or even liquors in a smaller portion, to sample and decide. Kind of like when you go to a brewery and they give you a small glass of each of their offerings, and a description of what each is supposed to be like. Not necessarily shots, but like a Mini Manhattan? a teeny Sazerac? Where I would not have to be paying $10-$12 for a drink that I realized after a few sips really wasn't for me? Does anyplace offer this type of thing or am I just dreaming?

I don't often post on the New England board, but I read it often as that is where I am from. Just wanted to mention that on my last visit home I stopped by the Liberty Elm diner en route to TF Green and had a swell breakfast. The place was hoppin' with live music on a Sunday, how cool! It was a bit of a wait even for a seat at the counter, but I was offered a beverage to sip while waiting. The folks working there were busy and friendly and the folks I sat beside were very welcoming too. I got to sit right across from the gent making the fresh fruit juices, and even though I am not a juice fan I will definitely be ordering some next visit. Already trying to make it a stop anytime we're flying/driving up home. If this place was in my neck of the woods I'd be a fixture there for sure! http://libertyelmdiner.com/ 777 Elmwood Ave. Providence RI (401) 467-0777

I can't help seeing the irony in the fact that the new "Phoenix Diner" which is located in a strip mall (and therefore isn't a diner at all in my book) is right across the street from the uprooted and displaced Vale Rio diner sitting in Puleo's back yard! In other news, based on the recommendation of this board we tried Wasko's on Friday and got an Italian Zep and a prime rib sub/hoagie. I was pleasantly surprised by the prime rib, with the recommended bbq sauce and raw onions, though the cheese was not mentioned on the menu. It isn't something I'd normally consider ordering but the flavors worked together really well and I ended up eating more of it than I thought I would. Not sure what the diff is between a zep and a hoagie, but the Italian was nothing special in my book. I would've preferred to have 2 prim ribs! Other local scuttlebutt- The building on the corner of Bridge and Gay will be an Italian resto owned by the Black Lab folks. Ciao? Unsubstantiated rumor that Starbucks may have pulled out of the Fountain Inn deal. Marly's "American BYO bistro" to open at 108 Bridge Street- maybe where the old ice cream place was? Baxter's coming to town in June across the street frome that. Ryan's pub is currently doing the renovations on the old Washington Hotel.

during my weekend errands today saw two things of note for the area: Cupcakes Gourmet, Rt 30 Frazer- tiny place, hard to see coming west, as it is in a small shopping center and the sign just has a cupcake on it. I tried some mini cupcakes (vanilla, chocolate, red velvet, mocha) and wanted to gobble them all down at once. Yum! That Italian Place- Bridge Street Phoenixville- looks like this place is going where Scioli's Antiques was, near the Columbia. Says it's to be an Italian market and also brick oven pizzaria- can't wait!

the glazed buttermilk earthquakes are my fave! Here's a link to their selection http://www.kingofprussia.com/suzyjodonuts/...t_selection.asp

Niot sure what you need, but we totally dig Suzy Jo's- my only donut go-to place in the area!

Not being originally from the area, I had no idea what fastnacht was when I saw them in the local grocery circular. Now with the help of Wikipedia I have been filled in as to the tradition of these pre-Lenten treats, and was wondering where might be a good place to sample them?

Southwark 701 S 4th St, Philadelphia - (215) 238-1888 www.southwarkrestaurant.com

"Yes, I'm more than willing to keep it "low key" in a place like that. But I don't really need to be TOLD to do that via a set rule. It's something I would do naturally." I think this is the crux of a lot of the rules- there appear to be a great number of people to whom these things do not come naturally. Hence the need to spell out what is acceptable behaviour and what is not.

Thought some Chester Co. folks would be interested to know Le Creperie appears to have finally opened on the corner of Bridge and Gay in downtown Phoenixville. I have not been yet, as my dining partner is MIA, but driving past last night there appeared to be a handful of couples seated inside. Went to Molly Mcguire's last night for all of 10 minutes to ensure that a pal of mine had enough of an audience for his gig last night. The place was packed which is a good sign for the town and it's nice that they have made the place non-smoking even though it is not required here in the 'burbs. Once I saw said pal had plenty of folks to play to I bowed out and headed home, but it appears that the place is a hit with a lot of folks. There's a coming soon sign on the place that used to be Jesters, across from the Colonial, appears that it will be another pub called Tyler James'. And finally, we had some very tasty pulled pork sandwiches from Tex's BBQ cart when it was parked at Barto's pools a few weeks back- thanks to whomever suggested we give it a try. We were there a bit late in the day so they were out of some things, but the pulled pork was moist and tasty, the bread soft enough to soak up the sauce. Cowboy beans were flavorful as well, and seemed to have a little bit of everything thrown in the pot with them. Was glad we took our food "to go" however when it came to eating our smoked baked potato- it was mighty good with the beans on top, and I don't know how I would've managed to eat a baked potato behind the wheel! Looks like they will be at the Limerick Firehouse next: http://www.texsbbqpa.com/ And that's the report from P-ville, back to you in the newsroom.

The first thing that comes to my mind is NO TELEVISIONS! I was just telling someone today about one of my favorite things about the Blue Comet Bar in Glenside PA- they have 2 televisions up in the corners above the bar. Turned off. on the screen is a note- "Talk to the person next to you" --love it!

Thanks to all of you who posted about this place and also included photos! We've been here twice in the past few weeks and I think I am addicted to the noodles with spicy beef- something I would not usually have ordered had it not been for the raves here. Will be exploring more of the recommendations here as the weeks progress. We've been there at off times during the weekend and have been practically the only diners- hope that isn't indicative of the popularity of the place, we love it!

Since I'm here I wanted to give a shout out to Katie and her fabulous work behind the bar. I was at Chick's Friday night with 2 friends and not only did she steer us right as far as cocktails go, she was also a friendly presence behind the bar. Wish we could've stayed for din, but thanks also for seconding my recommendation of Southwark, we loved our cocktails there too!

I may have been too quick to praise this place, as others have told me of negative experiences here as well, from lack of knowledge behind the bar and expensive drinks to meh food. Ah well. Looks like the place that used to be Jesters is supposed to open up soon, and looks like the place next to that is supposed to be a food/drink type place as well. Also the Hotel Washington is rumoured to have been purchased by someone who plans on opening up a (sigh) Irish Pub, so there will be plenty of activity in town. I'm all for the Irish (3/4 myself), but hey, how about something a little different? Will continue to try the new places in town, searching for that elusive Great, Good Place (let's see if the Amazon link picks that one up!)

We were in the area, pizza seemed like a good idea, so we tried Rocco's today (Marzella's had a "BRB" sign on the door). We had a brick oven pizza- it was just about 5 oclock, and while I was a fan of the crust, the toppings were a bit mainstream tasting- "grilled" chicken was absolutely flavorless and dry, basil, mozz and sauce were OK. Granted the last pizza I had was at Regina in the North End just 2 weeks ago, so the bar is set pretty high, but still, this kind of reminded me of something you might get at a mall brick oven place. The crust was the only thing that would make me give pause to this place, not charred,but a decent cracker crunch to the edges. Will have to see what Marzella's is like if they are open the next time we're in the area wanting pizza.

Just got back from a quick bite at the new Molly Maguire's in Phoenixville (corner of Bridge and Main, across from Steel City.) The official grand opening is this weekend but since we drove by and saw folks in there, we decided to head in. They've done a wonderful job with the insides, and even though we just got a sandwich and some wings and a couple of drinks, this place seems to hold real promise. I got a cider, CH got a a Smithwicks (is it only me who pronounces it Smitticks? Is that a regionalism from my days up in Mass?). He had wings - nicely sized compared to some of the "pigeon wings" I've seen recently, and be warned, their mild sauce is surprisingly hot. I got a BLT and was impressed with the better than average bread. I am fighting some seasonal allergies something awful, so subtle taste nuances were probably missed, but everything seemed tasty, the atmosphere pleasant, service just polishing off their rough edges, and best of all, no smoking! Will be back at some other point to better examine the menu, here is a link for those who may want to get there before I do: http://www.mollymaguirespubs.com/ Beth, who can't wait to head to New England on Thurs- perhaps I'll get my fried clams after all!

Just read the below on foobooz and thought it might be of interest to this group. I have to admit while I support the right for the establishments to serve foie without being hassled, I myself have never had it. Which of the below places would give the best representation of the wonder that is foie gras to a novice like myself? http://foobooz.com/2007/09/try-foie-gras-for-5/#more-3094

oooh, I am heading up home this weekend and clams are definitely on my radar and will report my findings as well. Ah "research" ;-)