lfabio2007

I wouldn't say so, no, it was around 14,00 when we got there and, including us, there were perhaps 8-10 patrons in the room. We'll try the dumplings next time!

Well! We finally got here, after a few missed tries. And I have to say it was good, no doubt. But..... we were not tremendously impressed. We had the golden coins, which were... OK. We had the ginger duck, which was very good. And the twice cooked pork was good but not.. extraordinary? The 'extraordinary' part was in the heat. That, definitely, was... interesting. Maybe they were having an off day. The recipes seemed sound, just the cooking seemed .. rushed perhaps? We were there for lunch. Perhaps dinner will be better. More to investigate.

...and again... this place is proving to be consistently good.

Well, I'm fairly late but I'll add my two cents. First of all, the meal was excellent. My only regret is not being able to be here for the next one. As I told the chef via email the following day, it seems like I was very much correct in my original assumption: the kitchen is really something different - something much better - when it is able to actually express itself as it should. Coming to details: I concur that the campari in the hamachi crudo overpowered the fish somewhat. Perhaps a little less campari would've worked better. I particularly enjoyed the salad and I'd love to know how the 'mushroom soil' was created. The chicken wings were possibly the highlight of the evening. The texture in particular was impressive. The cod/pumpernickel/sour cherry combination was unexpected but very interesting. I would wonder if something similar could be done with Sparus aurata? I also liked the lamb with chickpea yoghurt. That which I had was definintely not chewy and the yoghurt was a very good accompaniment, as was the consomme'. The bleu, possibly, was the only thing that could be changed a bit: the cheese really overpowered the cocoa. Maybe mixing it with something a little milder would've worked better? Also, I was under the perhaps mistaken impression that the brulee was passion fruit, not port? The treacle pudding on the other hand was a definite highlight. I liked how the shortbread managed to temper the sweetness of the molasses. As to the wine accompaniments, I would've perhaps chosen differently, but then again, I am a peculiar european. I prefer my residual sugars .. a little lower, perhaps. With this said, my final comment on the meal is 'here's to many more!' We'll be back for December, we hope.

Mr. Dolan - thanks, I read that thread and I'm having a quiet conversation with my credit card. We'll see the result of that. John - quite possibly that is the shop. Is it any good?

There was an article on the Inquirer - IIRC in Table Talk - about the gentleman who used to have a steakhouse in Philadelphia and a high end butcher shop on this side of the Delaware (i.e. in NJ, around the Cherry Hill area). I believe the article - the most recent one I remember reading at least - mentioned that he was closing the steakhouse but keeping the butcher's. I can't find it, though. Could someone shed some light and, perhaps, express their opinion on the quality of the goods sold, as well as any viable or recommended alternatives?

And see everyone we did! It was good to put faces to names. A more thorough post will follow tomorrow morning, but I just wanted to state that the meal was such that we're looking forward to the next tasting. Very well done.

Reply received.. see everyone at 20,00.

I'm bringing this back up too. I admit I like crepes. Both savoury and sweet. And this place does a good rendition thereof. Plus, it's open in the Timeslot Of Death, aka Saturday lunch. So we've been twice in the past couple of weeks. We had assorted savoury crepes, from mushroom+andouille sausage (good) to coq au vin (yes, I know.. and indeed it was OK but nothing more). Again, it won't dazzle or amaze, but it's good for a weekend stop. And I still like crepes.

Bringing this back up. We've been going to Radicchio for quite a while and we've always enjoyed it. The food is very good and not overly elaborate, making it a very good alternative to cooking. Also, as has been mentioned before, the pricing is fairly impressive, especially on the fish. We went back yesterday after about a year's absence and it's as good as it ever was. The prices got hiked - especially for the fish - but are still very competitive. And the noise is still there, unless you sit outside (which we did). Otherwise, it's not creative and it certainly won't amaze you, but it's good, consistent and not fussy. Their fish-on-the-grill - both the langustines aka scampi and the branzino/sole/red snapper/whatever they happen to have that night - is particularly commendable in my book. An excellent answer to 'what's for dinner?' when the calorie count at Vetri's sends the scale into hiding.

Mail was sent. I am afraid I'll need a reply though.

Assuming there still are seats, we'll be there.

So we went to Fuji last night, we were at the sushi bar. We apparently had the uncommon fortune of being tended to by Mr. Ito himself. And there was much rejoycing. We elected not to go with the omakase dinner, after the various posts here. Besides, I was curious about the quality of the fish (many will say: 'but good fish is not the only thing in good sushi'. True, but it's what mathematicians like to call a necessary but not sufficient condition - and one that isn't met that often). Starting off with the special broiled bonito appetizer (broiled with a propane torch at the bar - very scenographic) and the monkfish liver appetizer (not broiled - of course), everything ranged from very good to excellent. The sashimi assortment after that ranged from the usual tuna and salmon (belly salmon, thanks, fattier and more tender) to sea bream, toro (more on it later) and even needle fish. The fish was of good quality and freshness and expertly cut. Even the visual presentation was tended to carefully, as one would expect in this kind of setting (this contrasts with Zento, where the fish was possibly even better than at Fuju, but the cutting was less accurate and the presentation conspicuous by its absence). Toghether with that we had various kinds of nigiri, from eel (again, broiled at the bar), to needlefish (for those who didn't have it in the sashimi) to toro again (what can I say? I have my weaknesses). My only complaint, fishwise, was with the quality of the toro, especially that in the last sushi served. It was .. slightly slimy and acidic, which it very much shouldn't be, I believe. I even got served 'the rest of the needlefish', i.e. the spine, head and tail which were left after taking off the filets that were used for the sashimi, deep fried until crispy. I didn't eat the head, but the rest, in a ginger and raw scallion broth, was very tasty. Mr. Ito himself is a significant part of the reason I'd like to go there and I think I can see why he's so successful. He seems to like what he's doing and, more importantly, he seems to like *interacting with customers* about what he's doing. So he'll explain fish choices and selections as well as throwing in the obligatory joke. Another thing I enjoyed was the wasabi. It tasted like the original thing to me, though I unfortunately lack the expertise to tell whether it was freshly grated. I believe it was, but I cannot be sure. An enjoyable meal, then, indubitably, with the additional bonus of reasonable prices - which I wasn't expecting in Haddonfield.

Wait, wait, wait! Bologna? I'm all ears . Perhaps we should take it to PM though? Sorry for the thread highjack, folks. I will, however, go visit 13th and spruce. It's a shame that they didn't carry over the nonfruit granitas.. I tend to prefer them.

Aha! This is just what I was looking for. Now I need an excuse to stay until the 1st...

Just a quick reply here, because I noticed a few things that I'd like to reply to. This is called 'granita' in Italy and it's not an american-italian thing at all. It's very popular in most of the south, in particular in Sicily. Some of the most famous - and appreciated - flavours include coffee, bitter almond and orzata (known here AFAIK as horchata for obvious reasons), so yes, it can be 'water ice' without being fruit flavoured. And it can be very good, unfortunately it's very hard to have a decent one north of Rome. I was honestly unaware that 'water ice' here was the same thing, but it sounds like it. I'll conduct further research. 13th and spruce, you said, Fenton?

We did our usual sunday market thing and got to fair foods. Once there, we noticed they were sadly out of mushrooms, but we did pick up the (excellent!) lamb and some cheese. We also found DiNic's closed (!!!) after finding Schezuan closed again (!!!x2). I swear the latter hates us.

We did our usual sunday market thing and got to fair foods. Once there, we noticed they were sadly out of mushrooms, but we did pick up the (excellent!) lamb and some cheese. We also found DiNic's closed (!!!) after finding Schezuan closed again (!!!x2). I swear the latter hates us.

We got there Sunday, after the longest search-for-brunch in recent memory (we did schezuan tasty house -> Di Nics -> Salt & pepper -> going towards Cantina los caballitos and went by this place by chance). We had the guacamole, which was .. OK, the mole poblano and the Chiles Rellenos. The food is a lot closer, in a lot of ways, to what I've had during my past visits to Mexico. The only thing that definitely needed improvement (see Xochitl) was the guacamole, which had unripe avocados and was definitely the product of a blender. The mole poblano was very good, flavourful and with an excellent balance. The chiles were also very good, although I personally would've toned down the tomato (personal preference). It felt.. more authentic than Xochitl, but I still feel the food there is more to my taste (not necessarily 'better', except for the guacamole).

Here is the report. We were there at 20,40, after two very large parties. Starting off, we had the two special appetizers, kobe beef and scallop carpaccio. These were excellent, perhaps the high point of the meal, with a citrus-soy marinade for the kobe (which therefore was not quite carpaccio, but I digress) and a soy-only for the scallops. The one thing that shone, throughout the meal, was the quality of the ingredients, even moreso than the preparation. We then had an assortment of sushi and sashimi, including but not limited to their signature 'square' roll and 'american dream' rolls - which were both excellent if a little busy. Unfortunately they had no toro last night, which was unfortunate - I happen to like it a lot and it reveals a lot about the quality of the fish the chef is using. I chose the 'mixed sashimi' platter and was midly disappointed: the fish was excellent, but it was shoved on a banana leaf and left to fend on its own. It also was a very 'safe' selection: yellowtail, tuna, white tuna, striped bass, salmon (smoked, no less). Given all the other more interesting choices on the menu, I would've thought that the chef would have wanted to showcase the more unusual selections, so I left him a free hand. This, sadly, was not to be. In any case, the meal was very good, with, again, an excellent attention to the quality of the ingredients and was by a very large margin the best I've had stateside outside of NYC. If, by patronising the place on a regular basis, we can get the sushi chef to pay equal attention to selection and presentation we'll really be onto something. Until then, neither Nobu nor Sushi Ichi need fear about competition, but I think we found a local favourite. Thanks, Vadouvan and dagordon.

Aha, thank you! Well, that's what's on the Ansill website, it should possibly be corrected. PM on the way. I'll definitely do so then, as soon as I can figure out which side of the atlantic I'll be on. And I'll second the question: how was the first 'Pif night'?

Actually I had, shortly after the mention that Pif had closed. The person on the phone professed no knowledge, so I figured that emailing Mr. Ansill himself would be the shortest and easiest route. I stopped at three unanswered mails. I will, out of curiosity, give them a call, although at this point sadly the second sunday of September is behind us and I'll be back in Italy in October and November. Oh well.

Well, it appears that they can only sit two to three at the bar and there's going to be four of us tonight, so we'll brave a table. Report to follow.

We stopped by last week and had another very good experience - the fourth I think. I'll second philadining's mention of the Queso Fundido and of the guacamole, which to me is one of the most remarkable things there. We also tried the equivalent of the chamorro mentioned upthread, now made with cochinita (suckling pig?) ribs, which was possibly even better than the shank, sampled before. Honorable mention also goes to the camarones a la sal, which my SO deemed among the best she had here. Churros to close were, as ever, a very good idea. Separate mention for the excellent margaritas, which I prefer with the Patron reposado or the Don Julio anejo.

We went to the market monday to pick up vegetables and were helpfully reminded that fair foods is closed on monday. Therefore, we opted on a side trip to the cheese shop for their excellent fresh ricotta (the closest I've been able to get to the real thing here). We also decided to sample DiNic's new roast pork with rabe. All I have to say about that is 'outstanding'.