Andrew Fenton
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Posts posted by Andrew Fenton
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I'm going to bump this thread back up because I was reminded today of one of my complaints about Philadelphia's food scene: there are no truly great donuts to be found. It's weird, too- we're America's fattest city, dammit, and you'd think we'd rate donuts that fit our girth. After all, when it comes to hoagies, we wouldn't settle for Subway; yet we're forced to rely on Dunkin' Donuts for our donut fix.
So, am I wrong? Is there a great donut to be found here? I was told today that Termini Bros. (in South Philly, not RTM) makes donuts; and since they deep-fry other pastries, that might well be the case. But I haven't checked it out.
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Jake Fisher, Dutch Country Meat's proprietor, had told me last weekend that he understood Haegele's soaked them in cream; apparently, that's before frying, which added to the density of the potato-enhanced fried pastry. It was certainly tasty and satisfying, especially with a good cup of coffee, and I'll be sure to get them again next year. But they are not worth any above-and-beyond efforts to acquire.
Basically, what Bob said. The fastnacht there were an odd (parallelogram) shape, and may well have been soaked in cream: after being chilled, they had a sort of butter-from-the-fridge texture. But nothing all that special, really.
It's odd to me that it has taken nine years of living in Philadelphia for me to learn about the ubiquity of pre-Lenten donuts- even my wife's law firm brought in several boxes of donuts. They were Dunkin, true, but still, who knew?
I only wish someone at the RTM would add freshly fried (in lard, but I'll settle for vegetable oil) donuts to their offerings. Nothing like a crisp, warm donut. One of the Amish vendors does them during special events, like the Pennsylvania Dutch Festival, but not year-round. Too bad.I can't possibly agree with this more. Seems like somebody frying up fresh donuts at the RTM would make a mint. Hell, I'd probably get one every time I went.
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One ethnic food you failed to mention having in Portland is South Asian, i.e., Indian and Pakistani. I don't dine often enough in that style to have sure-fire recommendations, but there are any number of good ones around. A few years ago a number of us eGulleters and others got together for a "Dangerous Dining Club" dinner at Karma, 114 Chestnut St., and it was thoroughly enjoyable.
Danger! Danger, Will Robinson! I went to Karma soon after it opened, and loved it; when I returned a year or two ago, it had gone drastically downhill: the food was greasier and less fresh-tasting, and even the decor looked sad and aged. I think that this has everything to do with the original owner of Karma leaving to open Tiffin (which is quite good, but probably out of range for a casual visitor.)
Still, South Asian is a good idea, and just down the street are two Afghan restaurants: Kabul and Ariana. They're both good, though I prefer Ariana, mainly because it's a little cozier.
And I know you've mentioned Portland's abundance of SE Asian restaurants, but I'm willing to bet (and a little bit of Googling seems to confirm) that you don't have any Burmese restaurants. So I'll second Bob's mention of Rangoon. It's one of my favorite restaurants in the city; here's a thread on it.
edited to add: when I saw the title of the thread, I thought that by "non-traditional restaurants" you meant something like snackbar. Which would also be a good place to go, though not, y'know, ethnic.
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Thanks for doing the legwork there, Bob. I guess I know where I'll be on Tuesday...
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No, but I had the soy chicken on rice. It was good (and actually, the rice was a cut above most rice), but didn't knock me out. Is the pork chop significantly better?
Percy, I'll give the fried rice a try.
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I must have just missed you, Bob; I also had lunch at DSG yesterday. After four visits, I've come to the conclusion that, with the exception of the soup dumplings (which I truly love), nothing else there is all that exceptional. I've had plenty of pretty good stuff, but nothing that blew me away.
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According to the Parc Rittenhouse website, the restaurant will be called Parc Bistro. Which is a little silly, but not incorrect.
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Hmm, I wonder if any of the Amish stands at RTM have fastnacht?
You might also try the Polish version: paczki, available from bakeries in Port Richmond. (For what it's worth, that thread has a reference to fasnacht- but no source for buying them.)
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PS: They will deliver in several weeks and their menu will be expanded.
Yow! I imagine that the soup dumplings won't travel well, but if I'm wrong... WHOA NELLY! That'll be great.
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I've seen gjetost at Downtown Cheese in Reading Terminal.
edit: seek and ye shall find! Bob Libkind has bought it there.
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The po-boy is described on the menu only as 'mushroom po boy' with rabe and goat cheese. From the two dishes we got that had mushrooms in them, it's obvious that someone in the kitchen cares about mushrooms, so I'd expect the po-boy to keep that up. Does a po-boy traditionally consist of fried stuff inside? My only experience with them is from the old Gumbo Shoppe in Aston, they had fried and non-fried po-boys there.
I'm thinking of shrimp and oyster po' boys, which in my experience are made with fried seafood. In theory, you could do a mushroom po' boy in lots of different ways; I'm just thinking that fried mushrooms are about the same size as shrimp (and are tasty as heck), and would make for a great sandwich.
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What is the mushroom po' boy? If it's true to the genre, I suppose it ought to be made with deep-fried mushrooms.... which is just an AWESOME idea for a sandwich.
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Bell's really is Valhalla for pickle lovers; also, they have the best selection of honey I've seen just about anywhere.
Which reminds me: I haven't been there for a couple years... maybe this weekend it'll be time for a return visit...
edit: and of course, don't forget the Lithuanian snack foods! Always worth it to have some of those on hand. For, y'know, company.
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I've only been to the Rib Crib once, and I wasn't too impressed; the ribs had that tough texture you get from ribs that have been parboiled, then smoked.
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I heard all the hype about Sweet Lucy's. First try I had takeout, and underwhelmed was the right word. Figured the drive home was the killer. Tried again and ate there and just wasn't blown away. I know that doesn't help since I have no examples, but I'm willing to listen if anyone wants to offer a specific dish to try. Both times I tried a combo of several different things trying to get a taste of it all.
I'm a fan of their brisket: it's smoky, and tender-but-not-too tender. Skip the sauce, though. And some of the sides are really good, like the beans, green beans and collards. Also, very good sweet tea.
Interesting that Phoebe's has a new owner. I've always thought their 'cue was okay, but undistinguished; maybe it has gotten better?
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Huh, there's something weird about this thread... where did the original post go?
Anyway, Philadelphia BBQ is for the most part only so-so. But within that range, is there anywhere that can even come close to Sweet Lucy's? I certainly haven't found it.
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That's a good point-- I had to ask a couple of questions to make sure that what I ordered was what I wanted.
(For what it's worth, Pagoda's soup dumplings-- which aren't as good-- are also called something like "steamed juicy buns." So there's some sort of translation issue there.)
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I really liked those soup dumplings: tender, flavorful, nice broth. I wasn't quite as blown away by the other dishes I tried: the pork & chive dumplings were a little bland, and the noodle and brisket soup (made with hand-drawn noodles; all the noodles and dumplings there are hand-made) was good, but not up to the standards of Nan Xhou.
Still, I'm planning to head back; and looking over Phil's photos, I can see that there are a number of dishes that I'll just have to try, when I'm there with a group!
Oh, and while the restaurant itself has all the ambience of a bus station, the people there are super-nice. They asked how I'd heard of the soup dumplings, checked to make sure I knew how to eat them, watched to see that I didn't burn myself, pointed out which sauce went with each dish, etc. Sort of the best aspects of a family business.
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See, that's the thing. I'm sure that Talula's Table is very good. Is it so good that it's worth it to make reservations a year in advance, and then drive out to Kennett Square? Django was never that good; is TT that much better? I'm skeptical.
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When I was in VT, the only pu pu platter I had (the only one I've ever had) had crab rangoon, and I was very excited to try it (I'd never had crab rangoon before, either). What a disappointment that was!
Ha! I'd never heard of crab rangoon until a few years ago, and I too was excited to try it. I figured, I'd been to a couple of Burmese restaurants, and this must be an example of Burmese-influenced Chinese cooking, right?
Or maybe... not so much.
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The comedian Patton Oswalt-- who once referred to the Famous Bowl as "a failure pile in a sadness bowl"-- has decided to man up and review the dish for the Onion.
Worth reading, especially for the appropriately Lovecraftian tone of the piece:
The franchise I visited, on Hollywood Boulevard near my old apartment, looked like it had withstood assault by bullets, flamethrowers, Baseball Furies, and a hundred hook-handed whores. Everything inside the store—including the employees and customers—looked like it had been rubbed with sad ham. And they were offering a new product for kids—"fun meals" that came in colorful cardboard containers that opened like laptop computers. A generation of children are growing up associating computer use with fun, grease, and food. I will flee to the mountains before I see how porn gets folded into that equation....
The end is near. I hear a noise at the door, as of some immense slippery, living mound lumbering against it. It shall not find me! God, that gravy! The window! The window!
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The Royal Tavern used to have really good fish and chips. I haven't been in a while, though; anybody know if they're still on the menu?
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Welcome, FALeibo!
I posted about a trip to Zot back in the spring. I found it disappointing, especially the mussels. I've been back once since then, and while the mussels were better than before, I didn't think they were better than okay (insipid sauce being the real problem). And their "pick a meat + sauce + starch" shtick seems weird and gimmicky to me.
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Ask nicely at DiBruno's and they'll give you a sample of the jamon iberico. It really is wonderful stuff, and I enjoyed my sample (which I figure was worth about $1.50) immensely. One of these days-- when there's something to celebrate, I guess- I'll head down there and buy me someadat.
Doughnut help!
in Pennsylvania: Dining
Posted
See, I knew somebody would come through! I'll check them out soon, or at least soonish.
(And yeah, I knew that sure, technically, we're no longer the fattest city- but everybody's gotta have a dream, right?)
Reliable sources tell me that, if they're not hot, those donuts are nothing special. But you know, I'll give them a try and report back...