The Swift Half

[Tim Dolan]

I was at the Swift Half this past Friday night, and if this bar was a Phillies prospect it would be Kyle Drabek. It has the makeup to be an absolutely awesome place. Dark wood all over the place inside, gorgeous patio that opens to the piazza outside. And of course, there's that killer video screen to watch Phillies games on. (By the way, the Piazza is absolutely going to be the new best place to watch a Phillies/Eagles playoff game regardless of how non-sports-centric the area is. Seriously, it will be awesome, and it will be packed come playoff time. If you're like me that's great news. If your a hipster who lives in the area, that screen will become the bane of your existence.)

Anyway, I have to admit I'm pretty smitten with that whole area. Completely crummy 10 years ago, completely awesome now and getting better by the day. I was born an optimist but raised with Philly-skepticism, and I think the whole area rocks. At that's still with full knowledge of the fact that two people were recently murdered there, which was very tragic.

Ok, on to the food. Between 3 of us we had the lamb chops, the duck prosciutto and arugula flatbread, the mussels, the buffalo shrimp, and an order of fries. The flatbread was the best thing we had and was very good. From there, I'd say the lambs chops and shrimp were just ok, with the mussels and size of the fries slightly disappointing. The mussels were very small themselves and the accompanying broth lacked any zip to it. The mussels at Nodding Head are better by a mile. The fries come wrapped in paper and are served in what I'm almost positive isn't a pint glass. It seemed like it was a 12oz glass but I could certainly be wrong. (And if I am, I'm an idiot. Again, this is entirely possible.) They were only the regular fries as opposed to the sweet potato mix that they serve at Good Dog.

Nothing was bad, but it certainly has some catching up to do to get on the same level as it's older brother. And it definitely needs to put up a better fight since the Gastropub Champ aka Standard Tap is two blocks down the street. I'd also argue that it's a pinch expensive, but I guess it's justified given the brand new space and glorious video screen that they're helping provide. That's the thing though, this place is definitely not there just to pander to the video screen-worshipping public. It wants to be better than that. Of course, they've only been open for like a day and everyone who worked there seemed to be very cool and helpful, so I can't imagine this place NOT getting any better. I'm certainly hoping it works out.

[Tim Dolan]

These are the short rib sliders with horseradish cream from the Swift Half. The meat was very tender and delicious, very similar to pulled pork. Washed it down with a few oatmeal stouts that you can see in the top of the picture. Jeremy Maclin would score his first NFL touchdown on a 51 yard bomb from Donovan McNabb about 15 seconds after these arrived and the Piazza broke out in cheers. One could do much worse on a gorgeous fall Sunday afternoon.

[mattohara]

Looks great! I have to get out there again.

also,

People, a slider is something very specific. It is not just a mini hamburger. It's a thin, thin slip of beef, cooked on a griddle with onions and pickles piled atop patty. The steam from the onions does as much cooking as the griddle. The buns are placed atop the onions, absorbing the pungent aroma and flavor.

from

this site.

chefs everywhere should use this guide to hamburger and cheeseburger styles.