Philadelphia Weekend Report

[fchrisgrimm]

We had a terrific trip to Philadelphia (from Connecticut) this past weekend (quite a beautiful weekend at that). Many thanks especially to those who steered us toward Pif.

We drove in on Friday and checked into the Hyatt Penn's Landing. $60/night via Priceline - anyone not using Priceline, especially via the sound guidance of BiddingForTravel.com, is missing out on bargains. Pardon the shameless plug, but I have never gone wrong when looking for a city hotel bargain (and I've been using for probably five years).

After checking in on Friday, we wandered around the historic district for a few hours, biding time for dinner.

Morimoto

Fine dinner at Morimoto. I had the $80 Omasake with beverage, while Leslie had the $100 with sake.

First courses: Me - a mound of yellowtail with scallion and caviar served in a light broth (with Veuve Cliquot gold label). L - basically the same, using fatty tuna. Great, comforting start.

Second courses: Me - an oyster ceviche in ginger, sesame, soy (with a Morimoto Martini - sake, vodka, and Japanese cuke slices). L - Striped bass served in a similar fashion. We all but swapped as we preferred eachothers - still quite nice. Really loved the drink

Third courses: Me - seared spicey mackerel with something resembling a light chutney (Clos des Papes Sauv Blanc). L - seared red snapper with an aioli like sauce. While notes are blurry, I believe these were both served over mizuna or some such greens. Hey - the more you drink, the blurrier the notes get.

Fourth course: citron sorbet. Almost too creamy to be palate cleansing - great stuff.

(The break in the action allowed for some contemplation of the surroundings. I love the general set-up. The green lighting by entry and the sushi bar at the other end of this very long room contribute to a sense of elsewhere, completely removing you from the outside world. I know it's an old restaurant trick (like Morton's!), but removing windows and creating the right atmosphere can work to wonderful effect. I enjoyed the wavy wood ceiling and the sculpted walls - which contributed to a feeling both modern and gently ocean like. Though that first sculpted portion of wall looked oddly like a Booda Bone, making us miss our two dogs that didn't take the trip. Finally - what's with the lamps? Sometimes a lamp is only a lamp, but these are both phallic and immovable, being wired through the base of the table. They can be a bit of a distraction to quiet conversation and are just, well, a bit much. Back to dinner...)

Fifth course: Me - tempura shrimp with a chili 'sauce' (Witness Tree Pinot noir - being an Oregon PN nut, I was pleased with the offering). L - twice steamed hallibut in sake with ginger, scallions, and ?. Leslie's was terrific. I won't say that mine wasn't, but I have had a mental block on tempura for many years. Even at it's best, a dish like this, to my palate, is near indistinguishable from mediocre sweet-and-sour shrimp. Any sauce makes the whole thing gummy. It tasted nice enough, but so does sugar-laden fast food - and that doesn't make it good. Rather than dis the dish, I would just say that it's not my thing. And Les thought mine was perfectly good. Thankfully, after this, I had no fear of leaving the restaurant hungry.

Sixth course: Me - Black cod with foie gras (and an Oz Shiraz that I can't now recall). L - Kobe beef prepped over Japanese sweet potatoes. Loved both dishes. This was probably the highpoint (of course, I'm a foie gras nut) - but the buttery black cod matched perfectly with the foie gras - simply a luscious combo.

Seventh course: Assorted sushi (with a reserve Morimoto sake). Sushi was both a terrific course and a palate cleansing offering, at this point. And while I have not really been a sake fan, I have to say that I truly enjoyed both this and what Leslie had.

Eighth course (dessert): coconut parfait with mango sorbet and red wine sauce (Veuve Cliquot demi-sec). Also being a huge coconut fan, this was perfect for me. (Leslie's father hates coconut - something that, in ten years, I have yet to fathom!)

All in all, we completely enjoyed the well-prepared, creative dishes and the nice atmosphere of the place. While it is not a bargain, I would say that they probably price as close to precisely what they should as any restaurant I have dined at. Service was all but impeccable - only glitch was when we had to tell one of the young servers (kids these days!) that 'pitted' means the pit has been removed! Otherwise, the place ran like the proverbial well-oiled machine. I wouldn't go again, only because I don't like to spend that much at the same place more than once, instead of trying other things. And the singular focus of the place, relative to other top-notch restaurants, made this a stop well-worth making.

On Saturday we went to the U. Penn Natural History Museum before lunching...

Sansom Street Oyster House

(Hi Katie! Would've tried to track you down, but the place was hopping.)

Only complaint about Sansom Street - it took 25 minutes to get a half-dozen oysters each. It's not like they have to be cooked! And the shucker didn't seem to be vigorously shucking (and I had a direct view of the bar). But the waitress was very nice and hard working, offering to comp us coffee and dessert (we declined). Once we got our bivalves, things went rather smoothly. I followed with the fried oyster plate, while Leslie opted for the gumbo. The plate was nicely made and the gumbo was top notch. This is more or less standard fare, but they certainly get it right at SSOH. Once the fresh oysters made it to the table, everything else was prompt, so we were ultimately out of there in 45 minutes. But (just saying) the 25 minute initial wait did tend to depress my mood a bit.

This was followed by more touristy activities, including a fun stroll around Reading Terminal Market.

Saturday night we met two friends from St. Louis who had flown in for the Dali exhibit.

Pif

I'm still blown away by the concept of fine BYO dining - a foreign concept up here in Connecticut. If you look at the wine in one's basement as a sunk cost (now there's a rationalization!), it makes for remarkably inexpensive fine dining.

Wines brought to Pif included: a 1999 Marcel Deiss Englegarten Riesling - wasn't the best for sipping, but was ideal with appetizers. With dinner - a 2000 Testerosa Sleepy Hollow Vineyard Chard and a 1999 Domaine Serene Mark Bradford Estate Pinot noir. Both wines were fantastic - though the nose of the Serene was more like black top soil than dirt. I'd also brought a Tokay for dessert, but we opted to sip the Chard, instead.

Appetizers for the four of us: Watercress and Endive with Goat Cheese; Charcuterie Plate; Razor Clams with Mint; Foie Gras Terrine. I didn't taste the first two, but our friends seemed to enjoy. Loved the foie gras (no surprise there) - it was as creamy as the Morimoto sorbet. The Razor Clams, chopped and served ceviche style, were, plain and simply, the finest dish that we had all weekend. Splendid. Absolutely perfect. Can't say enough.

Main Courses: Cote de Boef with green peppercorns and cognac (x2); Halibut a la Nicoise; Whole Roasted Bronzino. Our friends both seemed to enjoy the beef (those unadventurous St. Louis eaters!). Leslie loved the halibut - probably her fav fish. I think it is simply hard to top whole roasted fish, so completely enjoyed the Bronzino, which was served with sauteed brocolini, a few white beans, and a couple of cherry tomatoes.

We split a cheese plate: Munster with Cumin Seeds; Laguiole Vieux; Roquefort Papillion.

Desserts: Apple Crepe; Dame Blanche; Chocolate Cognac Fondant; Riz au Lait. There wasn't a lot of sharing of dessert! I loved the rice pudding, one of my favorite things in the world!

Pif is a very small place in the Italian Market district. Maybe a dozen tables. It was pretty full from the time we entered until we left (7ish to 10ish). Couldn't be more different from Morimoto - small staff, close quarters - but it is the kind of place that I love. With tip, our half of the tab was about $120. Again, acknowleging that the wine cost me something at some point, I still can't get over what a bargain this is - and it's not like we took the cheap way out at dinner. Great food, great value - I would certainly return on our next trip to Philly.

As good as Morimoto is (and it is certainly a finer total experience), we could (bringing wine) eat at Pif three times, for (less than?) the cost of our dinner at Morimoto. It's apples and oranges, nonetheless... And, as mentioned before, Pif did serve us the best dish of the trip.

Looking forward to the next trip to Philly - maybe we'll try some of the other BYO's - but I sure hope to be back at Pif.

Edited April 12, 2005 by fchrisgrimm (log)

[mrbigjas]

wow, great report. thanks!

[philadining]

Yeah, great report, thanks for taking such good notes! Just curious, were they picking the beverages for you at Morimoto? And overall did you think they worked well? And what did that cost?

Thanks again.

[fchrisgrimm]

Yeah, great report, thanks for taking such good notes!  Just curious, were they picking the beverages for you at Morimoto? And overall did you think they worked well? And what did that cost?

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The beverage option was $60. Given the quantity and quality, I actually came away feeling that is a very good deal for the bevs. On first blush, a wine option at three-quarters the meal price seemed a lot, but I was quite pleased.

The shiraz and, to a lesser extent, the Pinot were a little big relative to the food. That said, I'm generally a "whites for lunch, reds for dinner" person, so I was fine with them. They certainly fit the general rule of going progressively bigger with the wines. But reds are a tough match with what you get at Morimoto.

If I was the chef, maybe I would have swapped the order of the tempura and the black cod/foie gras, serving an off-dry riesling or even gewurtz with the black cod and serving a lighter-style Pinot with the tempura - though you really want something acidic with the tempura.

But that is really splitting hairs. Ultimately, the matches were well planned and first rate. I also liked that it wasn't the typical offering of a different wine with each dish, as I especially enjoyed the martini and the sake (I know, it's wine). Bookending the meal with sparkling wine seemed a nice touch.

If I was to go there again, I would certainly go with the beverage option again - and I would wholeheartedly recommend that others do the same. I always like to go with the wine option at price fixe dinners - I'd be hard pressed to say when I've been happier with the wine (or bev)-by-the-glass roster.

[cinghiale]

I'll third the kudos on the report. Glad you enjoyed the BYO experience. IMO, there are others that rival Pif. Be sure to launch a debate thereon prior to your next trip.

[fchrisgrimm]

I'll third the kudos on the report.  Glad you enjoyed the BYO experience.  IMO, there are others that rival Pif.  Be sure to launch a debate thereon prior to your next trip.

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I surely will. Unfortunately, I was too late in planning to get into Django. Marigold Kitchen could only take us early. Being partial to French food, I was pleased how it worked out.

But, especially with the cheap sleeps, the BYO's make for a great and fairly inexpensive weekend getaway.

[katbert]

On Saturday we went to the U. Penn Natural History Museum before lunching...

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Thanks for the detailed report, glad you enjoyed the beautiful weekend- everything's just starting to bloom outside. Penn's Archaeology & Anthropology Museum doesn't get enough attention and it's a fabulous collection + space. (everyone should go. Mummies.)

[MarketStEl]

On Saturday we went to the U. Penn Natural History Museum before lunching...

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Thanks for the detailed report, glad you enjoyed the beautiful weekend- everything's just starting to bloom outside. Penn's Archaeology & Anthropology Museum doesn't get enough attention and it's a fabulous collection + space. (everyone should go. Mummies.)

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It'll be even nicer when the air conditioning project that has the main courtyard all torn up is completed next year.

Pam Kosty (the Museum's smart and way cool public information officer, with whom I used to have a tight relationship when I was at Penn) would be very pleased to hear all of this.