popplers

The streets of Philadelphia

For the first time in recent memory, I spent nearly 5 days without access to the internet. No email. No web surfing. No blog posting. It was strange. I was in Philadelphia, the City of Brotherly Love, for a conference all week. Since the boring part of the trip is the actual travel (flight delay, just-missed train, yada yada), let's skip to the fun part: restaurant reviews. Without further ado, an eating tour of Philly.

Monday night: SoleFood
As a rule, I avoid hotel restaurants. They're always over-priced, and the food is often mediocre. But after checking in at the hotel, I just wanted a bite to eat and a hot shower. (Hotel restaurants know that they have a captive (read: travel-weary) audience.) So, I ordered a Yuengling Lager and the Maine Lobster Roll with Roasted Pepper Slaw and a side of pommes frites. Yes, I did feel odd traveling to Philly to order Maine lobster, but that's another story. The lobster roll was good, but with a slightly sweet flavor (kinda strange). Happily, dessert made up for the awful frites.

Worst feature of the restaurant (food category): without a doubt, the pommes frites— limp, completely saturated with oil, not at all crispy. I ate one. Worst feature of the restaurant (non-food category): the music. Examples: a horrifying "lite jazz" version of "What's Going On" that I'm sure has Marvin Gaye spinning in his grave; a completely unnecessary cover of Van Morrison's "Moondance" by a female singer; and, mercifully, I can't remember the third one. My mind must have blocked it out in self-defense.

Best feature of the restaurant (food category): The Banana Fritters Fondue, served with caramel ice cream and four dipping sauces, rocked. The fritters were nice and crispy; I think there was coconut in the breading. The dipping sauces were burnt caramel, chocolate, vanilla, and a tropical fruit puree. My two favorites were the caramel and the fruit. Best feature of the restaurant (non-food category): the decor. I really liked the look of the place, especially the bar area and lounge: high ceilings, cool lighting, reasonably comfy chairs, mosaics, art deco-influenced windows. Unfortunately, I can't seem to find any good pix on their web site.

Tuesday afternoon: Reading Terminal Market
The conference provided lunch for us on most days, but not on the first day of tutorial sessions. Happily, the hotel was just around the corner from the Reading Terminal Market. After a quick trip to the ATM, I opted for an iced tea and a catfish po'boy at the Down Home Diner. Surprisingly, the iced tea wasn't the Southern-style, slightly sweetened kind. But the sandwich was tasty, and the home fries were nicely browned and crispy. I scoped out some of the other vendors at the market, picked up a nice ricotta cannoli at Termini Brothers, and dashed back to the class.

Best feature (food category): the sheer variety. You name it, they've got it. It's all fresh, appetizing, right in front of you. Best feature (non-food category): the building itself. The Reading Terminal Market was built in 1889. Details stolen from readingterminalmarket.org: The Reading Railroad (yes, just like in Monopoly) announced it would build a state-of-the-art train shed in Philadelphia at 12th and Market Streets. The new train shed promised to be the biggest of them all, fronted by a splendid pink and white eight story office building. Fortunately, after much debate, it was decide that the markets currently occupying the same location on which the railroad proposed to build its new terminal would be purchased for one million dollars. The markets would be relocated within the new train shed beneath the elevated rail tracks. Reading's new train shed would be different from all others in that it had a gastronomic bazaar tucked away in its cellar. Reading Terminal Market was born.

Worst feature: it's in Philadelphia, and I live in Massachusetts.

Tuesday night: Bliss
Bliss is headed up by Francesco Martorella, who apparently was the executive chef at Brasserie Perrier, The Ritz Carlton and Avenue B. I have never eaten at any of those places, but the dishes at Bliss were excellent.

Best feature (food category): a close race between the starter (Ginger Shrimp Dumplings with Baby Shiitakes and Coconut Ginger Sauce) and dessert (Banana Financier with chocolate ice cream), but the medal goes to the dessert. I mean, c'mon, the name alone edges it over. How can you not enjoy ordering a "ba-nahn-ah fee-nahn-see-ay"? I can't find their recipe online, but this one from Bistro Les Deux Gros sounds like it would be reasonably close. Make sure to artistically drizzle some chocolate and/or caramel sauce on the plate when you serve it. Oh, and charge $10 for it, too. Best feature (non-food category): the high ceilings and spacious feel, in what is really a rather small restaurant setting. The decor is simple and streamlined, with a nice palette of muted colors. It seems vaguely Japanese, but with lots of curtains instead of shoji.

Worst feature (non-food category): those high ceilings make for a really noisy dinner experience.

Wednesday night: Morimoto

While I was preparing for this trip, I Googled to see if I could find a restaurant from a previous visit (several years ago). I couldn't (and still can't) remember its name, but it was in the beautiful Corn Exchange Building. The current resident appears to be the Plough & the Stars, an Irish restaurant and bar. But this seems to be a recent change: World Fusion was a previous venture, and there may have been others. I remember the distinctive look of the place: it was in a "restored historically preserved Corn Exchange Building, dating back to the early part of the 20th Century, [with] 24 ft ornate ceilings, molded Corinthian columns and dramatic 16 ft windows […]" The food was memorable; I had a seared tuna steak that was encrusted with sesame seeds, and served with long green beans (mung beans, maybe?) that were tied into an overhand knot. This was also the same restaurant where I watched a really pretentious rich woman accidentally light her menu on fire (no joke!), but that's another story.

So, I didn't find the place I was looking for. But in the course of searching through the various Philadelphia restaurant sites, I did learn that Masaharu Morimoto has his own place, just a few blocks from where I was staying. As a longtime fan of Iron Chef, I had to go. morimoto offers a multi-course tasting menu (omakase), "designed to allow you to experience the essence of morimoto's cuisine." There are three tiers: $80, $100, and $120. I didn't want to push my luck with the accounting department, so I skipped the omakase.

I ate at the sushi bar, which is always fun because you get dinner and a show. Much to my surprise, Morimoto-san was actually there that evening. I saw him briefly behind the sushi bar, speaking with the chefs there. But he spent the majority of the evening lavishing attention on and drinking sake with the three people who were (originally) seated next to me. Two of the three were Asian, and he came over and conversed with them in Japanese for a bit. I must have been in the low-rent district, however, because as soon as 3 seats opened up at the front of the bar, he had the group moved to the better location. I almost wish that I had brought my digital camera on this trip, because all of the dishes (especially the extra-special ones that the chefs were whipping up for the V.I.P.s) were beautiful.

I started with the morimoto sashimi ($24), five assorted pieces of sashimi with seven sauces. It was presented on a rectangular glass platter, with two artistic squiggles of sauce (one red (chile-based) and one green (chive? cilantro?)). The sashimi were amazing— melt-in-your-mouth and each very different in flavor, complemented by a distinct sauce (e.g., tuna served with a light guacamole). I then tried the rock shrimp tempura with spicy 'kochujan' aioli ($14). This was highly recommended by the gentlemen who wound up sitting near me in the cheap seats. The tempura was the simplest of the dishes, both in appearance and in flavor. It looked like popcorn shrimp that had been lightly tossed with spicy mayonnaise, which was basically what it was. Tasty!

Instead of an entree, I ordered the dobin mushi (steamed soup in a pot with shrimp and mushrooms). This was a broth with a very complex flavor, smoky and rich and delicious. For dessert lovers, I am happy to report that there are no fish-themed ice creams or sorbets on the menu (although $10 will get you the wasabi tiramisu, a vanilla biscuit soaked with espresso and cognac, served with wasabi mascarpone cream and chocolate sauce). I didn't feel that adventurous, so I ordered the chocolate pot de creme, a bittersweet chocolate custard, topped with kahlua cream, and served with 4 tiny amaretti. And yes, I was able to go the entire evening without once uttering, "Allez cuisine!"

Best feature (food category): tough call, but the sashimi was fantastic. Best feature (non-food category): the sushi chefs and their mastery with knives.

Worst feature (non-food category): You definitely pay for the celebrity name. Dinner for one, no alcohol, including tax & tip: $78.

Thursday night: Tangerine
Tangerine was highly recommended by my fellow diners at morimoto. Interestingly, it is owned by the same restaurant group as morimoto (the Starr Restaurant Organization, which is also responsible for Alma de Cuba, Buddakan, and El Vez, among others). I was in the general neighborhood, visiting the National Constitution Center. After the conference-sponsored meet-and-greet at the museum, I wandered through the exhibits for a bit and bought some postcards. I started walking toward the hotel, realized that I didn't have the address for the restaurant, and called Chris for some long-distance Google mapping. A quick U-turn and I was on my way…

Best feature (food category): the reasonably-priced and varied bar menu. For about $12, I ordered a "meze" of 3 dishes: whitefish ceviche, crispy calamari with red pepper aïoli & kalamata olive salad, and a cold butternut squash caponata. The ceviche was amazing— flavored with lime and guacamole and olives. I've never had anything like it. Through a happy server slip-up, I wound up with an extra dish that I hadn't ordered: manchego cheese with raisins. Both the cheese and the caponata were served with thin slices of crusty bread, toasted with olive oil and salt. The food was terrific, a lot of different flavors and textures that went extremely well together. Best feature (non-food category): awesome cocktails! I tried their signature drink, the Tangerine (tangerine puree, vanilla vodka, and a splash of club soda). It was fantastic and tasted like a slightly alcoholic creamsicle. I'm looking forward to experimenting with these at home. I didn't try the Marrakech Express (vodka, Kahlua, and espresso), but that sounds good too. Chris wants to make Apples & Oranges at Twin Trees (Smirnoff Orange and sour apple schnapps in a martini glass, rimmed with orange Tang), but I can't read the phrase "rimmed with orange Tang" without thinking of pervy astronaut sex.

Worst feature (non-food category): The lounge does not have a non-smoking section. Blargh.

Friday afternoon: Bassett's Original Turkey
Airport food. D+. The less said, the better. Best feature (food category): the ingredients seemed to be reasonably fresh. Worst feature (food category): they were out of tuna fish. The bagel place across the aisle was out of everything except cinnamon-raisin bagels, though, so I guess I shouldn't complain.

Worst feature (non-food category): a three-way tie between the long lines, disorganized service, and general lack of cleanliness. Best feature (non-food category): the people who worked there were friendly and reasonably clueful, despite the poor set-up.

Posted by rv at February 21, 2005 02:30 PM to food