Locanda Verde

To kick-off a lazy Sunday morning (that would lead into a productive Sunday afternoon), we made the trek from Mid-town Manhattan to TriBeCa in order to eat at Locanda Verde, a popular brunch spot known for their pancakes. It was way more than worth it. Being a big bruncher, I like to think I’m not easily blown away anymore by your typical brunch. This one definitely wasn’t. The atmosphere was really nice and festive, with decorations ready for the holiday season. The space was on the larger size, but not too large, and had both a bar area and regular dining. Plenty of light came in through the wide windows (a must for quality picture-taking).

We began with an order of sheep’s milk ricotta infused with truffle honey that came with a delicious burnt orange toast. The restaurant also sent along a tasty basket of bread with onion and spices that was a real treat. I was a bit nervous, as cheese can be a hit or miss for me, but I was extremely impressed with this dish. The subtle hints of honey in the smooth and light ricotta were delicious in a delicate and simple way. I was tempted to just eat spoonfuls of the ricotta by itself towards the end. We also ordered an apple cider doughnut from the pastry section. It had caught my attention right away and sounded so interesting I just had to try it. The doughnut turned out incredible – firm on the outside, but moist on the inside, and tasted just how I imagined (like apple cider in case you were wondering…duhh ^-^).

Sheep's milk ricotta 

Bread :)

Apple Cider Donut

For our main dishes, we ordered their famous lemon ricotta pancakes with blueberries, lemon curd, and sprinklings of powdered sugar, as well as the hazelnut-crusted French toast with assorted chunks of citrus fruits and mint. It’s always a struggle to choose between sweet or salty, so to compromise, we also ordered sides of crispy garlic potatoes and homemade pork sausage. Both the pancakes and the French toast were absolutely delicious. I really liked how the pancakes were so light and simple, but still so flavorful. The French toast was a lot of fun – every bite had a mix of hazelnuts, grapefruit, orange, or fluffy toast. I also really enjoyed the potatoes, especially the small pieces that soaked in a lot of the garlic flavor. They were super crunchy as well, just the way I like them. Personally, I like to dip my sausage in a bit of syrup for a sweet, salty, and slightly spicy contrast, but the sausage was great by itself as well. 

Lemon Ricotta Pancakes

Hazelnut-Crusted French Toast

Crispy Garlic Potatoes

Homemade Pork Sausage

If the food wasn’t so incredibly delicious we probably wouldn’t have been able to finish all of it between the two of us, but as it was, we were pretty stuffed by the end. We left the restaurant full and very happy with our meal. 

Jamonera - Philadelphia, PA

This draft post kind of got lost under all the other posts that we have been doing; however, this was actually one of my favorite restaurant that I have been to over the past semester. Sorry for not only the delay on this one but also the dark photos...

We decided to tackle this one together, which makes it the first collaboration post! We randomly chose this restaurant because of its association with Barbuzzo.

Jamonera is a quaint little wine bar with a great tapas menu. Surprisingly, all the tables were occupied by reservations, so we ended up grabbing seats at the bar. (Make sure to make some reservations if you're looking to grab a meal here.) The atmosphere is classy and intimate, which is perfect for a date or even a casual night with friends. The bartender makes an effort to become your friend instantly, which really reinforces that intimate and friendly atmosphere. Overall, great restaurant. We can safely say that we would definitely be down to go back to try some of the other tapas. 

The Papa Frita was a great tapas to start off with. It was made of crispy skin potato with wood smoked garlic aioli, brava salt, and house made sherry vinegar hot sauce. As an avid lover of hot sauce, this hot sauce was great with the entire meal. 

Papa Frita

Moving away from all carbs, we had the Camarones de Ajillo, which was just garlic shrimp with arbol chile, roasted peppers, lemon, and grilled bread. The shrimp could have used a bit more seasoning, but the hot sauces from the papa frita took care of that.

Camarones de Ajillo

We also had the pork tenderloin to include at least one meat dish to our meal. The pork tenderloin was so tender and well-seasoned, and the flavors really worked together.

Pork Tenderloin

Website: http://jamonerarestaurant.com/jamonera/ 

The Fat Ham - Philadelphia, PA (PART 1)

In place of that wine bar that I'm not sure anyone went to before, Top Chef winner, Kevin Sbarga, has just opened his newest restaurant, The Fat Ham. Once I heard "Top Chef" and "southern comfort food" in its descriptions, I knew it would move to the top of my list for new eats. I planned on trying out the place on Sunday; however, I randomly ended up here on opening day with a friend who is a huge enabler. Since I'll be here twice in the span of a weekend, I will have two posts to cover the restaurant! 

Just as a preface, this place is southern inspired and involves a lot of meat. This means that if you don't eat meat or fried food, this is probably not the place for you. So let's move on to the food:

Baked Mac and Cheese

The baked mac and cheese was awesome. This isn't your run-of-the-mill mac and cheese that you can find at FroGro. Trust me, I would know as I had a few pounds of FroGro mac and cheese over Thanksgiving. The Fat Ham M&C had a nice, creamy cheese with potato chip crust. The contrast between the crunch from the crust with the pasta soft shell really made this an interesting dish that sets it apart from other M&C. The ambiance here feels very southern farm-esque, and this is really reflected in the dish aesthetic. Where else will you be served M&C in a skillet?

Hot Chicken

As a southern kid at heart, I was, of course, drawn to the fried chicken. Perhaps, this dish could have used a bit more seasoning, but the spicy aspect really made this dish. If you're really looking for something spicy, this is definitely what you'll want to try here. The hot wings top off a white bread with ranch dressing and pickles. As you see here, the plate aesthetic is well thought out and really reflects the theme. 

Apple Cobbler

Who doesn't like a-la-mode cobbler? The apple cobbler was warm and tasty, and the bourbon molasses ice cream really topped it off well. Probably my favorite dessert dish here.

Banana Pudding Doughnut with Spiced Sugar

The banana pudding doughnut was essentially an egg tart filling in a donut hole. The pudding was nice and warm; however, it wasn't particularly tasteful. You really wouldn't be missing much by skipping this one. 

Definitely loved some of the dishes I've tried here, but I'll give my final take on it soon! Look out for my next post.

Doc Magrogan's - Philadelphia, PA

DocM has an excellent happy hour with small plate specials and $1 oysters till midnight! I saw Hunger Games the other day, and I needed to get some oysters after seeing Peeta open one up in the movie. Although there were no pearls in these shucks, I saved a fortune on the $1 deal! My favorite was the Malpeque oysters, which had a crisp taste with a clean finish. If you're looking for something a bit saltier, the Sewanscott was equally as excellent with full flavors, slight brine, and a hint of sweetness. 

Oysters

Of course, happy hour isn't complete without some small plates. The favorite here was the crispy fresh calamari. These bad boys are topped with cherry & banana peppers, spicy aioli, and garlic-parsley butter. To even touch this plate, make sure you get a seat at our near the bar as they only serve it in the front. 

Spicy Fresh Calamari

Oyster crackers are always a nice addition to an oyster-filled meal!

Oyster Crackers

Remember that friend from my Rouge post who loves mac&cheese? Well, these wings are a shoutout to that same friend! She loves wings, so I decided to give these a try. I was not disappointed with the sweet minced garlic & soy butter sauce! 

Boneless Wings

My friend who ate with me is a huge enabler, and when you put us together, there are basically no limits. Today, our enabler personalities pushed us to order a pound of lobster for only $12! It was a decision we definitely did not regret after filling our stomachs with this sea fiend.

1 lb. Lobster

I will definitely be coming back here for more happy hour specials as they provide an excellent meal after a long day of classes. 

Website: http://www.docmagrogans.com/

Vernick

Ever since it received raving reviews from a foodie friend, Vernick has been high on my list of must-visit restaurants in Philly. I finally got the chance to go with a friend, who’s also been dying to go, and it was an incredible treat. The venue was classy and minimalist in a neat yet modern sort of way. The lighting was dim, but not overly so, and candles were lit on every table. Overwhelmed by fabulous reviews on yelp and a very eclectic menu, we ended up ordering something from every section.

Before our dishes came, the waiter surprised us with a complimentary teacup of mushroom soup. Usually I dislike mushrooms, but the soup was actually really tasty and nicely set the stage for more good food.

Mushroom soup

Our first two dishes came from the “On Toast” and “Raw” parts of the menu. The beef tartare with fresh horseradish came on a textured sourdough loaf. It was a perfect balance between the stinging spiciness of horseradish with tender beef and hints of cheese sprinkled throughout. There was enough tartare on the bread that it stood out as the main attraction, but was still nicely supplemented by the chewy bread. But the real star came next: the tuna poke with macadamia nuts and sweet soy sauce was out of this world. Based on a classic Hawaiian tuna poke, the flavors were at once intense and subtle in their variations. The fish was soft and smooth, full of a sweet yet tangy essence and was perfectly complemented by bursts of flavor from poppy seeds. The nuts and assorted vegetables were soaked in the sweet sauce as well. It was devastating when we finished it.  

Tuna Poke

Beef Tartare

The next dish to come was our small plate – tagliatelle, braised duck, and chanterelles. Having had a similar dish at Salento (which was decent), this one surpassed my expectations. The duck was tender, contrasting nicely with the pasta, which had just enough resistance, and was coated in savory sauce. The warmth from the dish was really comforting on a chilly autumn night.

Tagliatelle & Duck

The waiter saved our crispy potatoes & shishito peppers vegetable plate for last, along with our large plate of pork blade steak, onion marmalade, and sautéed mustard greens. Throughout our experience he was very knowledgeable about the dishes, how to pair them, and was very helpful (and correct). The potatoes were basically normal fried potato pieces seasoned with spices. They were good, but not particularly special. The peppers were more flavorful and surprised my friend by not being spicy. Our pork steak was really great. Cooked medium rare, full of flavor, with a crispy outer layer and tender meat on the inside, it was covered with a dark pile of marinated onions. The mustard greens weren’t our favorite; they were slightly bitter and a little overly salty. Plus, with all the other great things to eat, we didn’t want to use up too much stomach space.

Pork Blade Steak

Crispy Potatoes and Peppers

Finally, we got to dessert. I had originally heard many great things about the blueberry pie, but our waiter informed us that it would be extremely expensive and environmentally unfriendly to get blueberries during this season. But instead of blueberry pie they had a decadent chocolate pecan pie. The crust was absolutely perfect and always my favorite part of a pie. It had just the right level of flakiness and crispiness that filled us with warmth and happiness.

Chocolate Pecan Pie

Overall, we were extremely happy, very impressed, and full (although we could always eat more). 

The Melting Pot

I’m posting this a bit late but after scrolling through my pictures I simply couldn’t resist. A friend and I had wanted to catch up for a while and intended to go to Melting Pot for restaurant week. Unfortunately for us, we somehow planned our dinner for the day right after restaurant week ended T_T 

Luckily for this blog though, we got to order a lot more food and take a lot more pictures!

After much deliberation (there are lots of choices) we decided to go with the “4-Course By You” option (mostly because we couldn’t choose). This included a cheese fondue, an individual salad, an individual entrée, and a chocolate fondue.

For our cheese fondue, we went with the traditional cheddar option with sharp cheddar and swiss cheese, lager beer, garlic, and other seasoning. This came in a melted pot with plates of fresh bread, apples, grapes, and bell peppers. Although I’m not the biggest cheese eater, I definitely enjoyed it – especially the bread. The fruit provided an interesting palate contrast with the salty cheese fondue, as did the bell peppers. The best part is we could ask for second helpings (which we did).

Cheese Fondue

For the salad, I went with the Melting Pot House Salad, which was good, but not particularly memorable compared to the other dishes. For our individual entrees we went with Seafood Trio (mahi mahi, shrimp, and salmon) and The Classic (Angus sirloin, BBQ pork, shrimp, chicken breast, and teriyaki sirloin). The meat came out seasoned and raw on platters and we were given a pot of fresh seasoned vegetable broth to cook it in (think hot pot). The result was an incredibly fresh dinner, cooked just the way we liked it (not that I’m any good at cooking). Everything was seasoned wonderfully with bursts of flavor in every bite. I was legitimately sad when I finished eating, but definitely ready for dessert! Oh, and it also came with vegetables! 

Seafood Trio

The Classic

Vegetables!

The whole picture

And at last, the long-awaited chocolate fondue. All the choices were way too tempting, but we finally went with chocolate s’mores fondue which had milk chocolate with toasted marshmallow cream and graham cracker bits. With it came dippers in the form of strawberries, bananas, cheesecake, Rice Krispies, marshmallows, pound cake, and brownies. It was heavenly. The only bad part is, I couldn’t resist asking for seconds and consequently could barely move from my seat afterwards.  #toofullcantbreathe 

S'mores Fondue

Dippers!

Overall, it was a great experience, a little too pricey to go often, but a great treat. 

El Vez

Originally tempted by the appealing pictures seen on yelp, we finally arrived at El Vez at around 10pm after two attempts. It was well worth the wait! Although we managed to order way too much food, it was all quite good, which is saying something considering how full we ended up. The ambience was also very distinct – the lighting and décor was reminiscent of Distrito or Continental – trendy and colorful with a modern atmosphere. Most people there were lively and excited, probably celebrating with post-work drinks.

We started the night off with their popular Tito Santana guacamole. This came with chips and a spicy red salsa on the side. The guac was great, and I'm not even the biggest fan of avocado (sorry!). The mango pieces set a nice sweet contrast between the rest of the ingredients: bell peppers, chiles, jicama and habaero.

Tito Santana Guacamole

Chips & salsa

For the main entrees we decided to go with the Taco Tasting Platter, which had 5 different tacos: sea bass, beef, chicken, carnitas, and mahi mahi. They were all quite good, although my favorite would have to be the sea bass taco, which consisted of a unique sweet potato puree, grilled scallion, and fried jalapenos. The beef tacos were also quite good, especially because I enjoy spicy foods and the roasted tomatillo-chipotle salsa had a nice kick. By the time we finished the tacos we were pretty full already, which unfortunately may have caused some diminishing marginal utility with the remaining food.

Taco Tasting Platter: (clockwise from TL) Mahi Mahi, Sea Bass,Chicken, Beef, Carnitas (center) 

Close-up of Beef Taco

Close-up of Sea Bass Taco <3

In addition to the tacos we also ordered the Enchiladas Mixtas, which had 3 different enchiladas: chicken suizas, shrimp, and hibiscus. The chicken was extremely creamy and had lots of cheese, a little too much for me, but definitely tasty. We weren't sure what hibiscus was at first, but it was a very interesting dish with bright pink/purple colors from the beets and carrots, and was quite good (and vegetarian!). The shrimp enchiladas were my personal favorite, although they had a strange appearance from being coated with a cilantro sauce. I think the combination of flavors and colors for all of the enchiladas made the eating experience that much more fun.

Enchiladas Mixtas (R to L): Shrimp, Hibiscus, Chicken Suizas

By this time we were practically unable to breathe from eating so much (don’t make the same mistake we did) and sadly did not have room for dessert. Next time, definitely coming back to try the signature El Vez – flourless chocolate cake with peanut custard, caramelized bananas, chocolate suace, and peanut butter ice cream. :D

Matyson

Matyson was a spur of the moment, more or less random decision. A friend and I had wanted to catch up and we were deciding between Parc and Matyson. Having been to Parc last year (see Joe's post for more details), we went with Matyson, which turned out to be a great choice as well.

The restaurant has pretty dim lighting (which made picture-taking quite a challenge - sorry in advance!), but had a nice, classy atmosphere. We started the night off with appetizers: Arctic Char Tartare, Shaved Tuscan Kale, and Seared Foie Gras. The Tartare was great – light and smooth at the same time. The char was buttery and tasteful while the seasoning with hints of lime, apple, and fresh greens gave it a lighter, tarter (get it? haha) palate. The kale was fresh and very thoroughly seasoned, although not my personal favorite as it had a slightly bitter taste. The foie gras really blew me away though. It was incredibly velvety, full of flavor from the hazelnut and maple, and contrasted extremely well with the banana bread base.

Arctic Char Tartare

Shaved Tuscan Kale

Seared Foie Gras

For the main course, we ordered the Duck Breast and the Pork Tenderloin. Both were fantastic. My friend’s pork was very tender and nicely done. I was particularly happy with my duck which had a tremendous amount of flavor. It was complemented nicely with tasty brussel sprouts and other greens. 

Duck Breast

Pork Tenderloin

Finally, for dessert, we got the coconut cream pie and the house made sorbet. The coconut cream pie was decent– a little on the soft side, so my favorite part was the crust. The almond flakes on top were a nice touch as well. The sorbet was definitely of high-quality and pretty good as far as sorbets go.

Coconut Cream Pie

Overall, it was great experience although next time I’d love to try it as a BYO :)

Sushirrito - San Francisco, CA

Part sushi. Part burrito. Sushirrito has created a unique, hybrid lunch option that offers the best of both worlds. I decided to try the Sumo Crunch, which had surimi crab, shaved cabbage, cucumber, avocado, green onions, shrimp tempura, and red tempura flakes. The sauce was a sriracha aioli, which added a nice spicy touch to the meal. 

I also tried the queso fries. However, they weren't very memorable.

Sumo Crunch

Queso Fries

Website: http://www.sushirrito.com/

Parc Restaurant Bistro & Cafe - Philadelphia, PA

Parc was an excellent choice for a nice Saturday brunch beside Rittenhouse Square Park. Brace yourselves for a carb-filled post with lots of bread involved. 

One of my friends who inspired me to actually start a food blog wanted to try the breakfast pastries as our appetizer since we were with a large group of people. The basket came with a chocolate croissant, plaint croissant, nutella brioche, madeleine, chocolate and cherry scone, and chausson aux pommes. It was a nice mix of plain and sweet breads. This pastry basket was a nice start to the meal. 

Breakfast Pastries

On top of the breakfast pastries, we also received complimentary breads for the table. 

Complimentary Breads

To complete my carb overload, I decided to get the brioche french toast with apples and hazelnut butter. Although french toast is typically a sweet dish, I was a little overwhelmed with Parc's french toast. The hazelnut butter was great for the first few bites; however, I was tired of it towards the end of the meal.

French Toast

Website: http://www.parc-restaurant.com/