FARMiCiA Food and Tonics - Philadelphia, PA

The owners of White Dog Cafe and Metropolitan Bakery present to the Philadelphia food scene FARMiCiA Food and Tonics. A group of friends and I decided to check out this lunch spot, and it has definitely become one of my new favorite spots. The restaurant is located in a quaint location in Old City, and the food was absolutely amazing. 

Duck Trap Nova Salmon 

We were waiting on half of the group to come, so we decided to order an appetizer as the rest of us waited. The duck trap nova salmon was an excellent choice. The salmon was served with dijon-rye toasts, caper cream cheese, sliced tomato, and red onions.

Grilled Goat Cheese on Sourdough

This was one of my favorite dishes of the meal. The goat cheese and the sourdough bread really complimented each other, providing a nice flavorful bite each time. The salad was also surprisingly good and the farthest thing from bland.

Pumpkin Pie French Toast

For our sweet dish, we decided to get the french toast. Usually, french toast tends to be very sweet and difficult to eat after a few bites. However, this dish was just sweet enough to keep eating the whole thing.

Jumbo Crab Omelette

The jumbo lump crab omelette was also a great choice. The omelette consisted of the crab, sauteed spinach, sour cream, and mushrooms. 

Website: http://www.farmiciarestaurant.com/#about

XIX Nineteen - Philadelphia, PA

I went to XIX Nineteen in the past week for a friend's 21st. The ambiance and decorations were beautiful (perhaps the only good thing about the place). Of course, being at the Bellevue, the restaurant has to at least look nice. It is a bit awkward to get to the restaurant as you need to go down a few different hallways to actually get into the restaurant. Even after you get into the restaurant, the initial "cafe" area is completely empty because it is only open during brunch / lunch hours. You finally see people when you get to the bar area, which has a classy ambiance. You continue down the hall, and you finally come to the dining area, which is spectacular. 

The food on the other hand was not that great. The entrees were overpriced, and the meats were overcooked to the point of rubberiness. Although the taste wasn't on par, the food was at least plated nicely!

Bread Basket

It was nice surprise to be served a bread basket before our meal. They actually provide two types of breads: a plain white bread and a cranberry raisin bread. The cranberry raisin soft and sweet, which was delightful to start off with.

Pork Osso Buco

The deconstructed berkshire pork osso buco was disappointing. The meat was overcooked and on the bland side. I was surprised that the meal included bone marrow, which was the better part of the dish. It was fatty and slightly sweet, which was a welcomed aspect of the meal. The caramelized apples on top also complemented the dish with its sweetness. The braised collared greens kind of just laid there and did not really add anything to the dish other than balancing out the meat dish with some green aspect.

There are definitely better restaurants that I would rather eat at again than here. However, if you're looking for ambiance, you probably won't find a great rooftop restaurant such as XIX Nineteen. 

Website: http://www.hyatt.com/gallery/nineteen/xix.html

Grind House Killer Burgers - Atlanta, GA

Over the break, I grabbedd some frickles (fried pickles) and greasy burgers at this cool place called Grind House. I would compare it to a southern version of Shake Shack. The food came out in metal trays, which immediately reminded me of its northern counterpart. However, unlike Shake Shack, the appetizers are all fried, and the burgers are super greasy. Just the way I like it.

GrindHouse Style Burger

The GrindHouse Style Burger had american cheese, grilled onions, lettuce, pickles, and grindhouse sauce in it. I'm not quite sure where the lettuce was; however, the cheesy goodness made me forget that lettuce needed to be there. 

Frickles (Fried Pickles)

I don't know many burgers places with frickles in the North, but these are a staple in the South. These delicacies were just salty and crunchy enough to compliment the burgers. The chipotle ranch dipping sauce did a nice job in matching up well with the fried coating.

Cheesy Poofs

I was really excited to learn about cheesy poofs. These things are awesome. Inside the fried coating is a delicious pimento cheese filling. It comes with a sticky hot asian dipping sauce that provides a nice kick to the appetizer.

Sweet Potato Kettle Chips

The sweet potato kettle chips were awesome, mostly because of the fact that they came out so fast. I don't think we sat down when it arrived at our table. The hot blue cheese dip was a bit bland, but the chips did a good job in keeping our hunger at bay until our other dishes came out.

Overall, excellent establishment. 

Website: http://www.grindhouseburgers.com/

Rx The Farmacy - Philadelphia, PA

Rx the Farmacy isn't just for brunch (check out the blog post here), but the restaurant also has a dinner menu. I thought I would check it out since the brunch menu looked so good and the restaurant is so close the campus!

Mushroom Risotto

The risotto was a little on the salty side. It wasn't anything amazing, and it could have definitely used some sriracha. Then again, anything could use more sriracha.

Mussels

The mussels were actually great. The broth in which the mussels were soaked in was indeed tasty.

Wings

And what's a good meal without some wings? These parm covered wings were pretty run-of-the-mill. They weren't anything noteworthy. I don't really remember what it tasted like, which says a lot.