Archive for January, 2007

Not sure if the new Yards Ch�teau Kenso �07 is included in the Khyber’s happy hour. If it is that means just $2 for the potent stuff from 5 to 8 PM. Otherwise, enjoy the Khyber’s other Yards pints for $2, domestic bottles for just a buck and $1 off everything else.

Half priced mojitos at Copa Miami all night will let you pretend there weren’t snow showers earlier today.

The highly anticipated Tinto recently had their sign installed. Still looks aways away, but is listed on OpenTable as opening to the public February 15th.

For all the latest on Philadelphia restaurant that are coming soon, check out our Openings page.

A couple of new web sites that are worth a mention today. One is a reservation scalping service and the second is a map-centric city guide.

And although not yet available in Philadelphia, PrimeTimeTables.com looks to be the first reservation scalping service. For around $40 a reservation they’ll get you in the hottest restaurants in town. Via Eater.

AskCity is a new service from Ask.com that gives you a map heavy version of a city guide. Perhaps coolest is that it actually has neighborhoods like the gayborhood is listed. No Midtown Village to seen.

AskCity [Ask.com]
PrimeTimeTables [Official Site]

The fine folks at Yards Brewing have come out with the first of their one-off special draft beers, Chateau Kenso ‘07. What is Chateau Kenso? Well according to the Yards web site it “is a 9% abv bronze colored, Belgian-style ale brewed with a load of spices and honey.”
And it’s only available for a limited time and only on draught.Look for Chateau Kenso at these fine beer bars.

• The Abbaye
• Brownie’s
• Dawson St. Pub
• Devil’s Alley
• Grey Lodge
• Isaac Newton’s
• The Khyber
• Los Cababllitos Cantina
• Lyon’s Den
• Pub On Passyunk East
• Race Street Cafe
• South Philly Taproom
• Tangiers

Yards Brewing [Official Site]

Phyllis Stein-Novack tries Center City�s newest Malaysian restaurant, Aqua and finds and original Malaysian eggplant in a shrimp paste sauce as well as something for the shrimp lover.

If you love shrimp, go for the coconut jumbo prawns ($20.95). Remember how this dish was all the rage at catered affairs and cocktail parties during the �80s and �90s? These were totally different � and addictive. Good-sized shrimp were coated in a batter of melted butter and tapioca, fried and placed atop a large iceberg lettuce leaf filled with strands of coconut and basil leaves. Although we found them a little greasy, they were superb and I liked the fried coconut. Its natural sweetness married beautifully with the hint of salt and spice. The basil offered a fine contrast in taste.

Two-and-a-half tips of the toque to Aqua.

Aqua [South Philly Review]

Brian Freedman continues his Hundred Dollar Baby feature at aroundphilly.com, this week trying to dine for two at Rae for under $100. He fails in that regard but it sounds like he enjoyed himself just the same.

In chef Stern�s hands, however, even the humble nacho is raised to stratospheric heights. In this case, deep-fried homemade tortillas are stuffed with impossibly moist, cured, smoked, and braised rabbit meat, spruced up with jalape�o, sharp cheddar, and cilantro, and served alongside a surprisingly subtle jalape�o cr�me fra�che. I have a sneaking suspicion that this dish may be unmatched against other rabbit preparations.

Hundred Dollar Baby � Rae [aroundphilly.com]
Rae [Official Site]

The Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation has just added a new podcast tour, their fifth, to soundaboutphilly.com. Philly Noir marks the first African American podcast tour of Philadelphia and features such recognizable voices as bowtie wearing Eagle, Dhani Jones, Kenny Gamble and of most interest to us foodies, Delilah Winder.

Delilah takes us through her southern cooking at Delilah�s at The Terminal. Other foodie spots on the tour include Jamaican Jerk Hut at 15th and South, Geechee Girl Rice Cafe, Natalie’s Lounge at 4003 Market St and Zanzibar Blue on Broad Street. These tours are really cool, so load up your iPod and bring an appetite.

soundaboutphilly.com [Official Site]

The Shining is playing at Movie Monday. $3 gets you in and gets you a free drink ticket. Hit up Sang Kee, 238 N 9th Street, before or after the movie for some solid Chinese food.

If you’re looking for a deal on wine, head to Westmont New Jersey’s Cork for half off all bottles of wine.

Messy and Picky head out to a post-holiday lunch at Caribou Caf� on Walnut Street. What they find is the beet salad is too �beety� but the croquet monsieur stays together well melted cheese that hasn�t gotten too gooey.

The final word: Good French food in a nice setting, but not a lot for the vegetarians among us.

Messy 3 Stars
Picky 3 Stars

Caribou Caf� [Messy and Picky]

PhilaFoodie knows his wine by night and is a lawyer by day. A combination that�s certainly useful when trying to understand the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board. He unravels the controversy of Chairman�s Selection pricing and questions the timing of last week�s Philadelphia Inquirer article regarding the issue.

The Truth About the PLCB’s Price Comparisons [PhilaFoodie]