It’s pure Portuguese soul at Northern Liberties’ Koo Zee Doo.

[T]his is the first kitchen I’ve experienced in the States to elevate the authentic flavors of Portugal to another level. Some dishes might be familiar to those who have explored the pork-and-clam pots of the Portuguese cantinas in Northeast Philly and Riverside.

But [Carla] Gonçalves’ husband and partner, chef David Gilberg, 30, who did decent enough work in previous posts at the Ugly American and the opening of Coquette, has clearly stepped up his game to a higher level of inspiration. An apt comparison, perhaps, is what Konstantinos Pitsillides has done for traditional Cypriot flavors at Kanella.

Three Bells – Excellent

Koo Zee Doo [Philadelphia Inquirer]
Koo Zee Doo [Official Site]

A commenter wondered how Stephen Starr’s stable of restaurants has fared in Craig LaBan’s eyes. After the jump are the ratings for the Starr spots we could easily look up. We’ll add others when we get EBSCO Host to do our bidding LaBan’s reviewed.

Update: Michael Klein has supplied us with the missing bells.

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Craig LaBan is a big fan of the pizzas coming out of the 800 degree oven at Pizzeria Stella.

Pizzaiolos must first be judged by their feel for pizza’s purest expressions – the simple reds – and it’s a measure by which Stella rises high. The margherita blends the brightness of raw San Marzano tomato sauce, milky sweet clouds of buffalo mozzarella, Sicilian sea salt, and plumes of basil, as good as any in town (OK . . . just shy of Osteria’s). My favorite, though, was a marinara that took me right back to the venerable Da Michele in Naples. It’s a cheeseless tomato round, but deceptively plain: The cooked sauce intensifies even further beneath a streak of olive oil that, in this oven’s supernova heat, adds a caramelizing effect, singeing the oregano leaves until they add an herbal pop, coaxing warm ambrosia from clove-sized fans of shaved garlic.

Three Bells – Excellent

Pizzeria Stella [Philadelphia Inquirer]
Pizzeria Stella [Official Site]

Craig LaBan bestows two bells on Brendan Hartranft and Leigh Maida’s Resurrection Ale House, the third offering from the prolific beer bar bar couple. LaBan finds the vegetarian options to be of particular note as well as the much-talked about fried chicken.

Resurrection’s twice-fried chicken thighs, meanwhile, are rightfully earning renown, the buttermilk-cornmeal crusts tingling with a pinch of sriracha heat beneath a drizzled honey glaze. I love it most, though, for its flourishes – the house-pickled okra that drips tartly onto the sweet and spice, and a German potato salad below warmed with molten schmaltz and crispy bits of chicken cracklins.

Resurrection Ale House [Philadelphia Inquirer]
Resurrection Ale House [Official Site]

Craig LaBan and Rick Nichols look back at the last ten years of the local dining scene, a vibrant and varied time. Among the bold text highlights:

• BYO Boom
• Beer
• Gastropubs
• Farm market revival
• Food bloggers
• New dining destinations
• Decline of fine dining and Walnut Street
• Steak-house explosion
• Changing of the guard
• Starr’s rise
• Garces and Vetri
• Comfort food

Changing Tastes [Philadelphia Inquirer]

Craig LaBan’s first rewiew of 2010 will be of Resurrection Ale House. How will the gastropub fare?

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Craig LaBan looks back on the year that was in Philadelphia’s thriving dining scene and along the way he makes some adjustments to earlier grades.

Five restaurants were revisited with two getting bumps and one an unceremonious demotion.

• Meme went from two to three bells.
• Alison two went up from one bell to two.
• El Camino Real didn’t fare any better in its re-review, the Tex/Mex bar remains at one bell.
• LaBan had another “see-saw meal” at Noble: American Cookery and the stylish space sticks with one bell.
• Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steak House got slammed even harder in its December inspection and LaBan dropped the steakhouse to the dreaded No Bells.

What 2009 put on our tables [Philadelphia Inquirer]

On the last Sunday of each year Craig LaBan looks back on the year that was with his Year in Bells column. Occasionally he adjusts bells to borderline reviews from the last 12 months.

Here are some of the restaurants we’d bet that LaBan has paid a recent visit.

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Craig LaBan delivers one last steak house review for 2009 and after several of these reviews this year we can say for sure that LaBan sure doesn’t like swarmy, upselling steakhouse waiters. This weekend he targeted the staff and steak at Parker’s Prime in Newtown Square.

One Bell – Hit or Miss

Parker’s Prime [Philadelphia Inquirer]
Parker’s Prime [Official Site]

Craig LaBan visits the now avant-garde Marigold Kitchen where chef Robert Halpern is deconstructing and meat-gluing back together the typical idea of a meal.

Great flavor combinations abound here, like the stunningly earthy taste of the chorizo-scented broth and perfectly cooked seafood of his “New World paella,” served over a base of cauliflower (instead of rice) minced into toothy cous-cous-size bits. Or the tropical mist of bubbled banana that topped a demitasse amuse-bouche, then disappeared as a rush of intensely rich, hot butternut soup followed like a squash chaser.

Two Bells – Very Good

Marigold Kitchen [Philadelphia Inquirer]
Marigold Kitchen [Official Site]