South Philadelphia is the place to be if you’re a cheese and beer freak or a vegetarian.

Tonight is the first of a series of craft beer happy hours happening at DiBruno Brothers 9th Street location. Stop in between 5 and 8pm and get a Flying Fish brew and also 10% off your cheese purchase. [Meal Ticket]

It’s also vegetarian night at the Royal Tavern where all the chalkboard specials will be vegetarian or vegan.

Meal Ticket spots the new menu for Robert Halpern’s version of Marigold Kitchen. His “post-modern” menu includes intriguing ingredients like bacon toffee, spicy caramel froth, Guinness foam and avocado in the style of foie gras. Be sure to also check out the photo gallery. Opening is set for September 1st. [Meal Ticket]

Positano Coast is honoring the gift certificates of seafood-centric restaurants that have gone by the wayside. The Old City eatery will honor Oceanaire and Bookbinders gift certificates for full face value up to $100.

Le Cochon Noir is taking its West Philadelphia barbecue business indoors with a 7,000 square-foot space along Parkside Drive. October 15th is the current target date. [Meal Ticket]

Bill Murphy, former chef at Blue Angel, Continental and Teplitzky’s is opening Cicchetteria, an Italian small-plater looking to open at the location of Di Vino just off of Rittenhouse Square in October. [The Insider]

Soul of Jamaica is the Lansdowne offshoot of South Street’s Jamaican Jerk Hut. It opened August 15th and features a similar menu. [Meal Ticket]

Bump is coming under new management and will shortly be closing for renovations. The bumped-up Bump should return in early September. [Philly Gay Calendar]

Sprinkles, the froyo contender in West Philadelphia is aiming for a mid-September opening. [Meal Ticket]

The Wrap Shack on 18th off of Rittenhouse Square is adding a liquor license. Beer, wine, mixed drinks and fortified smoothies will be on the new menu. [The Insider]

DiBruno Brothers wine bar replacement for DiBruno Pronto has been delayed and not  just by a few weeks but until after the new year. [Grub Street]

Michael Klein gets all obituary-like and what-not with his note that Dresher’s Carambola has passed into the Great Restaurant Beyond. [The Insider]

Grub Street scores an interview with Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board CEO, Joe Conti regarding the PLCB’s wine boutique concept.

Also of note in the interview:

• A wine boutique partnership with DiBruno Bros fell through at the last moment.
• The second boutique would be part of a Center City office building that is not the Comcast Center (Liberty Place anyone?).
• A DiBruno Bros collaboration at 18th and Chestnut could still happen.

PLCB Chief Talks Wine Boutiques, Partnering with DiBruno Brothers [Grub Street]

Little Fish’s Mike Stollenwerk shares some details about his upcoming fish with Drew Lazor. Expect it to be different than the Bella Vista BYOB as there will be a liquor license and the menu will be split into raw, cold, hot and sweet categories. [Meal Ticket]

DiBruno Bros. is aiming to open a wine bar in the Italian Market by mid-August. [Meal Ticket]

Part of the facade of the former Brasserie Perrier crashed down onto Walnut Street Wednesday morning. Sorry, this wasn’t an attention grabbing way of debuting a Center City Apple Store. [Philadelphia Daily News]

Savona in Gulph Mills has been completely refurbished and there’s a sharp new outdoor terrazzo to check out. [Restaurant Club]

Bon Appetit has a spread on Philadelphia in its July issue. Author Andrew Knowlton hits Bella Vista Beer, Distrito, Franklin Fountain, Johnny Brenda’s, Reading Terminal Market and Zahav. Meal Ticket has the scans. [Meal Ticket]

Varga Bar starts daily lunch as of Sunday. [Table Talk, Philadelphia Inquirer]

Copper Bistro in Northern Liberties has called it quits. [The Insider]

Di Bruno Brothers at the Comcast Center is now serving fries and offering a coupon for free gourmet dipping sauce with the purchase of a large fry order.

We here at Di Bruno Comcast like fries…a whole lot! So when we began serving our fries, we knew we had to do it the right way. We cut our fries fresh, from real potatoes. Our fries are first blanched quickly, at a cooler temperature to release the starch, and then fried a second time, in small batches. This ensures that you get the crispiest fries possible.

And of course, because this is Di Bruno’s, we couldn’t let you eat our delicious fries with just plain old ketchup (although we’ll give you that if you ask nicely!) Our chefs have come up with an array of gourmet dipping sauces like Roasted Tomato Aioli, Olive Ketchup, Wasabi Mayo and even a sauce featuring our famous Abbruzze cheese spread.

Fries Done Right [Queso Files]
DiBruno Brothers [Official Site]

Did you know Di Bruno’s at the Comcast Center is now open Saturday and that you can save 20% off of your total purchase all day Saturdays and after 4pm on weekdays? 

Well you can, just follow this link and print out the coupon. 

It’s Comcastic [Queso Files]

Today’s Bite highlights the brunch options at the South Philadelphia Taproom and is especially happy to see some different egg-free offerings. And if you notice in the picture above there are what appears to be Newbold Spuds on the plate. Almost but not quite. These chips weren’t directly from the fryer and no Taproom sauce. Still beat the heck out of regular chips though.

Also in today’s Metro, some late afternoon bargains and a tip that Monk’s Cafe offers beer to go.

Egg-free brunch? [Metro Philadelphia]

We really like Sly Fox beer and we really like beer and cheese pairings at DiBruno Brothers. So imagine our joy when we realized Sly Fox’s Brian O’Reilly was teaming up with cheese monger Hunter Fike this Friday to bring the deliciousness.

Sly fox will be featuring the following beers:

• Incubus Triple
• Ichor Abbot style Quadruple
• Gang Aft Agley Wee Heavy
• Saison Vos farmhouse Ale
• Rauchbier (Normally only served at their brewpubs)
• Pikeland Pils

The price is $45 per person and includes an antipasto plate for all guests.

DiBruno Brothers [Official Site]
Sly Fox [Official Site]

March 1st is National Pig Day and The Bite highlights some of the best places to celebrate the big day. Also in today’s edition, a last second Valentine’s Day idea that may, ahem, “save your bacon.”

The Bite: The other white meat gets its due in Philly [Metro Philadelphia]

Di Bruno Bros has added two new events to its schedule. First up is a Dogfish Head and cheese pairing. The second, on February 29th, stars the cheeses of Quebec?!

As gastronome and Fromager Affineur, Denis Cottin, travels throughout Quebec Province to select the best cheeses available in small quantities and then brings them to the 5 star chefs and specialty food stores in the United States.

As far as we’re concerned, the best milk product from up north is the cheese curd, which is used to make poutine, a Quebecois feast of French fries, squeaky cheese curds and dense brown gravy. Considering it involves such heart-attack-inducing ingredients, we’re surprised it’s not a native Philadelphia dish. If you can’t make it to Montreal, Kildare’s in Headhouse Square has poutine on the menu.

Di Bruno Bros [Official Site]
Kildare’s Menu
Kildare’s [Official Site]