Terence Feury, most recently of Maia and formerly of Striped Bass, Le Bernardin and the Ritz-Carlton in DC  is becoming the new chef at Fork. Longtime Fork chef, Thein Ngo is retiring to Vietnam this month. [The Insider]

Bierista, the coffee shop and beer takeout store planned for 15th and Mifflin is now going to be named BREW. Buildout is a month out and coffee up and running shortly afterwards, beer will follow with the liquor license. [Meal Ticket]

Mémé will begin offering a weekly Thursday lunch starting January, 8th.  Just about “any day now,” Mémé will be getting its liquor license  [Meal Ticket]

More in liquor licenses, Joe’s Peking Duck Original 1984 is working on getting their own. [Meal Ticket]

Marty Grims of the Moshulu and Du Jour Market might be running the White Dog Cafe if lawyers work out an agreement. White Dog founder Judy Wicks would focus on her non-profit work. [The Insider]

Brett Perloff who had bought Monkey Bar has closed the Rittenhouse lounge for renovations. He hopes to reopen next month under the name, Strongbox. [Philadelphia Inquirer]

David Snyder dines at David Katz’s Mémé and is taken back to a world less complicated.

For Katz, “rustic” and “simple” are not terms of limitation — they’re opportunities to impress. While the kitchen builds all of its plates with elements that have compatible chemistries, Mémé is at its best when it applies a technique in an inventive way to make classic flavors taste even better than you remember.

A Lasting Mémé-ry [City Paper]
Mémé [Official Site]

Adam Erace has lots of praise for David Katz’s Mémé.

The air-chilled, naturally raised Gianonne bird smelled like fall. Actually, every snug corner of the BYOB did, aromatic smoke and steam wafting from the open kitchen. Brown butter and cut wood and crispy animal skin.

Katz’s always-changing chalkboard menu clings to embers of autumn, while moving us gingerly into winter’s all-day braises and root vegetables: soft cubes of butternut squash aside two perfectly seared scallops; with a Canadian maple halo ringing a divine foie gras tart layered with caramelized onions and Fuji apples.

Between You and Mémé [Philadelphia Weekly]
Mémé [Official Site]

Were you out every night during the Phillies playoff run? Did your relationships suffer because of it? Well The Bite suggests some ways to make things right.

Doug Wallen interviews David Katz about his month-old restaurant, Mémé .

Going Out… with metro [Metro Philadelphia]

Philadining visits David Katz’s Mémé and gives the new restaurant his usual, thorough once-over.

There were no big culinary surprises here, just expert execution of good recipes. It’s interesting that at a table of jaded diners, the simple roast chicken was frequently mentioned as a favorite. The juiciness of the meat, the intensity of the sauce, the roasted crackle of the skin, all made for a rare treat. Why is it so unusual to find good chicken? Similarly the steak was a piece of excellent quality meat, cooked carefully, with only a subtle buff-up from a good sauce. Good ingredients cooked well - it’s hard to find fault with that.

Mémé - Comforting Food from Chef David Katz [The Philadining Blog]

Cooper’s Brick Oven Wine Bar, the wine bar by Jake’s owner Bruce Cooper is looking to open within a month in Manayunk. [Food and Drinq]

Ristorante Valentino at Pine and Juniper has taken on a new partner, Nicholas Maldonado who was the original GM at Bar Ferdinand. The place has been revamped and a liquor license is in their future. [Feeding Frenzy, City Paper]

Privé is just days away and Michael klein has a sneak preview of the lounge and menu. [Food and Drinq]

O’Neals Pub on 3rd has revamped their outdoor patio into a bit of a beer garden. There will even be a TV for sports in the great outdoors. [Feeding Frenzy, City Paper]

The M-Room is adding dinner to its menu. Stuffed clams with chorizo, London Broil with sherry mushroom Espagnole sauce, Texas BBQ pulled pork Po-Bo and New York Strip are among the highlights of a menu that tops out at $15.95. [The Clog]

Twenty21 calls it quits after Friday night. What was going to be a renovation has become a closure as financing for the overhaul fell through. [Food and Drinq]

Elsewhere in the last call department tomorrow night is the last for Melograno at their 22nd and Spruce location. They’re moving to 2010 Sansom Street and Mémé is moving in to the Melograno space. [Table Talk, Philadelphia Inquirer] July 27th, not June 27th.

It was everyone’s best guess that David Katz would be taking over the current Melograno space and it turns out everyone was right. Michael Klein reports Katz will be opening Mémé in September.

Mémé [Food and Drinq]