The Grey Lodge has quite the relationship with the number 13, so it should come as no surprise that they have a celebration and a half scheduled for their 13th anniversary.

the event will feature 13 events in 13 hours. It all starts at 11am and sure sounds like fun.

• 11am – Dock Street Triskaidekaphilia Dunkel Weisse
• 12pm – Levity (Comic) & Levitation (Stone)
• 1pm – 101 with Philly Brewing plus cheesesteak specials and Carolyn Wyman
• 2pm – Brooklyn 3Cs (chocolate, coffee, chicken)
• 3pm – Weyerbacher Beer Barrel Bingo
• 4pm – Victory Pils and Phils + Really Old Old Horizontal
• 5pm – Grey Lodge Bar Mitzvah
• 6pm – Six Sixpoint Sixtels
• 7pm – Flashback with Boulder Flashback
• 8pm – Yards Crazy 8’s at 8 (8% ABVs)
• 9pm – Sly Fox Chicken and Egg Party
• 10pm – It’s Always Sunshine-y at the Grey Lodge
• 11pm – Flying Fish Exit 11

For details check out the official page on the Grey Lodge web site.

13th Anniversary [Grey Lodge]

This Wednesday the Grey Lodge will be celebrating St. Jean Baptiste and Quebec. It’s the saint’s feast day and he is the patron saint of Quebec so there will be Unibroue beers by the bottle and Quebecois specialties like poutine on the menu.

Also on tap at the Northeast Philadelphia’s favorite beer bar, a Sunday night comedy competition throughout the summer and on Friday, July 10th, it’ll be Christmas in July with all your favorite Christmas beers.

Upcoming Events [Grey Lodge]

Craig LaBan journeys to Bustleton Avenue in the Northeast for Uzbeki food at Uzbekistan.

The bread alone is worth a visit. This flying-saucer-shaped round with a seed-speckled indentation in the middle reminds me of a giant bialy, and is simply addictive when it arrives hot and crisp-bottomed from the tandoor oven.

Mention of an Indian tandoor may seem odd, but it’s a reminder that Uzbekistan occupies an exotic corner of the former Soviet Union, more Central Asia than Eastern Europe. Its perch on the Silk Road, touching the northwest corner of Afghanistan, explains the appearance of lagman, the hand-rolled noodles with roots in China that anchor bowls of lamb-scented soup, as well as plates topped with a soulful kavurma sauce of braised lamb and tomatoes. There are nods to Uzbekistan’s large Korean community, with dishes like “fimchusa” glass noodles tossed with spicy ground meat. And there is a deeply flavored veal-and-beet borscht, as well as handmade vareniki dumplings, to please the local Ukrainian clientele.

Two Bells – Very Good

Remember Rylei Restaurant, the Northeast Philly restaurant that got a nice review from Craig LaBan? Well UWISHUNU reminds us that they’re still there and have a good deal to boot. Three courses for just $30.

Rylei: Where Every Week is Restaurant Week [UWISHUNU]

Trey Popp gets off the beaten R1 tracks and finds Under the Oak Cafe.

Even the turkey stew had a light touch. The broth was rich but nowhere near congealed, and it came over a buttermilk scone, giving the dish a profile a little like a dressed-up pot pie. Red lentil cakes were sautéed to a thin crisp but retained a pillowy texture within, and married excellently with shaved carrots smothered in oil and Moroccan spices.

Mighty Oak [City Paper]
Under the Oak Cafe [Official Site]

It’s not exactly food-related, but this:

50 Chickens Set Free Inside Northeast High School in Phila [KYW1060.com]

might be the best high school prank ever.

Then again, chickens are food…

PhillyFoodGuys have posted a podcast regarding Chaikhana Uzbekistan, an Uzbeki restaurant in the Northeast.

Curious about Russian food? Chaikhana Uzbekistan in Northeast Philly is a good choice for the adventurous diner. Featuring cuisine from Uzbekistan, a Central Asian province of the former Soviet Union, Chaikhana offers an assortment of traditional foods designed to remind area expatriates of home. Thankfully the rest of us can get a “taste of home” too.

Chaikhana: Russian Food in Northeast Philly [PhillyFoodGuys]

Rick Nichols checks in on Fish & Grill, a real Turkish family restaurant in the Northeast near Grant and Bustleton.

Too many restaurants, frankly, rest on the laurels of “family,” as if a portrait on the mantel excused slapdash food on the plate. So I’d approached Fish & Grill with expectations lowered by un-stellar experiences.

Those anxieties, happily, were dispensed with the arrival of the appetizers – a subtly seasoned (with parsley and dill) fried eggplant and tomato salad, and airy, still-warm zucchini pancakes, given loft with egg whites, and texture with a shred of zucchini and yogurt-cheese in a whole wheat-and-semolina batter.

Mediterranean fare and a family’s care [Philadelphia Inquirer]

City Paper takes on Rylei, the Northeast’s BYO that recently received a promising review from the Inquirer’s Craig LaBan.

For Northeasters who desire a slightly fancier place, Rylei is a good bet. The menu isn’t that ambitious by downtown standards, and there were a few false moves, but Vargas has taught himself well.

The Great Northfeast [City Paper]

Craig LaBan reviews Rylei an ambitious BYOB in the dining wasteland of the Northeast.

Rylei is open for business, and Northeast Philadelphia, long a virtual desert of real culinary ambition, has a pleasant new oasis to feed its hungry.

The concept isn’t that far off from the dozens of BYO bistros that have sprung to life in gentrifying neighborhoods across the region: Husband-and-wife veterans of the restaurant scene decide to open a cozy little place closer to home, and name it after their kids, of course. “Ryan” plus “Leila” plus 38 seats and a dream equals “Rylei.”

Two Bells – Very Good

Rylei [Philadelphia Inquirer]