Gastronomy Blog by Cathy Chaplin

Restaurant Review

01 Jun 2007

Audrey Claire – Philadelphia

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3 Comments

May 25, 2007
Cuisine: American (New), Tapas

276 S 20th Street, Philadelphia 19103
Between Rittenhouse Square & Spruce Street

Phone: 215-731-1222
Website: http://www.audreyclaire.com

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Course I: Spicy Hummus, House Cured Salmon and Mesclun with Herb Vinaigrette Flatbread ($9.50)

Course II: Buffalo Mozzarella, Plum Tomatoes, and Israeli Basil Flatbread ($9)

Course III: Grilled Octopus with Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Lemon and Fresh Herbs Over Greens ($8)

Course IV: Grilled Shrimp with Saffron Rice, Spring Peas, Chorizo and Paprika Vinaigrette ($11)

Course V: Spiced Lamb Meatball with Chickpea-Carrot Salad ($10)

Course VI: Sauteed Softshell Crabs with Black Bean and Roasted Corn Salsa ($23)

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After four years of arduous seminars, tough problem sets, and way too much stress, the madness that is Swarthmore College finally ended for The Astronomer late last week. To properly commemorate this red letter day, champagne, good food, and great friends were in order. The Astronomer and I, along with his BFF Matt and teammate Connor, headed over to Audrey Claire for a celebratory feast with a bottle of bubbly in hand (and a lot of beers too).

Due to the extensive wait for a table outside, we opted to sit indoors. Luckily our group was large enough to merit our own table rather than a communal one because I hate hearing other diners’ conversations, which is oftentimes unavoidable in this compact space.

I always have a blast eating at Audrey Claire because the menu encourages mixing and matching flavors and sharing food family-style. My dining partners were refreshingly open-minded eaters so it was a breeze choosing which dishes to order.

We started off with two of Audrey Claire’s signature flatbreads. The spicy hummus with house cured salmon did not disappoint. I’ve tried this dish once prior and it was just as good as I remembered. Truly a perfect summertime delight. The Buffalo mozzarella, plum tomatoes, and Israeli basil flatbread was excellent as well, but perhaps too closely resembled a pizza. High quality ingredients and simple flavors are what makes these flatbreads sensational.

The Astronomer insisted that we order the grilled octopus because he is mildly obsessed with the tentacled creature. When the dish arrived, we were all let down by the ratio of octopus to greens; from the menu’s description we thought the octopus would be the star. Expectations aside, the dish was pleasantly light and the octopus was decent in spite of being chopped up into bits.

Our fourth course was chosen by Matt—Grilled Shrimp with Saffron Rice, Spring Peas, Chorizo and Paprika Vinaigrette. The one shrimp I had was suitable, but not as jumbo or juicy as I would have liked. The vinaigrette added a lovely tang to the shrimp. We all agreed that the saffron rice was more or less blah. I’m always surprised by how mild saffron tastes because its dying properties are indeed phenomenal.

Our fifth course—Spiced Lamb Meatball with Chickpea-Carrot Salad—was the highlight of the evening and perhaps the best dish I’ve ever eaten at Audrey Claire. The meatballs were intensely savory and impressively retained a deep lamb flavor. The chickpea-carrot salad was sweet, cinnamon-y, and amazingly delicious. The Astronomer usually shuns chickpeas, but loved the salad a great deal. A subtle mint sauce brought the dish to a whole new level.

Our final course was one of the evening’s specials—softshell crabs. Two good-sized crabs were fried up nicely, drizzled with spicy mayonnaise, and paired with a black bean and roasted corn salsa. The individual elements of the dish were tasty, but the entree overall lacked a certain something to tie it all together. I’m always a sucker for ordering specials and unfortunately they always seem to be a let down; I need to stick to the tried and true menu items.

FYI: this post marks the 100th restaurant review on gas•tron•o•my!

Dessert at Capogiro

Restaurant Review

30 May 2007

Walnut Bridge Coffee House – Philadelphia

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May 24, 2007
Cuisine: Coffee, Sandwiches, Pastries

2319 Walnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103

Phone: 215-496-9003
Website: http://www.walnutbridgecoffeehouse.com/

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Turkey Panini ($6.50)

Vegetarian Panini ($6.50)

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My friend Wes and I met up at the Walnut Bridge Coffee House last week for a laid-back lunch. After running by this shop twice daily to and from the Schuylkill River, it was nice to finally sit down and enjoy the coffee house’s wonderful ambiance and colorful decor. During our visit, the work of German artist Connie Reschke lit up the already vibrant walls.

Walnut Bridge serves up Illy Coffee, a good selection of pastries, and oodles of gourmet chocolates, but on this midday visit Wes and I both ordered paninis. After making our selections and paying at the counter, the paninis were grilled in the kitchen and brought to our table.

My vegetarian panini, stuffed with tomatoes, red peppers, fresh mozzarella, artichokes, and basil, was marvelous! The cheese melted beautifully under the press and the bread was perfectly toasted. The artichokes and tomatoes were fresh and delicious as well. This panini rivals Già Pronto’s as the city’s best.

Wes’ panini contained tomatoes, red peppers, fresh mozzarella, basil and thin slices of turkey. Unfortunately, too much basil kept Wes from totally enjoying his sandwich.

Restaurant Review

30 May 2007

Snackbar – Philadelphia

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5 Comments

May 21, 2007
Cuisine: American (New), Eclectic & International, Tapas

253 S 20th St, Philadelphia 19103
At Rittenhouse Square

Phone: 215-545-5655
Website: http://www.phillysnackbar.com/

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BBQ Dusted Popcorn (complimentary)

Smaller Plate I: Caramel Apples with Miso and Wasabi Peas ($6)

Smaller Plate II: Octopus, Grilled, with Paprika and Lemon ($12)

Larger Plate I: Pork Belly with Pickled Melon, Rhubarb, and Kumquat ($18)

Larger Plate II: Salmon, Poached, with Fennel Strawberry Salad and Basil Tea ($24)

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South 20th Street is becoming quite a dining destination these days, which bodes extremely well for yours truly because I live and work mere minutes away from some of the city’s best eats. Mama’s Vegetarian, Capogiro, and Audrey Claire are a few of my favorites on the block.

Snackbar opened its doors for business late last year and has received plenty of positive press for Chef Jonathan McDonald’s eccentric flavor combinations, like curry and bananas, and captivatingly minimalist menu.

When I dined at Snackbar last week, I was disappointed to find that the menu contained complete sentences rather than a playful jumble of words and some of the more adventurous items on the original menu were no longer offered such as the “Pork (Beer) Belly. Slow Egg. Dashi,” “Foie Gras. Quince. Buckwheat Bun,” and “Banana. Curry. Salt Caramel.” Luckily, the “Apples. Miso Caramel. Wasabi Peas” were still available.

James and I enjoyed the pleasant weather and some BBQ dusted popcorn while we waited for our food to arrive. The popcorn tasted better than regular old BBQ chips because popcorn is much mellower than potatoes and thus the mesquite flavor takes front and center. It was so addictive and I had to ask for seconds.

We started off with two “smaller plates”—apples and octopus. The Caramel Apples with Miso and Wasabi Peas were unfortunately mealy. I was informed by our waiter that Red Delicious apples were employed for this dish, which wholly explains the unpleasant texture. I think using Granny Smith apples would vastly improve upon the dish’s consistency and add an interesting sour element. On a positive note, the apples’ outer coating of Miso caramel and Wasabi peas was really fantastic. Sweet and spicy go together almost as well as sweet and salty.

The octopus was fairly good, but not nearly as adventurous in terms of flavor combinations as the apples. Encrusted with paprika, the octopus was lightly grilled and thus retained its signature chewiness nicely. The plate on which the octopus sat was brushed ever so lightly with a lemony sauce that paired well with the meat, but was too scant to enjoy with the entire dish.

To round out our meal, we ordered two “larger dishes.” I chose the pork belly, while James went for the salmon. The pork belly’s ratio of meat to fat was perfect, but didn’t melt in my mouth as I had hoped because it was seared to a firm crisp. The pork’s accompaniments, pickled melon, rhubarb, and kumquat were visually interesting, but didn’t enhance the pork belly’s flavor at all.

The salmon was delicately poached and very pleasant with the fennel strawberry salad. The basil tea foam was mild and fit in well with dish’s light and summery flavors. My favorite part was the salmon’s deliciously raw interior. James and I both loved the crispy salmon skin.