Da Philly Food Critic

The Game has Changed for me

2011-04-04T22:08:00.000-07:00

The last three and half years have been exciting for me in the food arena. I tried out for Hell's Kitchen didn't make it but it was a good chance to see the process. I was able to redeem myself and make a life altering meal for one of my friends recently. I was invited to do some cooking for some friends and made Kalua Pig. It was very well done but my friend from Hawaii who tried it said it wasn't juicy enough or salty enough. Can't make everybody happy and my food was top chef quality. Top Chef and all these TV shows on the Food Network, Travel Channel, and the cooking channel make dining out really hard.

Sure I have had amazing korean fried chicken, dined out on Brazilian churascos bbq, numerous buffets to name, and had some out of these world desserts. I'm going in a new direction with my blog it is evolving. I'm going to setup a YouTube page just for my restaurant reviews. It's going to be a daunting task but I'm willing to bring it.

Food is all about flavor for me it needs to taste good. I'm going to make a concerted effort to learn how to cook better. Stop eating out, repeat stop eating out

With every dining option available out there I will make sure I'm adding veggies to my meal. It's about a better life and that means eating clean, local, and fresh ingredients.

The best filet mignon I have ever made

2010-12-24T16:46:00.000-08:00

Bleu Cheese crusted filet with a Cabernet wine sauce, yes I did make this for Paul and Amy last week.

Recipe

First bring 2inch filets to room temperature the longer you leave them out the better. A cold steak hitting a hot pan is not a good idea. You don't want to be putting a cold steak in a hot pan or hot broiler. It won't cook in a predictable manner and will leak a beige liquid and alter the flavor of the meat.

Next, oil the meat and not the pan. The oiling of the steak makes it easier to get a really hot pan.

Next add salt and pepper to both sides. Now after 2 minutes searing on each side of the filets in the pan, transfer them into an oven for 500 degrees. I believe in high and quick cooking for filets. They don't have any fat content so the high heat and short cooking time helps cook the perfect steak. After years of cooking steaks I can feel temperature by touch. If your not adept at this use a meat thermometer don't pierce the steak so deep if you do.

About five minutes in the oven or broiler top your steaks with the crumbled bleu cheese. Let this cook for about 2 minutes until the cheese has melted. The bleu cheese adds a layer of fat and earthy flavor to the filets.

Now is the hardest part the resting of the steaks. Don't touch them for at least 5-10 minutes so that the juices can redistribute evenly. During the cooking process moisture is pushed to the center of the cut by the meat's constriction during cooking. That is why resting the meat is so crucial so that the juiciness will redistribute and you'll avoid releasing it onto the platter with the first cut. During the resting period time to begin the Cabernet sauce.

In the same pan add some olive oil and chopped shallots. Once the shallots are turned a golden brown add a glass of good Cabernet sauvignon to deglaze the pan, next add 1/2 cup beef broth, salt, and pepper. Once the sauce has reduced to about half taste it to adjust the seasoning. I had to add more salt and a huge dollop of cold high fat European pulgra butter. This emulsifies the sauce and makes it glisten. See picture below.

This is an over the top steak dish if you ever had a chance to prepare it go for it.

Cooking Amy & Paul a life altering meal

2010-12-19T23:22:00.000-08:00

It started as a nice gesture from my friend Paul who I met in my Muay Thai kickboxing class. I knew that he was freelancing as a photographer on the side. I have seen his visual photographic work and knew the guy had talent to create amazing photos.

I was in need of professionally done head shots in a pinch like in 2 days. I didn't want to spend the money and had to be creative with it. So I asked if he could do head shots of me one late afternoon. The shots came out amazing and I went to Ritz Camera to get them developed. I was trying out for a reality TV show.

I told Paul that I would repay him in making a life altering meal.

I presented the couple 6 options on choosing what type of cuisines I could cook for them.

1. Asian

2. French

3. Mexican

4. Italian

5. Fusion

6. Seasonal Market Driven Menu

They picked the last option which was an excellent choice. My cooking that I described to Amy Paul's wife is a very organic process. I let the ingredients speak for themselves and cook very simply homey food that awake your taste buds.

I also asked them about foods they liked and disliked. Amy has allergies to wheat and corn. I had to make sure I read all food labels and be very vigilant in my preparation and cooking techniques. I was at my local Asian grocery supermarket and noticed soy is a heavily based wheat product and corn is prevalent everywhere. Yikes this was going to change things for my cooking. I was up for the challenge and I had to tweak my menu.

About 3 hours before dinner it was time to do the shopping for the meal. I went to our local farmers market in Wayne, Pa. I love this market because the vegetables are fresh and brought in by the Amish and they have every vendor you can think of. Butcher, Fish Monger, Farmers, Cheese, Smoked Fish & Meats, Various food boutiques that sell desserts, pizza, donuts, coffee, and Amish food fare. It's open 3 days a week so it's a treat always to visit.

The menu was going to be a 4 course dinner, soup, meat course, seafood course, dessert.

Along the way that changed because I had a preplanned menu that would feature lobster, beef, winter veggies, and lots of extravagant sauces.

That went right out the window some of the ingredients I needed for the meal weren't available so I had to improvise the menu immediately.

I bought the freshest vegetables, new baby potatoes, baby cipollini onions, baby Brussels sprouts, baby carrots, kohlrabi, and broccoli rabe.

The proteins were amazing I had beautiful fillets that were hand carved for me. I purchased some deep red copper river salmon which is very high in omega 3. I also purchased large shrimp that had been deshelled and deveined. I wasn't in the mood to prep my proteins.

Cheese, I purchased a raw milk bleu cheese from France that had an amazing finish after you ate it. I liked the Stilton bleu cheese but the notes of flavor weren't as prevalent as the french cheese. Sorry UK the french won out in this cheese war.

Bananas were going to be my dessert of the evening.

First Course Soup

Kohlrabi Soup

It's the middle of December and it was very cold outside. So I wanted to warm up the meal with a warm and comforting soup. I choose the kohlrabi as the star because it's a turnip and has a sweet flavor to it. I describe it almost as a fresh pear or apple, similar to broccoli stems but lighter, it can be served raw, stir fried, steamed and mashed, or boiled in a soup.

I cheated and didn't have time to make my own chicken stock. So I bought 2 boxes of natural chicken stock made by Kitchen Basics. It's a natural stock and they don't use preservatives or fillers in their stocks. First I prepped the kohlrabi and cut down the thin outer layer of each kohlrabi. I was going to cut the kohlrabi uniformly into cubes, but I decided against that. I wanted the cuts of turnip to be uneven and have a homey feel to each bite. I didn't want it to feel like a restaurant quality soup. I wanted the soup to taste like home.

I par boiled the turnip for about 4 minutes in a separate pot of water from the chicken stock. So that they could cook down on their own. I didn't want the kohlrabi to overpower the stock and really take away from the flavor of the soup. So after the stock was simmering I added 2 tablespoons of tamari soy a wheat free soy sauce to add a umami profile to the soup. Then the kohlrabi that was parboiling was added for 2 minutes in the tamari broth. The soup was finished with a light dash of sesame oil and a fine chiffonade of fresh Thai basil. The sesame oil and fresh basil added a nutty and herbal finish to the soup. The soup was refreshingly warm and I was able to turn a basic soup into a very comfortable bowl of goodness. It was a start of something real good. My thoughts behind the soup was based upon japanese cuisine. It's a very clean cuisine not fussy and they don't have an aggressive flavor profile compared to Chinese cuisine.

Vegetables

The next part of the meal was going to be a meat and fish course with sides and sauces. I nixed that idea and decided to serve them together. So the theme was turf and surf because I remembered Paul and Amy took a vacation to the the lower part of the outer banks in the Carolina's. The vegetables usually take the longest so I worked on prepping the new potatoes and cippolini onions. I had to boil the potatoes down for at least 20 minutes to soften them. The cippolini onions were par boiled in hot water for 2 minutes then shocked in ice water for 3 minutes to stop the cooking and retain there flavor. After the vegetables were shocked I removed they from the ice bath.

I wanted to do something different with these vegetable sides. I looked towards my Mediterranean influences in my cooking and combined rosemary, thyme, salt, and olive oil and made a light dressing with it. I drizzled this over the potatoes and onions and baked them in the oven for 15 minutes at 350 degrees. I tasted them and they did not need any further seasoning. C'est magnifique on the potatoes and onion bake, the olive oil and the herbs infused into the potatoes.

Next was the preparation for the broccoli rabe and the brussels sprouts and baby carrots. I used the same technique in cooking these vegetables. The rabe had a only one ingredient that the carrot and sprouts didn't have. I sauteed the rabe with olive oil, garlic, hot red pepper flake, and then added chicken broth to spike up the flavor of the rabe. I added a nice dollop of pulgra European butter to give it a luxurious sheen and flavor. The addition of the butter at the end put a luxurious sheen on the vegetables and made it taste like nothing else.

I sauteed the sprouts and carrots the same way and deglazed them with chicken broth and finished them with the European butter.

Preparations of the vegetables were very Mediterranean influenced with the fresh herbs and European butter.

Surf

The salmon was prepared very simply with salt and pepper and I pan seared it first on both sides. Then finished it off in the oven. I served the salmon with a red Thai curry sauce on the side. The sauce was very complex and I added fresh lemongrass to it and fresh Thai basil to enhance the herbal aroma of the sauce.

I also added sauteed shrimp with old bay seasoning to accompany the salmon. Amy told me Paul liked seafood so I wanted to make sure we had two elements of seafood for the evening.

Turf

The filets were pan seared with salt and pepper and were finished cooking in the oven. I wasn't keeping track of the time on the filets but I made sure I touched them to feel their temperatures . I wanted to hit a perfect medium mark of doneness. Halfway about 4 minutes into the oven I topped the filet's with the fromage damberge bleu cheese. The bleu cheese melted and created an amazing crust on the filets. To finish the filets I deglazed the pan that the filets were cooking with a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon, fine chopped shallots, beef broth, salt, and pepper. The sauce was finished with a slather of european butter and I adjusted the seasoning accordingly. The combination of the melted bleu cheese, cabernet sauce, and perfect temperature of the steaks being cooked to a perfect pink made this a definite hit. I love having steaks when I dine out so I wanted Amy and Paul to taste a dish that reflects all the good steaks I have ever had. I'm going out on a limb and saying this was the best steak I have ever cooked and ate.

After a delicious meal the couple was stuffed and dessert wasn't in the cards.

Dessert

I goofed up and was going to make banana tempura with wildflower honey topped off with handel ice cream.

Paul couldn't have fried food and oops the tempura mix had wheat in it sorry Amy. Yikes I wanted to have a killer dessert to end this. So I asked Amy if she had rum and brown sugar. She had both items I decided to improvise and make my other go to dessert bananas fosters. So I used the high fat European butter and started cooking down the brown sugar in a saute pan. Once the caramel was cooking I added the bananas to saute for about 2 mins. The piece de Resistance was the adding of the rum. I added the rum and flambeed the bananas for about a minute and a gush of fire was atop the bananas. Once the alcohol burned off I served them piping hot over ice cold vanilla ice cream. The sauce instantly caramelized when it hit the ice cream and formed amazing hardened caramel streaks. This added a crunchy element to the dessert which I haven't had before and made this an over the top dessert. Amy said it was the best bananas fosters she has ever tasted. I had to concur with her on this.

Great evening overall had by myself and the participants. I'm proud to say I still have the skills to cook a life altering meal. Stay tuned for pictures of the event.

All these things I have done

2010-10-25T17:21:00.000-07:00

This summer and fall has been an amazing journey food wise. I bought this japanese knife back in 1993. I recently got it sharpened and have begun using it again. It's made of high carbon steel they don't make japanese knives like this anymore. Most are made of stainless steel which is cheaper, lighter, and last longer. When I took it to get sharpened at my local cutlery shop in Philadelaphia. The person sharpening my knive was swooning over it. He mentioned that they don't make high carbon steel knives like this because of the cost to produce them. I think I bought this knive for $150.00 back in 1993 that was a long time ago.

Moving on I was able to travel to one of my ultimate foodie destinations San Francisco. If you haven't been there it's a must visit town for any foodie. I haven't kept up with my reviews because I'm setting up a new blog and setting up a you tube channel, and I'm looking to expand my yelp reviews also. Stay tuned for lots of good things happening.

Been watching lots of cooking shows on the TV

Avec Eric,

Martin Yan's Cooking Journey Through China,

Gourmet Adventures with Ruth Reichl,

Nigella's Kitchen,

Man Vs. Food,

Meat & Potatoes

Diners, Drive Inns, & Dives

Books I'm reading right now

Momofuku Cookbook by David Chang

Braise by Daniel Bolud

Reviews I follow

Eater

Chowhound

Restaurant Girl

New York Times

Philly.com

FooBooz

Grubstreet

"You Know I like my chicken fried, cold beer on a Friday Night," yes Zach Brown you are so right.

ah culinary disaster

2010-06-28T20:41:00.000-07:00

Summer is here and my favorite past time is eating soft shell crabs. They are my favorite thing to eat they are sweet, salty, and remind of summers past. This past weekend I prepared 4 soft shell crabs. I cleaned them and wanted to saute them in butter and finish off with some lemon. The dish was transformed to a tempura style dish. My mistake was the batter was too loose and did not adhere to the crab. Second when the crab were done frying, I aggressively seasoned them with a mixture of allspice and seasoning salt. This made the crabs very salty to the point of being inedible. I was really upset with myself, my mother noted to me that crabs are already salty so you have to be light on the seasoning. I forgot this this fundamental part in preparing them, and the oil I was frying them in was turning dark. So it added a burnt acrid flavor to it. Next time I will redo this dish, but add a culinary twist to it.

Cafe Soho, Philadelphia, Pa

2010-05-04T13:52:00.000-07:00

Cafe Soho is located in the Cheltenham section of North Philadelphia. It's a bright and modern Korean style pub. They are known for their Korean Style Bon chicken and bar food. If you haven't had Korean style chicken it's should be on your to do list in the near future. Basically they double fry the chicken. First to fry off the fat and the second frying seals in the flavor. You can choose from Plain, Soy Sauce, Spicy, and Sesame toppings. The wings are served with Moo (lightly pickled daikon radish). This a refreshing side to cut the fat of the chicken.

Spicy Pork over Rice, good spicy flavor pork was not tender

1 order of Bon Chon Chicken come with 20 pieces. We ordered half Soy Sauce and Spicy Chicken. Best Fried Chicken I have ever tasted. Batter was light and crunchy like a potato chip. The chicken wasn't greasy and it tasted so good.

Caramel Oreo Explosion at Nifty Fifty's

2010-05-04T13:49:00.000-07:00

Vanilla Ice Cream, Whipped Cream, Caramel, and Oreo Cookies

Papaya Salad

2010-05-01T17:16:00.001-07:00

There is something about eating that perfect dish and I came upon one a couple weeks ago. Thai or Lao Papaya Salad hits all my taste buds. It's spicy, sweet, sour, and tasty. The base starts with some chili peppers, garlic, salt, lemon, fish sauce, tomatoes, throw in pad tak, fermented crab or fish and a dream of a dish is composed. I was attending the Laotian New Year celebration a couple weeks ago in Virginia . A family friend Mrs. Lee made this wonderful dish for me. She hasn't been a food vendor at this event for a long time. She came out of retirement this year and I had to have her food. She is a master of her craft and I even got to video tape how she made my Tum Mak Hung.

Classic Diner, Frazer, Pa

2010-04-13T12:46:00.000-07:00

Classic Diner is a nice breakfast joint located in Frazer Pa. They do a brisk breakfast and lunch business. Evey time I stop by to dine they are always busy. They do breakfast the best and their slab bacon compliments the meal. They bake all their bread and desserts in house. I purchased a bag of homemade granola on my way out.

2 eggs over easy I substituted my potatoes for avocado
Omelet
Slab Bacon flavored aggressively with a peppery smoke

Serendipity, New York City

2010-03-30T13:41:00.000-07:00

My friend Tracy that I worked with a long time ago dating myself back to 1998. Mentioned that if I travel to NYC I should try the frozen hot chocolate at Serendipity. The best way to describe this drink slash dessert is a flavorful frozen chocolate daiquiri with whipped cream and chocolate shavings. If your in NYC next time try this timeless classic. The place is small expect a wait during the spring and summer months.

The Best Japanese Beef Curry

2010-03-22T13:18:00.000-07:00

How can this be the best Japanese Beef Curry ever. Well for one I made it myself and it took me two hours from start to finish to cook. I rarely have the opportunity to cook nowadays with my crazy schedule. But when I do I really enjoy it. I have tasted many Japanese curries in the last couple years. The best curry I ever had was in Hawaii at my friend's house. The beef was tender and the flavor was so intense. I think I had like 3 servings. Luckily he told me his secret. It was to cook the curry just like how it's done on the package. But the kicker was to stew it over a long time and cook it over a low flame so that the flavor could meld together. Wow this was what I wasn't doing before and I borrowed his secret to improve my curry. Now my Japanese Beef Curry is on point. Now I will share with you how to make my Best Japanese Beef Curry. I have taken pictures of the process and will comment on each step to achieving the best curry ever made.

Mise En Place, make sure your onions are cut, vegetables are cleaned and chopped, and beef is cut into cubes, oil, beef broth, and salt. I use beef short ribs because in the stewing process they become tender and melt in your mouth.

You can purchase this curry mix in Asian Supermarkets or your local grocery store if they stock it.

I sear the beef separately from what the package mentions. It seals the flavor of the beef.

When done searing and browned I remove the meat and place it on the side.

Next I brown the onions with oil and salt. The salt draws out the natural sweetness of the onion.

Then add your potatoes and brown them evenly about 3 minutes over medium heat.

Then the rest of the vegetables go in. I added carrots and celery to the mix and browned them also.

After a couple of minutes of browning the vegetables get a nice glaze to them.

The package says to add water, but this is where I differentiate my curry. I add Beef Broth and it adds another layer of goodness.

After I add the broth the meat is introduced back into the pot.

Then a rapid boil so that the flavors can mix.

After 30 minutes I remove all the vegetables and let them cool. Reason being I don't want to cook the vegetables to mush.

After the vegetables are removed time to add the curry mix. This will thicken the stock and turn the broth into curry. The package says to fry the curry in another saucepan then add it. Which I usually do but since I am stewing the curry for a long time there is no need for it.

Now the curry is taking shape and thickening.

After 2 hours of the beef and curry simmering I now add the al dente vegetables. Before I used to leave the vegetables in the simmering curry. But that led to the potatoes being disintegrated and the vegetables being cooked to mush.

The Best Japanese Beef Curry

Ready to scoop a ladle to taste, the flavor was on point, meat was tender, veggies still had a crunch to them. You might have to adjust your flavor because I found out the beef broth made this curry tasty but salty also. It was an easy fix just add water to thin out the curry. Now you have made the best Japanese Beef Curry Ever.

Junior's, Brooklyn, NY

2010-03-22T12:31:00.000-07:00

My sister lives in Brooklyn so whenever I visit New York City I have to make a mandatory Junior's cheesecake run. There are two commercial cheesecakes that satisfy my cheesecake craving. The first would be Junior's and second is Cheesecake Factory. But if I had to choose between the both of them Junior's wins hands down. The difference is that Junior's uses a sponge cake as their crust. While other places use a traditional graham cracker crust. The sponge cake layer is a nice addition to the cheesecake and they can build other unique flavors. My favorite flavors of cheesecake are the Carrot Cake and Devil's Food Cake.

This cake was dry and I was disappointed by it. I was expecting a moist and flavorful slice of cake.

The shortcake was my second favorite dessert. The shortcake was moist and the fresh whipped cream with the strawberry topping was divine.

My favorite cheesecake by far, it's so rich I can only savor a small piece at a time.

Patrick's 40th Birthday

2010-03-22T11:34:00.000-07:00

My Muay Thai instructor and good friend Patrick was celebrating his 40th Birthday Party a couple weeks ago. It was a surprise Birthday Party which I found out hours before it was going to be thrown. Patrick's mother was in town from California and she cooked an amazing Filipino Spread. The best celebrations are unexpected shared with close family and friends, and done with the heart. I would choose celebrating at home than at a restaurant any day. Patrick was expecting to go out to a restaurant to celebrate.

Before we got the party started

Filipino Style Shrimp with the Heads on

Pork Adobo

Mussels with Brocolli

Pancit with shrimp and vegetables

Kissing 20 year Whiskey by the Fire, it had an amazing flavor very balanced and malty not smoky at all. I could drink this bottle myself. Patrick was gracious enough to share his bounty with all who attended the party.

Rustica Pizza, Philadelphia, Pa

2010-03-22T09:09:00.001-07:00

Located in Northern Liberties I found this gem of a pizza place a couple years ago when I moved back to the area. My friend brought me here because it was his favorite. I have had pizza from various places such as Boston, New Haven, and Brooklyn. So I have had my fair share of good pizza. What made this pizza special was the crust and the higher quality of ingredients. The first time I had a slice of Rusitica I knew I was tasting something special. The best way to describe their pizza is a hearty and good flavored pie. It's simple and you do pay a little more but it's worth it. On this occasion the toppings we choose were mushroom, pepperoni, sausage, and roasted garlic cloves. The sweetness of the garlic cloves brought this pizza over the top. Rustica has only 4 tabletops they do an amazing takeout business also. In my opinion Rustica is my favorite pizza place in Philadelphia.

A slice of the good life

A close up view of the pie

This is my ideal pizza pie

A view from above

Chris enjoying his pizza and beer, a good beer that goes well with pizza is a fruit flavored beer. We had Woodchuck Cider with Pear, Raspberry, and Green Apple.

Sahara, Brooklyn, New York

2010-01-11T22:29:00.001-08:00

While visiting my sister in Brooklyn she brought us to her favorite Mediterranean restaurant. I was pleasantly surprised by how cheap and how good the food was. It was casual sit down restaurant which featured many Mediterranean favorites.

Bread

House Salad with feta, tomatoes, and onions, the dressing was a light vinaigrette and the cheese was so creamy I couldn't stop eating this salad. This is coming from someone who doesn't enjoy salad.

Kibbeh, deep fried croquettes filled with meat and covered with bulgur wheat. This was the best Kibbeh I have ever eaten. The filling was hot and the spices permeated the Kibbeh. The bulgur wheat shell was crunchy and I finished every whole morsel.

Lamb in a garlic saffron tomato sauce, the sauce had so much flavor and the lamb was very tender. This dish was a hit with the table also.

With the huge salad and Kibbeh as an appetizer my sister and I split the mixed grill. It featured lamb chops and various grilled meats. All the meats were seasoned very well and it was a great finish to the meal.

Sakura Mandarin, Philadelphia, Pa

2009-12-20T12:22:00.000-08:00

** Stars out of **** Stars
Last week I dined at Sakura Mandarin in Chinatown. It was a former Chinese noodle shop that was always busy. So I was skeptical to see a Japanese Chinese restaurant spring up in the former spot. The decor is minimal with light green walls and various glass tabletops scattered throughout the dinning room. Service was okay I had to flag the waiter down for dessert and for the bill. That is fine because when dining in Chinatown it's to be expected. The weirdest part of the evening was seeing how many tables brought their own wines for the meal. Chinese food is very tricky to pair with wine. There are lots of complex and subtle flavors in Chinese cuisine that can really mess up a wine pairing. Hint folks the drink of choice to match Chinese food is beer. The food was okay I was expecting great flavors and something different from Shanghia Cuisine.

Shao Long Bao, Shanghai juicy steamed pork dumplings. The skin on these dumplings are thicker than Dim Sum Garden. In my opinion they are better because the skin doesn't break the broth when you pick them up with a chopstick or spoon. The owner of Sakura was a former partner in Dim Sum Garden.

Shrimp Tempura

Braised Pork Dish, lots of fat on this dish which wasn't a bad thing. The flavors of the braising liquid didn't develop enough to make this a breakthrough dish.

Green Tea Mochi, yes this is one order of mochi I was expecting 2 little pieces of mochi. The various garnishes of papaya, chocolate, and whip cream were all too distracting.

Green Tea Ice Cream what's with the chocolate drizzle. Tea and Chocolate don't mix and the unripe mango was not on point. I used to have a huge mango tree when I lived in Hawaii and it was so good. So when I try unripe fruits it such a huge disappointment.

A New Year, A New Critic, A New Beginning

2009-11-08T21:32:00.000-08:00

Recently I have been on a dining out binge. Almost 4 days out of the week I have either been dining out or have ordered takeout.

Below are some of the places where I have been.

My favorite will always be close to my heart and that is Chinese and Malay Cuisine. My favorite spots right now are in Philly Chinatown. Shao Lan Kung and Penang which always sates my appetite. Shao Lan Kung has the most divine hot and sour soup. It's spicy with a nice hint of Chinese vinegar and the heat from the broth will definitely warm your soul on a cold winter day. Penang is my other favorite because of the interpretation of Malaysian cuisine is very clean and modern.

My other go to dining option is Vietnamese food. My dining partner and I frequent Cafe Diem near the South Philly Italian Market. I love their Bun Bo Hue, Vietnamese style spicy beef soup with noodles that are similar to spaghetti noodles.

For my Mexican you can't go wrong with Tacqueria Verracruzana in South Philly. Their tacos are a treat for me. I usually order the Chorizo, Al Pastor, & Bistec with a side of Guacamole.

For my sandwich fix I make my trek to South Philly again to John's Roast Pork. In my opinion they have the best overall Cheesesteak and Pork Sandwich in the city. They use freshly baked Carangi Rolls that are seeded. The grill people know had to assemble an out of this world cheesesteak. The Pork Sandwich has so much flavor you have to try to it .

Chickie's Deli by the Italian Market makes a mean hoagie. I usually get the vegetarian hoagie with hot sausage. Yup that is 2 hoagies in one it's insane.

For pizza I do Rustica in Northern Liberties. Their crust is dense and the toppings make this a place definitely to visit. It should be the best of Philly Pizza in my book.

My future visits are to Village Whiskey Jose Garces new burger joint. They offer a burger with foie gras can we say tastebud overload. Osteria Marc Vetri Italian bistro on Broad Street is a must on my list. Michael Shulson's place called Sampan which is an tapas asian eatery in town. Table 31 George Perrier is on my radar for steakhouse to visit. I look forward to dining at Lacroix for their brunch. Matyson Cafe and Percy Street BBQ on south street. Bibou Pierre Calmels place in Bella Vista. Snackbar is on my hit list too. Pub and Kitchen, Kanella, and Talula's Table in Kennet Square.

The dynamic of dining has changed tremendously in the last year. Gone are the lavish dining out options. BYOB's have been the norm for me this year. I am in the process of transforming my blog to a TV pilot. I am planning on launching a pilot in the upcoming months.

I'm also plan on traveling more this year. I am looking to hit up Washington, D.C. (Jose Andres restaurants Mini Bar, Cafe Atlantico and Michael Mina Steakhouse), New York City (Corton, Little Owl, Spotted Pig, DBGB Kitchen, Le Bernadin, and MomoFuku) and Boston (Langham Hotel). So lots of good things happening this year and hope you can join me in finding all the good eats around town and beyond.

My mom's pork belly stew with shoyu eggs

2009-10-31T16:40:00.000-07:00

Imagine Pork Belly & Hard Boiled Eggs simmering in soy sauce, ginger, sugar, & black pepper. Served with white rice this makes the most ideal comfort food for me. Actually this would be my last meal on earth.

Lamb Shanks

2009-10-28T22:44:00.000-07:00

What made this lamb so special was the sauce infused into the lamb. Every bite had a hint of orange, cinnamon, clove, rosemary, in a tomato broth. Oh yeah the lamb was so tender. You didn't need a knife.

Nico's, Honolulu, Hawaii

2009-10-28T22:38:00.000-07:00

Loco Moco

2 Scoops White Rice, 2 Grilled Hamburger Patties smothered with homemade gravy, side Mac Salad, Fried Saimin.

I can have a Loco Moco morning, noon, and night with a splash of Tabasco, it so good. This is a Hawaiian Plate from Nico in Honolulu. Pure Protein overload.

Popover Cafe, New York City

2009-10-04T18:27:00.000-07:00

A basket of yummy Popovers.

Popovers are huge served warm with butter or strawberry butter.

Pop Burger, New York City

2009-10-04T18:00:00.001-07:00

After watching the US Open one late Saturday evening. My friends and I were hungry for some quick and satisfying food. I am grateful to have my sister who works and lives in New York City. I have seen Pop Burger featured on the Travel Channel's television special Hamburger Paradise. But usually I am hesitant to try places that are on T.V. But my sister insisted that this place was the real deal. Ordering is very difficult they have scattered paper menus on the counter. You have sliders (2) in an order for $7.00. And they do serve an invisible burger (vegetarian) to non meat eaters. And they have your typical fries and shakes. Pop is also a nightclub but we opted to dine downstairs in the takeout portions of the establishment. The nightclub also serves burgers but the $20.00 cover charge to get in wasn't making it doable. We settled down for 5 orders of Sliders, 3 orders of Half & Half (Fries & Onion Rings), and Shakes, and Soda. Being in New York City this was an expensive meal for burgers. It came out to almost $80.00 but it's New York your going to pay one way or another. I would go back to Pop again but probably give the nightclub a try and have a slider as an appetizer.

Paul, Clarita, Sue, & yours truly posing in front of the ordering counter.

Each Slider comes in these neat little packages.

Order of Half & Half (Fries & Onion Rings).

A view from above, the beginning of the end.

These little sliders were very fulfilling, the brioche bun and the special sauce made this a memorable burger. I thought I needed to order 2 sliders but 1 order was enough. Each box contains 2 sliders.

4 Sliders in a row.

Meredith's, Berwyn, Pa

2009-09-26T16:28:00.001-07:00

*** Stars out of **** Stars

I can now say that there is a brunch worth going to in my hometown. The Philadelphia region has many amazing brunch restaurants. It's a very cozy and intimate restaurant located on the Main Line. It used to be Bistro M but they closed recently. Meredith's has taken this spot to the next level. They are offering seasonal fare at a more reasonable price. The blueberry pancakes were the best I have ever had. The cakes were very dense and the blueberries oozed their warm filling between each bite. The french toast was another home run. If your near the Berwyn area and want to sample a simple brunch give Meredith's a try you won't regret it.

Butter Milk Blueberry Pancakes with a scoop on cinnamon butter

Brioche French Toast

Scrambled Eggs with Cheese and Bacon

Eggs Over Easy with a sausage

Cafe Diem, Philadelphia, Pa

2009-09-06T13:47:00.000-07:00

**** Stars out of 4

Cafe Diem is located in the Bella Vista section of Philadelphia. If your not familiar with the area it's right around the block from the Italian Market in South Philadelphia. I've been to Cafe Diem almost 13 years ago but that was before I cared anything about food. I was young and my taste buds weren't refined. I happened to be in the area one day and wanted something different for lunch. And I ordered a tasty bowl of Bun Bo Hue. Which is a spicy Vietnamese noodle soup with pig feet, beef tendon, and blood cubes. It's has a very distinct flavor from Pho because it's sour and spicy and the noodles are similar to spaghetti. The added condiments of various herbs and lemon just set this soup apart from it's other counterpart Pho. So if your you want to try something other than Pho stop by and try the best Bun Bo Hue in the area. I believe the small bowl is $5.50 and the Large is $8.50. They also have various rice dishes too and my favorite is the bbq pork chops with a sunny side eggs with pickled daikon and carrots.

Grilled Vietnamese Pork Chop with Sunny Side up Egg

Soy Sauce and Eggs are the perfect combination

Various sauces to accompany your soup, hot chili sauce, soy sauce, fish sauce, and hoisin sauce

Thai Holy Basil, Lemon Sawgrass, Bean Sprouts, Jalapenos, and Lime

Small bowl of Bun Bo Hue

I could have this for breakfast, lunch, or dinner everyday in my life. Thank goodness I don't live so close to Cafe Diem.

Sang Kee Duck House, Philadelphia, Pa

2009-05-29T18:12:00.000-07:00

Fried Shrimp Dumplings, cross section of the best dumplings in town.

Sweet & Sour Sauce accompanies them

Braised Beef Wonton Noodle Soup, my favorite, beef is braised over 12 hours to give it that tender juicy flavor.

Banh Mi Dac Biet

2009-05-28T05:41:00.000-07:00

Vietnamese Hoagie, with butter, pate, head cheese, chicken and pork roll, pickled daikon and carrots, cilantro, jalapenos, and a quick dash of maggi seasoning, a my favorite huy foung sriracha hot sauce.

Cross Section of the Hoagie

Let's take a look inside

Zaytoons, Brooklyn, New York

2009-05-25T09:41:00.001-07:00

My sister and her roomie

My cousin and I

Spinach Pie

Falafel, Hummus, Cucumber Yogurt, Fatoosh Salad (Tomato, Cucumber, & Parsley), Zaytoons Mix (Pickles and Peppers)

Falafel, Hummus, Cucumber Yogurt, Fatoosh, Garden Salad

Lamb Shwarma Platter

$11 a person what a deal for some great food.

Chocolate Room, Brooklyn, New York

2009-05-20T20:20:00.000-07:00

Not Hot Chocolate Drink, Serendipity 3 in Manhattan is known for their frozen hot chocolate drink, I like to call it a frozen chocolate daiquiri, this chocolate drink literally was the best frozen chocolate drink I ever had, the drink was very smooth and subtle and the deep chocolate flavor resonated throughout this drink.

The chocolate sundae was a treat and the homemade syrup that accompanied it was very complex and had a dark semi sweet taste to it.

I got the chocolate cake and I thought it would be very heavy and moist, but it ended up being the opposite, light, airy, and a perfect balance of sweetness to it. The chocolate ganache frosting brought this cake to the next level. It was a very divine slice of cake.

Shanghai Soup Dumpling

2009-05-18T05:52:00.001-07:00

Wat Lao Catlett, Virginia

2009-04-19T15:34:00.000-07:00

This past weekend was the Laotian New Year Festival in Catlett, Virginia. Was able to get some pictures of the event. There were many food vendors and I was able to try fresh sugar can juice.

Front of a Thai Noodle shop

Frying up Bananas Thai Style

Making Desserts

These Thai desserts look like mini tacos they are stuffed with pandanis cream

Da Philly Food Critic can Cook

2009-04-06T07:09:00.000-07:00

This past weekend I was invited to stay with a couple of friends in the Pocono Mountains. I had a great time talking story, chillaxing, and cooking. Here is what I made, I forgot to take a picture of my crab cakes. They were one of the best crab cakes I have ever made. A simple yet delicious meal was had by all who attended.

Fresh Tomato Salad with Basil, Olive Oil, & Balsamic Vinegar

Chorizo Sausage

Sauteed Asparagus with Proscuitto Di Parma with Balsamic Syrup

Baby Portabella Mushrooms Sauteed with Butter, Soy Sauce, White Wine, and Plenty of Garlic

Butter Poached Baby Carrots

Wild King Salmon with Fresh Herbs (Oregano, Sage, Thyme, Parsely) and finished with a drizzle of really good Olive Oil

BLT Prime New York, New York

2009-03-13T09:37:00.000-07:00

House Bread with Foie Gras Spread

Infamous Popovers and House Bread with Foie Gras Spread

Gruyere Grilled Cheese topped off with Bacon crumble

Pickled Vegetables

Plate of Charcutterie

Main Event 20 ounce Rib eye

A plate of complete satisfaction, with Red Wine Sauce, Bearnaise, and Chimichurri.

Creamy Wild Mushrooms

Grilled Asparagus

Tomato Au Gratin

Blue Cheese Tater Tots

Brownies

Carrot Cake with Ginger Ice Cream

Chocolate Chestnut Sundae, Chocolate and Vanilla ice cream with chestnut whipped cream with Rice Krispies.

Diner Brooklyn, New York

2009-03-10T14:21:00.000-07:00

This past week I was in New York City visiting my sister. During the week I had to opportunity to sample many new eateries in the area. My friend from grade school Amy L. & her husband Churchill P. mentioned this quaint little diner to me at our recent reunion. Intrigued I did my research and went to the website to check out the menu and the history of the place. The menu is very limited to daily omelette's, soup of the day, market salads, and the daily specials which they mainly focus on. I believe there were 5 specials for lunch that day. The decor is very minimal and stark, yes I have to say it is a dive. The booths that line the diner are covered with disposable butcher paper, which the servers use to write down the special on the table for you. I started the meal with the mustard green salad with lardon and sauteed zucchini in a pommery mustard vinaigrette topped off with an egg. The salad was slightly braised which helped smooth the bitterness of the greens and the perfectly cooked egg just added the right touch of creaminess to the dish. The addition of the salty lardon with the zucchini helped balance the whole salad. I tried the mussels of the day served in a tomato basil broth. The mussels were cooked well, but the broth lacked a punchy flavor I was looking for. The addition of salt or more basil would have elevated this dish. The accompanying frites were cooked to perfection and I ended up finish them all. My piece de resistance was the chocolate sandwich which I ordered for dessert with hot chocolate. The sandwich was a baguette smeared with butter and dark chocolate and grilled to perfection and sprinkled with powdered sugar. The sandwich hit the chocolate note I was looking for. The hot chocolate was rich and full of flavor, I believe they used the same chocolate from the sandwich for the hot chocolate also. My server said people dunk their sandwiches in coffee or hot chocolate. I took her advice and boy was she right. Diner was an enjoyable experience service was attentive and they are basing their menu on seasonality and specials of the day. Cooking whats in season and sourcing their food locally.

Front View of Diner

Side View of Diner

Mustard Green Salad with Lardon, Sauteed Zucchini, Egg over Easy, dressing in a Pommery Mustard Vinaigrette

Frites

Mussel in a Tomato Basil Broth

Mussels

Chocolate Sandwich - baguette grilled with dark chocolate and butter, topped off with powdered sugar

Chocolate in a Sandwich, and Chocolate in a Drink

Chocolate over load, chocolate sandwiched swimming in hot chocolate

O-Toro

2009-03-09T22:03:00.000-07:00

There are 5 foods in this world that drive me over the edge. First Chocolate, Second Sea Urchin, Third Caviar, Fourth Ice Cold Hawaiian Poke, Fifth is Toro the fatty belly of the Tuna . Yes it's not a typo $79.99 a pound is a bargain. Bought this piece of Toro from Mitsuwa Supermarket in Edgewater, New Jersey. If I am dining out and see Toro on the menu I have to have it. Eating Toro is like eating freshly churned butter. At first it's subtle then you wait and the flavor of the fish is so silky smooth.

Chifa Philadelphia, Pa

2009-02-19T21:12:00.000-08:00

** Stars
I would like to thank one of my dining guests for their contribution to my blog. Here is what they thought of Chifa the new Jose Garces restaurant that recently opened up. Jose Garces is a Philadelphia based Celebrity Chef who has 3 other successful restaurants in the city. I wasn't sure what to make of it when in large neon it says, "Comida Latina" but the floor at the entry has a huge Asian symbol on the carpet. Overall, the designer did a great job at turning a huge space into intimate and hip dining. I'd say the interior is more Asian than Latino with the double height wall of vases from the orient along with the dark wood lattice screens and velvety pillows. I liked the booth options as well a the communal central table reminding me of the master designer, Phillipe Starck at Asia de Cuba, another Asian/Latin mixer in New York City. I did notice that the acoustics were a bit loud but this didn't bother me since I do enjoy feeling the energy of people enjoying themselves, which everyone seemed to be doing.

I'm a vegetarian and was happy there were a few options for me but would've liked a few more, especially at least one in the rice or noodle section. I ordered the arepa which I enjoyed with it's modern take on the egg in toast. It was simple and really not a shining star plate but tasty just the same. I also ordered the broccoli in garlic and the aji mushrooms. The broccoli was cooked just right with the perfect amount of crispness still there but the garlic sauce was so overpoweringly salty that I wished I'd had rice or more broccoli to cut that bite. The aji mushrooms came in a pastry and what I expected to be a tasty treat inside was slightly bland and watery.

The presentation was beautiful. Each dish came out beautifully plated, both minimal and modern. The table, covered with our order, was lovely to look at and the service could not have been better. Our waitress was friendly, warm and attentive without being invasive to our intimate setting. Overall, I'd say the experience they are providing there is worth the trip although the food consistently missed the mark for me.

Wall of Vases

Looking into the main dining room from the entrance

Manchego Pan with Guava Butter - one of the highlights of the meal, the manchego cheese adds a creamy buttery texture to the bread. The butter had an aggressive chili note to it which made it inedible when spread on the bread.

Ecudoran Ceviche - Shrimp, Tomato Gel, Avocado & Crisp Fava beans, this is one of the house specialties that our server recommended. The ceviche was refreshing and the tomato gel reminded me of a nice homage to pico de gallo. The fava beans were an interesting side item. We were joking about the movie Silence of the Lambs. Dr. Lecter's famous line "I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice chianti."

Papas A La Huacaina - confit potatoes, ricotta, purple olive puree, aji amarillo sauce, after seeing this item on the menu I thought this dish would have blown me away. Couldn't taste the confit of the potatoes and the aji sauce was muted by the strong olive puree.

Yuca Fries - red chile mayo, lime mojo, again another dish that had high expectation, but fell off my taste buds after I tried it. The spicy mayo with the acidity of the mojo didn't work.

Shellfish Ceviche - shrimp, mussels, machas, saffron emulsion, crispy chorizo, wasabi peas, the ceviche alone was well balanced and the peas added a crunchy texture. But the side of saffron rice bar with that chile lime mayo wasn't bring this dish through. The rice bar was very gummy and the saffron essence was too pungent. It was a nice attempt at interpreting a modern day Paella.

Causa - king crab, tobiko mayo, saffron potato puree, charred pepper-bacon marmalade, the puree was very redolent of a creamy cheesecake. The crab was well seasoned and the marmalade was very peppery.

Lobster Noodles, Flat white noodles, rocoto cram, lobster, bacon, parmesan, green peas, this dish was a great version of spaghetti carbonara. Again something I can get anywhere else.

Scallion Pancakes - crispy peanuts, ginger, cauliflower, the pickled cauliflowers were the highlight of this dish, the pancakes was just simple.

Empanada - chinese-style cumin braised lamb, huacatay cream, potato salad, empanada had a familiar latin flavor of cumin, oregano, and plenty of pepper. The lamb was very tender and the pastry was cooked to perfection.

Desayuno - arepa, braised oxtail, egg, panca emulsion, the arepa didn't taste homemade almost a store brought quality to it, it's a take on a hole in toady dish. The housemade sriracha sauce makes an appearance again to bring this dish together. Again this dish was okay nothing to rave about.

Chaufa - stirfried rice, chorizo, mango, edamame, soy glazed scallops, it was a nice fried rice dish very flavorful and the scallop were cooked to the right degree of doneness.

bbq ribs - tea smoked, daikon, sweet and sour glaze, crispy soy nuts, black vinegar reduction
the ribs were boneless and was very crunchy due to a quick flash fry. The sweet and sour glaze was too prevalent making it very sweet. Taking away the aroma of being tea smoked.

Banana Picarones - pumpkin banana funnel cake, honey anise lace, spicy peanut sauce, banana sorbet. I wanted this dish to work but the funnel cake fell flat. I couldn't taste a hint of anise on the lace. The banana sorbet needed a sugar infusion. The dessert was very bland and the spicy peanut sauce was lost on the plate.

Passion Fruit & Coconut - Coconut sorbet, passion fruit curd, coconut meringue, passion fruit parfait, young coconut noodles. This was a great palate cleanser and the sorbet and meringue worked together. The coconut noodles were fun to eat.

Root Beer Float - house-made root beer, arroz con leche ice cream, spiced sesame caramel corn
I wish the server would have left the rice ice cream on the side. When he presented the dessert the ice cream was on the side of the plate. Then he did his spiel and dunked the rice ice cream in the root beer. This really changed the root beer to an acridly sharp flavor. I had one sip and that was all I could take. The popcorn tasted very limp and had a stale quality to them.

Flexible Chocolate - milk chocolate custard, quinoa chicharrones, mango ice, and milk chocolate ice cream. The crunchy quinoa shaped to look like chicharrones worked with the soul satisfying chocolate ice cream. Just a bowl of the quinoa and chocolate ice cream would have put this dessert over the edge. The mango ice was out of place on this plate. And the flexible part being the chocolate curd just didn't have that chocolaty punch I was looking for.

Naked Chocolate Cafe Philadelphia, Pa

2009-01-31T14:46:00.000-08:00

*** Stars

My friend Vicky mentioned this quaint little cafe to me a while back. She said that her friends told her that it had the best hot chocolate in town. So after having dinner right up the street I decided to visit the cafe with Maria, John, and Cecile. They offer many hot chocolates in various sizes and flavors. Maria and Cecile had the Aztec which had hints of cinnamon and nutmeg. John went with the adventurous Spicy with chili powder. I chose the Hawaiian with lava caramel and salt. We all chose the petite size which was served in an espresso cup with whipped cream and a little pastry cigar on the side. There are 2 options for getting your hot chocolate served you can get American or European style. The American is that your hot chocolate is whipped and the Europe is straight up. I opted for the American style for mine which was perfect. It blended all the flavors all together and the hot chocolate was rich, decadent, and smooth. The addition of salt and caramel on the side just brought it all home. My friends got the European style which was very thick and flavorful, the Aztec was my favorite, didn't get any hints of spice from the John's Spicy hot cocoa. I ordered the carrot cake cupcake and was disappointed. It was very dry and the icing was lacking. There are many chocolate and non chocolate desserts that will blow you away. They have cupcakes, Oreo tarts, chocolate cover pretzels, truffles, and many more. Maria had the Peanut Butter Nudo which was a triangle pastry that looked like a pyramid dipped in chocolate and peanut butter. Peanut butter and chocolate make an unbelievable combination. Maria told me it tasted very yummy. The cafe was packed and they have little tables throughout the cafe. It's very small so get there early or get there later. If your ever caught caught in the cold weather coming inside and drinking a cup of hot chocolate will definitely warm your heart.

Susanna Foo Philadelpia, Pennsylvania

2009-01-31T14:18:00.000-08:00

* Star out of ****Stars

I have always wanted to try Susanna Foo's for a long time now. Mrs. Foo has had won many accolades for cooking creative and healthy Chinese cuisines. I belong to a dining group and they arranged to have a meet up there for Restaurant Week. It was a Prix fixe menu with a starter, entree, and dessert. The decor was very ornate and had nice touches of the orient. There were oriental lanterns and paper umbrellas adorned throughout the two dining rooms. We went on a Friday night so the restaurant was filled. Service was attentive except for our server spilling drops of water on my shirt sleeve. That I could get over and he was very gracious and attentive to all our needs. I just wish the food could have been better. I started with an Asian chopped salad with pineapple and tofu. It was properly dressed but it lacked any hints of Chinese at all. The sweet syrupy glaze on my minuscule pieces of tofu and pineapple were negated by the huge pile of greens on my plate. I did get to sample the roasted butternut squash soup which was light and did have some form of flavor to it. For my entree I choose the sesame noodles with cabbage, mushrooms, and tofu. This dish was amateurish at best it lacked seasoning and the noodles were cooked way past al dente. I also had to put some kung pao sauce on them to give it some flavor. The kung pao dish I got to try was something out of a can, I have had better at my favorite Chinese takeout. There was a braised short rib dish but it was totally uninspiring and lacked any panache it. The miso glazed salmon was one of the saving graces from the menu. The glaze was sweet enough to compliment the entire dish. Miso glazed is so played out now a days it's a safe bet to choose from. Dessert was an array of sorbets to cleanse the palate. Without regards to the food I enjoyed the evening got to meet some new diners. And the decor and service made up for the blunder that was being sent out from the kitchen.

Osteria Bel Sogno Springfield, Pa

2008-12-25T18:56:00.000-08:00

Sometime you find a neighborhood gem and want to keep it to yourself. I am all about sharing wonderful new restaurants with everybody out there. I met the owner of Osteria through a friend one evening when I was reviewing Steve Starr's new Parc bistro in Center City Philadelphia. We talked and I promised him that I would visit his restaurant in the near future. My partners in crime for dinner were Da Other Food Critic and his wife. Osteria is an intimate BYOB located in the town of Springfield just a few miles outside of Philadelphia. When you walk in you will be greeted by the gregarious owner Mario. And on the wall is a huge mural of a Mediterranean seaside town. The service was attentive and the waitress did a nice job of serving us throughout the evening. The menu is simple Italian cuisines prepared like you would at your grandma's house. The food is very comforting and the flavors simple and delicious. Da Other Food Critic noted that he will recommend Osteria to his parents who are of Italian descent.

Da Other Food Crititc & his better half

Roasted portobello mushrooms filled with mozzarella cheese and roasted peppers

Caprese Salad with Mozzarella, Tomatoes, and a drizzle of Pesto

Italian Sausage wtih Cannelini Beans and Brocolli Rabe

Linguine Pescatore the pasta was cooked al dente and the sauce had a nice fiery kick to it which complemented the fresh seafood.

Lamb Special was the highlight of the evening marinated 24 hours with herbs and spices and served with red wine reduction.

Pan Roasted Sirloin was prepared exquisitely with mushrooms and roasted peppers the sides were sauteed escarole and oven roasted olive oil potatoes.

Tiramisu is my favorite dessert and this was one of the best I have ever had. The marscapone cheese had a thin layer to it and the espresso soaked lady fingers just melted when you bit into them.

Cannoli

A Year in the Life fo Da Philly Food Critc

2008-12-21T12:54:00.001-08:00

This has been an interesting year for me. I have dined out numerous times this year to count. I have sampled Indian, Korean, Thai, American BBQ, Spanish, Brazilian, Italian, French, Caribbean, Mexican, and many more cuisines to list.

I am staying away from complicated food and want to get back to the basics. I remember a restaurateur I met years ago, said that the only thing that matters is flavor. It you don't have good flavor people won't come back for more.

Here are some highlights of my dining adventure this year.

Philadelphia:

Frusco's Steak Shop - instead of whiz get the American whiz
King of Tandoor - the best samosa served here in Philly
Sabrina's Cafe - great breakfast and brunch the portions are huge
Honey's Sit N Eat - killer french toast that is so light and airy you end up finishing them all
Cafe Estelle - modern cafe where sustainability and good food come together
Zahav - modern Israeli restaurant that has an outstanding kibbeh & hummus
Samwon Garden - the kimchee potatoes, best side I have ever tasted warm, spicy, and hearty
Cafe Houng Lan - Vietnamese seafood noodle soup is one of a kind
Picanha - the beef ribs are winners with their homemade hot sauce
Shiao Lan Kung - hands down the best hot and sour soup, chili flakes float throughout it
Isgro - best cannoli's in town
Slice - good new york style pizza here in Philly
Hamifgash - Mediterranean newcomer with great kebabs which rivals Maccabeam
Cuba Libre - an amazing mojito and the cicharone de la casa is a must order
Kite & Key - local gastro pub with a great neighborhood feel
Chickie's Deli - Sarcone's bread with fresh sliced prosciutto and freshly shredded mozzarella
West Chester Food Festival - where you can sample all kinds of food in 4 hours

New York:

DiFara's Pizza - the only pizzeria that is rated #1 year round located in Brooklyn
Sea - Modern, Hip, and very inexpensive Thai eatery in Williamsburg
Shake Shack - a great burger located in Madison Square Park
Jewel Bako - sushi you would have in Japan because most of it is imported from Japan
Stage Deli - Corned Beef or Pastrami take your pick on Rye
Juniors - still the standard for good New York Cheesecake

Look for new things to happen in the New Year of 2009. I will be revamping my entire website and I will be adding many new sections to the delights of many. I am looking to form a food group that will dine out once or twice a month at a new local eatery here in Philadelphia. I hope to share some recipes that I either try or borrow. I will travel outside of Philadelphia and share what I have experienced and tasted.

Happy Holidays,
Da Philly Food Critic

Gooble Gooble

2008-11-29T08:26:00.000-08:00

I was in charge of cooking the turkey this year for Thanksgiving Dinner. I tried something new this year a salt roast bird instead of a briny one. I used the recipe from the November issue of Bon Appetit magazine and tweaked it. The bird came out moist and the skin came out to a golden brown. I was constantly basting the turkey every 30 minutes after the first 1 hour of cooking. The salt roast involved sea salt, fresh ground pepper, fresh sage, fresh rosemary, and other seasonings. I marinated the bird overnight in the salt rub so that the spices can draw out the moisture out of the bird. With the moisture being drawn out by the salt the other flavors would absorb into the bird.

Golden Perfection for Thanksgiving Day

Ham

Corn

Can't beat the traditional stuffing ala Stove Top

French Bean Casserole with French's Onions

Palace of Asia Cherry Hill, New Jersey

2008-11-23T21:45:00.000-08:00

When I was attending college many years ago, my friend Gaurav wanted to bring me out to try authentic Indian Cuisine. I had never tried Indian food before so it was definitely a treat. He mentioned to me that this restaurant reminded him of his mother's cooking. And ever since then I have not been disappointed. They are open for lunch and dinner daily. During lunch they offer a to die for buffet for about $10.00 which is a steal.

Meat Samosa's the filling was a tad bland and it was very meaty.

Assorted Pakora Platter, Fish, Potatoes, Squash, and Cauliflower fried in a seasoned chickpeas batter.

Basmati Rice was cooked to perfection and the peas had a nice touch to it.

Chicken Tikka Masala, The masala was on the sweet side and the chicken had a smoky taste to it. This was a tasty dish indeed and whenever I go out to an Indian restaurant I order this dish always.

Lamb Vindaloo this was my first time trying this dish. The sauce was very smooth, spicy, and the lamb was very tender. I requested the kitchen add more heat to this dish and they succeeded.

A table shot of the dishes with Raita, Naan the unleavened bread, a pickeld eggplant salad, and the various chutneys for dipping.

Another shot of all the great Indian flavors on the table.

Gulab Jaman Fried mini doughnuts slathered in honey rose water. This dessert was excessively sweet and the 3 jamans were plenty. This also is a favorite dessert of mine I can't live without.

John's Roast Pork Philadelphia, Pa

2008-11-23T20:58:00.000-08:00

John's made my best list of best roast pork sandwich. I have been coming to John's for a long time now. John's Roast Pork is what they are known for. It come in 2 sizes a small or a large. A small sandwich is served on a kaiser roll. While the large sandwich is served on a freshly baked Carangi roll. You have the option of adding cheese to your sandwich. The sharp provolone is highly recommended and the addition of sauteed spinach brings this sandwich to a new level. The pork is very moist and tender, it has a hint of clove, cinnamon, garlic, and other various Italian seasoings. The pork is made daily and is simmering all day on the stove top. So it is served piping hot and will melt in your mouth. John's is open on Mondays through Friday from 6am to 3pm and they only serve breakfast and lunch. Come early because the lines can go out the door. And if they run out of bread they close down. Also John's has one of the best cheese steaks in the city. One time I had the owner John prepare for me a Bacon Mushroom Cheese steak with Eggs over Easy. When I finished the sandwich I went into a John's Roast Pork Food Coma. If you ever in south philly and want to try a different sandwich John's is a must.

The Side view of the John's.

Back View of John's

The infamous Roast Pork Sandwich with Sharp Provolone and Sauteed Spinach.

Another View with the Sauteed Spinach oozing out.

One more shot of a very divine Roast Pork Sandwich.

El Bulli Roses, Spain

2008-11-19T13:40:00.000-08:00

El Bulli

click on the link above to find out why Ferran Adria is a master at what he does. In a series by Mark Bittman of the New York Times, Ferran shows us a recipe into making his out of these world olives.

Ferran Adrià Acosta is a chef born on May 14, 1962 in L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Catalonia, Spain. He is the famed head chef of El Bulli restaurant in Roses on the Costa Brava. Today he is considered one of the best chefs in the world and tops the European Restaurant Ranking.

Ferran Adrià began his culinary career in 1980 during his stint as a dishwasher at the Hotel Playafels, in the town of Castelldefels (Catalonia). The chef de cuisine at this hotel taught him traditional Spanish cuisine. At 19 he was drafted into military service where he worked as a cook. In 1984, at the age of 22, Adrià joined the kitchen staff of El Bulli as a line cook. Eighteen months later he became the head chef.

Along with British chef Heston Blumenthal, Adrià is often associated with "molecular gastronomy," although the Catalan chef does not consider his cuisine to be of this category. Instead, he has referred to his cooking as deconstructivist. Adrià's stated goal is to "provide unexpected contrasts of flavour, temperature and texture. Nothing is what it seems. The idea is to provoke, surprise and delight the diner." This is also combined with a large dose of irony and a sense of humour, making his dishes highly épatants (impressive). As he likes to say, "the ideal customer doesn't come to El Bulli to eat but to have an experience."

El Bulli is only open from April to October. Adrià spends the remaining six months of the year perfecting recipes in his workshop "El Taller" in Barcelona. He is famous for his thirty course gourmet menu.

He is also well known for creating "culinary foam". In his quest to enhance flavour Adrià discards the use of cream and egg; foam is made exclusively of the main ingredient and "air" (combined in a whipped cream maker equipped with N₂O cartridges). Adrià's foam creations include foamed espresso (Èspesso), foamed mushroom, and foamed beetroot.

El Bulli has 3 Michelin stars and is regarded as one of the best restaurants in the Western world. In 2005 it ranked second in the Restaurant Top 50. It was awarded the first place in 2006, displacing The Fat Duck in England. El Bulli has retained this title in 2007 and 2008.

I hear the wait to get into El Bulli is forever. Visiting El Bulli is a foodies dream and in the future I'll be there to experience it.

Ready, Steady, Eat

2008-11-17T18:17:00.000-08:00

I was watching the first episode of Top Chef last week. And the challenge of the week was very intriguing. The various contestants had to cook various ethnic cuisines that represents New York City. They had to cook Asian, Russian, Italian, Latin, Middle Eastern, and Indian dishes. Some of the contestants nailed their dishes while others didn't do so well. This caught my attention because I am an aspiring food critic and my knowledge of various ethnic cuisines is very limited.

I do have a great culinary background in Asian, Italian, Hawaiian, Polynesian, and French cuisines. But my knowledge into different cuisines is not where I want it to be. So I am on a quest to better expand my culinary taste buds. I am going to call it a culinary field trip around the world. Without traveling there, I will meet various people from these countries, get some interviews, learn some of the basic language, and share some recipes. Also I will read various books & magazine, research the Internet, and watch some travel shows on the TV.

My first stop will be in Spain. Spain is a culinary mecca right now and it helps that I speak some basic Spanish. After Spain I will travel to the Middle East. Where various spices and delightful treats await me. From the Middle East I will travel to India to really get a better understanding of Indian cuisines. And my last tour of duty will put me smack dab in the Caribbean somewhere.

All this will be accomplished before the year is over. In the name of research and the making of the best food critic ever. I will keep everybody updated on my weekly progress to what I have and haven't done.

Smoke Joint Brooklyn, NY

2008-11-17T18:01:00.000-08:00

The menu was very simple nothing complicated.

Iceberg Lettuce with Bleu cheese dressing.

The grilled corn was slathered in mayo, spices, and topped off with green onions.

The spicy wings were the highlight of the meal. They were better than the ribs.

Chorizo sausage was too spicy and it didn't hold up to being cut up.

The ribs were a major disappointment, they were very dry, and even with the addition of BBQ sauce didn't help them. There was a no smokey taste or flavor what so ever.

The sides were quite tasty from the beans, to mac and cheese, spicy fries, and the coleslaw.

DiFara's Pizzeria Brooklyn,New York

2008-11-11T17:07:00.001-08:00

When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie that's amore. The pizza pie being from Difara's of course. Difara's pizzeria is the best pizza I have ever eaten. I am very fortunate that my sister lives only 10 minutes from DiFara's. Domenic DiFara the owner has won numerous accolades for his pizza restaurant. He has been making pizza for over 50 years. What makes this place so special is that only Dom himself will make your pizza to order. He uses the finest imported ingredients such as cheeses, tomatoes, and basil. So it will take a while to get your pie usually 30 minutes to an hour. It starts with Dom stretching the dough to an ultra thin layer. Then he ladles on some of his homemade tomato sauce, I heard he mixes fresh San Marzano tomatoes with canned ones. He does run out of sauce occasionally and will make some fresh sauce throughout the day. Next he hand grinds a combination of fresh high quality regular mozzarella, and imported buffalo mozzarella from Italy. He then tops the sauce with the hand shredded cheese first. Then if other toppings are ordered they will be placed on top of the cheese. The pie then bakes in the gas oven and Dom finishes each pie with a few snips of shredded fresh basil. Then the Piece de Resistance is the drizzling of olive oil from his ubiquitous copper oil can. Then a dusting of hand shredded Grana Padana cheese finishes off each pie. It is a very small restaurant with self service seating. I believe he had seating for about 14 customers. He does sells slices but they are very expensive at $4.00 a slice. I had a slice of regular and it sold out fast. DiFara's is closed on Mondays so make sure you don't visit on that day. They do not do phone orders so you have to wait in line like everybody else. But if you ever venture into Brooklyn you need to stop by DiFara's off Avenue J.

The sign says it all and yes it is worth the wait.

The menu board I don't recommend ordering more than 2 toppings, the pizza is very thin and won't hold all your toppings. I found out the hard way when I ordered the special pie on my last visit.

After our ordering our pizza pies Dom had to make some pizza dough for the rest of the evening.

Pizza Dough at rest, ready to proof and rise to perfection in Dom's oven.

Dom ladling some of his stellar sauce on a pizza.

Checking the ovens out for his pizza pie.

I heard his square pizza is to die for too.

Drizzling of olive oil after if comes out of the oven.

Another shot of olive oil being drizzled on our pepperoni pie.

Pepperoni Pizza

Another shot of the the best pepperoni pizza ever, the middle of the pie was paper thin, sauce was subtle in flavor, and the Gran Padana cheese was very nutty, and the combination of olive oil and fresh basil made this an unbelievable pie.

My friend Paul said it was the best pizza he has ever had.

Alma De Cuba Philadelphia, Pa

2008-11-04T17:16:00.000-08:00

I would like to thank Anuddah Philly Food Critic for this contribution to my blog. To all you foodies out there if you have a camera, an appetite, and some great dining experiences. I am always looking for new contributors to my blog.

Alma de Cuba (The Soul of Cuba) is a fine dining establishment situated at 1623 Walnut Street on Rittenhouse Square. The atmosphere is modern chic with a heavy dose of nostalgic and romantic flair. The service is impeccable, as is the quality of everything about this restaurant. The menu offers a Caribbean/Latin American selection which is priced moderate to high. The menu consists of a healthy selection of meats, seafood, vegetables, soups, and creative blends. To fully enjoy the array of amazing flavors on the menu, be prepared to spend some money. The wine and cocktail menu is excellent: the Chilean Merlot I had was amazing and my girlfriend had a large smile on her face every time she took a sip from her Suave Mojito.

Alma de Cuba offers Ceviche, with sampling options: you can select 3, 5, or 7 samples (half-portions) of the 7 types of Ceviche on the menu. We selected Rainbow Ceviche (Tuna, Salmon & Fluke marinated in lime juice and jalapeno with roasted sweet potato slices), Hamachi Teradito Ceviche (Yellowfin, red onion, cilantro, lime juice with a bit of aji), and Lobster & Crab Coconut Ceviche (Lobster, Crab, habanero chilies with ginger and lime sorbet). These 3 were very pleasing to the taste buds and eyes.

We also had Royal Palm Dates (Almond-stuffed dates wrapped in bacon with cabrales bleu cheese), which was a unique combination of flavor and was fantastic.

I had the Beef Tenderloin (medium-well cooked), which was prepared Churrasco style with grilled asparagus, jumbo lump crab dressing, and horseradish chimichurri--that was very tasty.

My girlfriend had Scallops, which was a special that was not on the menu. The scallops were lightly marinated (salt/butter) and grilled to perfection with sprouts, onion, and a mystery brown item (mushrooms?) over a sweet dough cake. She loved it and the sample I had was good.

We had a side of Fried Sweet Plantains, which were amazing.

The Chocolate Cigar (almond cake wrapped in chocolate mousse, dusted with chocolate and served with dulce de leche ice cream) made our taste buds dance and sing--wow that was excellent!

As a half-Cuban critic, this restaurant had a lot to prove to me: Alma de Cuba exceeded my expectations. I highly recommend this fine establishment, especially if you are in the mood to wine and dine/impress a special someone. If you are alone, no need to pout: prepare to enjoy a superb Cuban feast as your taste buds will thank you for days.

HK Golden Phoenix Philadelphia, Pa

2008-11-02T15:53:00.001-08:00

This past Friday was the World Series Parade here in Philadelphia. After attending the festive parade my buddy Paul and I worked a hunger that no ordinary Philly Cheese steak could satisfy. So after a quick jaunt to Chinatown we came upon HK Golden Phoenix. Paul loves Philly Chinatown because it reminds him of home. Paul just moved here from Honolulu a couple of months ago. They have extraordinary restaurants in Hawaii and HK hit all of Paul taste buds. Heck we even met an person whose son lived on the Big Island sitting right next to us. The spirit of Aloha even exist here in Philly. After the meal we were just right not too full and very satisfied.

Steamed Pork Spare Ribs, Paul was savoring the broth that it was steamed in.

Har Gau Steamed Shrimp Dumplings

Har Gau Steamed Shrimp Dumplings

In Hawaii these are known as Pork Hash, they are sold in 7-11's, and local manapua shops. The spicy dipping sauce brings these dumplings to another level.

Shiu Mai Steamed Pork and Shrimp Dumplings

Nau Mai Gai, Sticky Rice with Lap Cheong Chinese Sausage wrapped in a lotus leaf.

Another Shot of the Sticky rice wrapped in lotus leaf

Mantra Philadelphia, Pa

2008-10-30T18:08:00.001-07:00

Last week was game 5 of the World Series featuring our very own Philadelphia Phillies. I wanted to watch the game in Center City. After fruitlessly driving around Center City the lines outside various popular bars were out of control. I heard they were charging a cover to watch the game ranging from $20 to $30. So after driving a few blocks down the street we found Mantra. It had space available and the game had just started. I didn't have an appetite but my buddy Mark was hungry. I looked an the menu and was overwhelmed by the huge selection. Mantra is described as a pan Asian restaurant lounge. The interior decor was amazing it was a place I could hang out not dine at. I ordered the salt and pepper calamari and Mark ordered the Mongolian fire hot pot. It took terribly forever to get our food. It was a 45 minute wait for our food. There were only 2 tables that were ordering food. If I wasn't watching the game this would have been inexcusable. We got our food and my calamari was cold. I didn't want to complain for fear of getting my order taking another 30 minutes to cook. Mark's dish was a glimmer of hope. Even though the lo mein noodles were cooked beyond soft, and the vegetables lost their al dente crunch, and the shoyu ginger sauce used to sauce the dish was too overpowering. And calling a dish a fire hot pot by drizzling volcanic sriracha hot sauce doesn't cut the bread. I have been to many modern pan Asian restaurant lounges. If they scaled back their enormous menu and offered local quality dishes this place would take off. There are way too many people in this area who have refined taste buds. And offering overpriced and mediocre dished just won't cut it in today restaurant scene.

Appetizer Menu

The entire menu was very overwhelming and soo were the prices.

Salt & Pepper Calamari with processed frozen calamari rings. No flavor of salt or pepper was prevalent at all.

The dipping sauce for the calamari was very sweet

Mongolian Fire Hot Pot

Fire Pot with Cashews, Broccoli, and Peppers

Kim's Restaurant Philadelphia, Pa

2008-10-26T21:56:00.000-07:00

Kim's has been my favorite Korean Restaurant for over 15 years. They prepare the best Korean dishes hands down in the greater Philadelphia area. My Korean friends highly recommend this place for a special meal. They are located in the Olney part of North Philly which is a 10 to 15 minute car ride from Center City.

Fried Mandoo with hot shoyu dipping sauce with a touch of sesame oil, the mandoo skins were firm and the extra frying gave the dumplings an added crunchy shell to compliment the tender meat filling.

Soon Du Bu Chigae, Soft Tofu Soup with Seafood, another favorite of mine, usually they put clams and an egg in this dish. But they opted for the cheaper imitation crab meat. The broth was spicy and the hint of kim chi base was prevalent throughout the soup.

Kim Chi Chigae, with sliced pork and aged fermented kim chi, broth was very flavorful and the kim chi had a mellow note to it, not sour at all, this soup is great for a cold winter day mmmm good.

This is why Kim's rocks because of the live charcoals that you use to grill your various meats. Most other Korean restaurants use gas grills which does not impart any flavor at all. I like to refer to it as interactive dining where you cook while you eat at the table.

For years I never knew what the lettuce was for. Until I saw a commercial on a Korean TV channel and saw how they used lettuce as a wrap for the grilled meat and various Pachuns ( side dishes) and dipped it in the miso sauce.

Raw Garlic and Jalapenos are a welcome addition to the grill, once grilled the garlic takes on a sweet flavor, and the peppers give you an added kicked to your plate. The miso sauce is great for dipping various grilled meats or using as a side sauce for your Korean wraps.

Various Pachuns accompany your meal, you may have your meal ala carte with a bowl of rice, or you may build a Korean burrito with you leaves of lettuce.

Quick Kim Chi Salad of Shredded Daikon & Carrots, very refreshing and the light pickling helps cleanse your palate between bites.

Blanched Bean Sprouts with Dashi Broth, another Korean BBQ staple.

Daikon Kim Chi

Salted Black Beans, which were incredibly al dente.

Kim Chi which was out of this world it wasn't even sour and the nappa cabbage still had some crunch to it.

Potatoes with warm shoyu vinaigrette

Fish Cakes with Soy Sauce

Seaweed Salad

Maeun Kalbi, hot and spicy marinated short ribs, soo tender and good it broke all our mouths.

Kalbi cooking on the live charcoal the aroma was invigorating.

Doeji Bulikoki, spicy marinated pork, I think this was the dish of the night. The thin slices of pork with the hot marinade caused a flavor explosion to occur after it was grilled.

When the pork met the grill it was all over from there.

A shot of the dining table before our feast.

Da Hawaiians give the Shaka to Kim's Restaurant.

It was so Ono (delicious) they said they will be coming back for more.

HK Golden Phoenix, Philadelphia, Pa

2008-10-22T14:42:00.000-07:00

Dim Sum is one of my favorite past times. I remember my father taking the whole family to Riverside Inn in Chinatown when it was around. It was a family tradition and I loved every bit of it.

Dim Sum is Chinese cuisine in which an array of small little dishes are either fried, steamed, or stir fried. They consist of various meats, seafood, vegetables, or fruits. Each dish is served family style where you share your dishes with others. The meal is accompanied by various choices of Chinese hot teas. I usually order the Guck Fa Cha (Chrysantheum Tea) it has a floral note that gives a refreshing taste to each bite of dim sum.

The advantage of dining on dim sum is the variety of dishes that can be had in one sitting. HK Golden Phoenix is my favorite dim sum restaurant in Philadelphia. The service is very attentive and literally the best in town. Best time to come is early lunch 11:30am to 1pm, when the lunch crowd rushes the restaurant. Weekends are extremely busy here and better to come early or you'll have to wait at least an hour.

Spring Rolls with vegetables and pork filling, the wrappers were crisp but the filling was luke warm.

Pai Gwat - steamed pork spare ribs in garlic and hot peppers, this dish is my all time favorite and a must order, they came out piping hot and the irresistible broth was intoxicating. My dining partner Robert finished this dish first and really enjoyed it.

Siu Mai - Steamed Pork & Shrimp Dumplings, the combination of shrimp and pork nearly knocked me off my chair with each bite.

Har Gau - Steamed Shrimp Dumplings so simple and good the shrimp was fresh and the wrappers had a nice gummy bite to them.

Shrimp Roll with warm shoyu sauce, homemade chow fun noodles enveloped some hearty pieces of shrimp. The noodles were tender, the shrimp was cooked perfectly, and the warm shoyu had enough sweetness to complete this dish.

Taro Dumplings

Wu Kuk - Taro Dumplings they were served room temperature and were okay. I would have loved it if the dumplings were fried longer. The way they are made is they take whole taro roots, steam it, then mash it up, and form a taro shell around a vegetable and meat filling. Then the balls are deep fried for a few seconds. The taro crisps up and that bird nest shell forms around the dumpling. If served piping hot these dumplings are the best thing ever invented since sliced bread.

Minella Diner Wayne, Pa

2008-10-12T13:05:00.000-07:00

The other night after playing an intense tennis session with my buddy Mark. We decided to grab a bite at Minella's in Wayne. I have been coming to Minella's on and off for the last 20 years. It's your average diner fare with likes of Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, and various Italian & Greek Specialities. Baking is done on premise so all the desserts and breads are homemade. Minella's is what it is a local diner with average food that does the job to curb your appetite.

Mesclun salad with Italian dressing, problem with mesclun salad mix is that it's so delicate it can turn bad fast. I found 5 bad leaves on my salad. I just pushed it aside and ate the rest of it.

Spaghetti with red sauce, pasta was overcooked and the sauce had a bland taste to it. No flavor at all definitely from the can.

Chicken Parmesan, Mark said the chicken was very fatty and the sauce was the same as it was for his pasta. I had a bite and was definitely disappointed in the dish.

Spaghetti Carbonara, I love carbonara and this dish just didn't make the cut. They used angel hair which was the first mistake. This was a bad choice because the angel hair made the whole dish very clumpy. The pasta wasn't sauced properly and it was very dry. I had to add lots of hot pepper flakes to taste something. This is what happened to my dish it was made early and sat under the heat lamp. The sauce dried up while the Chicken Parm was awaiting to be cooked. I can't complaint it did the job in satisfying my hunger after tennis. Next time I am sticking to the breakfast which they do very well here.

Bar Ferdinand, Philadelphia, Pa

2008-10-07T16:21:00.000-07:00

This is my 3rd review of Bar Ferdinand and yes it was better than my previous visits. I belong to the Philadelphia Ethnic Dining club and I suggested we give Bar Ferdinand a try. I have a relationship with the General Manager and both Chef Blake and Chef Michael. This was a treat because it was a special chef tasting menu. After the dinner both of the Chef's did a Q&A with the group, and we even got a grand tour of the kitchen. A great time was had by all and below are a list of all the items we all sampled.

Goat Cheese & Kale Croquetas with a Romesco Sauce

Various Olives

Chef Michael Thomas Uncle's Delicata Squash Grilled and served with a Pomegranates Syrup

Tuna Taretare lathered with the most buttery olive oil I have ever tasted

Tuna Tartare

Snails

Calamari stuffed with rice served with squid ink and braised Swiss Chard, the most interesting dish of the evening nice texture and contrasting flavors

Sea Bass with a crunchy saffron risotto, fish was cooked perfectly and the risotto had great flavor

Braised veal cheeks with a root vegetable puree

Pig Trotters with a egg fried sunny side up

Ham, Argula, Apples, and Cheese Sandwiches who knew a sandwich could be soo good

Strawberry Shortcake with Bailey Whipped Cream

Homemade Chocolate Truffles with a touch of Salt

West Chester Food Festival West Chester, Pa

2008-09-27T21:28:00.000-07:00

Da Other Food Critic and his better half invited me to join them on a bright and lovely Sunday afternoon. This was the annual West Chester food festival held by the borough to promote restaurants in this quaint little town outside of Philadelphia. I am a huge fan of food festivals and this event didn't disappoint. They had many vendors from BBQ, Burgers, Bar Food, Greek Food, Desserts, and Seafood.

The first stop was Pietro Prime where we sampled Kobe Sliders, Shrimp & Corn Fritters, and Tuna Skins. The Kobe sliders were good although I couldn't tell the difference from regular beef. The fritters had a crunchy corn taste to them and the spicy ailoi accompanying it was on point. The tuna skins was interesting take on potato skins, they were deep fried potato skins topped off with a raw ahi tuna salad. This was a surprising treat you have the hot potato with the cold tuna. Pietro Prime was a favorite of the festival.

My next jaunt got me to Jimmy John's Hot Dog tent. I haven't had a Jimmy John's hot dog in 10 years and boy was it good. The hot dog has a snap and crunch to it when you bite into them. I believe it has something to do with the special casing of the hot dog. Hot dog was juicy, plump, and great for walking around with.

Did someone say gyro, Greek food is a favorite pastime of mine. I saw that the Greek Cafe had brought out some hot gyro meat. So I decided to try a gyro which was delightful. The tzaiki sauce has a nice refreshing contrast to the spicy hot gyro meat. I ended up sharing half of it with Da Other Food Critic.

We tried the lobster roll from the Seafood Market. Which was a total disaster the salad had been sitting too long and it was very watery. Da Other Food Critic said it had a frozen taste to it. I couldn't agree with him on that. Note to self don't ever purchase a Lobster Roll outside of Maine even though it is tempting.

I sampled a braised shortrib sandwich with bleu Cheese. I can't recall the vendor but the bread was too hard for this melt in your mouth treat. I ended up eating only the braised shortribs and passed on the bread. It is a shame because this sandwich had major potential to be a favorite of mine.

Oysters on a hot Sunday afternoon was out of the question. So until I tried the Oysters at Doc Macgrogan tent. They were ultra cold, fresh briny flavor, a spritz of freshly squeezed lemon, a splash of mignonette sauce, and a dash of Tabasco made these gems the talk of the town.

I tried BBQ from Pig Out BBQ, which will be opening a new location on Gay Street. I wasn't impressed with the ribs I ordered. Of course they were tender but they were sitting in sauce all day. I prefer my BBQ dry with sauce on the side. That way you can really taste the meat and sample the sauce individually or together at your own discretion. I love my BBQ and didn't get to try to many BBQ at the festival.

I had many desserts from a rich decadent Brownie to these gourmet cupcakes. Cupcakes Gourmet won best of Main Line Times this year. So I wanted to see what all the hype was all about. The cupcake I sampled was a milk chocolate one. It was good, very light fluffy, and fulfilling only gripe is that they were very expensive. $4.00 for a small size cupcake just doesn't do it for me.

My last treats were these gigantic chocolate chip cookies which weighed a ton. They had a cake like consistency and had a nice hint of salt to them.

I will definitely come back to the food festival next year. The festival spans over 5 blocks and it starts from noon until 5pm. Parking is tight so come early or come later in the afternoon. I have 3 new restaurants I want to visit in the future. Who knew West Chester had so many dining options to choose from.

Pho To Chau, Honolulu, Hawaii Revisited

2008-09-27T20:38:00.000-07:00

Pho To Chau is by far my favorite Pho place on the planet. If your ever in Honolulu Chinatown you'll recognize this gem by the long line outside the door. Service is slow and they open from 8:30am to 2pm daily. If you come for lunch be prepared for a 45minute wait. They have the best Cha Gio (spring rolls wrapped in rice paper). Why is this place soo good you say, it is cheap, delicious, and they offer you plenty of veggies.

The beginning is better than the end

Rare pic of the da critic himself ready to enjoy a bowl of Pho Dac Biet

Kahala Hotel Honolulu, Hawaii

2008-09-23T15:28:00.001-07:00

Brunch can be a very pleasurable experience. I rarely get the chance to go out for brunch. The key elements for a memorable brunch are first the food, location, and the company your with. I have been to many brunches and this by far is the best I have ever been too. Service was impeccable, outdoor seating has a panoramic view of the Pacific Ocean, and the food was out of this world. I dined here with my mother, brother, & sister. Kahala offers many different kinds of cuisines from Asian, Hawaiian, & American Fare. You have prime rib, egg station, cold salads, hot entrees, fresh fruit, desserts, and an assortment of sushi. If your in Honolulu and want to enjoy a nice quiet Sunday away you can't go wrong with Brunch at the Kahala Hotel.

A colorful plate with mixed desserts

Prime Rib is always a winner at brunch

So is tempura and sushi

The strawberry soup was very refreshing and served very cold

a view of the buffet line

A plethora of desserts so good you want to try them all

The sushi is a favorite of mine outside of Japan sushi in Hawaii is top notch

Frusco's Steaks Philadelphia, Pa

2008-09-07T16:50:00.000-07:00

Cheesesteaks are what the City of Brotherly Love is known for. Of course you have Pat's & Geno's in the Italian market which attract the touristy crowd. Anyone local in the Philadelphia region will tell you that the 3 musts of a exceptional cheesesteak are the bread, quality of meat, and the cheese. First type of cheesesteak is a chopped where they take a slice of meat and grill it on a flattop grill and dice it with 2 spatulas. Then it is usually topped off with fried onions or some kind of cheese. Either American cheese slices or Cheese Whiz finishes off the sandwich. Or the second type is you can get slices of beef and just let them cook on the griddle and just flip them over when done. I prefer this method because it preserves the flavor of the meat and the entire sandwich is pure and divine. Frusco's doesn't disappoint and if your in the Frankfurt part of the city you have to get a cheesesteak.

Store Fronts of Frusco's

That's right they are open till 3 A.M. on Fridays & Saturdays

Bacon Mushroom Cheesesteak with Fried Onions and Liquid American Cheese. They take a block of American cheese and melt it in a pot. Only Steve Prince of Steaks is the other establishment that does offer liquid American Cheese.

The bread was tender and the meat had delicious hardy flavor from the seasoned grill.

Bacon & Beef are a true marriage made in a foodie heaven.

The liquid American Cheese spreads evenly on the sandwich and makes it one of the best cheesesteaks in Philly.

Shiao Lan Kung Philadelphia, Pa

2008-09-06T09:31:00.000-07:00

Tsingtao Beer you can't go wrong with a BYOB and you'll need it to wash down all the great dishes.

Quintessential Egg roll, Pat had to order it Shrimp & Cabbage filling he mentioned it was very good.

Hunan Beef, can see the flecks of hot pepper and the sliced chilies throughout the dish, very smooth taste and spicy enough to cause a sweat or two.

I always ordered the salt baked soft shell crabs, so good they always just are out of this world.

2nd Shot of the Soft Shell Crabs

Sauteed Clams in Black Bean Sauce, another favorite of mine the fermented black beans have a right amount of saltiness and garlic kick to awaken your taste buds.

2nd shot of Sauteed Clams with Black Bean Sauce, the clams were cooked to perfection and I finished them all.

Sizzling Beef with Hot Pepper Sauce, Shortribs are so tender that you don't need a knife to cut it. I heard that he uses baking powder to tenderize it.

Ah you can't go wrong with a table full of good Chinese food. The food tends to be on the salty side so bring some beer to wash it down. Shiao Lan Kung used to be open till 4am now they close at 2am. So if your looking for some great late night eats and want something different you can't go wrong with this place.

Fisherman's Seafood Market, Kent Narrows, Maryland

2008-08-31T11:19:00.001-07:00

I found this gem of a place by accident. I had just completed paddling for the Kent Island Outrigger Canoe Club Novice boat. Which was a blast and truly great venue for hosting a paddling event. So after we were done they offered us cold cut sandwiches and beer for lunch. I wasn't too happy with the spread. So a fellow paddler and club member Jill mentioned that we should head across the bay to the seafood restaurant for a lite bite. I was all for that because I wanted to get some real food. So 30 minutes later I was looking for Jill and to no avail couldn't find her. I did find Eric, Jeff, and Carol who graciously joined me at Fisherman's Market.

Dozen of Steamed Large Crabs with Old Bay Seasoning, so good my mouth almost broke, meat was tender, and the dipping them in vinegar and melted butter nearly knocked me off my chair.

$50.00 for a dozen crabs

Pound of Large Steamed Shrimp with Old Bay Seasoning, you can't go wrong with cocktail sauce, lemon and a great view of the bay.

$23.99 for a lbs of shrimp

50 farm raised little neck clams, with some clam juice and butter. Maryland is known for their seafood and these littlenecks didn't disappoint. They were tender, juicy, and perfectly cooked.

$26.99 for 50 little neck clams

Parc Rittenhouse Philadelphia, Pa

2008-08-21T06:34:00.001-07:00

In the closing scenes of Something Has To Give, Diane Keaton, Keanu Reeves, & Jack Nicholson are dining at a french bistro in Paris. The ambiance of that bistro looked amazing.
That scene always resonates with me because for 1 I love food and 2 ambiance is a must. So when I heard Steven Starr was opening up a French Bistro in town. I had to visit it to see what all the hype was all about. If you have been Balthazar in Manhattan it is an exact knock off of it. The food was good nothing out of this world. The ambiance is something out of a nice french bistro. There is seating for 80 people outdoors. If you do ask to be seated outdoors ask for the Rittenhouse Park view, the other side is boring and you look at a street alley.

Onion Tart served with field green salad - tart had good flavor, flaky crust, and addition of olives hit the spot

Tuna Carpaccio with mustard and thinly sliced onions - tuna had a velvety texture and the mustard had enough kick to give the tuna some bite

Charcuterie Duck Prosciutto, Speck, Salami, & Chicken Mousse - can't go wrong with cold cuts and good bread. Worchestire Jam was an interesting addition to the plate.

Moules Frite Steamed Mussels in a cream sauce - good seasoning of the sauce can still taste the hint of smoky pepper

Branzino served with olive tapenade

Steak Frites Hangar Steak with Maitre D Butter - the only complaint I had was the fries were cold, steak was cooked to a perfect medium rare, did have to add some salt and pepper to the meat

So happy for Big Daddy

2008-07-27T20:02:00.000-07:00

Tonight was the conclusion of the Next Food Network Star. A friend of mine is one of the finalists Aaron Mccargo Jr. I was nervous watching it because his other competitors did such a great presentation of their filmed pilots.

Lisa has the whole package, the look, the knowledge, and experience. Her pilot was done very well. She had a great energy to her, but her trying to make elegant food easy just is an afterthought. Early in the nineties David Rosengarten had a show on the food network. It was a great show but it was very technical. I feel Lisa is on that tract with elegant techniques made easy. Her black fish recipe yet simple involved making a zabagione. A zabagione is a tricky item to make because you can scramble the eggs. That genre of cooking was good for the nineties but times have changed. People want a simple delicious meal without all the fluff. Overall I honestly thought she had it in the bag judging by the judges reactions.

Adam really amazed me with his pilot. Adam has a certain young edge to him. He is very witty and is a master of the BBQ. Alot of people have given him slack for just knowing BBQ. Adams Beer Can Chicken recipe was simple and looked delicious. He would definitely appeal to a younger crowd. His show was great too and the inclusion of an Internet viewer to assist with his pilot was something different. I was rooting for the hometown favorite from Philadelphia.

Aaron totally took over his pilot. Aaron culinary skills are second to none. And finally Big Daddy's personality came out which is what the viewers wanted to see. Aaron prepared a seared steak with honey butter plantains. He went over each item meticulously and added his own flair.

I believe he won because they were looking for a person with a big personality and big heart. Somewhere on the lines of a Guy Fiere. A very down to earth guy who you wouldn't mind having over for dinner. Last years winner Amy was good but she was just too plain Jane for me. She didn't have that It factor. Knowing Aaron in the short amount of time that I did. The food network and the world is in for a treat.

I remember talking to Aaron at the hospital he used to work at in Philadelphia. And we had some great and long conversations about food and the television. I mentioned to him I used to produce, edit, and run my own cooking show in high school.

I told him to be himself on TV because his personality is very magnanimous and people will be drawn to it. This was about 2 months ago when we talked. Now Big Daddy has his own show on the Food Network. I am definitely going to be watching his show. And a great job on your season of the Next Food Network Star. I wish you the best Big Daddy you have the support of Da Philly Food Critic always.

Da Philly Food Critic

just bought 3 cookbook

2008-07-13T18:04:00.000-07:00

I was strolling through the Italian Market here in Philadelphia the other day. My friend Lee was in town for the Governor Associations Convention. So I was a gracious host and showed him round town and took him to the Italian Market. I noticed this little tiny book shop was having a 50-75 percent sale on all books. This piqued my interest and man did they have some great cook book selection. I bought Roy Yamaguchi's book, David Bouley's book, and Le Cordon Bleu cook book for $16.00. Unbelievable bargain and I hope to get some great ideas for my upcoming Luau.

Look for some great reviews coming up after August. I am taking a summer break from blogging to focus on my outrigger canoe paddling. I will be racing at the end of August. Wish me luck.

Remember an apple a day keeps the doctor away.

Da Philly Food Critic

Shake Shack New York City

2008-06-06T06:43:00.001-07:00

Open from 11am to 11pm in Madison Square Park

Cheese Fries the best crunchiest fries I have ever had, the owners tried 10 different type of fries before settling on these winners.

Shack Stack Single Cheeseburger with a Shroom Burger, the Shroom burger is 2 layers of portabella mushroom sandwiched between Muenster and Cheddar Cheese coated with bread crumbs and deep fried. So when you bite into the shroom burger the hot cheese gushes out from it.

Tony Lukes Philadelphia

2008-06-06T06:39:00.001-07:00

Mushroom Cheesesteak with Fried Onions

PIcanha Steakhouse Philadelphia

2008-06-01T16:10:00.001-07:00

Bbq Chicken Wings & Bacon Wrapped Chicken the crispiness of the wings is similar to a potato chip

Linguica Sausage

Feijoada and Chicken Paella with Fried Chicken Fritters can we say oh yes I am happy

Lamb Skewers

The best part of the meal beef shortribs

Penang Philadelphia, Pennsylvannia

2008-05-25T18:32:00.000-07:00

Ipoh Bean Sprouts Scalded Bean Sprouts with Soy Sauce and a touch of Sesame Oil, a very refreshing dish for a hot summers day

Roti Canai Crispy Roti Pancake with Chicken Curry Dipping Sauce

Roti Telur Roti folded with red onions and egg my all time favorite can't go wrong with this selection

Dry Chicken Curry with Rice my other favorite which I order all the time

King Pork Puffs Deep Fried Pork Chops with BBQ sauce

Sizzling tofu with egg, ground pork, and shrimp a favorite of my mom's taste

Chinese Watercress

The Best of Philadelphia Restaurants

2008-05-18T15:21:00.000-07:00

I haven't done the Best of Philadelphia yet so here it goes. Enjoy my selections and I hope you get to visit them soon.

Best Cheesesteaks
Johns Roast Pork John's is known for their roast pork sandwich but their Cheesesteaks are killer. My favorite is a Mushroom Bacon Cheesesteak with American Cheese Fried Onions and topped off with eggs over easy sandwiched in a Carangi Roll. This sandwich put me into a food coma and I loved every moment of it. If you haven't been to John's you haven't had a cheesesteak.

Best Deli
Chickies Deli my favorite hoagie joint in South Philly they cut your meat on order. That was the draw that brought me here my brother found this place out years ago. I am glad to have discovered it again. They offered hot and cold salads, mozzarella, hot peppers, and tomato salads. And plus they use Sarcones Roll that are very tasty in their own right.

Best Steakhouse
Picanha Steakhouse in the great northeast part of Philly. This is a meat lovers paradise located in the little Brazil part of town. The cuts of meats are succulent and very flavorful. The best part is it's a BYOB also. So how about a bottle of wine or some ice cold beers to go with your steaks. My last meal was when my brother was in town, it was very memorable live Brazilian music, great service, and wonderful time had.

Best Vietnamese Hoagie
Cafe Huong Lan 1037 S 8th Street located near the Italian Market. This little gem has the best Vietnamese Hoagies called Banh Mi Dac Biet. What is Banh Mi it is a french influenced snack that originated in Vietnam. You have a nice toasted hoagie roll slathered in a pate mayo mix topped off with headcheese, pickled daikon radish and carrots, a sprig of cilantro, jalapenos, and finished with a splash of Maggi seasoning. It is very light refreshing and different from any hoagie you have had.

Best Falafel
Maoz I love falafel and have never really found a great place that makes it here in Philadelphia. The other places I have been too make a good falafel but they aren't as flavorful as I want them to be. This place satisfied my falafel needs perfectly. They are based out of Europe and are beginning to aggressively expand here in the states. They bake their Pita bread daily with your choice of white or wheat. And you have a make your own salad bar where you can dress your falafel up anyway you like it. Their belgian frites are excellent also.

Best Pizza
Slice 1180 S 10th street New York Style Pizza in a South Philly setting go for the Margarita Pizza you can't go wrong.

Best Chinese Restaurant

Shao Lun Kung 930 Race Street I have been coming to this restaurant on and off again for almost 10 years. You have to try the Hot and Sour soup on a cold winter night very spice and flavorful. The chicken wings are a treat, so are the salt baked soft shell crabs, also the sizzling pepper steak with black pepper sauce is definitely divine.

Grimaldi's Pizza New York City

2008-05-13T05:25:00.001-07:00

The pizza I remember as a kid was always cheesy, had a thin bland tomato sauce, and a chewy crust. I grew up eating plain Jane slices when I was young. I thought that was the norm for all pizzas. It wasn't until I got into college did I discover new toppings and eventually understood it better. I made trips to California Pizza Kitchen and Wolfgang Pucks. What makes a good pizza first it is the ingredients, second is the type of oven, third is the pizzzioli or pizza maker. Having worked for a big box pizza company I understand the workings of a pizza from start to finish. I have had my share of pizza all over the country from Boston, California, Hawaii, and the last but not least New York City. I believe New York pizzas are one of a kind. One of my favorites is Grimaldi's located in the DUMBO part of New York. If you go during dinner time like myself around 7:30pm there is going to be a wait. I believe we waited 45minutes not bad. Once inside I had one of the best pizzas in my life. The crust was thin and had a cracker like consistency to it. Each bite offered a snappy reply from each slice. We had pepperoni, sausage, mushrooms, fresh mozzarella, & fresh basil. The salty flavors of the meats and the fresh cheese and basil just absolutely blew my mind. What makes Grimaldi's so special I mean I could go to any pizza joint in New York and be blown away also. The focal point of the place is the coal burning oven. There are just a few number of coal ovens in New York City. Due to zoning ordinances coal oven are not allowed to be built inside buildings anymore. The coal oven burns up to 900 degrees and quickly cooks a pizza in minutes. Grimaldi's is a treat to visit if your in this part of New York. Below are some photos of my adventure.

Sausage, Pepperoni, Mushrooms, Fresh Mozzarella, & Basil

Ahhh a little taste of the good life

one of the best slices of my life

SEA Brooklyn, New York

2008-05-06T18:30:00.000-07:00

While vacationing in New York City my cousin Suri brought me to this restaurant in the Williamsburg part of Brooklyn. It is a about a 20 minute drive right outside of Manhattan. My first visit was very memorable I was with my sister, Pauline, Geo, Jenny, and Suri . We got there around 8pm on a Saturday night. The place was packed when we arrived and the wait was going to be a 1 hour. So we decided to go across the street for some drinks at a local bar. It was a total dive and I remember there was just one bartender working. Anyways the 1 hour wait turned into 2 hours and I was getting real antsy. Usually I would pick up and go after 1 hour. But since I was on vacation I didn't mind it at all as long as the food was going to be good. My cousin Suri reassured me that the food was going to be on point. Why is this restaurant so hip maybe because it was featured on a couple episodes of Sex and the City. The decor has something to do with it also. In the center of the dining room there is a Buddha statue which is sitting high overlooking a nice water pond. There are seats that are right next to the water pond if you choose. If your not a fan of house music this place is not your cup of tea. During the meal the DJ was pumping out some hardcore electronica , house, and trance music. I am a fan of house music so it didn't bother me. The front of the house has 2 swinging chairs some swanky halfmoon stools by the DJ booth and the bar was very crowded. I had an overall good experience at Sea despite the wait. The food was the saving grace with appetizers no less that $5 and average Entrees costing around $10-$15 what could go wrong. We ordered over 10 dishes for 6 people and the bill came out to $100. Most of the dishes that came out had good flavor to them. There wasn't any alcohol on the bill so that was one of the reasons why it was so cheap.

If you want to impress your date, wife, or significant other this is the place to visit. Here are some of the dishes we sampled.

SEA Chicken Wings Chili Tamarind Sauce had a nice splash of tamarind which brought a tart taste to it with the spicy very good

Sea BBQ Shrimps, Squid, Scallop in chili lime sauce was a soo soo appetizer nothing to cry home about

Triangle Curry Puffs Curried Chicken & Potatoes wrapped in Puff Pastry very tasty right amount of curry to kick up the dish the cucumber salad was refreshing

Martini Crispy Shrimp Finger Shrimp wrapped in rice dough served with marinara basil sauce It was just shrimp wrapped in egg roll skins and served with tomato sauce

Jade Seafood Dumplings Steamed crab and shrimp wrapped in green wonton in Massamun curry sauce The delicate seafood held up the to pungent curry sauce

Crunchy Seafood Salad Deep Fried Shrimp, Scallop, Squid in Sriracha Cream Sauce one of my favorites nothing like a platter of fried seafood with some volcanic Sriracha hot sauce

Siamese Fried Rice

Shrimp with Basil

Red SEA Duck Half Duck in a tomato vinagrette gravy with mixed vegetables The duck was cooked just right and the sauce complimented it very well

Creme Brulee

Banana Lumpia

Bar Ferdinand Revisited Philadelphia, Pa

2008-05-03T22:00:00.000-07:00

Da Other Food Critic called me this afternoon. He was up for a culinary field trip out of state to Maryland. What do you say is in Maryland? Well if you guessed blue crabs you hit it right on the spot. I told him that I was on call this weekend for work and could not leave the state. Well wishful thinking on my part and his we agreed to meet in the city for dinner. I mentioned to him I was interested in visiting Kim's Restaurant for some out of this world home style Korean food. But at the last minute we changed our plans. He wanted to give Bar Ferdinand a try I was happy to oblige. We got there on a Saturday night around 8pm and were fortunate enough to be seated right away. This was Da Other Food Critic and his wife's first time to a Tapas bar. I am glad I brought them here because dining is all about learning and opening your taste buds. This was going to be a 2 hour learning experience that would take us to Spain and back. Tapas is a such a great dining experience especially when you have good friends with you. We ordered 3 to 4 dishes at a time. This way we could savor the food and not get too full right away. Then after some great conversation we ordered more and more tapas. The evening came to a close and Chef Blake even stopped by our table to converse with us. I learned that the chef spent a year in Spain cooking. I was wondering how each dish had a nice Spanish touch to them. The general manager Josh was very accommodating and he even brought some tapas to our table. Below are some of the dishes we sampled. Each dish had it's own character sometimes you had a nice citrus touch to refresh your palate. Or you had savory dishes that really would make you fall off your chair. Da Other Food Critic and his wife were very impressed and will make Bar Ferdinand a choice destination in the future.

Andalusian Pork Skewers Had a nice hint of spanish paprika that will awaken your taste buds

Datiles Con Tacino Dates, Bacon, Cream Cheese Baked in Puff Pastry

Manchego Frito Fried Manchego Cheeese, with Walnut Membrillo Puree, and Sweet Frozen Apple Foam if you go order these skewers they are sensory overload, hot, sweet, savory, and cold

Queso De Cabra Cocinado

Cordero A la Plancha Seared Lamb, Moroccan Relish, & Citrus Yogurt one of my favorite lots of bold flavors in the relish and the cool yogurt tames the heat

Carne Ala Parilla Skirt Steak with Egg and Black Truffle

Pulpo a la Parilla Grilled Octopus, Arugla, Preserved Lemons, Potota

Ostra Fried Oyster with Chorizo and Pepper with Blood Orange and Parsley Puree

Amberjack Ceviche Special This dish was very refreshing and the acidity was well balanced this will be added to the regular menu

Costilla De Buey Braised Shortribs with Olive Oil Mash, Pomegranate Jus
This dish literally broke my mouth the beef was tender and the seeds helped cut the richness of the dish

Pinchos De Chocolate Flourless Walnut Torte with Cranberry Syrup & Creme Anglaise
Again right portions and it had the right amount of sweetness to it

Butternut Cheese Cake Butternut Squash Cheesecake with Pine Nut Crust with Cherry Puree and Caramel One of the most unique cheesecakes I have ever had the Pine nuts was a great twist on a classic

The Piece De Resistance Fried Soaked Cider Bread with Cinnamon Ice Cream with Candied Orange Zest This dessert did it for me savory, sweet, and uncalled for

To all you Foodies try this out

2008-04-30T13:52:00.001-07:00

One of my clients/friend I found out is a die hard foodie like myself his name is Big Daddy. You know who you are so this blog is going out to you. Literally Big Daddy and I were talking about food for a long time. What did we talk about BBQ, recipes, our experiences in the food industry, and why we love it so much. Here is a recipe that I will share with everybody. I actually borrowed this recipe from a friend and made it ten times better. I learned this recipe when I was living out in Hawaii. I took a so so appetizer and made it my own. I don't have exact measurements you have to adjust to your own flavor. Cooking isn't a science like baking so you can tweak flavors to your own taste buds. I like a nice hot sriracha mayo and love an ice cold lomi lomi salmon.

Big Daddy's Hawaiian Luau Surprise

Wonton Skins

Kalua Pork

Lomi Lomi Salmon

Huy Fong Sriracha Hot Sauce

Kewpie Mayonaisse

Chopped Cilantro

First cut the wonton skins into bite size pieces. Then start frying the wonton skins immediately in hot oil until they crisp up and change slightly brown. You don't want to over fry the wontons because they will taste burnt.

If you live in Hawaii you can purchase Keoki Brand Kaulua Pork or Lomi Lomi Salmon at your local supermarket. If you don't live in Hawaii click on the links on the Lomi Lomi Salmon and Kalua Pork for the recipes.

Next comes the Volcanic Mayo or Spicy Mayo in this case. I use a one to one ratio of hot sauce to mayo. If it is too hot for your tastebuds add more mayo to thin out the heat.

Now time to assemble take your crisp wonton skin and now pile on a bite size portion of Kalua Pork. Next follow that by a scoop of lomi lomi salmon, now take your spicy mayo and top off the salmon and garnish with fresh chopped cilantro.

After your done pop it in your mouth and close your eyes. Can you hear the Hawaiian music playing in the background and the splashing waves of the ocean. Now open them and realize that you didn't have to go to Hawaii to experience a Luau.

Aloha

Pho To Chau Honolulu, HI

2008-04-28T17:42:00.001-07:00

My friend Jackson from Daddis Fight Camp in Philadelphia was telling me a story about Pho. Last summer he mentioned to me that a group of his friends would get together and go out for Pho daily. He eventually got tired of it. As they say too much of a good thing isn't good at all.

What you say is Pho. Phở is served as a bowl of white rice noodles in clear beef broth, with thin cuts of beef (steak, fatty flank, lean flank, brisket). Variations featuring tendon, tripe, meatballs, chicken leg, chicken breast, or other chicken organs (heart, liver, etc.) are also available.

The broth is generally made by simmering beef (and sometimes chicken) bones, oxtails, flank steak, charred onion, and spices, taking several hours to prepare. Seasonings include Saigon cinnamon, star anise, charred ginger, cloves, and sometimes black cardamom pods which are sewn up in a disposable pouch and dipped into the broth.

The noodles, called bánh phở in Vietnamese, are traditionally cut from wide sheets of fresh rice noodles similar to Chinese Chow Fun, although dried noodles (also called "rice sticks") may also be used.

The dish is garnished with ingredients such as green onions, white onions, coriander leaves (cilantro), ngò gai (culantro, or long coriander), Thai basil, lemon or lime wedges, and bean sprouts. The last five items are usually provided on a separate plate, which allows customers to adjust the soup's flavor as they like. Some sauces such as hoisin sauce, fish sauce, and the Thai hot sauce Sriracha, are popular additions as well. The herb ngò ôm (Limnophila aromatica) is sometimes added as well.

I found this gem of a Pho shop when I was living in Honolulu. If you drive by this restaurant you will know it by the long line outside. The wait is usually about 30 to 45 minutes and people do wait. The best time to visit is early when they open at 8:30am or later around 1:30pm. They open 7 days a week only for breakfast and lunch. Service is horriblely slow and the waitress slash owner won't put up with any stragglers. I have seen her kick people out after they have eaten. The wait is long and she won't have people setting up shop.

Whenever I visited this restaurant the owner knows what I wanted to order. A large Pho Dac Biet with extra Gan (Beef Tendon) & Bo Vien (Meat Balls) and 2 orders of Cha Gio (Fried Spring Rolls). Whenever I visit a Pho shop I always order the Cha Gio to accompany my Pho. You can't have one without the other and the Cha Gio here is the best I have ever had. They fry them hard and the filling is savory and flavorful. I love the rice paper wrapping because it gives a certain gummy texture to the spring roll. Please visit NoodleWhores food blog for more blogs on all that is noodles.

How did I find this restaurant well my Vietnamese Auntie at the time mentioned it to me. I told her I love Pho and next time she went I would accompany her. Once we got there I literally had a Pho Epiphany. The broth was very fragrant, clear, and had a very flavorful taste to it. My auntie even asked the owner to blanch the bean sprouts which was a plus.

Pho can be a snack, be for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. It knows no bounds and has no rules. If you ever have the chance to visit Honolulu. Pho To Chau is a foodie destination. One more note my mother visited me twice while I was living in Honolulu. She is a very picky eater and doesn't eat out often. When I introduced her to this place she had to have it. And she even had some to take home to eat at my place. When something this good is out there it must be shared. Aloha

Cha Gio Fried Spring rolls ground pork with rice paper wrappers

The condiments for the best Pho Plenty of Bean Sprouts, Holy Basil, Lemons, Jalapenos, Sawtooth Green, and Chili Pepper Oil

This bowl of Pho says it all fragrant, clear broth, plenty of onions, cilantro, and scallions. The side of Bo Vien (Meatballs) with a side dipping sauce of Hoisin and Srirahca Hot Sauce brings it all together.

Jakes Restaurant Philadelphia, Pa

2008-04-28T06:21:00.001-07:00

Jakes is a very quaint restaurant located on Main Street in Manayunk. It has been 10 years since I have visited this establishment. I remember it was lively back then and the vibe was very relaxing. The decor has changed dramatically the room has an airplane hangar feeling to it with earth tones and the feeling of trying to be brought to France. The only piece of art hanging on the back wall was a piece by Sara Steele which was going for $2800.00. Was this an indication of what was to come. Jake's is a fine dining destination and I haven't had Brunch in ages. So I decided to accompany my sister and Geo to Jakes. We got there late in the afternoon around 2pm. So it was in between breakfast and lunch and almost near dinner time. The brunch menu is $17.50 for a first course and an entree. The have a very flavorful bloody mary with green beans laced with sriracha hot sauce for $10.00. The bloody mary on it's own had great heat and wonderful balance of alcohol and spices. I mentioned to my dining guests a platter of oysters or clams would compliment my bloody mary perfectly. My sister ordered the red organic salad with balsamic vinagrette, bleu cheese, and roasted pear as her first course. The salad was nicely dressed there was no wilted greens and the portions were right on. I ordered the homemade granola, I felt the granola to be overly sweet. The only balance was the cool vanilla yogurt and raspberries. Geo ordered the oatmeal creme brulee he mentioned it was good. For my entree I wanted to try the chocolate bananas foster stuffed french toast. I make a mean bananas foster so I wanted to see if it matched mine. In addition I ordered the hickory smoked bacon and the home fries both were satisfying and a homerun. The french toast was overly sweet and the bananas foster didn't have any flavor to it. My sister ordered the braised beef which was my favorite. It had a rich and wine flavor it and the cheese and potato puree complimented it well. Geo got the Eggs Benedict with crab cake, the crab cake has little filler it was tasty though, but the asparagus and eggs Benedict side was confusing on the plate. Service was another issue our server lacked the finesse to really take care of us. The restaurant was dead with only 3 tables and we did not get attended to. Our bread plate wasn't cleared, she didn't even check up on how our meal was doing until we were nearly done, and our water glasses were not refilled. The food runner slammed my sisters first course and entree course down with reckless abandon. She was very annoyed by this. My sister and Geo have dined out numerous times and they said the service here needed help. In addition I used to be a server and if you don't take care of your customers they will tell 10 people about the bad service no matter what. I was able to push service aside and the food was above average. I will give Jakes another try for dinner. Enjoy the pics below.

The Menu

Bread with Homemade Preserves

Oatmeal Creme Brulee

Red Oak Organic Salad with Bleu Cheese and Pear

Homemade Granola with Yogurt

Braised Short Ribs with Cheese and Potatoes with Poached Egg

Crab Cake with Eggs Benedict

Hickory Smoked Bacon

HomeFries

Chocolate and Bananas Foster Stuffed French Toast

Bar Ferdinand

2008-04-10T17:09:00.000-07:00

Located in the up and coming neighborhood in the Northern Liberties. This Spanish Tapas restaurant is a place to eat, drink, and be merry. My friend Sawan was in town for vacation from New York. He brought along his loving wife Allison. Sawan has visited this establishment before and knows the General Manager.

If your not familiar with Tapas cuisine, they are small size portions of either cold salads, cured meats, marinated salads, or cooked dishes. These dishes are meant to be shared and can be an entire meal in itself. Usually tapas are enjoyed with a glass of wine or beer .

If your looking for light fare and just hanging out with your friends Bar Ferdinand is the place. When you walk into the restaurant you'll be transported to a villa in Spain. There are muted earth tones and many handmade art work throughout the restaurant. From the communal dining table, to the hand crafted bar stools, to the ornate tile work that lines the bar, to the wildly vivid mosaic on the wall with the bull and matador. Attention to detail was a definite for this establishment. The owner is designer Owen Kamihara who has designed many Stephen Starr restaurants here in the city.

During the warmer months the outdoor patio is open for al fresco dining. We opted to sit at the bar and a ordered a symphony of cold, hot, fried, and skewered tapas. My favorite of the night was the Manhego Frito skewer of Manchego cheese that finished off with a refreshing cool of an frozen apple foam. Talk about hitting all your senses, you have the hot oozing cheese with a cool frozen dissipating foam to cleanse and cool your palate.

My other favorite was the Puff pastry with the dates, cream cheese, and bacon. There is a trend nowadays to really get the point of sweet and savory across. This tapas was creamy, flaky, and the hit of the salty bacon balanced the dish.

There were many dishes that were stand outs also, I didn't have a chance to photograph all the tapas. Because some were to good to take a picture of. When I was taking pictures of the various tapas dishes. The Chef de Cuisine came over to ask me some questions. I told him I was going to put his tapas on my food blog. He mentioned to me that he had the same camera. He was kind enough to show me his camera with some special photos of various special tapas he was working on. That was very nice of him and he went one step further and gave me a tour of his pristine kitchen. The kitchen was sanitary, organized, and uberclean. It was an honor actually for the chef to show me around. Myself having cooked in a kitchen a long time ago, I truly appreciated it.

I have to come back when the weather is nicer so I can dine outside. I would highly recommend this place for happy hour, dinner, brunch or anytime at all. Bar Ferdinand will definitely get more visits from the critic himself. As the bull is charging me on the streets of Philadelphia I say take the Toro Toro to Bar Ferdinand.

Below are some of the highlights of the meal.

Carne A la Parilla Grilled Skirt Steak, Eggs, Black Truffle

Pixin Con Panceta Monkfish, Pork Belly, Rosemary

Queso de Cabra Cocinado Baked Cana de Cabra Cheese, Pine nuts, Honey, Roasted Garlic

Patatas Bravas

Datiles con Tocino Dates, Bacon, Cream Cheese in Puff Pastry

Gambone Y Cangrejo Jumbo Shrimp, Spicy Tomato Puree, Crab Salad, Blood Orange Aioli

Boquerones White Spanish Anchovies, Toast, Parsely

Surtido de Carnes Serrano Ham, Chorizo, Pork Lion

Fried Manchego Frito with Frozen Apple Foam with Walnut Membrillo Puree

Comidas Mexicanos

2008-03-23T21:55:00.001-07:00

My cousin Mely grew in Southern California all her life. She is an exceptional cook and loves to cook Mexican cuisine. She has many Hispanic friends and her husband is of Mexican descent. During her visit to Oahu a couple years ago. She taught me to cook Arroz Mexicano, Tortilla Mexicano, Enchiladas Verdes, Fire Roasted Salsa, and Carne Asada. The Enchiladas were the highlight of the meal. Mely says her Hispanic friends say her Enchiladas are truly out of this world. After preparing and tasting them I was on cloud 9.

I started with roasting a big bag full of Green Anaheim Chilies on the outdoor grill. After the chilies got a nice char to them they were taken off the grill. After the chilies cooled a bit I peeled the charred skins off them. Next step involved making the enchiladas sauce. The sauce was store bought which was fine for the occasion. We combined the sauce and grilled chilies together in a saucepan to simmer. A touch of cornstarch was added to thicken it. Now it was time to assemble the Verdes Enchiladas. First you dip your homemade tortillas in the sauce to coat them on both sides. Then you roll up the enchiladas with the roasted chili's enchiladas sauce. Then stack them one by one in a Pyrex baking pan. Top it with cheese, the remaining Enchiladas Sauce, olives, and bake for 300 minutes at 350 degrees.

Side View of all the platters

Tortilla Mexicano, Carne Asada, Enchiladas Verdes

Another Top View

Top View Again

Table setting by Ms. Ohara

Roy's Honolulu Hawaii Kai

2008-03-23T20:03:00.000-07:00

Roy's is another establishment where I have had many memorable dining experiences. At the time I lived literally down the road from Roy's on Kalanaianeole Highway in Hawaii Kai. My last dining experience was divine and one of a kind. I was there with my brother, Ms. Lye, and some other diners. We were celebrating my brother and I receiving our medals of valor from the Honolulu Fire Department Awards Ceremony. The honorable Mayor of Honolulu Mufi Hanneman presented our medals to us he is one tall mayor. It was a tragic event that happened that day and my brother and I were able to save a life. To celebrate the relatives of the victim offered us a generous gift certificate to Roy's Restaurant. Roy's was the favorite restaurant of the victim who perished in the fire, and they thought we would enjoy it. The whole evening was flawless from the impeccable service, magnificent food, delicious wine, and the manager even stopped by. We ordered everything from the menu plenty of appetizers, wines, stellar entrees, and to die for desserts. The Hawaii Kai location has 2 dining rooms which really play on it's location. The main dining room is located on the second floor where the open air kitchen is located. This dining room has a panoramic view of Mauan Loa Bay. When the sun sets you have a view reminiscent of the Hawaiian islands, majestic, picturesque, and breathtaking. The 1st floor dining room is more laid back. Downstairs there is a bar with some limited indoor seating with booths and tables. The advantage of dining on the 1st floor is local music is played on certain nights. And the you have the opportunity to dine outdoor with the lit tiki torches and an occasional trade wind . Roy's is always an experience that every local and traveler has to experience. Roy's has put Hawaiian cuisine on the map and continues to strive for excellence.

Below are highlights of the meal.

Dim Sum Canoe

Mushroom Soup

Poketini

Sunrise At Haleakala Roll

Lanikaula Roll with Seared Kobe Beef we ordered 3 of these rolls

Seared Ahi Tuna with Miso Butter Sauce

Filet with Brussels Sprouts

Pulehu Strip Steak with fingerling potatoes

Braised Short Ribs

Steamed Kampachi with Shoyu

Chocolate Dessert

Haupia Surprise

Roy's Creme Brulee

Roy's famous warm Chocolate Souffle with Raspberry sauce and Vanilla Ice Cream

Napoleon Dessert

Roy's Upside Down Cake

Side Street Inn Honolulu

2008-03-23T19:44:00.000-07:00

Side Street Inn always has a place in my heart. Side Street Inn has great food and owner Colin Nishida knows what he is doing. The first time I visited Side Street I was not impressed because the person taking me out didn't order the right items from the menu. It was numerous trips later did I discover a hidden gem. The classic fried pork chops, steamed moi my all time favorite, pocho clams served with garlic bread, fried rice, fried wontons, sizzling rib eye steaks, and many more. So please enjoy the pictures posted below. Side Street Inn was recently featured on the Travel Channel with Anthony Bourdain's show No Reservations. Congrats on getting national exposure and I hope more people get to sample this venue.

Ahi Belly So Good it's a Crime

A nice shot of the Infamous Pork Chops

Refreshing Side Salad

Did anyone order the Escargot

Fried Rice

Sizzling Ribeye Platter

Age Tofu some shave bonito flakes and a cool side of shoyu

Chocolate Bread Pudding

Creme Brulee my favorite dessert whenever I am out

Alan Wong's Honolulu

2008-03-23T19:22:00.001-07:00

It is rare I dine out at an exclusive establishment. I am all about value for your money and the quality of food. My roommate at the time Ms. Ohara had her brother in town and wanted to dine out. She recommended Alan Wong's on King Street, she said she used to dine there often. So I said why not let's go give it a try. Alan Wong has been called the father of Hawaiian regional cuisine. That evening I did not see Mr. Wong in the kitchen. The kitchen is an open air and opens up to the dining room. I opted to try the vegetarian tasting menu, yikes what was I thinking. Well my other dining companions choose to do the wine pairing with the regular tasting menu. I was disappointed with my meal overall. The only highlight was the seared ahi that I ordered off the a la carte menu ,and my cheese cake dessert platter was my only saving grace. Service could have been better there was a lack of enthusiasm and they weren't in it for the customers. I think the regular tasting menu with wine ended up being $125.00 each not including tip. My vegetarian tasting menu was $55.00 and the ahi made my meal $80.00 together. The pictures and comments are below. I would give it a try again next time I am in Honolulu.

Mushroom Risotto

Kalbi with shrimp
Alan Wong's Candy Bar Crunch

Potato Hash

Cheese Cake Dessert Platter

Butter Poached Lobster

Hamakua Tomato Salad with Li Hing Mui Vinaigrette

Boots & Kimo Kailua Hawaii

2008-03-23T14:45:00.000-07:00

I was first introduced to this establishment from my former housemate Mr. Bobby Sohn, Local Boy extraordinaire, and Master Pastry Chef in training. Mr. Sohn is now in his 4th year of apprenticeship for becoming a Pastry Master at the Prestigious Greenbriar Inn in West Virginia. Mr. Sohn said I haven't lived until I tried the infamous Banana Pancakes with Mac Nut sauce with a side of Grilled Pulehu Ribs from Boots & Kimos in Kailua. He told me the pancakes were sweet and the ribs were gosh darn savory. What do you say are Pulehu Ribs, Pulehu, which means grilled or cooked over an open flame. The short ribs are grilled over charcoal which will imparts a smoky flavor. The Mac nut sauce is a creme anglaise type sauce that tastes out of this world, it has an aftertaste of sweet creamy marshmallows. I have been to Boot's at least over 20 times or more. I have never had a bad experience with the food. Heck I even had the opportunity to step into the kitchen once. It is very tiny and I couldn't believe they pumped out that much food from it. The good news is in August 2008 they are moving to a bigger space down the road. If you ever have the chance to visit Oahu this needs to be a destination no matter what. The last time my sister and geo were in town to visit. They went to Boot's six days in a row. They are known for their breakfast but their lunches are ono too. Go early or you will have to wait usually an hour for a table. They open from 7am to 2:30pm seven days a week. Until next time this is Da Philly Food Critic.

Front Sign

Usually a 30 Minute to 1 hour wait for greatnesss

My brother Hurry and Preston

Geo & Merry enjoying their meal

Pulehu Rib Platter with Fried Rice

Pulehu Rib Platter with Hash Browns

Hawaiian Smoked Sausage flown in from Maui

French Toast so tender it melts in your mouth

French Toast with Mac Nut Sauce

Banana Pancakes with Mac Nut Sauce

Banana Pancakes smothered in Mac Nut Sauce

Waffles with Mac Nut Sauce