Two Bells
Posted by Foobooz on April 29th, 2013
Craig LaBan heads to Gennaro’s Tomato Pie at Jackson and Carlisle Streets in South Philadelphia in search of an old-time pizza flavor.
I lift a slice of red pie, its heat-charred crust dusting my fingertips with tawny flour, lean in to take a bite, and find the taste is just as transporting. Crackle it snaps, the bottom layer of sweet mozzarella protecting the microscopic-thin crust. The spots of crushed tomatoes spooned on top between clouds of mozzarella have almost caramelized from quick exposure to the naked heat, bright and vivid, tangy sweet. I go back for another bite, then another, savoring the chewy, rustic, well-salted crust.
Two Bells – Very Good
Gennaro’s twirls pizza-making around [Philadelphia Inquirer]
Genarro’s Tomato Pie [Official Site]
Related: News, Craig LaBan, Gennaro's Tomato Pie, Pizza, Reviewed, South-Philadelphia, Two Bells
No Comments | Related Posts »
Posted by Foobooz on March 25th, 2013
Chef Zeng Feng Zhang has moved his Nan Zhou Hand Drawn Noodle House a block west on Race Street but the magic of the noodles remains. What Craig LaBan is most excited by are the new appetizers from the expanded menu.
An expanded menu, though, is the unexpected plus of Nan Zhou’s big expansion. In particular, don’t miss the surprisingly exotic chicken dumplings (fried is better than steamed), whose minced poultry fillings are flared with curry and rich coconut milk.
My biggest surprise, though, was the assortment of appetizers drawn from other regions of China. For vegetable starters, the shredded sea kelp tastes like snappy cold green noodles ignited with fresh garlic heat and sesame oil. Crunchy batons of raw turnip doused in sweet soy and vinegar are piled high with shriveled little fuzzy brown preserved plums that are as flavorful as they are ugly. The shredded potatoes are as addictive as they are a curious find in Chinatown, the cool, white, crunchy spud laces sparked with hot chile oil. Even more unusual, though, was the “gong” vegetable, a pickled green reminiscent of cactus in texture, but with a crunch so resonant, it rang in the back of my head like a bell.
Two Bells – Very Good
Nan Zhou Hand Drawn Noodle House [Philadelphia Inquirer]
Nan Zhou Hand Drawn Noodle House [Official Site]
Related: Reviews, Chinatown, Chinese, Craig LaBan, Nan Zhou, noodles, Reviewed, Two Bells
2 Comments | Related Posts »
Posted by Foobooz on February 25th, 2013
Craig LaBan likes what he sees from chef Terence Feury’s Tavro 13. Well everything except maybe the decor.
Feury at his best, especially with top-notch seafood, is worth the visit, whether for pristine Fire River oysters with Champagne mignonette, scallop ceviche enlivened with lime and chiles, or tender calamari marinated in serrano chile oil and seared on the plancha with pureed almonds and preserved lemon.
A swordfish over squash puree with pumpkin seeds was meltingly moist. Seared cod topped with parsley and potato chips provided the perfect flake-and-crunch contrast to the funky pairing of soft, potatoey salt cod brandade.
Two Bells – Very Good
Tavro 13 [Philadelphia Inquirer]
Tavro 13 [Official Site]
Related: Reviews, American, Craig LaBan, Reviewed, Seafood, South-Jersey, Swedesboro, Tavro 13, Terence Feury, Two Bells
2 Comments | Related Posts »
Posted by Foobooz on February 11th, 2013
Craig LaBan calls the Merion’s Citron and Rose an “inspiration.” LaBan says the glatt kosher spot’s European-Jewish menu also has a mainstream appeal.
But the menu’s main event – and no doubt its prime draw as a meat-friendly glatt kosher destination – is the $79 mega-rib-eye for two. This two-pound hunk of bone-in pastured steer from Grow & Behold, a Brooklyn kosher butcher, is an object of pure grill-lust, and among the best cuts of beef I’ve eaten anywhere. That’s largely because Citron and Rose dry-ages the whole racks in-house for 35 days, an almost unheard-of period locally. It’s long enough for up to 20 percent loss to shrinkage and trim, but it also concentrates the flavor to a profound and lasting intensity. The meat is amped by a tallow rub with garlic and shallots, then the haunting savor of that wood-fired grill, and I could taste the afterglow of mine for hours after the meal was over.
Two Bells – Very Good
Citron and Rose [Philadelphia Inquirer]
Citron and Rose [Official Site]
Related: Reviews, Citron and Rose, Craig LaBan, Jewish, Kosher, Main-Line, Merion, Reviewed, Two Bells
No Comments | Related Posts »
Posted by Foobooz on January 14th, 2013
Craig LaBan heads to 6th Street in Philadelphia where he discovers Khmer Kitchen, a Cambodian restaurant providing genuine flavors, especially in their fermented fish paste.
[Head cook and mother, Phalla] Lon’s soups, in particular, are where the complexity shines. The sour soup, which we tried with chicken (beef and tripe is the other option) was a perfect starting point, and really benefitted from the optional extra chile heat. But there were other winners, such as the kabocha pumpkin stew, salaw ka-koe, that was a marvel not simply for its rich lemongrass broth thickened with earthy roasted rice powder, but also the perfect textures of its myriad vegetables, the snappy long beans, crunchy papaya shreds, soft Thai eggplants, and toothy squash. The pineapple soup with rib tips did somersaults on the tongue as flavors fell like dominoes – the sweetness of coconut cream tumbling into chile heat, then bracing pineapple acidity, then the lingering warmth of Lon’s curry.
Two Bells – Very Good
Khmer Kitchen [Philadelphia Inquirer]
Photo of sauteed beef with celery and peppers. via Row Home Eats
Related: Reviews, BYOB, Cambodian, Craig LaBan, Khmer Kitchen, Reviewed, South-Philadelphia, Two Bells
No Comments | Related Posts »
Posted by Alex Tewfik on December 3rd, 2012
Craig LaBan reviews Pizza Brain on on Frankford Avenue in Fishtown. Fresh ingredients and balanced flavors furnish the Guinness World Recorded pizza museum/shop with two bells.
But while there are certainly more exquisite and inventive pizzas in town, Dwyer and partners Ryan Anderson, Mike Carter, and chef Joe Hunter have done a surprisingly respectable job of spinning some worthy variations on the classic crispy American genre. No puffy, personal Neapolitan pies here. This dough, created by sous chef Austin Adams, is touched by the DNA of sourdough starter and delivers personality.
And while the toppings don’t always quite match the zaniness of the pizzas’ names (most culled from Dwyer’s days as a young data-entry Dilbert), they highlight good ingredients and a fine sense of balance.
Two Bells – Very Good
Pizza Brain [Philadelphia Inquirer]
Pizza Brain [Official Site]
Related: Reviews, Craig LaBan, Fishtown, Pizza, Pizza Brain, Reviewed, Two Bells
7 Comments | Related Posts »
Posted by Foobooz on November 27th, 2012
Korean Beef at Blue Belly BBQ
Craig LaBan reviews Blue Belly BBQ on 6th Street on the border between Queen Village and Bella Vista and finds the sandwiches are the thing at Gene Giuffi’s small spot.
[T]he best reason to visit Blue Belly is ultimately its inventive sandwiches. That isn’t surprising, since it was initially conceived as a lunch option for the Bella Vista-Queen Village neighborhoods it serves.
And I find myself craving a number of Giuffi’s internationally inspired creations, at least with the appropriate sauce adjustments, as each one begged for just one more flavor flourish. A gingery Korean beef sandwich laced with spicy kimchi and crunchy fried shallots needed just a line of sweet barbecue sauce to be complete. The grilled jerk chicken breasts, aromatic with allspice, habanero powder, and the juicy pucker of pickled green tomatoes, demanded an extra spice-jolt of sambal-fired hot sauce. The slow-smoked cuminy lamb, so bold in its lambiness with radish and tortilla salad on top, needed vinegar sauce for moisture and tang.
Two Bells – Very Good
Blue Belly BBQ hours have recently been extended:
Sunday, Wed., Thurs: 12-8 p.m.
Friday, Saturday: 12-9 p.m.
Blue Belly BBQ [Philadelphia Inquirer]
Blue Belly BBQ [Official Site]
Related: Food, Reviews, Barbecue, Bella-Vista, Blue Belly BBQ, Craig LaBan, Gene Giuffi, Lunch, Reviewed, Sandwiches, Two Bells
1 Comment | Related Posts »
Posted by Foobooz on November 12th, 2012
Craig LaBan reviews the Industry in Pennsport. The bar with a Vetri alum at the helm and a soft spot for hospitality industry pros gets a two-bell review.
Chef Patrick Szoke is serving up a fun and adventurous take on some familiar flavors that could easily rank higher in the city’s gastropub pecking order if he straightened out a few stray details of seasoning and execution.
The fried chicken craze gets a twist with Kentucky Fried guinea hen, the brined bird moist beneath its well-seasoned bread-crumb crust, an ear of Mexican street corn glazed in chile-lime mayo, and a dusting of cotija cheese. (Deciding to put the hot sauce on the side, rather than directly on the hen, was a smart adjustment.) Classic steak-frites is a bargain here for $18, with perfectly mid-rare medallions of grilled hanger steak glossed in wine-rich bordelaise. Szoke’s training at Vetri and Osteria, as well as his time at the Farm and Fisherman, is reflected in a soulful approach to alt-cuts such as lamb neck, which is slow-stewed to a rich ragu, then served in a steel crock with sides of grilled toast and a dollop of house-made ricotta.
Two Bells – Very Good
The Industry [Philadelphia Inquirer]
The Industry [Official Site]
Photo by Steve Legato
Related: Reviews, Craig LaBan, gastropub, Pennsport, Reviewed, The Industry, Two Bells
No Comments | Related Posts »
Posted by Foobooz on October 22nd, 2012
Craig LaBan ventures to Feasterville and the basement of a strip mall off of Bustleton Pike, where he finds a tantalizing lamb feast at Samarkand, an Uzebeki restaurant that entertains.
There’s no sense in avoiding the lamb-fest, especially with some of the best lamb chops in Philly (“chalagach”), whose thick pads of meat are sublimely tender and crusted with seasoning. It’s worth the $25 splurge, considering most entrées here top out at $15. Though for just $4.99, you can savor a more rustic nibble of true Uzbeki soul and gnaw on the meaty fat of lamb ribs. The chunks of boneless lamb leg, tenderized with a splash of seltzer, are also worthwhile.
Two Bells – Very Good
Samarkand [Philadelphia Inquirer]
Samarkand [Official Site]
Photo via Craig LaBan’s Twitter feed
Related: Reviews, Bucks-County, Craig LaBan, Feasterville, Reviewed, Samarkand, Two Bells, Uzbeki
No Comments | Related Posts »
Posted by Foobooz on October 8th, 2012
There’s no denying that the star of Lemon Hill is the bar but Craig LaBan finds worthwhile bites on chef Joel Mazigan’s menu as well.
Yes, Mazigian is more than capable of searing a nice piece of fish, like the special skate over corn puree, roasted eggplant, and a zingy, pickled pepper vinaigrette. But Lemon Hill is at its best when it’s updating the tavern spirit with thoughtful takes on simple fare. The baked flatbreads topped with pulled BBQ chicken meat, corn bread puree, and tart chunks of pickled green tomatoes are borderline Dixie genius. A flatbread with roast cauliflower, arugula, pecorino, and fava beans was reminiscent of my favorites from the Garces Trading Co. canon.
Two Bells – Very Good
Lemon Hill [Philadelphia Inquirer]
Lemon Hill [Official Site]
Photo by Jason Varney
Related: Reviews, Brunch, Craig LaBan, Fairmount, gastropub, Joel Mazigan, Lemon Hill, Reviewed, Two Bells
No Comments | Related Posts »
50 Best Restaurants in Philadelphia
Foobooz's 2012 Top 50 Bars
Best of Philly - Restaurants & Bars
Best Italian Restaurants in Philly
Philly's 20 Best Drinks
