April 12th, 2015
Indeed it is a beautiful spring day through the Mid Atlantic. Manayunk in Philadelphia, PA, will be hosting the first of two STReat Festivals and Restaurant Weeks beginning today, Sunday, April 12th. Twice a year these events are capturing foodies throughout the Mid Atlantic because as we all know Philadelphia can Dish Delicious!!
Oh by the way, I would have been there just like I was in the fall but I have an HOA meeting…thanks to my neighbor Mark. Glad I can help.
Manayunk is located on the banks of the Schuykill River and in the northwest section of the City of Philadelphia. It has a long history. For many years it was not popular but just like the trend in many cities….some of these Main Sreets are being celebrated and renewed. Restaurants, shops, the river, sports and a hip place to live, are making Manayunk a destination. For more information, please visit http://www.manayunk.com.
Main Street will be closed off. Parking around town will be available. Info. on parking can be found on the above mentioned website. Like about 11 a.m. you will see visitors strolling Main Street looking for their favorite Philly Food Trucks….50 of them for the event. Food trucks are mobile restaurants and some traditional restaurants are a bit threatened by them. Usually reasonably priced, the food is cooked on the spot and very good
Mama’s Meatballs Truck will be there. This is a favorite and you will find a line to get these delicious meatballs.
Last year we tried: Mama’s Meatballs on the left hand side with beef, pork, veal mix, topped with arugula and Parmesan. On the right, the Apple Bomb made with 100% turkey mixed with sauteed spinach, Granny Smith, stuffed with roasted red pepper, Asiago, and topped with spicy Fresno Chili Apple Chutney. These meatball sliders were…Yummy! They are working on their website, but you can find Mama’s Meatballs on Facebook.
The only Mac ‘n Cheese food truck in Philly is MacMart. Just as popular as the meatball truck, you will find people waiting in line. If you do not make it to the festival, this food truck is usually parked by Drexel University. More info? http://www.macmartcart.com.
A Latin Food Truck called Delicias was a bit more expensive but it was worth having the arepas.
On the photo: The left arepa was filled with shredded chicken tossed in guacamole and mayo. On the right, was the shredded beef, sweet plantains, b lack beans, and Cotija cheese.
Up close to the Shreeded Beef Arepa…
I had never seen a Fashion Truck….all girly, glam and funky. It was called Smak Parlour. Just climb up and shop. More info? http://www.smakparlour.com.
Restaurant Week Begins Today, Sunday, April 12th through Friday, April 24th. Restaurants that you might not have tried before for one reason or another….try them at great prices! Check http://www.manayunk.com/signature-events/spring-streat-food-festival/restaurant-week-menus.html
I have been thinking about the Whipped Cauliflower that I had at Beast & Ale, located at 4161 Main St. in Manayunk. Tel. 267-437-3936. Website? http://beastandale.com Very casual restaurant. Not an extensive menu but what they have is soooo good. Plenty of craft beers and spirits. This is a brother restaurant to Cantina Feliz, La Calaca Feliz, and Taqueria Feliz.
The Whipped Cauliflower with black olive tapenade, parsley, and served with toasted bread. Something so simple and good…can’t wait to have it again.
Baby Beast Burger….The baby was plenty big. American cheese, pickles, avocado…the works on a Brioche. If you are looking for a good burger in Manayunk, this is the place.
Fried Bologna Sandwich? Oh yes!! Fried Egg on Top? Bring it On!! American Cheese, tomato and a dijonnaise sauce.
Enjoy this gorgeous day…we deserve having a day like today!!
November 3rd, 2014
I have tons of cookbooks. Not enough years to read them. Some I like better than others. This Meatless Monday recipe is not my own, but I treat it like it is. It was Giada’s mother’s recipe. It is good; perfect for company. A little tricky getting out of the loaf pan, though.
Veggie Loaf gives you an opportunity to leave meats on the side. Just by itself, it is plenty. Serve it with a fruit salad would be my choice.
VEGGIE LOAF
LOAF:
Cooking Spray
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small white onion, chopped (finely, please)
1 shredded carrot
1 celery stalk, sliced (thinly, please)
4 cups fresh baby spinach
1 15 ounce canned cooked lentils, drained
2 cups cooked brown rice
1 cup low fat shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup canned corn
1/3 cup chopped basil leaves (If not available use basil paste by the vegetables in the grocery store. Use about 2 tablespoons.)
2 large eggs, beaten lightly
1 large egg white, lightly beaten
1 tsp. kosher salt (optional)
1/2 tsp. freshly black pepper
2 medium tomatoes, sliced (You can use smaller tomatoes, as well.)
SAUCE:
1 box (pint) cherry tomatoes, halved
3 scallions, chopped
3 garlic cloves, chopped (optional)
8 fresh basil leaves (Use basil paste, if fresh basil leaves are unavailable.)
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tsp. Kosher salt (optional)
1/2 tsp. black pepper
Make the sauce first and just put it aside. In a blender or food processor chopped the ingredients. Do not puree, you want them a little coarse. I used a blender.
Proceed with the loaf:
Pre heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a loaf pan with cooking spray. Set aside.
In a skillet, over medium heat, add 1 tablespoon olive oil, carrot, onion, celery….cook for about 5 minutes or so stirring frequently. Put in a large bowl to cool.
In the same skillet, cook spinach until it wilts, which does not take long. Drain and let cool slightly. Squeeze the excess liquid. On a cutting board coarsely chop it. Add to the onion mixture.
Add the lentils, brown rice, 3/4 cup of the mozzarella, the corn, basil, eggs, egg white, salt, pepper and 3/4 cup of the sauce to the already cooled veggie mixture.
Fill the loaf pan with this mixture. Arrange the tomatoes in a couple of rows, depending on their size, covering the mixture.
Sprinkle the remining 1/4 cup of mozzarella cheese and drizzle with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil.
Bake until loaf is heated through and the topping has melted and starts to brown. It might take 35 minutes or a bit more. Let it cool for about 15 minutes.
Slicing this loaf is tricky. Do so while the loaf is still in the pan. Do not attempt to take it out. Otherwise, you will have to do some rearranging.
I think 1 inch slices will be a good portion. Arrange on plates and top with sauce. Enjoy your Meatless…..whatever day you want it to be.
Note: This recipe was gluten free. Please check the labels for canned goods, grate your own mozzarella cheese or read the label on the bag. If using basil paste instead of fresh basil, Gourmet Garden, Basil Paste is gluten free and usually available by the produce in the local grocery stores.
October 1st, 2014
Manayunk is located in the northwestern section of the City of Philadelphia and on the banks of the Schuykill River. For years it was just there and in need of TLC…not anymore. It is a city capturing the young professionals, single and with families, moving to this town that has shops, restaurants, bars, and a place to enjoy the outdoors….just a few miles from everything Philadelphia has to offer.
Main Street is long covering more than several blocks. Restaurants have outdoor seatings, perfect for when the weather is nice. To know more about Manayunk, please visit http://www.manayunk.com.
Manayunk’s Annual Streat Food Festival was Saturday, September 28th. This was also the opening of their Restaurant Week, which will go on until Friday, October 10th. Restaurant Week offers 3 courses and 3 prices. Visit the website above mentioned for more information and to find out the participating restaurants.
I arrived at the Streat Festival early so as to find parking which, actually, ended up being very easy. Everything was very well organized. Saturday’s big event was the Food Trucks. Philadelphia is known for its amazing food. There were about 40 food trucks lining Main Street. Some people knew exactly where they were going….they had their favorites. I had my son, Michael, to show me the way.
Food trucks are mobile restaurants, or mobile cuisine. The trend continues to grow and there are no signs of them slowing down. They say that food trucks are restaurants’ worst nightmare. In Philly you can find them around all the universities, feeding those hungry students.
Yoga on the Street…..Was I supposed to join them before hitting the food trucks? Plenty of others did.
Musicians were available to entertain the crowds.
And, as soon as the Beer Garden opened…the crowds followed. It was such a gorgeous day. Perfect for a festival.
Mama’s Meat Ball was a winner. That’s the first Food Truck we hit….my son said that their slider meatballs are just awesome. Their address is 1426 Frankford Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19125. Tel. 267-530-1493. Website? http://www.mamasmeatballphilly.com. You can also find them on Facebook.
The following photo shows what we ordered: On the left is Mama’s Ball…beef, pork, veal mix, topped with arugula and Parmesan. On the right is my Apple Bomb made with 100% turkey mixed with sauteed spinach, Granny Smith, stuffred with roasted red pepper, Asiago, and topped with spicy Fresno Chili-Apple Chutney. Totally the best. People sitting around were raving about them, as well.
The smallest Food Truck was the Korean Truck Kami….small but popular. You can find Kami at N. 33rd St. at Arch St., Philadelphia, PA 19104. Tel. 215-555-5555. On Facebook, as well.
Another most popular food truck and one we did not try was Mac Mart. It is Philadelphia’s only Mac ‘n Cheese Food Truck. They are usually located by Drexel University. Tel. 267-908-5662 Website? http://www.macmartcart.com Find them on Facebook and Twitter.
We decided to stop at Delicias. Their specialty? Latin Food and Arepas. Arepas are grilled corn patties that can be filled with almost anything you can think of.
The first photo shows on the left an Arepa filled with Shredded Chicken tossed in guacamole and mayo. On the right is my own which had Shredded Beef, sweet plantains, black beans and Cotija Cheese. This was an expensive Food Truck. Both of those, which by the way, were completely filled and heavy, plus 2 waters…..a total price of $26!!
You can take a peek at mine…a close-up.
We were totally satisfied, but continued walking Main Street. I found Sweet Elizabeth’s Edible Art to be at the perfect location on Main Street at 4409 Maint St…… I will have to visit them another time. In the meantime, their edible art looked beautiful. You can find them on Facebook as Sweet Elizabeth Cakes. Tel. 267-331-8949. Website? http://www.sweetelizabethscakes.com. They make everything from scratch, with a specialty on custom designed cakes.
Philadelphia has its first Fashion Truck….it was also mingling with the Food Trucks. It is called Smak Parlour Fashion Truck. http://www.smakparlour.com.
This is a girly, glam and funky truck. The Boutique is on 219 Market Street in Old City. The Fashion Truck travels to events throughout the city, but it can also come to your home, office or party. It is a fun shopping extravaganza. Smak Parlour has also its own line of in-house designed clothing. Visit the above mentioned website to see where they will be going next.
It was time to head back to Rehoboth Beach, Delaware…..Main Street was so crowded and I wanted to have a head start….the Eagles were playing, NASCAR was also in Dover….Yikes….it took me a long time to get home but not as long as the ones that were heading north.
Note: The Streat Festival is around the same time each year. Save the Date…it is worth going, especially if you like to Eat…On the STREAT!!
September 26th, 2014
Rehoboth Beach, Delaware is located only about 2 hours and 20 minutes from Philadelphia. Crawling Philly for the day is no big deal.
We arrived at Talula’s Daily in the afternoon. Come to think of it…..right before 5 p.m. Perfect timing, right? It is located at 208 West Washington Square, Philadelphia, PA 19166. Tel. 215-592-6555. Website? http://www.talulasdaily.com.
Talula’s Daily is part of the Starr Restaurant Group in Philly known for quality of food and unique restaurants.
Washington Square is part of the Washington Square West and Society Hill neighborhoods of Philadelphia. It is a U.S. National Register of Historic Places. Walking around these squares and neighborhoods is always a treat. Residents do enjoy the outdoors.
Talula’s Daily is not a big restaurant but when you come in you can see how cozy it is. The Farm Table or Communal Table is in the middle of the room with smaller tables around it. It is the “it” table to grab. We, actually, did but I can see that for dinner it might be a quest.
The restaurant offers a wide range of foods….from soups to nuts and anything in between with drinks to accompany your choices.
We were fixed up with a variety of cheeses. That’s all we wanted.
Great presentation. All cheeses delicious with my particular favorite….the Beemster Goat Gouda.
St. Agur, a French Blue
Vintage Gouda, a Holland, Cow’s Milk
Truffle Gouda, another Holland, Cow’s Milk
Ossau Iraty, Basque, Sheep’s Milk
Beemster Goat Gouda, Holland, Goat’s Milk
Moses Sleeper, Vermont, Cow’s Milk
Note: Please check the website. If very informative with plenty of dining events that look so much fun!! And, “Like” them on Facebook.
Have a great week-end!!
August 27th, 2014
The tomatoes are at the height of the season, the peaches are still sweet….this is pretty much a raw salad. Bursting with flavor, it has everything to offer for a perfect end of the summer 2014 meal.
When I made this salad I used gluten free bread. The recipe, actually calls for white bread with crusts removed. Your choice.
TOMATO, PEACH, CORN, AND FETA SALAD
2 slices white bread, crusts removed, cut or torn into small pieces
1/2 cup plus 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Salt, to taste
2 ears fresh corn, shucked
4 ripe tomatoes, a variety of colors….or plain red will do. About 2 lbs.
4 large peaches (about 2 lbs. too)
1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion or shallots (I used red onion.)
3/4 cups of sheep’s milk feta, crumbled
Pulse the bread in a blender or food processor until the bread breaks down into coarse crumbs.
In a medium skillet, over medium heat, warm 1/2 cup of oil. Once warm, add breadcrumbs and gently toast until golden and crispy. Transfer crumbs to a plate line with paper towels. Season with salt.
Using a sharp knife, slice corn kernels off the cob.
Cut tomatoes and peaches, preferably into wedges. Place in large bowl with onion slivers and corn kernels. Season with salt, optional.
Add the Feta cheese.
Add 6 tablespoons of oil and toss to combine. And then, sprinkle your favorite white balsamic vinegar. My choice was Cranberry Pear White Balsamic from the new store in Downtown Rehoboth Beach….The Olive Orchard.
Distribute salad among plates, then scatter breadcrumbs on top…..serve and enjoy!!
August 22nd, 2014
 
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania is full of ethnic restaurants. From street food to fine dining, it is a fabulous place to spend some time crawling the City of Brotherly Love.
Pho is the street food in Vietnam that was, originally, sold at dawn and dusk by roaming vendors. My son invited me to crawl Philly and our first stop was Pho 75. This soup parlor has been visited by Anthony Bourdain several times. When my son visited for the first time, he told I, definitely, needed to try it.
There are 2 Pho 75 in Philly. We went to the one located at 1122 Washington Avenue. Tel. 215-5866. Other locations are: Maryland; Langley Park, Rockville, Virginia; Arlington (my son just visited that one, as well), Falls Church, and Herndon.
Pho 75 was immaculate, the service was prompt and no sooner it had opened…..customers kept coming in.
You have to understand that pho is a soup. The soups are served with rice noddles. You can order either a small bowl or a large bowl for sharing like we did. Then you have to order cuts of beef as toppings or do like we did and order the pho straight from the menu.
We order the pho with slices of eye-round steak, well done flank, soft tendom, and beef tripe. The large bowl arrived quickly with extra bowls on the side and bean sprouts, hot pepper, slices of lemon and fresh basil leaves.
Then it was up to me to fix my bowl to my liking.
The broth was delicate, full of flavor but not overly salted, which I was surprised.
Totally recommend it. Great value…I think lunch for 2 including tea and tip was about $10.00.
Note: This soup is gluten free.
Have a great day!.
May 11th, 2014
I wish all my friends and readers a beautiful day. I remember when I became a Mother, I was totally complete.
For those of you you who Mother someone in your life….Happy Mother’s Day!
Note: The photo was taken in Bethany Beach the other day. It is not unusual to see families like this throughout the Delaware Beaches in the Spring. I never get tired of looking at them.
March 7th, 2014
 
Breakfast is supposed to fuel your body for the chores ahead, an early morning ritual not to be missed…..The chore at hand was visiting the annual Philadelphia Flower Show. I could not wait…you know how it has been; cold, snowy, and gray. My friend, Jody, and I took off for Philly to make this a girls’ trip.
High Street is located at 308 Market St. in Old City. Tel. 215-625-0988 Website? http://www.highstreetonmarket.com
For breakfast we were to order at the counter, and then it would be brought to our booth. High Street opens for breakfast, lunch, and dinner…yes, they serve food all day long.
All pastries and breads are made in-house. They use locally milled flours and grains.
They also cure their meets…my breakfast was going to be made with this brown sugar cured pastrami.
The long hot peppers were already roasted and were also going to be part of my breakfast. Actually, I found them mild, but others have mentioned that they are hot. Needless to say they give a bit of a kick to an expectant palate.
My friend, Jody, decided on something that would stick to your ribs….oatmeal! It was cold in Philly. But, what she was not expecting was their her oatmeal was the best she had ever tasted…..It was Baked Oatmeal; stone cut organic Carolina oats, dried orchard fruit, oatmeal streusel. Delish!!
My son, who had decided to accompany us went for a more traditional breakfast. It was called the Italian Market Breakfast with Lancaster bologna, spicy Coppa, Roasted Broccoli Rabe, Old Bay Fried Potatoes, Farm fried eggs and homemade toasted bread. Also a winner!!
My usual question….What is the dish that is the most popular, the one that keeps customers coming back again, and again? Without hesitation it was the Pastrami & Hash. This breakfast sandwich was so impressive, with an awesome presentation and fabulous taste. It had shaved pastrami, spiced hash, roasted peppers and onions, farm egg, and Russian dressing. It was served on a board with a side dish of a long hot pepper and hot sauce made from those peppers, as well. The sauce some heat and added even more flavor. Loved it and would have it again in no time.
Fueld up and ready to attend the flower show….we were on our way.
 
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