Posted Un"b"elievably Good BYOB: Salento to Phillyist
Upon entering Salento, a relatively new Italian BYOB, one immediately gets the feeling of warmth and hospitality. A sincere 'hello' and 'welcome' is quickly followed by 'table for … and do you have a reservation?' Efficiency and kindness are two very important traits for a hospitality–based operation to have (read Danny Meyer's Setting the Table to learn more about that). Once seated, your waitress or waiter opens your bottle of wine, asks if you need...
Posted Luck O' The Irish to Phillyist
St. Patrick's Day is a day of hard-core drinking, but we often are hard pressed to find inventive green drinks that don’t use (gag) crème de menthe. The following tasty drink, which was the result of staying too late in a bar years ago, was one of the few I tasted that was created in honor of the day and stays respectful to taste buds and—bonus!—no hangovers or green tongues from cheaply dyed liqueur. The...
Posted Some Great Hot Spots for Tom Yum Goong to Phillyist
So just what is it that makes Thai food special? Most likely it is the combination in each dish of the four basic flavors -- sweet, sour, salty and spicy. Over the centuries, Thai cooking has borrowed freely from the culinary arts of China, India and Malaysia, blending these different influences to create something that is truly unique. While Thai food has a reputation for being spicy, in reality most dishes are not. The spiciness...
Posted Valentine Gifts for the Kitchen and the Hungry to Phillyist
Girls have always known that the way to a guy's heart is through his stomach, and as more and more guys become interested in migrating off the couch and into the kitchen, we thought it would be fun to share some thoughtful Valentine's Day gift ideas as they pertain to all things cookery or at least set a romantic mood. Yes, chocolate for V-Day can be cliché, but local Philaldelphia chocolatiers John and Kira create...