The Phillyist Staff had so many ways to countdown to 2008 that we found ourselves with quite a few leftovers on this, the final day of 2007. So enjoy this afternoon's glut of lists from your friendly neighborhood bloggers, and we'll see you next year! At this point, I guess most of you readers out there know that I don't eat to live – I live to eat. So it stands to reason that I've......

Ross Currie contributed to this post. We'd been meaning to patronize Cuba Libre since word of former ¡Pasion! Chef Guillermo Pernot's takeover of the kitchen first reached our ears – and our palates. Last month, we got an invitation to try the "15 Tastes of Cuba" tasting menu at Cuba Libre. (You can read our preview of it here.) It seemed like the perfect excuse to check the restaurant out, and Sunday night, we finally......

Americans might have a volatile relationship with Cuba, but we the people are becoming increasingly enchanted with the tastes of that small Communist island. Think about it: how many of your favorite hot spots serve up Mojitos in the summertime and black bean soup all winter? Yeah, we thought so. Taking advantage of the increase in popularity of Latin-Caribbean cuisine is Chef Guillermo Pernot, whom we were happy to see take the helm at Cuba......

Going to this Pasión actually made us want to book a trip to Peru, Cuba, Venezuela or any destination where black beans, ceviche or tostones reign supreme and the pisco runs as free as Yuengling lager.A native of Argentina, Chef Guillermo Pernot, knows no bounds when it comes to cooking authentic dishes with a South American flair.... The Presidente was refreshing but not to be outdone by the absolutely sublime pisco sours ($9.50) Next up, we sampled the Puerqito – braised suckling pig with fejoda and orange salad ($25) and camarones (that’s shrimp to you gringos) with freshly grilled hearts of palm, rice, papaya and a red curry ($30).Lastly, the caramel fondue ($12) was enough to send us reeling. Who wouldn’t love an individual ice cream, a cinnamon crusted churro or fresh fruit dipped into velvety warm caramel?The wait staff was informative and friendly yet not overbearing, our meals came in a timely manner but we didn’t feel rushed, it was an overall great experience for dinner or even drinks at the bar and well worth every penny spent there....