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Way back in March, we spotted a Craigslist ad for a successful, two-story, University City BYOB with a good gross. We speculated that it was Marigold Kitchen, and hey! It turns out we were right. Partners Michael Solomonov and Steven Cook, who also own Zahav, Xochitl, and are opening a Texas-style barbecue restaurant at 900 South Street, have sold the first restaurant they ran together to chef Robert Halpern, who will reopen Marigold on September 1.

Why the sale? Because Marigold's current chef, Erin O'Shea, is going to be in charge of the kitchen at the new barbecue spot, which officially has a name: Percy Street Barbecue. There will be a six-course Farewell Dinner to mark the end of the current Marigold Kitchen on August 1, with Cook, Solomonov, and O'Shea each contributing two dishes. In an official statement, Cook says the "dinner will be a bittersweet occasion for us, because Marigold was our first collaboration,” and "has been the jumping off point for the other restaurants we’ve created together, and we will be sorry to say goodbye. At the same time, it is wonderful that Marigold will continue to exist, with another up-and-coming chef, and we couldn’t be more excited to launch Percy Street Barbecue.”

Meanwhile, Percy Street Barbecue will open with O'Shea as executive chef and partner. The restaurant will be a 100-seater, with outdoor dining space, and serve meats long-smoked over Texas-style barbecue pits (hardwood-stoked, of course). The partners are looking at an October opening date.

Previously:
A Texas-Style Barbecue Restaurant From The Zahav Set!
Might Marigold Kitchen Be On The Market?

Food Network Addict has a 7 question interview with Katie Cavuto, the aspiring Next Food Network Star from Philly. Read it to learn more about why she decided to try for the show, who her idols are, and what her goals are for the future (barring winning the show). She also lays her whole aesthetic and vision out on the table, in response to one of the questions:

The need to have a clearly defined culinary point of view is brought up again and again by the judges. What's yours and how is it different from what we've seen before?
My culinary point of view is what I like to call “green cuisine,” which is all about eating healthy for our bodies and the planet. As a dietitian and chef, I am passionate about helping people achieve their healthy lifestyle goals. I am passionate about the benefits of buying local, seasonal, organic fare and how it impacts our health and carbon footprint. I think my culinary point of view is current, important and not currently represented on the network.

7 Questions for Katie Cavuto - Next Food Network Star Contestant [Food Network Addict]
The Next Food Network Star [Official Site]

[Photo via Food Network]

Today is National Doughnut Day, and to celebrate, two major doughnut chains are giving out free donuts. At Dunkin' Donuts, buying a coffee will earn you your free piece of deep-fried dough, while Krispy Kreme is totally one-upping DD by offering a free doughnut, no purchase necessary. Somewhere out there, Homer Simpson is a very happy man.

[Photo via James Jordan/Flickr]

Robert Kenner, director of Food, Inc. (the latest impassioned look at everything wrong with the modern food industry), will be speaking at the South Street Whole Foods at 3 p.m. today. Watch the trailer for a sobering look at the way things are — if you can make it for the demo and discussion at WF, you'll be primed for pithy questions and comments. The film opens at the Ritz at the Bourse on June 19.

• Despite being hit hard in last year's market fall, restaurant stocks are recovering nicely, with several recently tripling (or more) the value of their lowest points. [The Street]

• Lunch trucks are hip and popular, to be sure, but they're also changing consumers' expectations of lunch: local, organic, high-quality preparations are becoming the norm. [WSJ]

• Despite his financial troubles stateside, Gordon Ramsay is set to reopen Petrus, his flagship restaurant, in London's Belgravia neighborhood. According to Ramsay, the reopening marks a new chapter in his brand's life. [Bloomberg]

Sam Mink's Oyster House is opening tonight, in the space that was the Sansom Street Oyster House at 1516 Sansom St. It's a nice poetic return to the address for the Mink family, as Sam Mink's father, David Mink, owned the SSOH until selling it in 1976. Greg Ling (formerly of 1225 Raw) is the chef, while Katie Loeb (who showed her mettle as a mixologist at at Chick's Cafe & Wine Bar) is the head bartender. For photographic previews of the space, take a peek at Restaurant Club and Meal Ticket, which both have photo walk-throughs of the restaurant.

First Look: Oyster House Walk-Through" [Restaurant Club/Philly Mag]
Aw shucks: Oyster House opens this week/" [Meal Ticket]

The Women Cook World Cuisine event Alison two is happening this Sunday, June 6 at 6 p.m. The dinner is a fundraiser by the Philly chapter Les Dames D'Escoffier, for a totally righteous cause: raising money for culinary scholarships for women. (Hence, the all-lady, all-star, line up with chefs like Alison Barshak and Marcie Turney of Bindi, Lolita, and Grocery contributing dishes.) There will be lots of eating and drinking, and as a bonus, all of the savory dishes have a cocktail pairing. Tickets costs $55 — a steal considering there are ten courses — and can be booked by calling Alison two. Take a look at the menu for the event, right after the jump.

[Bar photo of Alison two ©2009 Courtney Grant Winston]

Continue reading "Female Chefs Dinner At Alison Two: It's Not Too Late!" »

• At Coquette Bistro & Wine Bar, the menu is all over the place, and "it’s unfortunate that Leon’s heritage is the least represented," says Adam Erace. [Philadelphia Weekly]

• Craig LaBan bravely condescends to trying the new KFC grilled chicken, and the verdict is grim: "The portions of chicken, however, that did not come in direct contact with the grill were even worse - repulsively flabby, with flaccid meat inside the under-crisped crannies of leg and wing that seemed to be slipping in half-rendered puddles of fat." [Inquirer]

• Kanella has garnered national praise for the "Cyprus breakfast," but "the grilled eggplant salad, the shaksouka (eggs poached in cumin-scented tomato and pepper stew), and the spit-roasted meats that chef Konstantinos Pitsillides turns over an open-air charcoal fire" are a few of Rick Nichols favorite things. [Inquirer]

Why are we showing you a photo of metal lying on the floor? Because it's the gate-to-be (getting made in Frankford) for the beer garden at Silk City Diner. The beer garden was a long time a-coming, and now there's a video that exhibits part of why the beer garden couldn't just open the minute the idea of it was hatched. To know just how much effort went into building the whimsical walls and tiles, check out the clip after the jump.

[Photo via The Frankford Gazette]

Continue reading "Building The Silk City Beer Garden" »

• The facade of the Broadcast Building, which used to house Brasserie Perrier, collapsed yesterday morning. No one was hurt, but other buildings on the block, including Alma de Cuba, had to temporarily shut their entrances. [Daily News]

• The FDA is set to impose fees on food companies to fund safety inspections but industry groups warn the fees could lead to conflicts of interest. [WSJ]

• Maine's topless coffeeshop has burned down. [Boston Herald]

• Dunkin' Donuts is expanding in Asia, particularly South Korea, the company's largest growth market. [WSJ]

• Food blogger Pim Techamuanvivit (of Chez Pim) is endorsing Rachel's Yogurt and Cottage Cheese. [The Food Section]

For the third year running, PETA has crowned Citzens Bank Park as the most vegetarian-friendly ballpark in the land. CBP was already dominating the meatless concession game in 2007 and 2008 with options like vegetarian cheesesteaks but stepped it up in 2009 by adding new items like mock crab cake salad and black bean burgers. This is all well and awesome, but PETA is coming at this from an animal rights angle — not one of what tastes best.

So what have people thought? One game-goer tried the "vegetarian crabcake sandwich at Planet Hoagie, which I ordered with pepper, rather than tartar, sauce. At $9.25, the sandwich is not cheap but it is definitely tasty." Even more beloved by vegan blog The Front Burner was the "warm not-dog ... on a soft, chewy bun with ketchup, mustard, onions, and relish," which is "the kind of dog that was custom-built for county fairs, boardwalks, family reunion cookouts, and ballgames. The kind of dog that tastes like summer. The kind of dog that finally lets vegans mean it when they sing, "I don't care if I ever get back" and root, root, root for the home team."

Amazing Phillies Threepeat as Champs in '09 by Adding Black-Bean Burgers and Mock Crab Cake Salad to an Already Stacked Lineup [PETA]

[Photo: vegan beer and hot dog at CBP via mikaela_/Flickr]

Bid Your Way To El Bulli: A Beverly Hills woman nabbed a coveted reservation for El Bulli, chef Ferran Adria's renowned Costa Brava, Spain restaurant, but broke up with her boyfriend and is now trying to unload her reservation on eBay. Proof that one person's misfortune can be another's happiness, but it comes at a price: the auction (which has no bids) starts at $1,250 — and that's just a resy. Factor in airfare, hotel stay, and the cost of the meal, and you're looking at one crazy-expensive dinner. [Chicago Foodies via MP: Chicago]

Mike Geno and his still life paintings of food are making the rounds today, thanks in part to a fantastic interview with him on Eat Me Daily. Geno, a Philly artist, paints donuts, meat cuts, bread, and regional foods, like pretzels, Tastykakes, and scrapple. Notably absent from his Philly-food tableaus is the cheesesteak, but this is no oversight:

EMD: Scrapple, Tastykakes, and pretzels — you're obviously influenced by your Philly surroundings — so tell us, where’s the cheese steak?

Mike Geno: Excellent question. It seems inevitable but so far I've not been successful in ordering one that holds up for a few hours while I paint it. I always work from life with my food and other still life paintings. Honestly, I don't know if I'd hold up that long smelling it without eating it. I've developed a plan though. I may have to go to a good source, which alone is a Philly debate, and eat one before taking another one home to paint. That may just work.

To get your fill of food art, check out Geno's website, his food blog, and his Etsy store, where prints of his oil paintings can be had for 20 bucks.

Paintings by Mike Geno [EMD via The Illadelph]

[Image via Mike Geno.com]

Free Food Alert: If you base your lunch and snack decisions on whether stuff is free, today is veritable a gold nickel mine. First stop, Potbelly Sandwich Works, where they're handing out free potato chips until 2 p.m. For break time, head over to Au Bon Pain for complimentary coffee. It's not a lot, but every little bit counts in These Times, no? [Grub Street]

Obama: He's just like us! The president grabbed lunch at a Five Guys in DC and NBC’s Brian Williams was there to catch the burger run on tape. Although, this being Obama, shouldn't he have gone to Elevation, which is also a DC-area burger chain? After all, Elevation (coming to Wynnewood this month!) is supposedly the organic and sustainable version of Five Guys. Either way, check out the video on sibling blog Grub Street to see how a president orders a burger and fries. [via Grub Street]