We might share a name with him, but writer Neal Pollack gets on our nerves sometimes. The guy is just so damn... we don't know... Precious? Yeah, precious.

But, however, his essay about a Nashville fried chicken restaurant is right. damn. on.

According to Roadfood, Prince's Hot Chicken Shack offers birds that are "relatively dry and ferociously seasoned down to the bone; and their crust, which strips off in luxurious patches that are equal measures crunch and chew, is radiant with red-orange spice. It's salty but not throat-parching; and the miracle of it is that the flavor of plush chicken imbued with plenty of natural schmaltz (chicken fat) bursts right through the heat."

Sounds good to us.

Hot for Chicken [Epicurious]
Prince's Hot Chicken Shack [Roadfood]

A restaurant so good that you'll have to wait eight months for a table? That's Talula's Table, a grocery/cafe in Kennett Square opearted by ex-Djangoers Bryan Sikora and Aimee Oxley.

Here's the deal: There's only one table inside the grocery store, they only seat full parties of eight to 12 people and the $85 prix-fie eight-course meal, according to one patron, is full of "innovative, imaginative cuisine that not even Per Se and Michael Mina are doing."

That's good. And Food and Drinq reports that the earliest available reservations are for August.

Reservation list shown above, courtesy of Food & Drinq.

The hottest "res" around [Food & Drinq]

Can a restaurant kill? Can a lawsuit be frivolous? There's some craziness going on in New York.

Way back in 2006, a 28-year-old hedge fund manager named Sunil Varghese was dining at Del Frisco's Double Eagle Steak House. He started choking on a piece of steak and staggered to the restaurant's bathroom. Several minutes later, a colleague found him dead on the restroom floor.

Now Varghese's father is suing the restaurant for negligence... More than a year after his son died.

Go figure.

Steakhouse Sued In Fatal Choke [New York Post]

Craig LaBan just put together his annual Philadelphia Dining In Review column for the Inky. Do you need to read it? Not really, unless capsule versions of LaBan's 2007 reviews float your boat. But we'd be glad to distill his "Best Of" list for y'all, since that's the one that matters anyway:

Best chef: Jose Garces.

Best restaurant: Osteria.

Best meal: A "farm table dinner" at Talula's Table.

Best ethnic delivery: Tiffin.

Best relocated classic: Fuji.

Best new BYOB: Blackfish.

Best single bite: Tinto's blue-cheese-smeared "montadito" toast topped with duck confit wrapped in Serrano ham, crowned with a black cherry.

Best raw food: Scallop and watermelon seviche at Xochitl.

Best updated bubbe food: Veal kreplach with artichokes at Rae.

Best cheeseburger: The cheese-stuffed wonder at the Good Dog Bar.

The bells: One more time [Inquirer]

South Philly's Nick's Old Original Roast Beef (the first of the "Nick's" - rather than the unrelated Old City and Northeast restos) just got the Inky treatment. As Rick Nichols notes, the place is full of atmosphere:

It is a corner tappie, dark-paneled, a Yuengling clock marking time. When the Navy Yard and naval aviation depot were full steam, this was maybe the biggest beer drop in the city, measured by keg count. And three times a day - because the joint was so small - the supplier hauled in boneless rounds, up to 150 of the monsters a week.

The roll bakers got bombed at the bar. Hoods sat two stools down from detectives. Nick's sandwiches were legal tender; locals paid their barber with them. Now and then, a limo pulled in from Atlantic City, sent to South Philly to scratch an itch.

Those were the days. Business isn't as big. But it's handing steady. Show up for Wednesday lunch, you might wait for a table. Come Saturday, or a game day, Nick's goes through 300 pounds of beef in a single shift.

It would be overstating things to suggest that the hand-carved roast beef sandwich is without honor in this city. (Buffalo pays it proper homage with its juicy beef on weck, which is to say on an estimable German-style roll flecked with pretzel salt and caraway seed.) But let's face it, this is a cheesesteak town, or so you would think if you had not had the considerably greater pleasure of roast pork with broccoli rabe at John's Roast Pork, or a Vietnamese hoagie on Eighth Street, or carved roast beef - not a lunchmeat wannabe - at Nick's, 20th and Jackson.

Recommended.

Old Original Nick's Roast Beef [Inquirer]
Nick's Old Original Roast Beef [MenuPages]

• MP: Boston is going retro.

• MP: Chicago has the longest foodblog post in the history of foodblogs.

• MP: San Francisco is offering post-holiday hangover tips.

• MP: South Florida loves pork belly. Mmm... pork belly.

They do things differently in Chicago. That's why we're eternally grateful to the MenuPages Chicago Blog for pointing us over to the glory of pot roast nachos at Mike Ditka's Restaurant: Tortilla chips topped with pot roast, sour cream, jalapenos, tomatoes, scallions and cheddar-jack cheese. Among the other artery-clogging meals at the restaurant... A sandwich of chicken-fried sirloin steak topped with cheese and a 24 ounce steak.

Makes us want to watch that old "Da Bears" sketch from Saturday Night Live...

Mike Ditka's Restaurant [MenuPages]
Mike Ditka's Restaurant [Official Site]

[Photo: Chicago Kate/flickr]

Good news from Food & Drinq: Long-time Center City Chinese restaurant Jin House is reopening in mid-January at 1117 Locust Street, next-door to More Than Just Ice Cream.

Jin House resurfacing [Food & Drinq]

Hooters has numerous locations in the Philadelphia area. But the chain doesen't restrict their charms to the United States: Hooters just opened their first Israeli location.

How are the locals reacting to the combination of cute girls and wings? Well, Israeli newspaper Haaretz just sent their food critic over to Hooters:

After all, we have all sorts of things from the U.S. - Nile fever, McDonalds, and even a few poisonous snakes - so why not Hooters? The odd thing about all of this, even to the must curmudgeonly critic, is that none of this seems the least bit vulgar. As you talk to the waitresses a bit, you realize they seem to be nice post-army college and university students; that their costumes, as skimpy as they may be are more "cute" than "sexy"; and most of those dining here, ranging in age from 4 to well into their golden years, seem to be having a genuinely good time, taking it all comfortably in stride as if attending a show put on for their entertainment. Children are given balloons and toys with which to play and adults are treated with warm friendliness. The food is probably best described as traditional American fast food. Thankfully, as I discovered, it is far from junk food. We opened our meal with four dishes that arrived at the table at the same time. A Tex-Mex style quesadilla: a tortilla folded over melted cheese proved soft and full of flavor and the tomato salsa served with it was well made; the fried onion rings were tasty as well; and the cheese sticks we tried, of puff-pastry dough rolled about a soft, meted cheese were great fun to eat.

Thus, the Israelis discovered mozzarella sticks and they were good.

American, from the deep frying to the friendly service [Haaretz]

Epicurious just did a handy job of gathering up 2007's best food trends. The slow death of the Atkins diet? The revival of non-alcoholic drink pairings? Those ever-present 100-calorie bags of cookies? They're all here.

The Best Food Trends of 2007 [Epicurious]

We just got some additional info on Maia, the soon to open Main Line restaurant that has already earned mentions in the New York Times and Food and Wine (!).

First off, the opening date has been moved to March and the concept of the restaurant has been expanded to include an in-house market selling homemade breads, pastries, charcuterie, fish and carryout meals. As for the restaurant itself, the Feury brothers (pictured) imported a New York design firm to set things up.

Here's the word on the menu:

The seasonal menu will include: Double Head King Prawn, with shrimp mousse and ancho chili vinaigrette; Trevise and Endive Salad, with concord grape focaccia and local blue cheese; Chestnut Soup, with smoked duck and wild mushroom; Grilled Poussin, with potato puree and lemon herb salad; Barbecued Eel and Foie Gras Terrine, with green apple, brioche log, hazelnuts and chive; Fondue with emmentaler, chicken herb strudel and sausage bread; and Steak Tartare, with bistro salad and potato gratin.

The menu will also feature an assortment of savory pies such as: Tarte Flambé with Caramelized Onions, Westphalian Ham, Gruyere and Crème Fraiche; Fresh Shucked Clam Pie with garlic and parmesan; Pissaladiere with Spanish anchovies, olives and onions; and Smoked Crayfish Tartelette with Vesterbotten and leeks.

Keeping in steps with the best of Main Line traditions, Maia will be offering valet parking as well. Because who seriously wants to, y'know, actually park their own car?

A Yet-To-Open Villanova Restaurant Gets The Times Treatment [MenuPages Blog]

For this week's Illadate, we've got a delightful jaunt to West Philly. On the agenda: Bubble House, Pattaya and The Metropolitan Bakery.

Illadates Season Finale: West Philly Win A Date [Uwishunu]

Good news for the sports bar fans. Food & Drinq is reporting that The Field House is finally opening in the former Independence Brewing Co. space at 11th & Filbert.

We'll have the menu shortly.

Openings, we got openings [Food & Drinq/Inquirer]

This is good. Over at the Daily News, Beth D'Addono went into the trenches to find out what ingredients chefs are looking forward to using in 2008. Here's the count:

• Ari Weiswasser (Pearl): Green Papaya - "Green papaya easily takes on the flavor of a marinade while keeping its textural integrity."

• Marc Plessis (XIX Nineteen): Blue Foot chickens - "They're three times the price of a good chicken... around $4 a pound. But this bird is so juicy and flavorful - it's the Porsche of chickens."

• Roberta Adamo (Penne): Whole grains - "I don't worry about carbs... But I try to eat healthier, add more vegetables in with the sauces, use whole grains."

• Chris Scarduzio (Brasserie Perrier): Lentils

• Michael McNally (London Grill): Duck fat - "It brings flavor to everything - not an overtly duck flavor, just a better flavor, a silkiness on the tongue."

• David Ansill (Ansill): Squid ink - "You can serve fried calamari with a mayonnaise colored with it - that would be a great dish for Halloween."

• Ralph Fernandez (Moshulu): Micro herbs - "We have a standing order with Blue Moon Acres out of Buckingham, Pa... The flavors are so explosive, you really don't expect it."

• Olivier De Saint Martin (Zinc Bar): Roots - "These are noble vegetables... The flavors are simple, you don't need to fuss too much with them. Roots are good for you, and they've been making joy for poor people for so many years."

• Patrice Rames (Patou): Budget cuts - "Due to today's economy, chefs are looking for lower-cost cuts of meat to stay competitive... cooking in wine or liquid for hours breaks down the fibers and brings out wonderful flavors."

• David Wiederholt (Oceanaire Seafood Room): Bacon - "It's just a flavor wow."

That special something [Daily News]

[Image via Daily News]

Here's the thing regarding Citygrange, the new restaurant tucked into the Westin. We kind of like it, despite being a hotel resto. They try their best and we respect them for it. But over at The Illadelph, they're counting down the days until they close:

It might be unfair, but atmosphere is simply way too important these days to consistently drawing a crowd for a spot like CityGrange to have a fair shot. The writing has been on the walls forevs. Le Bec Fin. The Grill at the Ritz Carlton. Even Stephen Starr is susceptible — look at Washington Square.

Now, it’s not the rule — some interior hotel restaurants can get by on their good looks cuisine (read Lacroix and Fountain). But look at Tavern 17. Compare that with what used to be there (Circles on th Square). The new space is much more open and much more oriented to 17th Street, i.e. potential customers not associated with the hotel. It’s a shame really, because the concept of CityGrange is good and one that we’d love to love. (Anyone who’s all about supporting local farms and their foods, and thereby preserving open space and conserving natural resources, is someone we’d happily endorse.) But with a space like that, you’re basically starting off with one hand already tied behind your back. And then to under-whelm basically everyone, including several critics, from the onset… that’s just not a formula that’s going to get it done. If this were Eater, CityGrange would have been DeathWatched, like, yesterday. Tough break. Especially because those sliders are f***ing good.

See? Illadelph likes CityGrange as well. So c'mon Westin peeps: Step on it and fix the place up.

Deciphering Why CityGrange's Seemingly Imminent Demise Was Almost Unavoidable [The Illadelph]
Citygrange [MenuPages]

[Image Courtesy The Illadelph]

• Sonam, Sonam, Sonam. Will the new South Street restaurant survive in the 2nd & South pit of death near the tacky gifts store and the food market? Elisa Ludwig hopes so. Also, they serve "buffalo falafel" which the vegans might love... but just puzzles us.

• Is the world ending? Judging by the damn fact that a supermarket is opening in NoLibs, we'd say HELL YEAH IT IS. The list of stocked items is tailor-made for the Trader Joe's/Whole Foods demo as well.

• Celebrate the era of pre-yuppified dining with new-old South Philly Italian joint Mr. Martino's. Spaghetti and meatballs? Lasagna? Hells yes.

• Travel out to deep BucksCo for a tour of the Herr's potato chip factory.

• Philadelphia's top five red foods. Red as in the color, not communists... You know what we mean.

• You've passed by West Philly's Watusi Pub before. Now step in.

• Home entertaining: Don't let it scare you.

• Craig LaBan pontificates on caviar.

• Food trends for 2008: But we thought locovores were 2007?

• Deep ChesCo is getting a new BYOB.

Holy crap. South Jersey's Blackbird Dining Establishment recently hosted a party for Le Bec-Fin muckety-muck Georges Perrier on Sunday that ended up costing around $125 per person... and look at this menu. Wow. Just wow.

How Georges Eats [Daily Examiner/Philly Mag]

So the Belgian Cafe has a good provenance. It comes out of the (Monk's Cafe/Fergie's/Nodding Head nexus) and the Delaware Valley has been awash in new Belgian restaurants lately.

Which makes the question we must ask a simple one: Why did Craig LeBan hate The Belgian Cafe so much?

I've long operated under the belief that there are few ills in life that a chalice of high-octane Belgian beer can't cure. That, of course, was before I met the vegan "scallops" wrapped in "facon" at the Belgian Cafe. These marinated tofu plugs come ringed in a crisp jacket of soy bacon, and they are something to behold, topped with orange beads of faux caviar. But eating them is an unsettling adventure into the synthetic unknown. I'm as open as any omnivore to fake-meat cookery. I even gave three bells to Horizons, Bella Vista's pioneering vegan eatery. But this creation tasted like peppered white mush wrapped in pig-flavored cardboard.

Funny, Philly's vegan bloggers seem to like it. But at least LaBan likes the beer.

Belgian Cafe [Philadelphia Inquirer]
Belgian Cafe [MenuPages]
Belgian Cafe [Official Site]

It appears he forgot the cardinal rule of stabbing someone multiple times inside a coffee shop: Never, ever return to the same coffee shop for a cuppa joe. Especially not the next morning.

Singley is accused of stabbing a 29-year-old man following an argument inside the Starbucks at Broad Street and Jackson Street shortly before 6pm on Saturday. The man, who was waiting in line for coffee, was stabbed in the face, back and chest and was taken to the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania in critical condition.

The next morning? You guessed it, Singley returned to the Broad & Jackson Starbucks for a cup of coffee. He was arrested quickly after being identified and is currently in police custody.

Singley has an arrest record dating back to 1973 that inculudes weapons offenses and numerous counts of theft, burglary, assault, terroristic threats and disorderly conduct.

His court date is on Thursday. So what will stabbing someone at a Starbucks net you? Attempted murder, aggravated assault, simple assault, possession of an instrument of crime and recklessly endangering another person.

Alleged Starbucks stabber returns to shop & is nabbed [Daily News]
Latte violence in attack at Starbucks [Daily News]

• Cochon: So pork-centric that it's making the religious Jews, Muslims and vegetarians shudder.

• The 2007 food year in review.

• Pastries, pastries, pastries.

Soon South Floridians will get to enjoy those Morimoto truffles too...

If the New York Post's Page Six gossip column is to be trusted, chef Masaharu Morimoto is opening a Miami restaurant. According to the Post, he was recently spotted in Miami at restaurants Brosia and Domo Japones. Hell, the Post even has a quote (with 99.99999% possibility coming straight out of the Morimoto/Stephen Starr camp) to the effect of "he is very excited about a Miami restaurant." See — wage tax and government shenanigans to the contrary — good things do occasionally come out of Philly.

Iron in Miami [New York Post]

• MP: Boston has found the world's best gingerbread house.

• MP: Chicago is playing the ham-or-fish game.

• MP: San Francisco explores how one San Francisco journalist accidently sicced the liquor authority on an area restaurant. Damn!

• MP: South Florida celebrates the Guatemalan chicken invasion of Florida restaurants.

Morimoto's own Masaharu Morimoto has a new cookbook out. To promote it, he recently headed up to Google's New York campus (you know, the Googleplex) to discuss the book, answer cooking questions from Google employees and to give a cooking demonstration.

It's 45 minutes of the Iron Chef chillin' with some of the most upstanding techie foodies we've ever seen. Gotta love it.

Authors @ Google: Masaharu Morimoto [YouTube]
Morimoto [MenuPages]
Morimoto [Official Site]

Uwishunu just tipped us off to the cream cream cheese and pesto topped bagel at the Satellite Cafe in deep West Philly and damn it sounds good:

The “Bike Shop Special” takes its name from Firehouse Bicycles, above Satellite Cafe, but that’s as far as the connection goes, as far as I can tell. It turns out it’s a bagel– I chose poppyseed– spread with both cream cheese and pesto, and topped with spinach and roasted red peppers. The fresh leaves of spinach and the rich blend of basil and cheese make for one satisfying sandwich.

Bagel Sandwiches at Satellite Cafe [Uwishunu]

Older-than-the-hills Hong Kong bakery K.C.'s Pastries was recently written up in Mac & Cheese. They totally understand the cultural mishmash that is Hong Kong cuisine:

Steer clear of the meat-filled buns (if vegetarian), and most of what’s left are sweet-filled buns, but the cheese and corn bun can take care of your savory cravings. Canned corn and cheese atop a sweet bread roll may sound like something from a college dorm kitchen, but it tastes just as good as you remember your ramen culinary creations – damn good! For whatever reason, we were more scared of the peanut butter bun than the corn and cheese bun, but that peanut butter bun was out of this world. I think we feared a glob of gooey peanut butter in the center (that was my fear, at least), but, instead, the pastry had layers of dough and layers of just enough peanut butter to satisfy. No goo bomb inside!

Canned corn? Cheese? Why the hell not.

K.C.'s Pastries [Mac & Cheese Review]

Taste Daily gives us a good look at the Americanized Asian cuisine of PF Chang's spin-off chain Pei Wei Asian Diner:

They took signature sauces from their full-service restaurants (like garlicky Mongolian and sticky Mandarin Kung Pao — to be tossed with your choice of proteins or veggies and served over rice) and favorite dishes like the Asian chopped chicken salad and lettuce wraps and put them in a nothing-over-$9 modified fast-food atmosphere.

Ah, suburbs and chains... two tastes that go well together.

Where We're Eating: Pei Wei [Taste Daily]
Pei Wei Asian Diner [MenuPages]
Pei Wei Asian Diner [Official Site]

Foobooz has the scoop on the New Year's Eve dinner at Marigold Kitchen, which will be chef Michael Solomonov's last at the restaurant. As we've previously mentioned, he's opening new restaurant Zahav and chef Erin O'Shea is taking over at the spot. Courtesy of Foobooz, here's the menu:

“Solo’s Last Meal”

1st Course
Sea urchin, scrambled eggs, caviar, virginia ham

2nd Course
Chick-pea cavatelli, lamb bolognese, yemeni spice

3rd Course
Turbot poached in truffle butter, cauliflower, saffron

4th Course
Roasted rib-eye cap, caramelized cepes, foie gras jus

Cheese

Dessert
Warm chocolate cake, toasted sesame ice cream, passionfruit

New Year's Eve Options Updated [Foobooz]
Marigold Kitchen [MenuPages]
Marigold Kitchen [Official Site]

Busted...

More LOLCat Pizza [Slice]

It looks like the pride of South Philly, Sarcone's Deli, is franchising. The CityPaper reports that co-owner Anthony Bucci is planning to franchise out the Sarcone's brand:

"If you open a Sarcone's, you're going to get the name, the bread and all our recipes," says Anthony. But can a guy in, say, Albany really replicate a Sarcone's hoagie roll — especially since bakers swear it's the local water that helps produce the best results? Not an issue — Anthony says they'll be equipped to ship Philly-produced dough to franchise locations."

Also, we'd like to take this moment to state a simple, non-sarcastic truth. We've bought bread in New York, Paris, San Francisco and plenty of other cities. The seeded Italian loaf from Sarcone's Bakery is the best bread we've ever had, out of all of them. The combination of the crunchy exterior with the yeasty inside made Balthazar in New York and Acme in San Francisco look like a bunch of chumps. Seriously.

Sarcone's Deli [MenuPages]
Feeding Frenzy [CityPaper]

Yeesh. Spain's economic minister has started a campaign against over-tippers. He feels that Spain's transition to the Euro leads to people leaving tips that are too big, which causes the perception of an increase in the cost of living:

Over-tipping had added to the sense among Spanish consumers that the cost of living is higher since the euro's introduction in 2002, he said. "People haven't taken on board the value of a euro," Mr Solbes told a political rally in Madrid. Spain's inflation is higher than other eurozone states - at 4.1% last month. "I see people having a couple of coffees and calmly leaving a euro tip," Mr Solbes told a Socialist Party economic forum in the Spanish capital. "That's 50% of the value of the product."

Our guess? Just a slow day in the Spanish bureaucracy.

Spaniards tip too much - minister [BBC]
Generous Tippers, Spain's New Public Enemy Number 1 [Chow]

We just had to share these pictures of Lynne Abraham with a big hunk of meat. Doesn't she look like she's ready to sentence that prime rib to 10 years in prison? Seriously! Look at that!

Prime eating [Inquirer]

[Image via Philadelphia Inquirer]

• South-of-South Street French spot Cochon gets the CityPaper treatment.

• In a completely unexpected move, a new bar has opened up in Northern Liberties Queens Village.

• Pennsylvania native Lynn Rosen has just released an etiquette guide.

• Narberth has a damn good Japanese luncheonette trapped inside a supermarket.

• A whole bunch of New Year's Eve dining options for you crazy mofos.

• Philly's best raw bars.

• Do you want Philadelphia DA Lynne Abraham's recipe for prime rib? Damn right you do.

• Department of the blatantly obvious: Parking at the Italian Market still sucks.

• Yuppie pretzels? Sourdough fennel soft pretzels? Ja.

• All about Bindi and the new yakitori joint in Chinatown.

• Azure's mahi-mahi tacos? They're damn good.

The following menus have all been recently added to MenuPages Philadelphia:

• 13th Street Indian BYO Bindi

• Old City tapas joint Triada

• The new South Street outpost of crab cake chain Bobby Chez

• Monk's spin-off Belgian Cafe

• New NoLibs Paraguayan resto Arbol Cafe.

Philadelphia mag has put together a good list of winter drinks in the Delaware Valley. Our favorite? The "Dream" at Old City's Double Shot Cafe (pictured):

The “Dream” at Old City’s Double Shots may keep you up: steamed milk, pure vanilla extract, caramel, and two shots of espresso.

Caffeine = good.

In Search of.. Hot Drinks [Taste Daily/Philly]

[Image via Philadelphia]

We don't mean to keep doing posts about Anthony Bourdain on the MP blog. But, for better or worse, he's become one of the most prolific commentators on food trends today. Let's face it, the guy has done a good turn on his second and third careers as a writer and television show host. Until Calvin Trillin starts doing a weekly television series and Jane and Michael Stern turn their attention to foreign foodways, well... Bourdain works damn well in the meantime.

While Bourdain might not be a fan of Phladelphia, he's a fan of Cleveland — where his show No Reservations recently filmed. While there, he did an NPR interview with fellow food writer Michael Ruhlman that's well worth checking out.

No Reservations About Cleveland Food [WCPN]

Advertising site Creativity just did a great interview with the director of those Burger King Whopper Freakout commercials that have been kinda inescapable on television lately.

If you're one of the rare ones who hasn't seen the commercial, the YouTube's above. This is the part of the interview that grabbed us:

We had a whole support system there to give people BK rewards afterwards. At the drive-thru people tended to scream harder—I guess they felt they were more anonymous. But when they drove up we apologized profusely—I would do it, or Drew my producer would. We wanted to make sure they understood tit was an experiment and gave them tons of Burger King food. It wasn't meant to be mean spirited; we didn't want to make people look bad. I was impressed that BK went for it. They were really good sports. That's what shocked me the most about working with Crispin—it was amazing how much trust there was from the client.

Behind the Freakout [Creativity]

The New York Times did a fascinating profile of a magazine called Meatpaper today. As the title of the magazine would indicate... they're all about meat. Articles in the mag cover the revival of old-school butcher shops, Native American cooking, the history of kosher meat laws and a lot more. According to founder Amy Standen:

“Responsible meat eating could hold its own as a philosophical position with people who are vegetarian... “Meatpaper is about every way of looking at meat. I think of it as a magazine that’s just as intended for vegetarians as it is for meat eaters.”

Their ultimate goal? That people understand the "fleischgeist," or spirit of meat.

Meat to Wrap the Mind Around [NY Times]
Meatpaper [Official Site]

• At new Loft district/Inkyhood pub Canavan's, you can have a damn good meal. So good that the reviewer didn't mind that his meal was burned twice and his server forgot his order in the process. Must have been some good food.

• Someone just wrote an academic text on Philly nightlife that includes chapters on Stephen Starr's restaurants, the behavior of Penn students and pick-up methods in bars. Awesome!

• A quick tour of the ethnic restaurants of south and southwest Philly.

• Manayunk pizzeria Minguzzi's is hiring servers.

• The Spring Mill Cafe in Conshy needs servers and bussers.

• Dock Street needs a cook for their pizza-making operation.

• Swanky Bubbles needs a barback.

• New suburban Chinese outfit Swanky Bubbles is hiring out on the Main Line.

Who is McDonald's celebrity spokesperson in Germany? Heidi Klum, that's who.

Heidi Klum Promotes McDonalds [Splash]

The New York Times' City Room blog just did a piece on the Jewish-Chinese fusion cuisine that can be found at kosher Chinese restaurants. Shown above are the pastrami egg rolls and Chinese hot dogs (hot dogs wrapped in egg roll skins) of Eden Wok in Midtown Manhattan.

Although Philadelphia's Orthodox Jewish population can't compare with that of New York, we still have a number of kosher Chinese restaurants. Holy Land Chinese in the Northeast offers a menu of Chinese-American classics (along with a related Middle Eastern restaurant next door... shawarma and broccoli, anyone?) and Yi-Tzi Peking in Bala Cynwyd offers "Chinese chicken nuggets" alongside kosher sushi & buffalo wings. Then of course, there are the established Center City vegetarian/kosher Chinese spots like Singapore and New Harmony.

Alas, pastrami egg rolls are nowhere to be found in Philadelphia... But how about a treifalicious cheesesteak egg roll?

Hot Dogs From Column A, Pastrami Egg Rolls frolm Column B [New York Times]

[Image via New York Times]

Over at Food & Drinq, Michael Klein offers up a sneak peak at upcoming Japanese spot Kaizan. Opening day is Thursday and we're going to have the menu up very shortly. The tasting menu is what caught our eye:

Kobe Tataki (seared, thinly sliced Kobe beef topped with Korean pear puree, edamame, and sliced seaweed); lobster tobinyaki (half cut lobster grilled in a ceramic bowl with white miso sauce); kamo dobinmushi (duck breast, enoki mushrooms, steamed in a tea pot with dashi broth); and otoro Ishiyaki (otoro you cook on a stone grill set up on the table).

Sounds good.

Kaizan [Food & Drinq]

The always fun Illadates crew just came out with their newest installment: Illadates Fishtown. In the video above, both tthe Canvas Coffee Company and Johnny Brenda's are among the attractions.

Illadates [blip.tv]

How can you tell if it's a slow day for the gossip column? If the lede story is the number of marriage proposals at a restaurant, that might be a good indication:

Romantic Friday night at the Water Works restaurant. Lights on the Schuylkill wink over the roaring falls. Soft music drifts over the restaurant's scenic breezeway. Perfect setting for a proposal. Better yet, four proposals. The Water Works has seen 101 of them in its nearly 18 months in business, says owner Michael A. Karloutsos. The four on Friday set a record for one night. Sunday, though, the total dropped to 100. One of the prospective brides told Karloutsos that she had gotten caught up in the moment and said yes. She wasn't ready. No wedding. Thinking back, Karloutsos now realizes there was something odd about the would-be groom, who chugged champagne from the bottle.

Ah man. A groom who drinks champagne straight out of the bottle? Stay classy, Philadelphia. Seriously... whether you've had a few drinks before or not, that's just sad.

Inqlings [Inquirer]
Water Works Restaurant [MenuPages]
Water Works Restaurant [Official Site]

The official word from Food and Drink/The Inky/whatevs is that Le Bec-Fin has decided to discontinue much of their lunch service. Lunch will be served on Fridays and Saturdays, but that will be it.

Per a spokesperson for Georges Perrier:

"The reason for this decision can mostly be attributed to Chef Perrier’s heartfelt dedication to his high culinary standards and his zest for life."

Yes, zest for life = reduced hours. Totally.

Le Bec-Fin Tightens Up [Food and Drinq]
Le Bec-Fin [MenuPages]
Le Bec-Fin [Official Site]

We've always thought the hyper-verbose menu at Los Catrines & Tequila's was kind of great. It turns out that New York Times food critic Frank Bruni does too. He recently gave the crowd outside Philadelphia a detailed, thorough parsing of the Tequila's menu:

For example, a $20.95 entrée of Carne a la Trenza was described in terms of much, much more than its ingredients or cooking method. Reading about the dish, you could easily wonder if what you have in your hands is a menu or an essay on follicular anthropology.

“Trenza (braids) are par excellence the most fashionable style for the country woman,” the description begins, continuing: “Nothing is more beautiful than an imposing and timid country woman, adorned with the complex knots that crown her head. Our chef gives this rich dish . . . the look of the trenza worn by our Mexican heroines.” [...]

I went on line to look at Tequila’s current menu, to see if it was substantially different from the one my friend gave me and to see if its tradition of ripe, generous prose continues. I’ll let you decide, based on this description of an $8.95 appetizer of Nachos Obligatorios:

“ ‘La Frontera’ (Mexican border) has become an illusion. The real frontera is a third country which extends 100 miles into the U.S. and 100 miles into Mexico. Its citizens are the Mexican-Americans. Odd as it may seem, the ‘Nacho’ is the perfect representative of this area. It denounces its traditional origin yet retains it. Simultaneously, it is drawn towards its destiny yet does not embrace it. Corn tortilla chips, refried beans, ground beef and Chihuahau cheese.”

A commenter on the Times' Diner Journal blog calls it "the culinary equivalent of the Peterman Catalogue" and we couldn't describe it any better ourselves.

Menus As Literature [Diner's Journal/NYT]
Los Catrines & Tequila's [MenuPages]
Los Catrines & Tequila's [Official Site]