Philadelphia Weekend

The day after Christmas we hopped in the car and took ourselves on a little 3-day getaway for eating, drinking, and general touristy stuff.  Our criteria was simple:

• Not more than a three hour drive from north Jersey
• Great restaurants
• Pampering hotels
• Walkable
• Good sightseeing 

Ding, ding!  And the answer is? What is Philadelphia?

An easy drive down the NJ Turnpike and two hours later we were checking in to the Loews Philadelphia Hotel. Smack in the heart of Philadelphia’s Center City, the Loews had everything we wanted – affordable rates, prime location, on-site bar (for that all-important pre-dinner cocktail), knowledgeable concierge, and free parking. Besides all that, we were upgraded to a high-level floor with gorgeous views of the City of Brotherly Love. William Penn, perched high atop City Hall, bid me good morning every day, and what a way to start the day!

Of course, I had done my homework re restaurants, museums, history sights, etc. At the top of the list (and for our first night) was Vetri. The restaurant sighted by Mario Batali as “possibly the best Italian restaurant on the East Coast,” and by Alan Richman as “probably the best Italian restaurant in America,” was a must. I managed to get a 6:45pm reservation, and after a brisk walk, we arrived.  Situated in a lovely townhouse, Vetri, headed by chef/owner Marc Vetri, has only one type of dining experience – a tasting menu. I usually veer away from tasting menus because they are expensive and you rarely get enough to eat. But after reading about Vetri’s tasting menu, I was confident this would be different. Yes, it was expensive, but there was so much food, at one point, I considered telling them to not bring the next course.  Then I thought, “are you insane, you will probably never be back here again, bring it on!”  The food was exquisite. As was the service.

Before I begin, you will notice there is only one photo of our dinner at Vetri in this post.  Being an enthusiastic food blogger, I take pictures of almost all my meals (just in case I might write about them). But the atmosphere at Vetri was rarified. Not that it was pretentious or stuffy; on the contrary, it was very warm and welcoming. It was like dining in Chef Vetri’s home (one could only wish for that opportunity!) and taking photos in “his home” just didn’t feel right. I didn’t even feel that it was appropriate to take notes, so most of this is from my delicious memories!

As soon as you are seated, the wait staff offers you Prosecco and a plate of luscious stuzzichini (hors d’oeuvres). This consisted of probably the best olives I’ve ever had, house-cured salami, pastrami-spiced foie gras on toast (killer!), raw vegetables with a balsamic crema, and fabulous bread. Then the parade of courses begins.

As the staff explains, even though this is a tasting menu, each guest at the table receives a different item, this way you can sample more of the chef’s work. The first course is di pesce (fish). We were treated to Bocconcini di Baccala (small bites of delicious cod) and Pappardelle with Cockles and Tardivo. While I loved the luscious pasta in this second dish, the cockles, for my taste, were too salty and fishy. When I didn’t finish the dish, the server graciously offered to bring me a different fish item.

Next up, Di Verdure (vegetables). A Sweet Onion Crepe with Truffle Fondue was otherworldly. Delicious onions sautéed and enveloped in tender crepes with a delicate truffle sauce. Our second vegetable dish was the Ricotta Ravioli with Wild Pecan. One of the many things Vetri is known for is their pasta. I can’t begin to tell you how good these ravioli were. Which, for a food blogger, is not exactly a positive thing (LOL!).  These little pillows of fragrant ravioli filled with wild pecan were heavenly.

Di Terra (from the earth) was the next course. The famous Vetri Tortellini Pie, which is a distant relative of the timpano or timballo (see the movie “Big Night” for an in-depth course on timballo), is a fabulous little package of pastry-wrapped tiny “polpette” (pork, veal, and beef meatballs) with a “mortedella mousse Bolognese” topped with a velvety béchamel sauce. And if it couldn’t possibly get any better, it’s served with a 25-year old balsamic from Modena.  Follow this link to see Vetri Chef de Cuisine, Adam Leonti, making it. This was my favorite dish at Vetri.  The other earth course was Chestnut Fettuccine with Wild Boar Ragu. I must admit that before my dinner at Vetri, I had never tasted wild boar. This is a dish based on Chef Vetri’s days in Tuscany. He adds a bit of cocoa powder to cut the gaminess and enhance the flavor of the chestnut fettuccine.  One word, succulent!

Vetri’s sommelier will pair wines for each course, but we opted for a bottle of a delicious 2011 Barbera d’Alba that went beautifully with each course.

And, finally, Dolce (dessert). But Vetri doesn’t just bring your designated desserts. No, first there is “pre-dessert.” At this point, I couldn’t stand it any longer and had to take a picture! 

I would have been good with our little plate of luscious chocolates and cookies, but we were treated to a delicious Chocolate Polenta Souffle and a delicate Pistachio Flan with Milk Chocolate Gelato.

When you finally must leave this lovely cocoon of fine dining, the staff gives you a small bag with samples of Vetri’s wonderful coffee cake to savor with your next morning’s coffee. OK, they had me at “hello,” but that was the icing on the cake (so to speak).

Our meal at Vetri ranks in my top all-time meals. The first being Steirereck, in Vienna, the second, Alice Waters’ legendary Chez Panisse in California. And now, Vetri, is added to that list. If you have the chance, go. It is not to be missed. Mario Batali and Alan Richman were right.

Part two of our Philly trip next week, where I will tell you about the second best meal of the trip – DiNic’s roast pork sandwich.

Vetri Ristorante

1312 Spruce Street

Philadelphia, PA 19107

215-732-3478

Loews Philadelphia Hotel

1200 Market Street

Philadelphia, PA 19107

215-627-1200

Lidia Bastianich - The Interview

When you’re a food blogger you pretty much write about a new recipe you’ve tried, or a restaurant you’ve visited, but most of us rarely get the opportunity to speak for any length of time with one of the greats of the food world.

 
Today I had the pleasure of chatting with Lidia Bastianich. You may know her, as I do, from her TV shows, or her restaurants, or her cookbooks. I’ve met other chefs and food celebrities, and while most of them are pleasant, I haven’t found any of them to have the genuine warmth that they exude on TV. So what a nice experience it was to speak with Lidia, who spent a good 30 minutes talking with me about her restaurants, her favorite thing to cook when she’s home alone, and how she juggles her busy life.

 

I met Lidia at a book signing for her latest book, Lidia’sFavorite Recipes. She was signing books at my local Fairway Market and at the last minute I decided to run over. Not because I didn’t want to buy the book or get it signed, I just figured it would be a mob scene. Lidia has a great following in New Jersey and I had limited time that afternoon to wait in line. After buying the book, I got on the line snaking through the produce section, chatted with the other waiters, and after about an hour, got to the signing table. Then I realized why it took so long. Lidia warmly greeted me, her assistant snapped pictures, and Lidia signed my book. But never once did I feel rushed, even though there was still a long line behind me and the time for the signing was almost up. I asked Lidia if it would be possible to contact her for an interview forJerseybites.com and gave her my card. She said, “of course, we’ll be in touch.” I was thrilled just to have gotten to speak with her and have my book signed, but didn’t really hold much faith in hearing from her. After all, she is one of the most famous and busiest food personalities in the world.  But true to her word, a few days later I received an e-mail from her PR assistant initiating the interview. Needless to say, I was pleasantly surprised! 

 

So, now, on to the interview. As I mentioned above, we covered a wide range of topics, but started with the new book. I noted that this book seemed more personal than the others, and wondered what her vision was for this book. She said this book just flowed from the heart, and it is a summary of all her books up to now – this is the one that pulls it all together.  Asking her about the one takeaway she’d like readers to have from this book, she said that people who don’t think they can cook, would be surprised at the results. Take this book and make it your own!

 

I was interested in how she juggles this busy life – TV, restaurants, cookbooks, travel – and her answer was so simple. This is “my life, I love it.” Her children work with her in the businesses, and they are getting the grandchildren involved, too. In fact, one of her grandsons was at the book signing helping her. She also stressed that she has wonderful, competent people around her, who’ve been with her for awhile. That is the key – she doesn’t view this as work, it’s her life.

 

We moved on to restaurants and we talked about how each restaurant is different. When thinking about opening a new restaurant, they look at the area, where is the culinary world in that city, obviously the real estate market is important. Lidia and her team build restaurants that reflect the chef who is cooking there, even better if the chef is local. They seek out the food artisans to bring in local flavor, but more importantly, they settle into the city, they don’t take over. The restaurant reflects the fabric of that city.

 

Selfishly, I asked about the possibility of a Lidia restaurant in New Jersey. We talked about how even though New York City is 20 minutes away, sometimes you want to stay close. Lidia’s passion is education through books, classes, etc., so unless one of her children wants to open a restaurant in NJ, sadly we’ll have to continue to trek to NYC for her authentic Italian food.

 

I think everyone who watches chefs on TV wants to know, what do they cook when they are home? Not for family or holiday dinners, but when it’s just them. They’ve got the house all to themselves and it’s quiet. What’s their comfort food? For Lidia, it’s cooking up some garlic, oil, and pepperoncini, and enjoying it with a glass of wine. Sounds good to me.

Lastly, I asked her what she’d like to say to her fans in New Jersey. She said, “New Jersey is vibrant and everyone is interested in food. You’ve got the artisan movement; you’ve got wonderful Italian ethnic specialties, New Jersey is blessed with good stuff. Take that energy, stay local, seasonal, simple, and enjoy the family at the table.”  Or as she says at the end of her TV programs, “tutti al tavola!”

 
For more information about Lidia, her restaurants, books, etc., visit Lidia’s Italy

Food, Glorious, Food!

What a food-centric weekend we had!  I guess that's to be expected from a food blogger, eh?  But what fabulous finds I've got for you today, my friends.  Read on...


Those adorable (and scrumptious) little cupcakes pictured above are from the wonderful dinner we enjoyed at the soft opening of Bar Cara Friday night.  Bar Cara is the new offering from the DePersio family (of Fascino fame). While Fascino is all dark red banquettes and elegant food, Bar Cara is hip and rustic at the same time. The space is colored in soft, muted, almost spa-like colors, with a definite coolness factor in the air. Bar Cara has a liquor license (Fascino is BYO) and a great bar area to enjoy a pre-dinner drink. 

Here's where the rustic part comes in. For the past year, Fascino has been offering "Traditional Tuesdays" with Chef Ryan DePersio's modern spin on Italian favorites (such as Veal Parmigiana and Sausage and Peppers). Some of those items have made the trip to Bar Cara along with sensational pizzas, a fabulous pork burger, great zucchini fries, and Ryan's addictive polenta fries. 


When we heard that pastry chef and family matriarch, Cynthia DePersio, made all the dough for the pizzas, we had to start the meal with one. The crust was incredible - light, airy, with just the right amount of chewiness. I was so busy oohing and aahing over the crust, I didn't get a picture! 

I loved my entree of Braised Sausage with Creamy Polenta - my idea of the perfect comfort food.  If there is a burger on a menu, Barry cannot pass it up.  So, true to form, he ordered the Pork Burger on a delicious brioche roll.

Finishing up the meal brings us back to the delectable cupcakes at the top of the blog.  Perfect little bite-sized morsels of lusciousness, these cupcakes are!  A trio times two, made for sharing: carrot, banana, and chocolate. Hello, Cupcake!

Finally, North Jersey has a great spot for a glass of wine and a pizze, or a burger and a beer, or a civilized cocktail.  The DePersio clan has done it again. 


The restaurant's web site will be up shortly (bar-cara.com), so in the meantime, here are the details:  1099 Broad St., Bloomfield, NJ; 973-893-3681. The restaurant officially opens tonight, Saturday, January 23. 

As if that wasn't enough, Saturday brought us to Tarry Lodge in Port Chester, NY. Savvy readers will know this as the latest endeavor of famed chef, Mario Batali, and wine partner, Joe Bastianich. The partners took a run down lodge first built in 1906 and renovated it back to beautiful saloon-like grandeur.  As you would expect from this group, everything is done to perfection, with no stone left unturned.  Port Chester is a hard-scrabble town and Tarry Lodge is a little out of place here, but at lunch today, it was packed. Obviously, this is a destination restaurant and gracious service has found a home in Port Chester - from the reservation confirmation call, to the host who seats you, to the perfectly, unobtrusive service. And how nice it was to be able to enjoy a Batali restaurant without having to go into New York (love NYC, but honestly, sometimes it's just not worth the trouble).

Reminiscent of our Friday night meal at Bar Cara, we started with pizza (you know the old saying: "one can never have too much good pizza!"). The group choice: Capricciosa, Artichokes, Prosciutto Cotto, and Crimini - fabulous!  There are about 15 different pizzas to choose from and I don't think you could go wrong with any.  Look at that beautiful, burnt to within an inch of it's life, crust (I just love saying that). 


Three of us ordered the Brasato al Barolo with Polenta and Horseradish (translation: probably the best short ribs I've ever had).  

A rectangle of moist, tender beef surrounded by creamy polenta with a few shards of horseradish in a barolo reduction.  Are you a short ribs fan? Make your way to Tarry Lodge.

Other entrees enjoyed by our table: Black Fettucine with Shrimp and Artichokes and an Artichoke Fontina Frittata with Sopresatta Vinaigrette (on the specials menu).

Not one to skip dessert if presented with out of the ordinary options, Tarry Lodge offers some great choices, but I am so predictable: Apple Crostata with Cinnamon Gelato. Delicioso!  The other dessert of choice was the Chocolate Cake with Bitter Oranges and Pistachio Gelato (nary a crumb was left).

So there you have it - two fabulous meals in one weekend.  And sometimes that's all you need to get you through the dark, cold days of winter. 


Mangia bene!