COVERITLIVE.COM

12:24

Philly.com - Craig LaBan will be online at 2 p.m. to talk turkey - and other gastronomical topics. Free free to submit questions and comments for him now.

2:03

Craig -

Good afternoon, my hungry friends, and welcome to the Philly Food Chat Pantry. It’s great to be back after a week away, though we had an awesome family trip to Washington D.C. just in time for cherry blossom season. I’ve not spent much time in D.C. these past few years, but I can see I’ve been missing out on some good eating.

A couple of the highlights? Zaytinya was a fabulous stop for contemporary Mediterranean small-plates before heading over for an afternoon of espionage at the Spy Museum. Steam-puffed house-made pitas, silky humus, and delicious small plates with everything from snails in garlic-ouzo broth to grilled “arayes” pitas stuffed with ground lamb reminded me of a cross between Zahav, Kanella, and a Jose Garces place. Perhaps the true culinary highlight, though, was our dinner at Ray’s Hell Burger in Arlington. Even many of my DC-friends snootily say they won’t cross the Potomac into Virginia. But this one is definitely worth getting over the provincialism - it's a trip any true Mid-Atlantic burger lover should make. Ray's is a strip mall joint, really, a white vinyl box of a room with a frenetic first-come seating system. But in the back, you can watch a guy hand-trim and grind all the spare meat from Ray’s steakhouse nearby, hand-form it into luscious 10 oz. patties, and flame grill them to perfection. Amazinlgy savory meat – but with toppings like these (I got mine crusted “au poivre” with a big thick, oozy slice of the world's single greatest cheese: Epoisses!!!), Ray’s really left a lasting impression. I even told the chef, Jay, that it now ranked among my All-time Top 3 (I’m not giving up on the Good Dog quite yet…), to which he took mild, mock offense. When I conceded to being an Eagles fan, he actually started to yank my plate away. All in good fun, of course. The fraternity of burger connoisseurs is tighter than that! I might need to add a new verse to the anthem...

2:04

Craig -

So, what’s been on your plates and filling your glasses in Philadelphia this week? Do you have any DC favorites you’d like to mention in case other chatters are planning to head down for blossom-peeping this week? If not, we’ll get our own version in Philly any week now – so we can stay local, too!

2:05	[Comment From Bethany] Any suggestions of spots that are good for a group that includes omnivores/foodies AND a vegan?

2:07

Craig - Hi Bethany - Thanks for this note. Horizons has long been my go-to spot for impressing vegans, and it works well for any omnivore who's open to meat alternatives. That said, I've come across a couple mainstream restaurants recently that have offered good flavors for vegans, too. Fork, for example, which has a new chef with Terence Feury, served up a quinoa entree that completely wowed a vegan friend of mine, who was so impressed to find an upscale restaurant that cared about her ilk. Even El Camino Real, which got reviewed last week, I think their seitan "wings" and seitan-stuffed chile relleno were among the best things on the menu.

2:08	[Comment From Keith] What do you think of restaurant owners who use events like a police officer being shot or killed as a way to promote business and boost sales?

2:11

Craig - Keith - I think it's easy to be cynical these days about everyone and everything. But if it's a cause you care about - then I don't see the harm one bit. I give credit to places that are willing to take a night off from their routine to raise money for a worthy cause - whether it's the family of a fallen officer, or Alex's Lemonade Stand, which has had hundreds of thousands of dollars raised locally in restaurant events like those at Vetri. If the restaurant gets some favorable publicity out of that, it's smart, it's a long term approach. It also shows that a place is trying to build relationships within the community that last beyond one meal.

2:11

[Comment From Piko]
Hi Craig, Recently revisited Dimitri’s where they have updated menus with a number of additions, including my favorite from the past, Shrimp Pil-Pil. To my knowledge, this is the first time they have ever made this at the original location (my fist was at Pamplona – which I miss terribly). I had the spicy pil-pil with a Mueller-Catoir Riesling Kabinet.– complete heaven on earth. This is fast food at its finest! The whole striped bass was also killer. Like many, I’ve probably eaten at Dimitri’s, 50 times in my life and it’s always dependable. I’ll be back in a few months for their soft shells.

2:12	Craig - Piko - thanks for this report on an old favorite. Not sure which location you were eating at, but I think shrimp pil-pil has been on the Dmitri's menu for a long time. I'm glad to hear, though, this classic is keeping up the faith...

2:12	[Comment From Susan Gish] Wow. Au Poivre burger with Epoisses. Sounds like your tongue throwing a party for your mouth!

2:15

Craig - Yes, Susan. this was amazing on every level. The pepper and cheese was all the condiments this burger needed. By the time I got half-way through, the cheese was glistening in tangy, ivory, stinky streams over every morsel. I'm usually wary of burger places that fancy-up their patties with high-end ingredients - but this was the real deal. They also offered a marrow bone/parsley butter option that was tough to pass up, but I could pretty much sit down with a wheel of Epoisses and crusty bread and consider that to be among my most favorite meals in the world. Throw on a world-class burger, and you have true heaven on a bun.

2:15	[Comment From Paul T] The Brickskeller in DC is one of the best beer restaurants in America. Their burgers, wings, and sandwiches are very good. IRicci is a great Italian Restaurant down there.

2:17

Craig - Yes, I've heard loads about the Brickseller, Paul T, but didn't get a chance to visit on this trip. I will say, though, DC seems to be catching on to the Belgium brew phenomemon, as well. Even in our hotel, a new Kimpton in Alexandria (Lorien), I could get a bottle of Westmalle Tripel in the restaurant bar downstairs (with a proper Westmalle goblet no less!!) That, my friends, is civilization.

2:18

[Comment From Jael]
Before moving to Philly I was in DC for 10 years, so I definitely have DC favorites! Zaytinya is in the Jose Andres family of restaurants, which you are so right in likening to the Jose Garces model. They've both perfected the tapas model in my opinion, though in both cases it's easy to run up your bill if you're not paying attention. But other Andres spots in DC include Oyamel (Mexican), Jaleo (Spanish), and Cafe Atlantico -- with its upstairs restaurant, minibar, which is knock-down-drag-out-awesome but impossible to get into because it only has 6 seats. Anyway, for cherryblossomgoers in DC, any of the Ray's (burgers, Steaks, Classics) are tremendous values. For fine dining I love Komi, for more reasonable rates Palena Cafe, and somewhere in the middle, Central Michel Richard. You must have good sources, Craig, you hit a lot of DC highlights right off.

2:20

Craig - Jael, thanks for these additional DC suggestions. Andres certainly appears to be DC's answer to Garces/Starr combined. He is a high-end restaurant machine, and doing it all very well as a complete package - ambiance, theme, spot-on, evocative cooking. I would be eager to try his others... As for my sources, well, I do have a couple ringers, some choice colleagues at the Post I trust...

2:20	[Comment From JB Overbrook] Rosa Mexicana across from the Verizon Center has very good Guacamole and Margarita's - also like a place in Bethesda called "Mon Ami Gabi" (although corporate owned w/ locations in IL & Vegas as well) - sort of like a smaller scale Parc w/ great Frites!

2:20	[Comment From Bethany] Fork -good call. Thanks!! Though, I'm probably going to pass on El Camino.... I generally shy away from places that are pushing Shots!!!

2:22

Craig - Well, I just found it telling about the generation of diners coming to Camino Real that vegan fare was readily available. It's a trend that has popped up and thrived in more than one local gastropub, including Royal Tavern in South Philly. Hey, as for the shots, you can always say 'no', as we did. Or at least, upgrade and drink the good stuff. For its flaws, Camino Real has a stellar collection of high-end tequilas and bourbons...

2:22	[Comment From Mike H] Craig, I have to agree with your burger comments, ive had most of the big names, and Rouge has one of the best burgers in Philly, but still not as good as good dogs, filled with the delicious explosion of cheese

2:23	Craig - That Good Dog burger is magical, isn't it?

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