July 17–24, 1997

food|Quinntessentials: Jim Quinn's restaurant reviews from March to the present, abridged.

Food: American eclectic, Southwest and Mexican influences.

Atmosphere: Old meets middle-aged and new South Street.

Price: Bargain. Most entrees $17 or less.

Three Stars: Excellent.

Esquire magazine's list of the best young chefs in America included Carlo Di Marco of Bridget Foy's. This former burp and beer joint now has fun food that's real food. Loco Carlo nachos is crunchy red and blue taco chips, smoky duck slivers with black beans, shrimp with mango hot sauce, drooled with Tex-Mex cheese. Maui pizza is topped with chicken, shiitake, portobello, cilantro pesto and mozzarella. Also recommended: grilled ostrich or buffalo on fresh tortillas, and Di Marco-style cioppino, a big seafood stew on a heap of spaghetti.

(Originally reviewed on June 6.)

 

 

La Costiera

1111 Oregon Ave., 467-5757

Closed Monday. No bar, no credit cards — ATM at 10th & Oregon. Reservations a must.

Food:Italian Family Italian — almost everything made from scratch, even the mozzarella!

Atmosphere: Neighborhood restaurant in Naples, filled with happy Philly tourists.

Price: Moderate. All entrees below $15, half below $13.

Three and a half stars: Excellent.

Julia Lehman

A selection of dishes from La Costiera

The Cosa family, an extended and friendly clan, make almost everything themselves, including the excellent bread and chewy wonderful mozzarella. Unusual and authentic Italian home-cooking. Real Italian prosciutto and fresh mozzarella is the great appetizer. Penne Genovese is braised onion, veal roast, Verdicchio wine and bitey pasta. Orecchietti comes with broccoli rabe, cannelini beans and chopped shrimp. Both are extraordinary.

(Originally reviewed on July 4.)

 

 

(Husch)

301 Woodbine Ave., Narberth, (610) 553-6393

Food: Superb eclectic American/Asian/Italian.

Atmosphere: Politely clamorous. Upper-middle-class Main Liners dressed casually (for them).

Price: Low-moderate. Most entrees $16 or under.

Three and three-quarters Stars: Excellent.

Julia Lehman

The dining room at (Husch)

(Husch) is like a sale at Brooks Brothers. The product is flawless, the crowd is Philly Old Money and its New Money wannabes, and the values are astonishing. Lobster dumplings were house-made of fresh Asian wrappers and lobster meat, with a spectacular coconut curry sauce. Mignon of tuna was a big fillet, wrapped in thin slices of zucchini and bacon, served rare — among the best tuna, and best tuna recipes, anywhere. All food as spectacular in appearance as taste. Very very good desserts.

(Originally reviewed on April 25.)

 

 

Jade Harbor

942 Race St., 928-0451

Food: New Chinese cuisine, lots of seafood, extremely high quality.

Atmosphere: Spotless and subdued new Chinese restaurant.

Price: Big Bargain. As little as $12 a person.

Three Stars: Excellent.

A new Chinatown restaurant with New Chinese Cuisine and a special dinner for four ($48). Crab and fishmaw soup, a mild and delicious thick broth. Grouper, batter-dipped, just shocked done in hot oil. "Peking spare ribs," pork chops, caramelized in an extra-hot wok. A stir fry of squid, scallops, shrimp, tangy dried squid, sepia, snow peas and celery sticks. Ultra-thin slices of sirloin stir-fried with oyster sauce and mild mini-leaf greens. Chinese fried rice — no soy sauce, but lots of ham, roast pork, chicken and veggies. Other recommendations: eggplant and minced pork in mild hot sauce, perfectly steamed chicken.

(Originally reviewed on June 27.)

 

 

The Latest Dish

613 S. Fourth St., 629-0565

Food: Post-Gen X Grazing, lots of veggies.

Atmosphere: Young, stylishly inelegant.

Price: Bargain. All dishes $11 or less.

Three Stars: Excellent.

Klimt posters, copper-topped tables and a big beer refrigerator. So you know the crowd is young and the prices low. Food quality is high, and the company great to look at. Get a fancy beer. Get spicy Thai chicken wings, or a big plate of tender fried calamari. Grilled tuna ($9) comes on top of arugula salad with shiitakes and tangerine ginger dressing. Spring roll is mashed potatoes and portobello deep-fried in egg roll skin, like an immense tubular knish. Seitan burger is meat-free and darkly deelish.

(Originally reviewed on April 11.)

 

 

Litto's Bakery/Caffe

910 Christian St., 627-7037

Food: Neo-South Philly Italian.

Atmosphere: Convivial and neighborly.

Price: Bargain. Almost all entrees under $14.

Two and three-quarters stars: Very Good.

A very friendly updated restaurant in an old-time Italian bakery. Food changes often, and is always generous and very good. Antipasto is among the best anywhere. Fresh fruit plate includes all the berries that decorate the fancy cakes, with a side of creamy cannoli filling. It makes a great appetizer and an even better dessert. Pastas are generous, low-cost, al dente and well-sauced. Bring your own wine and enjoy a comfortable relaxed meal.

(Originally reviewed on March 21.)

 

 

Ly Michaels

7552 Haverford Ave., 879-8868

Food: Chinese with French and American influence.

Atmosphere: Suburban semi-retirement.

Price: Bargain. Most entrees under $13.

Three Stars: Excellent.

Very fit and slightly gray, this crowd prides itself on knowing how to eat well — and healthy. Appetizers include grilled oriental eggplant, excellent crabcake and delicious duck dumplings. All prettily served, and obviously low-cal. Food ordered extra-spicy comes extra-spicy — a rarity in Philly. Hunan chicken with asparagus is extremely good. Grilled striped bass was extremely well-cooked and came covered with bits of tomato and shiitake. Lots of good food for the price.

(Originally reviewed on March 14.)

 

 

Opus 251

251 S. 18th St., 735-OPUS

Food: American eclectic.

Atmosphere: Married, pre-baby boom crowd, too rich to care about looking hip; bar is art-crowd daters.

Price: High. Most entrees over $21, most appetizers $9.50 or over.

Three and a half stars: Excellent.

Philly's first postmodern dessert is 251's Lantern: it includes a nutmeg ice cream sandwich, a huge chocolate truffle, a subtly ginger crme brlee and a cookie tube lit from inside like a hurricane lamp. Why shouldn't dessert make you laugh? High prices, unusual ingredients, excellent preparation and a bizarre sense of humor are the rule here. Sheets of rice pasta filled with crab and white truffle come in broth with lobster bits, lemongrass, celeriac, shiitake and daikon. Lamb chops come with vegetable fig marmalade. Side vegetables include fried lotus chips, organic brown rice, braised watercress. Unusual ingredients, exotic recipes, expert cooking, high prices.

(Originally reviewed on May 9.)

 

 

South Street Souvlaki

509 South St., 925-3026

Food: Greek specialties, grilled fish, roast meats. Plus real french fries!

Atmosphere: Greco-American-South Street-Eclectic, integrated by age, sex, race class and opinions for and against nasal jewelry.

Price: Bargain. Entrees $8.95-$12.95.

Three Stars: Excellent.

South Street Souvlaki is 20 years old this year. A sandwich shop that grew into a serious restaurant without ever forgetting to be fun. Owner and still-head chef Tom Vasiliades says, "The secret of all Greek food and all good food is — don't fuss. Let it cook." Real french fries cut fresh from real potatoes. Skordalia is homemade bread, soaked and mashed, with lots of garlic and olive oil. Saganakiopa is toasted cheese, toasted, brandy-soaked and flamed at table. Whole grilled red snapper is superbly broiled and amazingly cheap.

(Originally reviewed on May 23.)

 

 

BLT's Cobblefish

443 Shurs Lane, Manayunk, 483-5478

Food: Fresh seafood, new eclectic recipes.

Atmosphere: Non-old-time Philly Fish House, new eclectic crowd of families, dates, seniors. Kiddy seats on demand.

Price: Moderate. Most entrees $17 or under.

Three Stars: Excellent.

The Philly Fish House survived with fresh fish, huge portions, simple recipes and big families of speed eaters. BLT's crowd chews its food more thoroughly, and brings a bottle of wine. Get anything from the clam and oyster bar, and the smoked-in-house smoked fish. Deep-frying is crisply, quickly and expertly done. Many recipes have been Orientaled-up, just enough to taste even better than plain.

(Originally reviewed on April 18.)