Days of Wine and Exposés

Halfway to the half-moon: El Vez's roasted-corn soup with Photo By: Michael T. Regan

Bottles, breakdowns and buying local set the dining tone for the past 12 months.

by Maxine Keyser

Looking over my notes from last year's roundup, I find that very little has changed. The same president, the same war, the same sagging economy — not a promising outlook. But, even if I don't take a Panglossian view of the world, I can be much more optimistic about the future of Philadelphia cuisine. A number of new restaurants opened this year and brought a broader, more global take on food, while places that were already established continued to be reliably good, and were nearly always packed with satisfied diners. Certainly, the proliferation of BYOBs, as well as restaurants that take wine seriously, indicates that people are drinking more wine than ever — some for health reasons, and some because they just like it. To paraphrase Mary Poppins, "A glassful of wine makes the meal go down so much better."

I suppose the worst restaurant news of the year was the Neil Stein debacle. Most people had dined extremely well at some of his places and regretted the sorry climax. But we had Stephen Starr setting the town on fire with four new restaurants here, and poised to open ventures in Atlantic City and New York. When Travel & Leisure magazine compared him to Steven Spielberg this month, they were on-target, for he has the same passion, attention to detail and uncluttered overview of things as the popular director.

Every restaurant worthy of patronage has gotten on the fresh/organic/local-products bandwagon. Their support of small farms and local growers is great, and it has to continue. Diners, too, are aware, and ask for Wagyu beef, organic chickens and Neiman Ranch meats. One new restaurant, Meritage, adheres to two of the aforementioned trends. Not only does the owner James Colabelli pay serious attention to his wine list, but chef Grant Brown cooks international cuisine with products practically gathered on his doorstep. He follows the lead of established places like Fork, where they are as involved with the wine as they are with the food. Although it is BYOB, the new Marigold Kitchen in West Philadelphia, with the skeleton of the staff from sadly defunct Salt, has a very innovative menu, with the expected Mediterranean touches and a commitment to provenance. They join the intrepid warriors at Django, Chloe, Alison at Blue Bell, Lolita, Pif, Melograno, Radicchio and so many more, turning out exciting food for those happily emptying their cellars. In South Philly, we now have Albertino and Pumpkin joining the ranks of Cucina Forte and Tre Scalini. The wines they are bringing are not just the Chardonnays and Cabernets of yesteryear, but Malbecs from Argentina, Priorats from Spain, Madirans from Southwestern France and plenty of great Chilean and Australian Sauvingnon Blancs and Syrahs.

It's not just wine that has gained in importance. At new Asian restaurants like Nectar, Teikoku or Margaret Kuo's new spot in Wayne, sake is treated with the same reverence, while in Mexican restaurants, particularly El Vez, tequila is being sipped like fine brandy. Incidentally, Pan-Asian cuisine is really hitting a high note with most diners, who love the flavors of Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Indonesia, as well as the more familiar Chinese and Japanese.

Stephen Starr's other new openings have brought world-class chefs to Philadelphia. Not only is the new Striped Bass more gorgeous than ever, but we get the expertise of Alfred Portale and Chris Painter's work. And at Washington Square, before his end-of-year departure, Marcus Samuelsson oversaw a menu that wandered all over the globe. Barclay Prime, the steakhouse in the Barclay Apartments, features a Gachot & Gachot rib-eye for two that may be the best steak I've eaten, but they're also doing butter-poached lobster (Bon Appétit magazine's "dish of the year"). As far as Continental Mid-town, well, you know how popular their bar and small plates are among the young and the restless.

Patrice Rames is pleasing that crowd at Patou, new to Old City, and Verge came along to take advantage of the banks of the Schuylkill with a broodingly modern, very hip dining room. And we've seen the Americanization of Georges Perrier, who changed the name of Le Mas Perrier to Georges', while simplifying and lowering the prices.

Some dishes I've enjoyed this year: roasted-corn soup with huitalacoche at El Vez, black cod with miso and foie gras crusted with gingersnap crumbs at Striped Bass, a divine wild pigeon at Le Bec-Fin, a simple salad of red and white beets and Black Mission figs that knocked me out at Fork, rabbit done three ways at Meritage, a cauliflower flan oozing a soft-boiled egg that brought tears to my eyes at Vetri, veal cheeks at Marigold Kitchen, and mostly every meal at Django and Alison. What I am really sick of: seared scallops, tuna tartar, spring mix, portobello mushrooms and even foie gras.

We saw, sadly, the closing of Salt, Tartine, Lauletta's, Spezia and The Inn Philadelphia. But where Opus 251 closed, Le Jardin opened; where Novelty was, there is now Farmacia; and where Toscana closed, Dominique Filoni opened delightful Bianca. These facts lead perfectly into the lines from Tom Stoppard, with which I close every year: "We shed as we pick up, like travelers who must carry everything in their arms, and what we let fall will be picked up by those behind." Peace and love in 2005.