News
Plus: Omakase takeout, a new chocolate-centric venue, and Manong, the new steakhouse by Chance Anies, announces an opening date.
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Nicky’s and Ant’s mangia cheesesteak, with long hots originally featured in Maybe the Best Cheesesteaks Aren’t in Philly: The Wild Ride of Nicky’s and Ant’s / Photography by Gene Smirnov
Howdy, buckaroos! And welcome back to the weekly Foobooz food news round-up. Just a few quick things to get through this week, including (but not limited to) a takeout omakase from Uchi, news from PopUp Bagels, an opening date for Chance Anies’s Filipino Outback Steakhouse, and another big award for one of Philly’s favorite restaurants. So let’s get right into it, shall we? We’ll start things off this week with …
Will Travel for Cheesesteaks
I just learned about this this morning and I’m still kind of seething about it. According to the good folks at Food & Wine magazine, there’s a new research survey going around which says that “foodcations” — vacations centered around going somewhere to eat — are a serious thing now, with one in five Americans having “taken a trip solely for food.” And that’s cool. No problems there.
In this survey of 2,000 Americans, 21 percent said they’d traveled just to eat. That they’d spent, on average, $910 on their most recent foodcation, and would be willing to double that if it was for something special — like going to Tokyo just to eat sushi. And that’s fine, too.
But then, when asked what their dream destination would be — again, for a trip based exclusively around eating — the top pick, with 27 percent of respondents agreeing, was Philadelphia. For a cheesesteak.
Look, I love a good cheesesteak as much as anyone in this town. I’ve driven hundreds of miles in search of them, regularly stand up for the best in the game, and am still a little bit mystified by Michelin’s obsession with them. But can we all be a little bit honest here with each other?
The cheesesteak is a utility sandwich, at best.
It is the sandwich you get out of habit. It’s the sandwich you get when you can’t think of anything else to eat. It’s the grownup version of a PB&J. The cheesesteak is the Paul Giamatti of sandwiches — dependable, interesting, good in almost any situation, but rarely the leading man.
And yet, 27 percent of Americans with enough disposable income to travel solely to eat, want to come here just to eat one?
For years, decades even, Philadelphia has been trying to throw off this notion of being a culinary one-trick pony. A place that can slap some meat and cheese on a long roll and call it done. We have James Beard Awards. We have Michelin stars. We have some of the best, most exciting restaurants and chefs in the entire country, and yet this idea that a single sandwich defines us as a culinary destination still persists.
What about the roast pork? A meatball parm? Wouldn’t a thick Italian hoagie with shredded lettuce and dripping in sandwich oil be more appropriate as our signature sandwich? I can name a dozen great ones off the top of my head. Come here for banh mi, sure. For two of the simplest, best roast beef sandwiches anywhere (at Meetinghouse or Jerry’s Roastbeef at Booth’s Corner). Come for a thousand different things that aren’t even sandwiches at all, but for 27 percent of Americans to still want to come here just to stand in line at Pat’s or Geno’s or Wawa or wherever, just to say they’ve eaten a cheesesteak in the place where cheesesteaks were born means that there is still some essential disconnect in the American psyche that will not be solved by any amount of national recognition or visitor’s bureau bucks.
The entire survey (which you can see detailed here) was kind of flawed from the jump. New York was second on the list, with people naming New York-style pizza as what they wanted to eat. Third was Missouri and Kansas for BBQ, then Chicago for deep dish, Alaska for crab, Boston for lobster rolls, and California for “California-style pizza” (really?). So, in the end, this whole thing was just a way to name cities and the foods they’re most commonly associated with. But still, seeing Philly and cheesesteaks at the top of that list was a little bit infuriating to me because these are the kinds of things that only reinforce the idea that regions are static, unchanging, known forever for the one thing they do better than anyone else, but then for nothing else. And that’s not the Philly I know. It’s not the Philly where I eat.
Our cheesesteaks are awesome, yes. But we are so much more.
Okay. Moving on. What else is happening here this week?
It’s Like an Omakase Menu, But You Can Eat it on Your Couch
Uchi’s takeout omakase / Photograph courtesy of Uchi
Uchi, chef Tyson Cole’s Texas-based sushi empire, just opened its first Philly outpost on Sansom Street at the beginning of November, but the place is already making moves and leaning hard into new promos and limited-time menus to set it apart from the eleventy-billion other out-of-town Japanese concepts (and homegrown ones) that are fighting for your attention and dollars.
First, there’s the “Karaage + Caviar” promotion that started yesterday and runs for the next two weeks (until December 14th). It’s basically exactly what the name says: a dine-in-only deal that pairs the house karaage fried chicken with brown butter, maple, crème fraîche, and chives, then tops it all with a full ounce of paddlefish caviar for a little bit of that indulgent high/low friction. Like topping a Big Mac with fresh black truffles. Or dipping chicken fingers in gold.
You can also bump up the experience by adding a bottle of Laurent-Perrier “La Cuvée” Champagne for just $33 (which is like half the actual menu price). So if you’re into bubbly wine, this is a steal.
But the bigger deal is the recently announced “Omakase At Home” menu, which launched yesterday and is essentially a full Uchi omakase experience that you can take to-go. Or have delivered. So you can eat it on your couch while watching Christmas specials.
The full package will run you $120 and includes an Uchi sushi box with 12 pieces of dressed nigiri; two makimono and one of the kitchen’s signature hama chili dishes; an order of chicken karaage; brussels sprouts with fish caramel, lemon and chili; and a pint of Uchi’s Fried Milk ice cream mixed with salted fudge, dulce chocolate-covered cornflakes, and blondie pieces.
So yes, on the one hand, it’s basically just takeout sushi. But on the other hand, it’s a full omakase dinner, plus dessert, delivered right to your door, and you don’t have to even put pants on. Which, I gotta tell ya, sounds pretty awesome right about now.
The “Omakase At Home” deal runs from now until December 30th.
Hot Cocoa Parties at the Cacao Pod
Inside the Cacao Pod / Photograph by Neal Santos
Speaking of things hitting the scene just in time for the holidays, how ’bout this? The crazy cats from Shane Confectionery have just announced the opening of their brand-new (and extraordinarily old) event space, the Cacao Pod.
It’s located at 104 Market Street, on the same block as the Shane flagship shop, and (according to them) it’s possibly the oldest building still standing on Market. They call it, “a timeworn world where the scent of roasting cacao still lingers in the air.” I call it a 24-seat private event space, decked out in enough historic 19th century paneling, trim, repurposed lighting and period fittings to make a dozen antiquarians faint dead away.
As with all things Shane, there’s an air of the twee to this whole thing. But they’re also putting the space to good use, offering the former cacao roasting room up for small parties, and are able to kit it out for ice cream sundae parties, as a hot chocolate bar, or with a full-on soda fountain for floats and ice cream sodas. And while today’s weather might not exactly be conducive to hanging out and eating ice cream sundaes, how nice does it sound to tuck yourself and a couple dozen friends away in a space like this and spend a couple hours drinking hot chocolate on a cold, icy afternoon in Old City?
The Cacao Pod is booking events right now. You can check ’em out right here if you’re interested.
Emmett Named One of the Best New Restaurants in America
Inside Emmett’s dining room / Photograph by Mike Prince
Yesterday, Esquire magazine announced its list of the Best New Restaurants in America and guess who got a slot?
Yup. Emmett did. Chef Evan Snyder’s spot in Kensington got tagged and stands as the only Philly representative on a really strong list covering more than a dozen states and cities.
To me, Emmett was a surprising pick. Not because it wasn’t deserved (it absolutely was), but just because it’s not the kind of restaurant that usually makes these lists, and certainly not when it’s being singled out as the city’s only spot.
But it’s enough to say that this is yet another mention that Philly has notched on a Big Important List from a Big Important National Magazine, and nowhere in there is there any mention of cheesesteaks.
Now who has room for some leftovers?
The Leftovers
PopUp Bagels / Photograph by Alexander Stein
Back in June of this year, I told y’all that Chance Anies of Tabachoy was looking at expanding to a second (larger) location in Kensington. For a long time, there were really no updates (beyond a pop-up dinner or two), but now I can tell you that Manong (which means “big brother” in Ilocano) is set to open in the former Tela’s space at 1833 Fairmount Avenue on December 5th.
Manong is about three times the size of Tabachoy (hence the name), and the inspiration for it is…unusual. Chance is reaching back to his ’90s childhood for this one, making his own version of an Outback Steakhouse Bloomin’ Onion (a mushroom, in this case — fried enoki with a mayo and banana ketchup sauce for dipping), thick burgers mounted on Filipino pandesal buns, barbecued chicken skewers, and house-made ube ice cream and calamansi water ice for dessert.
The new spot seats about 90, and opens this Friday.
Meanwhile, another spot we’ve talked about before, PopUp Bagels, is getting ready for its regional debut with an actual pop-up.
The Connecticut-based viral/famous bagel operation is opening its first Philly area store in Ardmore’s Suburban Square soon (likely very early in the new year). But they’re building buzz for their arrival with a pop-up sale at the DiBruno location in Rittenhouse this Sunday. You can check out the details here. Rumor is, they’ve got three more local stores planned for Philly in the coming months, so I’ll be keeping an eye on them.
Finally this week, want to go drink some beer in your PJs? Because if you do, the team at Yards has the perfect event for you. They’re doing a Pajama Party with Santa on Saturday, December 13th, from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. Families can bring the kids to meet Santa from 2 to 4 p.m., everyone under 10 gets a present, and anyone who shows up in their pajamas gets $1 off pints of the seasonal Yards brew Long Jawns.
Meanwhile, Yards is really leaning into the whole holiday season with cocktail specials, Gobbler croquettes on the bar menu, matzoh ball soup, and “Luxe Latkes” throughout December, and seared duck breast with a Chambord sauce over mashed potatoes. You can check out the full event list (and the seasonal menus) right here.
Dining and Cooking