Ben K.'s Profile

The sudden explosion of froyo places in Philly is embarrassing to say the least. I mean, the food scene here is explosive, boasting a plethora of incredible restaurants and eateries, but the recent soft serve craze is a few years too late.

That said, Tutti Frutti is exactly what you're expecting. Several flavors of yogurt; the original is extra dart and delicious, and the birthday cake mind blowing. In fact, the yogurt itself trumps the topping selection by far. I did enjoy the wall mounted candy dispensers because it reminded me of a better time, when I was a sugar-crazed child romping through Sweet Factory at the local mall. I'm always happy when mochi is present, and the cut up Rice Krispies treats were a nice touch.

A tasty yogurt experience, made better by lounging like a kid in the knockoff Eames rocking chairs that line the front of the store.

The only reason I'm not giving Zavino five stars, is because they need to move into a bigger space! The design of the place is incredible, love the paints, woods, and the meat and cheese slicing station situated up front. But it seems it's almost always impossible to walk up and grab a table unless you come at an obscure time.

That said, I finally did obtain a table at Zavino for a light early dinner date. To start we went with the Baby Jesus, a moist, chewy, peppery, I believe French salami, Bleu d'Basque and Ewe's Dream - all exceptional.

When trying a pizza for the first time, I'm always interested in tasting the tomato sauce, as well as how proteins are used, so we went with the Polpettini. The crust of the pie was perfect, charred leoparding through out, a tangy, slightly sweet tomato sauce topped with veal meatballs, provolone and fresh basil leaves. I was skeptical of the provolone, but it worked really well here.

Zavino gets an A in my book, and although I haven't been to Stella in a few months, I'd say this place far and away boasts tastier pies. I will most definitely return with more people so we can sample all the other pies on the menu. Plus that Root liquor with house made cream soda cocktail sounds amazing.

By now you probably know enough about the Strip House that I don't need to go too far into a detailed description of the place. It's dark, it's sexy, it's red. Took a seat at the bar while we waited for our third and ordered an Old Fashioned. Was extremely unimpressed with the drink overall, and the bartender's seemingly little knowledge of the bottles that line the wall behind him. The almost candy-like generic maraschino cherries and dry, flavorless orange peel seemed bad enough, that is until he opened a tupperware container of sugar and carelessly dumped it on top of the already poured drink. That my good sir, is not how you mix an Old Fashioned. The pistachios were tasty though.

The three of us were surprised to be seated at such a perfect table in the back of the house, close to the kitchen, a red leather, brass studded curved couch. We have arrived. No complaints about the service, our waiter was nice enough, and quick on his toes if not a little uninformed about the food he was actually serving. I found it surprising that he insisted I order the special of the night, a filet Oscar over the NY strip, isn't that their namesake cut? I obliged anyway.

The shrimp cocktail were bigger than my fist, the Caesar salad really nothing to write home about. I love when they make your salad table side, they should do that here. Our steaks came perfectly cooked, two of the filet Oscar, one rib-eye. The meat was well seasoned, extremely flavorful but lacking in juice, dare I say a bit too lean. The jumbo lump crab that studded my meat and Bernaise were both stellar.

For sides we went with those we've heard raved about time and time again. Black truffle creamed spinach was fantastic, and served in a tiny copper All-Clad pot, a nice touch. The special side of the night, a truffled mac and cheese was ooey-gooey and creamy with a flaky browned crust on top. The goose-fat potatoes were not at all what I was expecting, instead of your typical steakhouse hash, this thing literally came out looking like a giant, deep fried goose egg. Crunchy, flaky, not too greasy on the outside with a mashed potato filled center.

Finished off the meal with an Oban oh wait they were all out, then a Lagavulin, wait out of that too, sorry a Laphroaig neat and asked for some room temperature water on the side. The waiter seemed perplexed by this, "Is your table water too cold?" he asked. "This is good for drinking, but I'd like some room temperature water to add to my scotch." He nodded his head awkwardly and soon returned with a metal carafe of boiling hot water. I was confused to say the least.

I never, ever order dessert for dinner and while Strip House is known for their twenty million layer chocolate cake, my compatriots insisted on ice cream. We went with the profiterole, a towering monstrosity that is made even more absurd when it's placed on the double then doused in hot fudge poured from a foot above the table. The chocolate and hazelnut ice cream inside were absurdly delicious, but the cream puff itself was a bit too hard to my liking.

Delicious meal all in all, only regret was that we didn't order the $96 tiered seafood appetizer.

Up a dirty stairwell off 32nd Street lies Baden Baden, a wood paneled second floor joint that feels more Irish pub than Korean restaurant. We were seated promptly and immediately placed an order for chicken - the reason we were here.

In the past few years Korean fried chicken has possibly usurped the banh mi as the latest Asian-American fad. Before that it was froyo; although the explosion of the soft serve treat is credited to Pinkberry, the store was actually a fashioned replica of Red Mango, a chain that originated in South Korea.

After checking out the rest of the menu we also placed an order for seafood ramen, which came out in minutes, piping hot and stinking like a fish market. The dried seaweed used in the soup was overwhelming and lacked flavor, it's crunchiness jarring and in grave opposition to the noodles and seafood that lie below. The thin angel hair noodles and tiny shrimp did not save the fishy broth, overall this soup was an utter fail.

The large plate of chicken arrived soon after we finished the soup, with a heaping side of onion rings - how authentic! Baden Baden calls this "rotisserie fried chicken" and while it did have a crunchy exterior and succulent inside, it was completely flavorless. For less than half the price I could have roasted a whole bird at home and seasoned it to my preference. The tiny drumsticks and wings that accompanied the butterflied chicken breast had little to no meat, and the skin was so crunchy to the bite, I nearly broke a tooth. The hot sauce set on the table tasted like watered down Frank's Red Hot.

My recommendation: Stay away from Baden Baden if you're looking for tasty, flavorful and well seasoned chicken. This place really has no saving merits, and I have no reason to ever step foot in there again.

Our little group of four was pretty impressed that we walked right in a snagged a table around 8:30. Shortly after a small line formed outside the door, but by then we were already tucking deep into the menu and sipping Keo's, a Cypriot beer, the typical lager you find brewed in most of the world.

The pikilia was just a bit too small for four, but the dolmades, taramosalata, melitzanosolata and tzatziki were all very authentic and delicious. Ask for a second order of pita the moment they put the dish down, you'll need it.

Three of us ordered the oven roasted leg of lamb, which is currently served with a side of "cretan bread salad" served warm with spinach, cherry tomatoes and peppers. The lamb was cooked perfectly, extremely tender and surprisingly not too over seasoned which is sometimes expected in Greek fair. The accompanying salad was something I've never experienced before, extremely flavorful and who doesn't love a roasted tomato that just melts away in your mouth? Our fourth ordered the cod cakes which I didn't have the chance to taste because she had devoured them faster than I've seen her eat many dishes, they must have been good. She also ordered the shrimp santorini and commented that the shrimp were perfectly cooked. I tasted the huge chunks of feta in what they tout as an ouzo infused tomato sauce and really dug it.

The sides -- Cypriot roasted potatoes and skordalia mashed potatoes (with a big lemon kick) were tasty, but nothing to write home about.

Overall we were "pleasantly surprised" (to echo Aly G. who recommended the restaurant) by the meal and if in the area, would indeed return to try more of the seafood dishes.

Diamond in the rough. Seriously, maybe one of the ugliest blocks in the area, but the restaurant is nice and clean inside. My #2 delivery spot if you live in the 'hood, right after Grand Sichuan on 9th Avenue.

Dragon and Phoenix is a great dish, as well as the Honey Walnut Chicken, and Spicy Mango Chicken. Was pleased with the roast pork, it was a little tough but that's because there was no fat in sight. Hot and sour soup is excellent as well.

If you're tired of the mostly disgusting Chinese delivery in the area, Home on 8th is your spot.

I've been told to steer clear of this place because they've been shut down for health code violations multiple times. My coworker on the other hand, was not aware of this and was going pretty regularly to indulge in egg salad on a bagel which she deemed "pretty good."

Unfortunately, last week when the employee reached for a bagel to smear on the egg salad, a giant cockroach moseyed on out from within. Needless to say, she left in a hurry.

Just. Stay. Away.

I made the mistake of walking into TACocina Express before the restaurant, which is not the cleanest nor most appealing looking place ever. The restaurant on the other hand is much better, but I still couldn't get that image out of my head during the entire meal.

The margarita was very tasty, as well as the complimentary chips and salsa. Otherwise, the rest of our meal was unbelievably mediocre, and overpriced for the portions we were served. The pork tacos lacked flavor, and the meat was served lukewarm (no doubt was sitting in a steaming tray) while the steak enchilada was small, and the carne asada within, incredibly overcooked and inedible.

This is a decent spot for enjoying a margarita and maybe some chips and guacamole, but if you're looking to satisfy your urge for tasty, giant portions of Mexican food, I'd stay away.

They get points for delivering to us in lower midtown, but the food overall was very mediocre. The vermicelli bun dishes weren't bad, although the dark meat grilled chicken was dry and not the best quality. The spring rolls were also very soggy and chewy. My coworker mentioned the summer rolls were great and the chicken satay dish looked fine.

For an impromptu delivery Vietnamese place, it's not too bad, but really don't see myself going back.

My first visit to Rattle N Hum was delightful, an after work drink with some friends I haven't seen in awhile. We devoured some apps, the heart-attack inducing, almost donut-like onion rings, calamari, and sliders. Several tasty beers later, with Phish's "Rift" blasting overhead, I left happy.

The second visit last week, did not go so well. There might be a good number of beers on draft at Rattle, but the selection is nothing to write home about. The bottle list is much more diverse, but slightly overpriced. The lack of a good selection of Belgian brews is disconcerting.

Service is always a bit annoying, as you are not designated one waitress, and because of this, orders are often forgotten and beers take awhile to arrive. We ordered the nachos as an appetizer, two sandwiches and a burger. Biggest pet peeve ever: the appetizer was served with our main courses. The burger just does not warrant the $15 price tag, drop a few more dollars and you could be going to town on the Spotted Pig's behemoth. Overall though, the food was prepared well and indeed was somewhat tasty, just overpriced.

Here's where things got a little weird, and for most of you this won't matter, but it left a sour taste in my mouth. After commenting on the weird use of rolled pieces of printer paper around the candles, which seemed like a safety hazard, my friend lifted it up. This is when we noticed that the bar was using Yahrzeit candles on all of the tables. For the majority of you, who don't know, in Judaism, Yahrzeit candles are lit in memory of the dead, on the anniversary of a death every year. My first thought was that the bar has a Jewish owner who was commemorating the death of a friend or loved one, but no, the labels on all of the candles were blacked out with a Sharpie. These candles are often given out for free from synagogues, and I'm really curious why the bar is using them. I'm not a religious person, but I found this to be disrespectful and tasteless on so many levels. A manager wasn't available at the time, but I'm going to give the bar a call during the day to find out what the deal is. Hopefully, it's all a misunderstanding, but it seems unlikely, after they knowingly spent the time to cover up all of the labels.

I left Rattle N Hum disappointed and annoyed, vowing to never return. But really, because there isn't another bar with a decent beer selection in the neighborhood, and if they can clear up the Yahrzeit situation, I'll probably go back for drinks, and just avoid the food.