Melograno: Pasta Heaven … Again
t says: Last week was a pretty tough week at work, so g and I were in dire need of some Thursday excitement just to make it through to Friday. It was a beautiful day, and, although it was a bit windy, we were determined to sit outside. g suggested Melograno. I was hesitant given the number of other restaurants that were on our hit list – but when you’re in the mood for pasta done right, then you go to Melograno. As a matter of fact, when g had some out-of-town friends from the Big Apple come and visit Philly, she took them to Melograno. They were quite impressed and still bring up the meal every now and then.
5/2010, Thursday 7:30pm, Party of 2. Melograno was super-busy! I squeezed through to the hostess and asked for seating for a party of 2. As she was about to tell me an approximate wait-time, I said, “and we’re willing to sit outside!”. Done deal. A table was just being cleared, and I guess the other diners feared the wind. We took our seats, uncorked a bottle of red from Va La, and off we went!
The “pear carpaccio” was still on the menu, so we gave it a whirl. k had this before, and it looked so good! It involves thin slices of pear with an aged balsamic, toasted pine nuts, parmigiana reggiano, and micro-greens. It was quite an effective combination and reminded me that I need to start adding pine nuts to my salads at home. It was very good, but I do recall scrutinizing a forkful and saying out loud, “you know … we can do this”.
g and I then went for two pasta dishes that were both phenomenal. g went for the wild boar bolognese which came with a rich red sauce with overtones of pig and rosemary. The rosemary totally surprised me, but I guess had I read the menu, I would have known that rosemary was in the dish. In any case, it is no wonder g gets it all the time – it was delicious. I went for their “other” red pasta, the one featuring pancetta in a spicy red sauce with macaroni that were kind of like really thick rigatoni. The salty pancetta bits were like nice little surprise fireworks, cutting through the smooth heat of the sauce. The sauce was also curiously “creamy”? No, it wasn’t white, but I think the Pecorino came through and tricked my tongue into thinking the sauce was smooth and velvety. Oh, and the pasta … perfectly cooked … again.
Drawbacks? Well, g was satiated perfectly by the quantity given – she sneezed a few times (i.e. the meal was “sneeze-worthy”). I was also happy with mine but would have gladly eaten about 15% more. Of course, this also meant that I had room to go to Capogiro and get some of their strawberry and avocado gelatos … so there was a silver lining to the cloud. Man … if Melograno was $3-4 less expensive, we’d have to move because I’d make us poor by going there every day …
SixPenn: Choco-taco on Steroids
t says: After watching Young Frankenstein in Pittsburgh, we stopped in at SixPenn for some snacks and drinks. We had some macaroni and cheese (that were “ok”) and some home-made pretzels (also “ok”). BUT … let me tell you about their dessert …
In honor of Cinco de Mayo (even though it was May 6th when we went), the chefs whipped up a “chocolate taco”. I figured “chocolate taco” – how could I go wrong? Actually, in my mind, the only question was “just how right could they go?”.
When it came to the table, it looked so cool that I broke my I-don’t-take-photos-in-restaurants rule.
If this taco could talk, it'd say "I bet you couldn't stop yourself from eating me even if you wanted to."
The shell was like a freshly made waffle cone coated in chocolate. The “inside” was super soft, super creamy ice cream with leaves of mind and finely diced strawberry (looks like tomato, right?). Sure, the presentation is gimicky as hell, but my mouth was so pleased that I didn’t care. I actually can’t recall what the dipping sauce was (I didn’t use it), and I think the ice cream might have had a little hint of orange flavor. I have to find a reason to visit again next Cinco de Mayo.
S & D Polish Deli: Real Polish Pierogi
t says: While we were in the strip district, we happened to walk into this Polish deli which had red and white flags everywhere, a couple of aisles of Polish ingredients (or, in some cases, just some garlic powder) and a deli. I knew I wasn’t leaving this place without putting something in my mouth. As I perused the deli’s offerings, I spotted that they also had pierogi made to order (apparently pierogi is the plural, and pierog is singular)!
I asked the guy for a single order or pierogi . He asked what kind? I didn’t know there were “kinds” … silly me. I asked for his suggestion and he recommend cheddar-and-potato, saying it was “classic”. I went for it.
Holy crap they were good. It was like gnocchi met ravioli met cheddar cheese. The sauteed onions in the sauce were so sweet. It was a perfectly simple dish – no super-complicated combination of flavors that evolved in your mouth – just plain ol’ goodness. You know – I really don’t have much to compare these to, as I’ve only had pierogi sold in a super-market in the frozen food section. Ok, so these are WAY better than those, but that’s not saying much.
Also, I can now inform g’s dad of the location of this pierogi treasure chest. He’s quite the fan. S & D better be ready, because the next time he visits Pittsburgh, he might show up with an empty cooler and ask them to fill ‘er up.
My Ngoc: Banh Mi Pittsburgh-style
t says: While we were in the ‘burgh, we had the opportunity to visit the strip district. They have some cool places on that strip – a variety of foods that were all very tantalizing. It was very convenient to have such a variety in one location. What to choose, what to choose … ? Well, given our obsession with the Vietnamese hoagie, the banh mi (we even did a Chifa and Sampan face-off), that was going to be one of the first things we tried. We spotted this restaurant named My Ngoc (at least, we think that’s what it was – we had to use google to “remember” it) which had a little outdoor setup with an old Asian man making hoagies on the sidewalk. And, because we were NOT in a restaurant, I didn’t feel bad whippin’ out the iPhone for a few shots.
This was posted on a nearby lamppost on the sidewalk.
Get ... in ... my ... belly!
5/2010, Noon, Party of 2 … on the sidewalk. We ordered the pork hoagie. We watched as the old man assembled the ingredients. First he hand-split the roll, put on three different sauces, then the meat, veggies, herbs, and then more sauce. It was almost a Subway-esque experience. However, unlike Subway [we hope], there was very little regard for … ?hygiene? ?cleanliness? ?sanitation? I don’t know the right word to use, but to sum it up, there was a period of at least 4 minutes that his keys (from his pocket) were ON the cutting board that the food was on – and at least 30 seconds when the roll that was being prepared was ON the keys. Naturally, g and I raised our eyebrows and looked at each other. Should we turn back? We could, but we were impatient and didn’t want to make him start again (and I wondered if he’d even understand what our problem with the sandwich was). So we chose two different paths. She chose to mentally monitor which part touched the keys. I chose to look the other way and forget which part touched the keys – or even that any part touched the keys. When we finally got our sandwich, she went first … cuz she knew which part would be clean … and kindly handed over the remainder. Whatever. I’m sure that worse things are done in the preparation of the meat and veggies and herbs well before we arrived on the scene. (And she did tell me that was what she was doing – she wasn’t trying to trick me or anything.)
Was it good? Yea. It was really good. It’s far more savory than Sampan’s, which had more acid and more sweet. The pork was just … porkier. The bread was softer (i.e. not as crusty) which is good and bad (I like crusty). The veggies and herbs reminded me of Chifa’s banh mi, as they weren’t really integrated with the meat, rather, distinct flavors on their own.
In conclusion … The sandwich is totally worth $5.50. Furthermore, as this was our first taste of “legitimate” banh mi (i.e. made by real Asian people at at real Vietnamese restaurant, not white people pretending to be Asian), I’m ready to take on some more “real” banh mi’s in Philly. Bring it.
Cochon: The Pizza that Ruined Pizza for g
t says: Ok, yes, we’ve already been to Cochon for brunch multiple times (1 and 2). You’re tired of reading about it. I’m tired of writing about it. But this time was different. Every time we go, we tend to eat breakfast-y things. This time we went for lunch. It was a miserable Sunday, looking like it was going to rain at any moment, and g and I forgot to go grocery shopping, so there was no food in the house. We needed some … comfort … we needed some … pig.
4/2010, Sunday 2:30pm, Party of 2. Once again – no line. We made the opentable reservation only for the dining points – but we didn’t need it. The hostess/waitress recognized us. Might we be almost-regulars? We sat down, ordered some tea, and pondered the menu. I actually originally wanted pancakes, but decided, for the good of the blog, to try something new one last time. g was also game for this idea. We decided to try one pizza and one sandwich. Pulled pork shoulder sandwich, of course – why try anything else? Plus, we’ve been dying to try Percy Street BBQ, so this would give me a measuring stick when we go. For the pizza, g suggested tomato pie, but I vetoed it … unless she let me order a side of bacon. We compromised and got the “Flammenkuche”, a pizza featuring gruyere, carmelized onions, bacon, creme fraiche, and some kind of orange (in color, not flavor) sauce. What does “flammenkuche” mean? That waitress didn’t know, but suspects that the chef may have made it up. While I’m not sure I believe her, as Bistrot La Minette recently offered a dish by the same name, I totally dig her honesty. You know – I really hoped that the chef did just make it up.
The pulled pork sandwich was accompanied by a fennel slaw, pickled tomato, and french fries (with a few splatterings of hot sauce). The large mound of pork was nestled between two slices of brioche. Aha! The brioche! The object of much criticism from our last visit! And now I’d get the chance to taste it! The meat was fantastic. It was tender and juicy and shredded perfectly (the pieces weren’t too tiny, but they weren’t too big, either). The brioche bread was … interesting. You know – I can see why some people might not like it. I didn’t love it, but I didn’t think it was bad – at least – not for this sandwich. The bread is kind of dry and crumbly. It does soak up the flavor (and grease) from the pork, which I like. And when I bit into it, the bread’s texture rapidly disintegrates into crumbs which mixes evenly with the pork. I thought it was a very unique sandwich experience. BUT, as the main bread for a dish like Eggs Cochon, I can see how this could be a turn-off. I suspect in the sandwich, the brioche wasn’t a horrible mis-step, but definitely could be improved upon. Fortunately, it took a back seat to the pork, so all was well. The fennel slaw and pickle brought a nice lightness (some acid and some anise-flavor) to cut through the heavier, greasier pork. And the french fries were wonderful. I would have liked a slightly crispier fry, but g said those were among her most favorite fries, ever. I think she was just full of superlatives today …
g says: Oh hush, you know they were delish! Just because I like my fries different than you like yours doesn’t mean anything. Although, I may just have better taste… (haha!)
Now … the pizza …
g says: It was the best pizza ever.
t says: So, why don’t you write about how good it was?
g says: I did. “It was the best pizza ever.”
t says: Ok, so maybe g just doesn’t have the words to describe the pizza, but the woman knows what she loves. I liked it as well, but I’m not sure it’s the best pizza ever; I feel like it falls into the same category as Pepe’s Pizza – it was a super-delicious pizza-like “thing”. The crust hit just the right thickness between too-thin and too-thick. It also wasn’t too floppy/rubbery, either. The onions were sweet, and the cheese and bacon played so nicely with one another. I’m not sure what that orange sauce had in it, but it brightened up the pizza, giving it just a dash of whimsy for what would otherwise be a very “heavy” dish. But ultimately, it does lack tomato sauce or tomatoes, so it’s disqualified from the “best pizza” competition on a technicality in my book (g’s book is written differently). Ultimately, it makes me really want to try more of their breakfast pizzas.
g says: It’s true – that particular dish was balanced so delicately with salty, sweet, and smoky flavors (or flavours, as t would say). For this reason, and because the culinary stars aligned at that exact moment to give me the best pizza tasting experience possible, I decided right at that table something very important: pizza would be ruined for me. I just can’t look at it the same anymore – pizza is so pedestrian, so just pizza, now that I have tasted the glory of the flammenkuche. I fear that whenever I have a pie now, I will only be thinking of what it could be if it were made at Cochon with their bacon. ::looks in the air dreamily:: Sigh. (dramatic enough for you? I hear some of our readers really like drama…)
t says: Once again, we paid as much (g: actually, less I think) as we would have for one person during restaurant week. We were full for 8 hours. We’ll go back again and again.
cm says: Flammenkuche is not just at cochon, it is an option we saw at dock street brewery (great pizza there, i would recommend trying it, even k liked it
and she is not a pizza fan).
Pittsburgh: We Came, We Saw, We Ate
t says: We visited one of g’s sisters in Pittsburgh for a few days. We sampled various cuisines at multiple price points – from fine dining to street carts. It was definitely a lot of fun, but will take a while to recall – especially because the make-up work for taking the vacation takes precedence over blogging. Check back for some details from our visit, later!
after dinner sneeze 