Posts Tagged ‘Carman’s Country Kitchen’
Lightning Round 2! (+Bonus Pic!)
t says: We had a long time friend (drb) and his awesome girlfriend stop by in Philly a couple times during their recent visit to the area. We used this as an opportunity/excuse to show off some Philly cuisine, taking them to places that we thought were surefire bets for impressive food. Because we’ve been to all of these places before, there’s no real point to individual reviews, so here’s the quick and dirty …
drb keeps his own wordpress blog, so if you desire a non-g/t review of some of these places, check it out here. And no, you’re not allowed to think he’s funnier than we are …
Village Whiskey:
Props: BBQ pork sandwich. Yea – it’s still ridiculously good (but I recognize that bbq is a very personal thing, so maybe some might disagree). My friends enjoyed the fries and veggie burger, but did note that perhaps this place was a bit overpriced (e.g. $8 for a glass of whiskey that could be purchased by the bottle for ~$25). My response: “welcome to Philadelphia”. While his girlfriend admitted to liking the veggie burger a lot, drb noted that it contained a lot of intact beans – he prefers a more homogeneous patty. To each their own. Slops: What is wrong with the service here? They just can’t seem to get it together! This was our second time in a row with crappy service. Although we didn’t get the juvenile attitude that our last server had, it took 40 minutes for two sandwiches to arrive despite the place being only half-occupied. And then they forgot to add the onions I had ordered on my sandwich. Very weird. VW has to have the most inconsistent service of all the Garces joints. drb noted that it seemed to him like it was staffed with a bunch of hipsters … and he hates hipsters (n.b. just to clarify, he is not one of those people who assumes that anyone with a tattoo is a hipster; he has absolutely nothing against people with tattoos … just hipsters).
Capo Giro:
Props: Dark chocolate and candied cherry gelato. Need I say more? Well I’m going to, anyways. drb’s girlfriend, who insisted that she had very high gelato standards (having spent time in Europe) and even admitted that she was quite cautious/hesitant/doubtful before tasting Capo Giro, proclaimed it to be the best gelato she has ever had. Bam! It was so good, we went there a second time with drb and his mom a week later. Slops: If it was just a dollar cheaper, that’d be awesome. However, I’d also be 87 lbs heavier, so maybe not …
Carman’s Country Kitchen:
Props: This place’s food was still off-the-hook. We knew that drb and his girlfriend would enjoy the “atmosphere”. We love how we can call up Carman and claim our table early. Slops: Totally forgot that if you have dietary restrictions or particular tastes (e.g. anti-fruit), this is not the easiest place to find something to eat (it’s summer – fruit’s in everything). If the chairs were just a little smaller, we might be able to smoosh in a little closer when sitting at the tables.
Morimoto:
Props: Best pork belly I’ve ever had (it was that 10-hour pork belly appetizer). Holy crap. Also – they had a “special” Japanese eel nigiri. Best eel I’ve ever had. It was the flavor of eel but the texture of pork belly and a crisp skin. Holy crap. It might have been the best piece of sushi I’ve ever had. Even drb also had a “best ever” moment with his sushi. g enjoyed her red snapper special; it was superior to my main dish in both texture and taste (see Slops). We also had some “burnt honey ice cream” for dessert (it was featured as a component in another dessert item, but we asked for it straight up). The pieces of burnt honey (maybe they took a torch to it and then shoved it in the ice cream maker?) were surprisingly delicious as you encountered each little crunch – we’ve got to try this with j and k’s ice cream maker. Also, our server was super-nice – VW should kidnap this guy and clone him. Slops: Alaskan halibut with black bean sauce was … mediocre good. Had it been $21, then giddyup. But for near $30, definitely not. It made me wish they had the Chilean sea bass with black bean sauce on their menu, as I had heard so many good things about it from w; what a difference the swap in fish made (it was cooked fine, but kind of bland).
Kanella:
Props: Reservations on Saturday mornings is awesome – I’m over waiting in lines (although it was kind of empty in there). Cyprus breakfast was tasty – a savory breakfast for sure with egg, ham, bread, fried cheese, and some sort of vegetable. Overall, we enjoyed how the food was not only “simple”, “rustic”, and “delicious”, but well-executed (drb claimed his eggs were perfect). Additionally, it wasn’t food-coma-inducing, which drb and g appreciated (I don’t mind a good coma every now and then). The baklava was pretty tasty – not as good as Zahav’s, but, then again, it’s like half the price. Slops: A little more bread in the Cyprus breakfast would have been great (I’m a starch man). I agree with the waiter from before – the Cyprus breakfast isn’t to-die-for – as there are probably tons of other things on the menu that are awesomer (we just don’t know which ones to choose because it’s not like we recognize any of the items on the menu).
Cochon:
Props: What do you get when you take French toast and top it with one scoop each of peanut butter, banana, and vanilla-bacon ice creams, banana-caramel sauce, and bacon? Allow me to illustrate:
The best French toast ever!!
Yea … it … was … awesome. I ate it all (minus the two bites g snuck in when I was fiddling with the iPhone camera (that’s her hand ready to pounce in the picture). Once again – I normally hate taking pictures in restaurants as it’s super-tacky, but this was one of those things where I knew that you’d need proof of its existence (plus I had to tease sr for having to bail on us for brunch at the last minute). g had the fried oyster sandwich (you see it in the background), which was good as well – but come on – what’s going to compete with the “Elvis French Toast”? Also, we saw the chef/owners of Bibou (the Calmels) enjoying brunch here, too (g has a super-power that allows her to recognize/recall important people in the Philly restaurant scene – I would have preferred a more useful super-power, personally). If they eat here, then you can rest assured that my constant praises of this place’s brunch are legit, and not just the ravings of a lunatic. Interestingly, Bibou’s website claims that they are on vacation … Slops: We can’t go anywhere else for Sunday brunch. Ever. They also peach-cobbler-ified their pancakes, so I have to go back for that, too. Maybe this time, sr and ha will come. I’d invite j, but she’s back to school; it’s ok, she wouldn’t regret missing a dish like this, right?
EDIT: We’ve come back and I’ve experimented with putting these toppings on top of their super-awesome pancakes. Surprisingly it was not as good as the French toast. There’s something about the ice cream on top of their French toast that is awesome. It’s almost like the French toast is the “savory” in this dish, whereas their pancakes are like another sweet.
Carman’s Country Kitchen: Tied for First …
t says: We realized that we never wrote about Carman’s! My memory has faded, so this is less a “review”, and more of a summary.
About Carman’s … It’s this awesome brunch/breakfast spot that’s well south of South. Let me set the scene for you. The place is TINY. It seats about 12 people total. The place is NOT fancy. You drink out of mason jars, and there’s definitely some patio furniture in there. Some people might look around and question the cleanliness because everything looks old – not “vintage” – actual “old”. Then when you do get in there, there’s only four items on the “menu”, i.e. a chalkboard behind the counter …
Yet, people line up out the door on weekends.
Why? Two reasons. The first stems from the service – it’s very personable. Not fake-super-over-enthusiastic, but it feels real – like if your mom and dad opened up a tiny restaurant that they were trying to run, themselves. Servers will not only take your order, but ask your name as well. It’s not unusual for Carman, herself, to come out and chat with guests – she even took our order, once! (She was also doing something on an iPad beforehand – that was definitely weird to see such a modern piece of equipment in such an “old” place.) Also, I’ve heard, even though I’ve never experienced the wait, that they will serve you coffee outside as you wait for your table, looking longingly into the windows at the food.
Number two: It’s that delicious. We’ve only been there twice, but both times everything we ate was wonderful. The pancakes, no matter what Carman’s sprucing them up with (e.g. a fall-themed squash and cinnamon one, a summer-themed peach one) are fluffy and plentiful. No, they aren’t as thick or fluffy as Cochon‘s, but it’s almost made up for by the other things she adds in. g has had an egg dish once and a shrimp-and-grits dish once. The egg dish was fantastic, but I think the shrimp-and-grits changed her life; they were tied with the best grits she had ever had (those made by kp) – so that’s gotta say something. j even joined us once for some sort of weird hot-dog based dish with sauerkraut or something – I don’t know – I didn’t get a chance to investigate, because it was gone in like 90 seconds (maybe one day she’ll fill us in on what she ate) …
What kind of person would go to and enjoy Carman’s?
1) Someone who is totally ok with not knowing what’s on the menu until you show up, and ok with the fact that nothing’s going to be “plain” (e.g. there’s no plain short stack of hotcakes here – it’s going to have a lot of different stuff on top of it or in it).
2) Someone who doesn’t require fancy decor … or sturdy tables/chairs …
3) Someone looking for a plentiful and awesome brunch, even if it does require a trek and quite possibly a wait.
My advice … call ahead. If you call and they say it’s busy, there’s no point in going. BUT – if you call during a weekday, when they are undoubtedly not busy, you can make a pseudo-reservation by telling them your name and number of people and Carman might be able to hold a table for you. But if you do this – don’t be late. That’s just rude. And it’d be extremely awkward sitting in such a tiny place when the owner is right there and thinks you’re rude.
Finally … what would make Carman’s supplant Cochon for our #1 spot for breakfast? That’s tough. Opentable reservations? Closer proximity? Slightly more space so I can take more than 3 people with me? And I know there’s no way my mom would ever like it in there (she likes super clean places). Oh well – I can at least say that Carman’s is my favorite place for weekday breakfast (Cochon’s only open on Sunday)!
Cochon: Philly’s Best Pancake?
t says: Ok, those are some big words in the title, but we have reason to believe that Cochon might serve the best brunch in the city. Now, we’ve never been to “fancy” brunch eateries, like LaCroix or Fountain Restaurant, but we have been to some pretty good small[er] places that put some nice twists on brunch, like Sabrina’s, Carman’s, Slate, Tinto, Farmicia, Mixto, and Day by Day. Palumbo’s Grill (may it rest in peace) did an awesome brunch – it was cheap and tasty. Carman’s is similarly priced and delicious, with a little more innovation, but good luck getting a seat (and I sometimes wonder about that kitchen’s cleanliness)! Sabrina’s also does a good job, especially the Art Museum location that is far easier to get into – but I haven’t been blown away every time. As you can see, I’m very picky about what I want in a brunchery. I want reservations, friendly service, delicious food, ample servings, and a reasonable price. It seems that as food quality and quantity goes up, it’s harder to find it cheap (e.g. Tinto) or not packed (e.g. Carman’s, Sabrina’s). And, while I don’t think I’ve ever had a bad brunch in Philly, there just hasn’t been a place that did everything right. Palumbo’s was the closest. Cochon is my new frontrunner.
The first best part about Cochon’s brunch is that it is unknown – or at least, that’s what it seems (they’re well-known for dinner – we still have not had a pork dish to rival that pork shoulder special they had when we went – it was insane). Their brunch starts at 11 (and that’s when our reservation was for). We arrived at 10:50. There was no crowd. There was no line. Only one two-seater table had patrons in it (I guess the hostess didn’t have a problem with letting a couple people in early). This alone was a breath of fresh air. We took a walk around the neighborhood to kill some time – it was a beautiful day! They seated us the moment we walked in, and we ordered some tea. The selection wasn’t huge or exotic – there was no “French Breakfast Tea” like at Parc, but for me, any black tea (which I purposely over-steep) is fine for a nice “rustic” breakfast. Maybe other foodies will want more of a selection. As far as a “crowd” – we never really saw one! Even by the time we left, there were still open tables! How weird!
As the menu stared back at me, I was faced with a major conundrum: there was no way that I could taste everything I wanted at this one meal. The egg dishes all sounded fantastic. They had French toast and pancakes (the age-old battle of the breakfast breads). Then they had pizzas (?is it a French pizza? a traditional pizza? no idea!) including one that had brie cheese, caramelized onion, and pear. Then they had what I could only imagine were sandwiches of smoked meats, including ribs, short ribs, etc. It was not fair.
I ended up going for the pancakes – I needed to test their version of a classic (I’m the bad cop, remember?). They came to the table in this round glazed earthenware dish that fit the pancakes just perfectly and were topped with caramelized bananas and walnuts in some sort of syrup. And there was a healthy dollop of cream. They were large and looked fantastic – but nothing looked obviously different than something you might find elsewhere. Then I ate my first bite. Holy … Crap … !! The banana was soft-but-not-mushy and played beautifully with the walnuts. But the heroes of the dish were the pancakes. They had a deep dark color – it was almost like they looked over-cooked, but trust me, they weren’t. They had a nice “crisp-ness” to the outside, followed by the softest, fluffiest interior I have ever seen. And they were super-thick! It was luscious like cake, but floppy like a pancake. Now, I hate the idea of whipping out cameras at restaurants to take pictures of food for the sake of showing everyone else what it looks like – it just feels tacky. It’s clear that I don’t have a problem photographing my own stuff in my own house. But, to be honest, I’d hate it if someone showed up at my workplace and started photographing what I was doing without my expressed permission (wow – they’d be bored out of their mind if they did). Furthermore, I’d be super-weirded out if someone I invited to my dinner party starting photographing my food without asking. But I guess some might feel entitled to do so because the food becomes theirs, as they are paying for it? I don’t know – right or wrong, it just makes me feel awkward. BUT … this one time … I did the unthinkable and asked g for her iPhone. I had to take a picture of the pancakes because no one would believe just how fluffy they are without evidence …
That fork is a normal size fork!
I realize that these pancakes were technically simple – a lot of places can put together banana, walnut, and pancakes. I’m not even a huge fan of banana-walnut things (e.g. I’ll pick blueberry muffins over banana-walnut every time). But these were the best pancakes I’ve ever had. It definitely had less to do with their choice of ingredients and more to do with cookery. If I knew how to make pancakes like that, I’d never eat out for breakfast again … (I’d also open up a pancake shop).
What’d g order? Here she goes …
g says: Apologies that there are no pretty photos of the Eggs Cochon that I ordered… I dug into my plate so quickly, the dish looked a mess and I was halfway through by the time t decided to shoot our meal. Maybe next time I’ll wait for the photo op, but don’t count on it! My dish was an interesting take on eggs benedict – there were 2 poached eggs over a slice of toasted brioche, chunks of roasted suckling pig, and a drizzling of hollandaise sauce, alongside perfectly-spiced home fries. It was incredible, and if there weren’t so many other tempting items on the menu that I am dying to try, I would absolutely order it on every visit! Thank you, Cochon, for another lovely time — our brunch was the perfect start to a lovely Sunday!
t says: The final best part – the entire breakfast, for two people, was under $31. So, for less than the price of one restaurant week meal, both of us ate until completely stuffed. As a matter of fact, I couldn’t finish my entire plate, as much as I wanted to – and I was still a little uncomfortable trying to walk home. Even g had a little leftover (but not enough to bring home).
Conclusion: The lack of a crowd makes me suspicious – was our meal a fluke? This, combined with how many things we still want to try on their menu means only one thing: we will be going back. Forget just “going back” – g and I started staking out rental properties nearby to see if we could live within walking distance (seriously)! The food was ample, the price was right (maybe $2-3 more expensive than Sabrina’s – but they don’t have the “normal” stuff that Sabrina’s has, like “2 eggs any style” … well, they do, but not without including house-made sausage and bacon), and the seating is not super-cramped; I might even consider bringing my parents there! The way we figure it, we have 9 months or so until Philly magazine tells everyone else how great brunch is here (or maybe they already have and no one read it – but remember – you read it here first), and then it’ll be so booked you can’t get in. Although I warn you – g and I have booked a table for every Sunday possible for a ridiculous amount of time into the future … Let us know if you want in.
LATER …
t says: We went back to Cochon today, and I ordered the pancakes. Yep – absolutely as delicious as I remember – and still super-thick! Actually – it was so much that I couldn’t finish it. So I brought some home … and measured it … right before I ate it.
The ruler and pancake are the same exact distance from the camera lens ...
That’s right – it is a bit over an inch tall! And that’s for ONE pancake! They serve you two!
after dinner sneeze 