So as I had stated prior to the trip I wanted to find a few great local spots as well as a great Cheesesteak and at least one fine dining restaurant! And wouldn't ya know it? Amongst all the celebrating that was indeed the reason for the trip (Congratulations again ,O!) I actually got it all done!! I found a great at a hip breakfast spot, had a fairly good Cheesesteak experience, found a gem of neighborhood Vietnamese eatery and managed a great dinner with friends at a Trendy hot spot! Not bad for a weekend filled with so much debauchery in between it all! So that being said I guess there is no better place to start than the beginning so here goes!
Saturday Brunch- Honey's SIT N EAT
After the fabulous 'Slam Bam' deliciousness that Steve-O greeted me with Friday night, I was even more eager to get started on my journey into Philly Fare the next morning. So, when I heard my girlfriend D suggest a place called Honey's for brunch, I thought ...let's do it!! From the moment we approached the open-doored, thru-windowed, patio-seating , vintage-decored eatery I thought , 'Could this get any better?' Oh, yeah.. did I mention it was BYOB (bring your own booze)!!!! It was awesome! From decor and ambiance, to service and food everything about Honey's was SWEET!!!
It's decor reminded me of a small town diner/soda shop, with a rustic/hippy flare. It boasted an old school Milkshake machine with probably the original 'Milkshakes 25c' sign sitting neatly atop it! They had an old fashioned orange juice press which they still used as a part of their daily service. There was a 'lunch counter' where it appeared one could sit and eat but it looked a little more for effect than any actual functionality, still cool. On this counter WERE however freshly baked pies and jars of their homemade Blueberry preserves which they served with their gi-normous fresh homemade biscuits-Delicious!
The service at Honey's was just as charming! As soon as we entered we were seated with a smile. Each server had some unique edgy quality to them that directly contrasted their up beat and ready to serve personalities! For example our server was a quaint hip Asian chick, with an array of tattoos. The most memorable of which was a tattoo of a cassette on her wrist -yeah a cassette! She looked like the girl that if you asked her for the time standing on a corner she'd look at you, throw on her headphones and pop her gum at you like you were speaking a foreign language, but in here she was Miss 'Is Everything OK'! I love unexpected surprises and Honey's was full of them!
Enough about the decor however let's get to the good stuff... the food! The menu offered an array of Brunch goodies. From the classic breakfast platters i.e. French Toast,Pancakes, Omelets to the slightly more decadent platters i.e Eggs Benedict, Chicken Fried Steak, and Huevos Rancheros this place had something for everyone!!! Everything that came out of the kitchen made you wonder if you really ordered the right thing, or should you perhaps order something to go for lunch! And considering the portions, the prices were insane! They also offered an array of hot and cold sandwiches and wraps as well as some great looking salads! Another great thing about their breakfast menu were the side options. They had grits, home fries, potato latkes, hash browns, corn bread-- and I already mentioned the mouth watering Biscuits! It's rare that I find a place that offers true down home grits, let alone cheese grits, but this was just one more piece of evidence that Honey's was clearly not your average eatery! 
It was a gorgeous Philly day and as the cool breeze blew in through the large open windows, I found myself overwhelmed with an almost cliche sense of comfort and ease. We didn't take advantage of the BYOB policy (this time) as we weren't really sure until we got there, however, the Motley Crew of probable artists at the table across from us were thoroughly enjoying fresh squeezed Mimosas, while the college guys sitting next to the large thru window, brought a mini cooler of beers to wash back their afternoon feast. Whatever your pleasure the atmosphere lends itself nicely to your every desire!
So next time you're in Philadelphia and looking for a great meal, with an awesome staff and a comfortable and cool atmosphere, swing into Northern Liberties and stop by Honey's Sit N Eat and have yourself one SWEET experience! Oh and don't forget to BYOB!
The side thru-window! Chicken Fried Steak with 2 eggs, potato latke & scrumptious biscuit!
Three egg omelet w/ bacon and toast! HUGE Biscuits with their homemade preserves!
Sunday's Savior (no pun intended)- Pat's King of Steaks
So Sunday met me incredibly hungover!! It was painful how awful I felt! I was supposed to go to this market with D and simply could not pull myself out of my sleep and off of her couch! So she went ahead without me. I was nauseous and tired and it was not helping at all that her roommate was cooking something that smelt so God awful that I felt like walking into the kitchen and throwing her and the food out of the window. But alas I was far too hungover, so instead I opted for pulling a blanket up over my head and falling back into some semblance of a sleep. If only I had something to make this all go away!!
About an hour later, the horrid scent still clinging to what seemed like my every nasal hair I was awoken by the sound of familiar voices. D was back from her trip and she and my sis were bringing in the stuff she got at market from her car. I tried to stay lucid but the hangover was winning, it was the only way I felt stable. Suddenly, a certain aroma started to waft through the blankets into my subconsciousness. I peeked my head out and above the covers and there in front of me was a bright light and a figure walking towards me with arms outstretched! Was this the end, had my savior come to save me from this miserable, deathly hungover...well almost! If by savior you're thinking my sister holding a large ooey gooey Philly Cheesesteak with onions and peppers then absolutely, my savior had cometh!
Somehow, through all the debauchery Friday night, D remembered the roaming Cheesesteak poll I had taken. And it seemed that while there are probably a number of Cheesesteak spots in Philly, only 3 held the Philly natives overwhelming support and the top two by far were Pat's and Geno's! The poll taken on Friday night proved that there was an overwhelming pull towards Pat's and so it went! So, D swung by while she was out and brought us back some lunch. Apparently Geno's and Pat's are on opposite street corners and often the patrons wrap around their respective posts taunting each other, but that on this particular day the patrons had taken to the street! They had ignored the street traffic all together and were literally carrying their lines into the street! Now that's what I call a following. Unfortunately, I was in no state to jump right into this divine smelling salvation so I started with a cup of ginger tea, and eased my way into the sandwich. But once I got there it was needless to say just what the doctor ordered. As I bit into the sandwich I tried to focus on a few important features: the texture, the flavor, the quality of the cheese, the aroma and then the sandwich as a whole. The bread was soft and chewy absorbing all the cheese that oozed down its sides- outside and in. The cheese was creamy and cheesy!!! It didn't have that awful artificial after taste that some liquid cheeses do. My only complaint was that their wasn't more of it!!! The meat was seasoned well, and quite abundant, but tasted slightly overcooked/dry (though in fairness, I had to reheat mine). The onions on the other hand were sweet and cooked to perfection and the peppers that I cut up and put into the sandwich added the salt and spice that were needed to pull it all together... and to help me recover!
Now Cheesesteaks are about as personal as pizza, and can be made about as many different ways! Me personally I like it simple and I like it cheesy! But not any old cheese, personally I like the liquid (nacho) cheese with shredded cheese melted in, with sauteed onions and maybe some peppers on the side- that's it! But you can get it with onions, green peppers, hot peppers, mushrooms, olives, Liquid Cheese, Cheddar Cheese, American Cheese, Mozzarella Cheese, pepperoni, extra cheese, bacon. I mean you name it and most shops will tell you that they can build it!
While I enjoyed my Cheesesteak I was unfortunately not in the best state to judge it; seeing as I was eating it for literal survival and not sheer pleasure it seems as though I could have enjoyed it more (or less) under different circumstances. Also I would love to do a side by side comparison with Geno's since it seems to be it's greatest competition! That being said, I've decided that I will have to make a trip back to Philly to take on the task of a more adequate and thorough tasting. So, I have but one question... who's coming with me?
Cheesesteak with Onions, Peppers on the side! Cheesesteak with peppers and onions!
Family Meal-Morimoto
So Sunday night approached and dinner was becoming a necessity! I was finally feeling much more back to normal, and remembered that time was running out...I had some eating to do! I had a few options lined up but decided to take my sister's recommendation as she was heading back to London in a few days. My sister and I share and insane LOVE for Sushi! We eat it wherever we go, to compare freshness and flavor and presentations. So it came as no surprise to me that she chose Morimoto as her send-off.
As I had mentioned before I had eaten at the Morimoto in NYC, but always wanted to experience the original. So initially it was just going to be me , sis, and D going on this journey, and then our friend Ob decided to join. Soon after, T and O decided that they wanted to go as well and so I thought great a real true to life Sunday family meal. Besides the more people that went the more options of food to sample!! Yumm! So we all threw something on, piled into the car and headed over to Morimoto.
It was very easy to find Morimoto, as the white building front really stood out amongst some of the more traditional Philly architecture! As we entered the space, I think we were all taken back by the sheer beauty of the interior design. The clean , curved lines, the blank white space, the changing neon lights, it was really something! It was trendy and hip, but also elegant and inviting! We hadn't mad reservations, and even though it was a Sunday we opted to eat at the lounge area upstairs, this turned out to be a great idea as we had the entire space to ourselves.
As we settled into the ultra comfy lounge area we were greeted and hosted by an interesting bar tender who assisted us in our Sake purchase as well as our ordering dilemmas. After pouring through the menu we decided to start with varying appetizers. I ordered the 10 hr. Pork Kakuni with hot rice porridge. Pork Belly is one of my favorite things to try whenever it's available on a menu. Also ordered were the Edammame- for a snack, Miso soup, Steamed Scallops and Dobin Mushi to start. Needless to say, none of these dishes failed to please. The Pork Kakuni, which is braised Pork Belly was so succulent and sweet that it literally melted on the pallet. Combined with the smoothness of the rice pudding, this dish went down like silk. The meat flaked apart so easily and the flavor was so palatable, that it was hard to see it end. The Scallops too, were a show stopper! The braised scallions and ginger that it was served with helped to lift the flavor of the scallop and play through the general sweetness of the meat itself.
Steamed scallops with ginger and scallions. Edemmame.
I love Cold Sake! It is such a unique experience to do a Sake tasting, and realizehow many different flavors manage to meld their way into any given bottle. The Sake that we settled on was one called Seven Spearsmen. It boasted chocolate and banana flavors with earthy undertones of truffle. It was delicious and refreshing! A few of us wanted some Oh-Toro so we opted to order a few pieces a la carte. Sooooo good! The slices were soft, smooth and almost buttery on the tongue! Oh-toro, as any real Sushi lover knows, is always a real treat and always an experience that ends too quickly. For the main course, we ordered chef tasting Sushi and Sashimi platters, as well as Sushi rolls. My sister and I shared an Eel-Avacado roll that we both agreed was single handedly the best eitherof us had ever had. The large chunks of eel were warm and sweet with the slightest hint of crispiness, and the avacado was so firm yet soft that it provided a nice balance in texture with the Eel, rice, and Nori.The platters were gorgeously arranged and offered an array of seafood: Sake (Salmon), Tai (Red Snapper)Kanpachi, Hamachi (Yellowtail), Amber Jack, Maguro (tuna), Chu
-Toro ( Medium fatty Tuna), Saba (Boston Mackerel), Sawara (Spanish Mackerel), Take (Octopus), Kinmedai (Golden Big Eye Snapper), Hotate (Scallop) and Kisu (Japanese Whitefish). Now I have had my share of Sashimi before , but this was honestly one on the better experiences ever. Amongst some of the boring and mundane were some real surprises. The stars of the show for me were certainly the Octopus and the Amber Jack! I mean wow, the Octopus had a fresh out of the ocean, salt-water quality to it unlike any I have ever had...EVER! And the AmberJack had so much natural flavor that it didn't even need soy sauce or any flavor enhancements to be completely enjoyable. It too mleted in your mouth with just the slightest amount of bite!
Dobin Mushi- Chicken shrimpand muchrooms in a
broth drank seperately.
At this point for the most part, we were all very full. But what dining experience would be complete without some decadent dessert? So alas we all shared just one! The most decadent one that we could resolve upon- the Chocolate pot de creme. It was a delicious chocolate custard topped with a caramelized banana, and a lightly whipped cream. It was delicious! Creamy chocolatey and so rich it was ridiculous! Now I must say that I personally am not a huge dessert person but this was great! It was light and flavorful without being too sweet and overbearing!
All in all Morimoto proved to be a very worthwhile experience. It was a great night with great food and great friends. While Morimoto may not be suitable for the wallet on a regular basis, it does offer enough options such that if you wanted to stop in for a cocktail and a sushi roll you wouldn't break the bank. Beyond that Morimoto is definitely a great atmosphere for a special occasion or just a nice night out. I love my experience at Morimoto and it wouldn't take any amount of coaxing to get me back there for some more Octopus!
