More ice cream (but not Capogiro this time)

The other day, I needed some ice cream (yes, NEEDED), but I wasn't quite in the mood for Capogiro. I wanted something harder, more traditional, less refined. So off to Scoop de Ville I went.

After a false start-- I didn't want my ice cream put through the pulveriser, which they pretty much do automatically unless you specifically request the toppings just on top of the ice cream-- I got the holy grail. That would be, of course, a "small" portion of vanilla hard yogurt topped with Heath Bar. This so-called "small" was definitely enough for two people, and I have a pretty much never-ending appetite for ice cream. They don't skimp on the toppings-- I couldn't even begin to finish the crumbled Heath Bars, even with the copious amount of yogurt there as well, and eventually I just threw in the towel. But man, this stuff was good. The yogurt wasn't overly yogurty or tangy and tasted pretty much like basic vanilla ice cream, a perfect foil for the never-ending Heath Bar. Warning: this WILL make your jaw ache from chewing and pull out all your fillings in the process. But hey, it's part of the game, right?

Yes, there is frozen yogurt under there

So the moral of this story is if you want toppings on top of your ice cream, rather than mixed in, at Scoop de Ville, ask explicitly when you place your order. And if you do, you'll be rewarded by a huge, decadent treat reminiscent of a classic ice cream parlor's finest. Yum!

Scoop de Ville
1734 Chestnut Street
215-988-9992

Dipping into the Philly wine bar scene at Tria

During my week to settle in before classes started, I met up with my cousin AB for drinks and bites at Tria, a highly acclaimed Center City wine bar that was close to both of our apartments. When I arrived, AB had snagged a sidewalk table, so we got to dine and people-watch at the same time. Score! That means I can't comment on the decor of the place inside (I literally haven't been in), but they do have a few sidewalk tables that are quite nice.

The menu at Tria is extensive and amusing. There's a solid selection of small plates as well as a long list of wines by the glass, beers, and cheeses, all divided into whimsical subsections (e.g., "stoic" vs. "racy" cheeses--?). We both chose glasses of prosecco, perfect and bubbly on a warm summer evening.

To eat, AB got the beet salad (a girl after my own heart, eh?). With a very generous portion of tender beets complemented by goat cheese, crushed almonds, thin red onion, and a tangy vinaigrette, this salad was very flavorful (I had a bite) and is definitely something I will return for.

Mound of cheese!

I got two cheeses to pair with my wine. From the "clean" section of the cheese menu, I got a wedge of Humboldt Fog goat cheese, which had a crumbly middle as well as an oozy layer just under the rind. It was very tasty, and I loved the interplay of textures, although it got a little salty by the end (or maybe I was just experiencing cheese overload at that point). I also got a hefty wedge of Malvarosa, an "approachable" cheese that our spunky server described as very salty, but in a good way. I actually didn't find this cheese all that salty at all (it was the Humboldt Fog that turned out to be the salt bomb); it was slightly chewy, kind of like a more crumbly Swiss cheese, with a mild emmenthal-like flavor. It was appealing but perhaps not something I would get again, simply because it wasn't especially special. Oh, and the cheese board also came with small ramekins of glazed almonds (for the Malvarosa) and some sort of compote (Humboldt Fog), which tasted slightly of beets to me, to be scooped by the tiniest and cutest spoons I've ever seen. The almonds were munchable on their own, while the compote actually did complement the Humboldt Fog quite well. The bread, planks of squishy, chewy, and almost stale baguette, was plentiful but utterly forgettable.

Really big portions of cheese, too

Overall, our first experience with Tria was a high-three-Offset-Spatula success. I hope to return soon to sample more of the wares-- from snacks to salads to bruschetta to more cheeses, the menu has quite a bit to offer...

Tria
18th Street and Sansom
215-972-TRIA

Gettin' my Philly on at Capogiro

It's no secret that I love gelato, and when I'm in Philly, it's no secret that I love Capogiro. In fact, every time I've visited the city, I've made a point of getting Capogiro gelato, sometimes multiple times in one trip. Well, now that I'm here full-time, I've been making the few-block walk from my apartment to Capogiro on 20th Street on an, ahem, regular basis. Here are some highlights of recent indulgences:

Creme Fraiche was a surprise winner when I tried it a few days ago. It's light and almost refreshing with a slight tang.

I think the other flavor here was burnt sugar...

Stracciatella and Nutella are both superb. The stracciatella has a nice sweet milky base, and the chocolate bits mixed in are texturally addictive. The Nutella tastes just like Nutella (and the snozberries taste like snozberries).

Gelato mountain!

Most recently, Salted Bitter Almond truly surprised me. I almost didn't try it-- despite its label's claim that it was back "by popular demand," it simply sounded gross. But then I had a sample, and I was hooked. It was also a light flavor and didn't taste at all like either salt or almonds to me, but it had a haunting flavor that I couldn't quite put my finger on. And then, about two-thirds of the way through my cup, I nailed it: it tastes just like Ben & Jerry's Cherry Garcia frozen yogurt. I swear. I have no idea how that's possible, but it really, really does, and my is it tasty. There are occasional whole almonds buried in the gelato as well, and paired with their regular chocolate gelato, it was a mellow and gobble-able treat.

Isn't it pretty?

Oh, who am I kidding. Stay tuned for more updates from Capogiro. Most likely soon.

Capogiro
117 S. 20th Street, at Sansom
215-636-9250

And we're off: Fork eases us gently into Philly

After the big move down to Philly, my mom stuck around for a couple of days to help me get set up. Thanks Mom! And so of course we made time for some meals, including Saturday night dinner at Fork.

It's a welcoming dining room with a vibrant open kitchen, and especially when it's 100+ degrees out and it's air conditioned inside, Fork feels like heaven. The vibe is casual and slightly eclectic, just on this side of "fine dining."

To start, we were offered a choice of three breads. Mom took the fruit and nut with a devilish look on her face, and she gobbled it down. Mine was a multigrain roll, and it was hearty and studded with all kinds of yummy seeds that I gracelessly picked off the top.

Fruits and nuts inside

Yeah, this is a terrible picture, but you get the idea

To start, we split the baby lettuces salad. This was very simple, with two fried balls of lemon ricotta- surprisingly lemony, and a nice touch. Sadly, the leaves themselves were a touch oversalted, but it was enjoyable nonetheless.

Lettuces, y'know.

For her entree, Mom went for the halibut, with parsley-garlic puree, wax beans, and parisienne potatoes (essentially little potato balls sauteed in butter). She enjoyed it, noting that the fish was well cooked and not dry at all. I do also applaud the kitchen for putting a textbook golden-brown sear on that puppy. Check it out:

Pretty fish

My entree was the pickled beets and garden vegetable salad. This was decent, but it didn't blow my mind; the vegetables (beans, radishes, beets) and tangle of micro-greens were fresh, but there wasn't anything particularly special about the dish. Every now and then, I'd get a bite of pickled beet, and the burst of vinegar was the tastiest thing about the dish.

There are veggies under there

On to dessert. We debated going elsewhere for ice cream, but instead we decided to stick it out at Fork-- which may have been the wrong choice, given that pastry doesn't seem to be the restaurant's forte. Mom went for the malted chocolate cream cake, which packed layers of flourless chocolate cake, caramel mousse, and malted vanilla cream, all enrobed in chocolate ganache and paired with blackberry gelato. This got the job done-- it was chocolatey, after all-- but the plating seemed to be a bit of an afterthought.

I guess?

I went for an order of salted caramel gelato, which came with a cocoa nib shortbread cookie. The gelato was mild and sweet, which was good, but it was the shortbread that was the surprise winner: crumbly, sugary, and buttery, all interspersed with little bursts of bitter chocolateyness from the nibs. I could have gone for just a plate of those cookies, frankly.

Welp, it's gelato. Plus cookie.

So all in all, Fork was decent. We agreed it didn't blow us away, but I'd certainly return if the opportunity presented. So therefore I award fork my inaugural Philly three OS rating, with an eye toward many more ratings to come.

Fork
306 Market Street, between 3rd and 4th Streets
215-625-9425

It's time...

Dear readers,

If you've been reading my posts over the past few months, you may have guessed this day was coming. A week or so ago, I bid goodbye to my beloved NYC and moved south to Philadelphia to attend business school. For weeks, people have been asking, "What are you going to do with the blog?" And honestly I'm still not 100% sure, but here's what I know: I'd like to continue recording my food adventures, this time based in Philly, as best I can. So I'll start by posting a few of my first meals here, and hopefully my school schedule will let me continue to do so over the next two years. I may not post as frequently as I did in NYC, and of course I'll be commenting on the Philly food scene rather than that of NYC... but I hope you'll keep reading nonetheless. And as always, if you have any suggestions for places I HAVE to go while I'm here, email me at lifewithfoodanddrink@gmail.com!

Faithfully,

Janine

Eataly's gelato? Yes, please!

With my time in NYC dwindling to a close and my mom in town, we did the usual-- headed out to dinner. Unfortunately, said dinner was only mediocre, and rather than have my last NYC review be negative, I'll focus instead on dessert.

Since we were in the neighborhood, we raided the desserts at Eataly. Gelato for me, thanks: half hazelnut, half coconut, in a comically large "small" portion. The texture is the winner here, incredibly creamy with nary an ice crystal in sight. But the flavors don't disappoint, either, with the strong hazelnut overpowering the rather more retiring coconut. On a 90+ degree day, it couldn't be better.

Overflowing gelato

Mom went for a small hazelnut cake. The texture here surprised me: it was stiff and springy, almost like a slightly overbaked chewy brownie. It tasted good, don't get me wrong, but I was happier with my gelato.

Hazelnut brownie cake?

Delicious.

Eataly
200 Fifth Avenue at 23rd Street
212-229-2560

Je & Jo: A sweet goodbye to Hell's Kitchen

As I neared the end of packing my apartment for my move to Philly, I moved into the stage of trying to use up everything in my fridge and freezer. That included the ice cream that I always have on hand; once that was done, I had a few nights left to have some last desserts in NYC. When I heard the news that Je & Jo ice cream had opened up a tiny storefront just about a block away from me, I knew their innovative four-ounce cookie-dough ice cream cups would be one of my last NYC tastes.

I asked the friendly counter worker for her recommendation as I tried to choose among the vanilla (with chocolate chip cookie dough), peanut butter (with peanut butter cookie dough), or vegan coconut (no cookie dough). Upon her counsel, I chose the classic vanilla with chocolate chip.

Like a new-school Hoodsie

It comes in a cute little compostable container, and it's inherently portion-controlled, which is nice. My only complaint about the pre-packed cup format is that it precludes sampling, which is my usual way of choosing my ice cream flavor. That aside, it's cute and portable, if a bit pricey at $4 (that'd be $1 an ounce, folks). Of course, it's all-natural, hand-made, and all that jazz.

But how does it taste? Aside from the very top and edges of the ice cream, which suffer from a bit of freezer exposure due to the paper lid and container, pretty darn delicious. The vanilla flavor is pure and, well, natural: it tastes like vanilla and cream. The cookie dough, of which there were about two medium-sized chunks, was appealingly gritty, with tiny chocolate chip specks for a little chocolate flavor. The only problem here is the distribution; it seemed as they had partially filled the cup with ice cream, then laid a couple pieces of cookie dough on top, and then finished with another layer of ice cream, creating sort of a parfait, or an inverse ice cream sandwich, if you will. So it's tough to access the cookie dough when you're digging through a lot of ice cream; you sort of have to smoosh around the ice cream as you eat to get to that middle layer. In sum, I wish there had been a whole lot more cookie dough, and I wish it had been more evenly distributed.

Ice cream layer, then cookie dough layer

But that's only because it was delicious. Flavor-wise, ice cream and cookie dough were both noteworthy, and I support both the ethos of the company and the friendliness of the staff. Even though I'm moving away, I'm glad I got a chance to try Je & Jo, and I hope they thrive. Make the trek west to support them yourself-- your taste buds, if not necessarily your wallet, will thank you.

Je & Jo

515 W. 47th, between 10th and 11th Avenues

212-967-4856