Eating Philly - Part 1

Shane and I recently visited Philly and New York for a little over a week. We had some great eats! Here is day one:

 One of the best places to eat is Reading Terminal Market, an indoor market full of food stalls. There is quite a popular Pennsylvania Dutch (Amish) food section, which is only open for business from Wednesday to Saturday. I tried a pretzel roll stuffed with sausage and a real Philly pretzel from Miller's Twist.  These are handmade soft pretzels, which were buttery, salty, and pretty delicious.

One of the more popular eateries at the market is Dinic's Roast Pork. On the days that we went, there were huge lineups of about 50 people.

This is the roast pork sandwich with provolone and broccoli rabe.

 The pork, while a little mild in flavour, was tender and dripping with juices. The components all worked with each other and made for a big yummy mouthful.

We bought a few cookies from the 4th Street Cookie Company to try.

The cookies were quite large. They were rich, slightly chewy on the inside, and quite sweet. Very good cookies, though not as good as the Cookies of Course cookies in Vancouver (am I biased?).

We went for dinner at Maggiano's Little Italy, an Italian American place near our hotel. The place was full of families and had a nice, though slightly formal, feel.

Shane ordered the lasagna, which was quite gooey and delicious.

I ordered Linguine di Mare, a seafood pasta. This was just okay - though there were lots of prawns, mussels, and clams, and a few pulverized bits of lobster, the sauce/broth was a bit bland. It was a disappointment.

Quite a day of eating, no?

Stay tuned for part two...

Pique vs. Swiss Chard

Pique managed to rouse herself from a nap and jumped up onto the dining room chair. Her nose must have told her something.

A little nibble....

A little sniff....

The cat always wins.

Workplace Gluttony

Last week it was Mary's birthday at work, and one of our co-workers brought in some cupcakes from Cupcakes, this local cupcake bakery that's been around for years. The cupcakes themselves are a little pricey at $2.95 each, but they are quite heavenly. I'm not a huge fan of cupcakes, but I'm a sucker for ones with cream cheese icing like those coconut ones (the others in the picture are a chocolate cupcake called 'Diva', and a lemon one).

I'm afraid we've started a birthday tradition in our department.

I fear for our waistlines....

Commercial Drive

Since the forecast was for clear skies, yesterday we took the skytrain to Commerical Drive. This area is a really vibrant area of Vancouver, with lots of Italian markets, cafes, and stores.

This is the mural that sort of marks the entry into the neighborhood. This particular mural is relatively recent, and I like its subdued, old-fashioned quality; it sort of reminds me a little of some of Edward Hopper's paintings of lonely, uninhabited towns.

One of the reasons we ventured into the Drive that day was to pay a visit to Fratelli, the Italian bakery. This time of year they make the best fruitcakes. I hated fruitcake when I was a kid, and am really not so fond of them now, but the version from Fratelli's is a divine creation. Each piece is moist, not cloyingly sweet, and chock-a-block full of quality dried fruit and nuts. So delicious. They are a little expensive--each small block 2 inches to 5 inches square is about $5. But damn, are they worth it.

Right next door to Fratelli's is La Grotta Del Formaggio, which has great sandwiches and lots of Italian products. We picked up some olives and Italian prosciutto. Also below is a stick of crusty bread from Fratelli's. That was last night's dinner.

I do like little boxes tied up with string.

Inside are 2 cannoli, which actually look more like cream horns to me. Inside is custard cream. This was really nice: crispy, flaky, and with a not-too-sweet filling.

A One of a Kind Souvenir

On Thursday some of us from the office went down to visit the One of a Kind show at the Convention Centre (on from Oct . 8 - 11). There were a lot of cool clothes, jewelry, crafts and art. I picked up a couple of packages of Coach House Shortbread, which are artisanal shortbread, made entirely by hand in small batches. There were a great number of flavours like lemon and chocolate, but what interested me most was their savory shortbread, which seemed really unusual. I got the Spicy Asiago and Garlic, and the Stilton and Rosemary. These rich, buttery discs are delicate, crumbly and very delicious.

Plus, the packaging is so beautiful. I so like artfully wrapped objects.

We Stain Our Fingers

Yesterday I was walking home from skytrain along Lougheed highway and noticed that the blackberry bushes already had ripe berries on them. So I picked a few and ate a few. They are quite small this year, probably because of the heat, which accelerated ripening; however, they were delicious--sweet, rich, dark, and slightly warm from the sun.

I love blackberry season--it turns the regular Vancouverite into a livin' off the land gatherer and scavenger.

Our Cherry Season

ahh! blurry photo

We went to the store today and bought about 4 pounds of cherries, which were on sale for only $1.97 per pound. The first couple of pounds were eagerly and quickly consumed after dinner.

They were fresh, firm as they should be, and a deep, dark red. I really love the sensation of biting cherries.

They are in season over here, and will be for a few weeks.

Yum!

Rain and Tea

It's been raining here in Vancouver for the past few days--the skies are a dark grey, the air has turned cool and you can really smell the fresh, wet earth. After a week of hot summer weather, the change has been pretty welcome.

I love to drink tea anytime, but on days and night like this there is nothing more comforting than a hot mug of tea in your hands.

My favorite is this Japanese green tea from Yamamotoyama, green tea with brown rice. The roasted rice gives a really nutty warm flavor to the tea, and it smells earthy and divine. It makes a good cup. Don't you love the green packaging and design?