|
|
|||
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|
|
|
||||
|
|
|||
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|
|
Also this issue: Simple Pleasures |
|
|
|
|
 |
|||||||||
April 11-17, 2002
food
Guillermo Pernot’s òPasión! reopened last Friday after finishing touches were completed on its newly expanded interior. With the addition of 40 seats, the only Philadelphia restaurant listed on Gourmet magazine’s current Top 50 restaurants list now has seating for 108 guests. “The restaurant is now available for private parties,” says chef/owner Pernot, “which is always something we needed but never had.” Local designer Adam Zangrilli, who also boasts Marathon at Commerce Square and Glöbar on his résumé, spearheaded renovations. The cost of the expansion, which nearly doubles the size of the popular Latino restaurant, was $250,000. Pernot also rolled out a new menu, and a former staple, Chilean sea bass, is missing. With the fish on the endangered list, more than 50 local restaurants have joined a national coalition to save it.
Speaking of Pernot, his partner at bustling Trust, Tony Goldman, has been named a Silver Spoon award recipient by Food Arts magazine. Goldman, a budding Philly real estate and restaurant mogul, was chosen for his entrepreneurial efforts in bringing the culinary industry to a new level, according to associate editor Gary Tucker. The profile will appear in the April issue. The K.too lounge, the outdoor balcony adjacent to the Kimmel Center, has jumped into the happy hour brigade, Thursdays, 5-8 p.m. For this and next Thursday, K.too is offering two cocktails for a quarter (that's 25 cents to you, moneybags!). To partake in the special, you must first visit www.restaurantassociates.com. Northern Liberties' Standard Tap is well-known for supporting and serving the finest microbeers of the Delaware Valley -- beers from local brewers such as Yards, Flying Fish, Victory and Stoudt's. The newest addition to hit the taps is Fancy Pants Brewing Co., based in Allentown, Pa. Ex-Inquirer reporter Ralph Cipriano has taken over Gianfranco Pizza Rustica II and shortened the moniker to Rustica. In addition to making 15-20 different pies (including their popular crawfish pizza), Cipriano and partner Frank Maimone also make their own marinated, hand-carved chicken sandwiches, roast beef, meatballs and deep-fried risotto.32º will provide martinis, in the club's signature ice glasses, for the Big City Ball, this Saturday at the Curtis Center. The ball benefits Big Brothers Big Sisters, and a portion of proceeds from the martini sales will go to the group as well. For ticket info, call 215-557-8600. Marmont has added a lunch menu. Lunch is now available Monday-Saturday, 11:30 a.m.-5 p.m., and most items are under $10. The recently updated dinner menu is available 5-11 p.m. Less than a month after opening, Rebecca’s, an Italian/Jewish concept (518 S. Third St., the former Italia Ristorante), has changed its name to Italia’s Family Kitchen.
Marc Kravitz is the author of the $18 and UNDER dining guide. The 2002 update is now available at area bookstores.
