Musical Chairs

"This opportunity is the brass ring for every food blogger."

by Brian Howard

It's important, with food, to know when you've had enough. Otherwise you don't enjoy any of it. Elisa Ludwig's been reviewing restaurants for City Paper since 2002, eating on our dime at some of the city's fanciest and grittiest restaurants, and writing about it in splendid, sometimes gory, detail.

A couple of weeks ago, Ludwig said "when." She's hanging up her stealthy notebook, ending her run as Yang to Trey Popp's Yin on Drew Lazor's juggernaut restaurant reviews desk.

It hasn't been an easy decision. "I truly love doing it and I have loved being part of the CP team," says Ludwig. "But I feel that I've said much of what I've wanted to say."

Ludwig's critiqued Philly's finest, most exquisite plates. Her passion, however, always seemed to live with small, authentic, unpretentious ethnic joints.

She's loved watching the rise of Philly food trends: "The BYO, local and seasonal, the gastropub, the influx of Mexican cuisine and the sudden resurgence of French cuisine."

But which tastes stand out? "Corned beef at Kibitz, pizza with runny egg at Osteria, pork spine soup at Pojangmacha, paella at Amada, chestnut mousse at Ansill, the Polish buffet at the now-defunct Teresa's."

Ludwig's final review for us — the South Philly Tap Room — is available here.

"It's time to let someone with a fresher perspective (and tastebuds) have the floor," figures Ludwig. "Plus I'm looking forward to enjoying Philly restaurants when I no longer have to tell my table-mates what to order, eat off their plates or gaze off, distracted, in mid-conversation."

She'll also keep busy working on a book with Steve Poses, a follow-up to his legendary Frog Commissary Cookbook. Keep your eyes trained on her blog, Edible Complex (ediblecomplex.blogspot.com).

Speaking of which, we're excited to announce that David Snyder of PhilaFoodie (philafoodie.blogspot.com) is stepping into the breach.

"The opportunity to review restaurants for the print media is the brass ring for every food blogger," says Snyder.

Attentive readers of the paper may recall Snyder's "Pocket Sommelier" columns suggesting wine pairings for local BYOs.

"Today, more than ever," says Snyder, "people need to be able to figure out whether a restaurant is worth their hard-earned cash."

He promises honesty in his reviews. But honesty has its drawbacks.

"I take great comfort," says Snyder, a lawyer by day, "in knowing that if a restaurant files a lawsuit based on one of my reviews, I now have City Paper in my corner to cover all legal expenses. Right, guys? Hello? Guys?"

Snyder's first review runs next week.

While I'm making introductions, allow me to point you to a new series we're rolling out: Joel Tannenbaum's "From the Philadelphia Encyclopedia of Stuff That Didn't Happen (Yet)." As the title suggests, these are entries from the future, culled from the titular, to-have-been-published reference tome. No, this isn't some kind of crystal ball shit, and yes, that's a mindfuck of verb tenses. Think Borges' "Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius" meets Hodgman's The Areas of My Expertise. In the paper and on its own CP microsite (citypaper.net/future), the encyclopedia will unfold, entry by entry, non-chronologically recounting a future that has already taken place. It starts here with "The El Dwellers" about a dystopic subterranean culture living in SEPTA tunnels. Check the site for a preview of upcoming entries or to suggest topics for Joel to look up in the big, old (I mean not-yet-written) book.

And finally, submissions are coming in fast and furious for the second annual City Paper Comics Issue. The deadline is Aug. 6. There are two sizes options — 4.875" x 4.875" and 9.875" x 4.875" — and entries should be sent to comicsissue@citypaper.net or City Paper Comics Issue, c/o Patrick Rapa, 123 Chestnut St., 3F, Philly, PA 19106. The best entries will be published in the issue of Aug. 14 (citypaper.net/comicsissue).

(bhoward@citypaper.net)