Small Bites

Little Vittles

Gray Kangaroo Liquor Filter

If the Gray Kangaroo Liquor Filter ($29.95, graykangaroo.com), created by Nick Esposito, made an appearance at every home bar in town, we'd acquire a higher appreciation for cocktail parties and keggers. The latest version, the mighty GK4, promises to class up your vodka, whiskey, rum, gin and tequila by removing particulate matter and toxins, thereby diminishing those headaches and hangovers — and, of course, lesser-grade flavor. You'll also get 5 minutes of rapt attention from your guests as you explain just how stupefying your new gadget is. They'll all long for one when they find out that Absolut can be magicked into a luxe Chopin.

Head up to Northeast Philly's Three Monkeys Café (9645 James St., 215-637-MONK, 3monkeyscafe.com) and check out chef Robin's Mighty Joe Young, a burger lover's dream and a nutritionist's nightmare. Made with Taylor pork roll atop a juicy Angus patty covered in cheese and served with homemade potato chips, the entrée is an almost overwhelming proposition. For those averse to mixing meats, fear not — the modest pork roll slice offers little more than an aftertaste complementary to the patty itself. This favorite is not a quick meal, and time between bites is best spent soaking in the ambience of the place — the café, once the home of the Torresdale Antiques house, comes complete with a refurbished, century-old bar and one too many simian-themed visual cues.

In Italian households in Philadelphia, the pizzelle irons are heating up. This centuries-old style of crisp sugar wafer originated in Abruzzo, Italy, and is a traditional gift to friends and family for the Christmas holidays. Mother and daughter Lucy DiNorscia and Denise DiNorscia Williams of Morgantown's BellaPizzelle (866-858-6384, bellapizzelle.com) will ship their fragile, carefully packaged cookies across the country. Their family's secret recipes include a classic cookie with hints of orange and vanilla as well as versions kicked up with anise, chocolate chips and Frangelico. Dusted with confectioner's sugar and packed in a glimmering, reusable golden round, the pizzelles are an ideal care package for a homesick Philly native living in a land of squishy bread and lame Italian pastry. A short stack of 20 delicate pizzelles runs $24.

Penn1681 Rye Vodka

The latest spirit from Philadelphia Distilling, creators of the excellent Bluecoat Gin, is one spicy batch of Pennsylvania pride. Penn1681 Rye Vodka, so named to commemorate the year that King Charles II gifted Billy Penn with the chunk of land that became our agriculturally adept commonwealth, starts as unmalted organic field rye. The locally sourced raw material then runs through a complex columned fermentation/refinement process before being cut with purified water and finding its spiritual home in sexy Pennsylvania-crafted glass bottles. That rye backbone grants the liquor the lingering, right-for-the-winter kick that's missing from wheat-distilled vodkas. Try it on the rocks or mix with a bit of St. Germain and Angostura bitters. It's available for $20 at state stores.