The Week In Eats

Get Out!

by Nikki Volpicelli

Enjoy a three-course "appetite stimulus" menu inspired by our ever-shrinking wallets. Dishes include comforting fare like tomato-grilled cheese soup, monkfish and mussels as well as edgier plates like curried pork shoulder and milk chocolate Earl Grey sorbet. You also get 50 percent off bottles on the gargantuan wine list. Lacroix, The Rittenhouse Hotel, 210 Rittenhouse Square, 215-790-2533, lacroixrestaurant.com.

McGillin's is pushing its luck in 2009 with a party for every Friday the 13th this year. (There'll be one in March and November, too.) February features 5 to 7 p.m. happy hour pitchers of Pabst Blue Ribbon, karaoke and specialty drinks — indulge in superstitious cocktails like the Rabbit's Foot, the Black Cat and the Open Umbrella. "Lonely Hearts Club" festivities begin at 10 p.m. with Beatles-themed karaoke — just in time for the dawning of a new Valentine's Day. McGillin's Olde Ale House, 1310 Drury St., 215-735-5562, mcgillins.com.

Chef Francis Devilliers pays a visit to ZoT in Philly by way of D.C. with tastes inspired by his time training in Provence. The French regional cuisine relies on many of the same fresh ingredients highlighted in Mediterranean dishes. To start, try mussels with spinach and wine cream and boudin blanc with crisp pork belly; the entrée course will feature lamb stew with duck confit and seared cod with olives. For dessert, treat yourself to an apple tart or meringue with egg milk sauce. ZoT, 122 Lombard St., 267-639-3260, zotrestaurant.blogspot.com.

WCL will host two seatings for this Spanish-inspired wine dinner. Each seating will be in the Upstairs Live room, with jazz from Kruno setting the mood. Executive chef Matthew Babbage will present tapas to start (marinated olives, pork pâté), with four additional courses, including seafood paella, lamb chops, endive salad and a Catalonian custard cream. They'll be pouring red, white, sparkling and dessert quaffs. World Café Live, 3025 Walnut St., 215-222-1400, worldcafelive.com.

The Jewish-Italian bistro in Manayunk slims down your check with lunch entrées priced at $9.95 daily. Meal out on veal with fresh-shaved truffle or chicken in wild mushroom sauce and you'll still have a few bucks left over for an app and a glass of wine. Il Tartufo, 4341 Main St., 215-482-1999, iltartuforestaurant.com.