What's Cooking

Get Out!

by Erin Mae Szrankowski

(CLICK IMAGE FOR LARGER VERSION)

Here's an offer you college kids — especially any blossoming beer-geek undergrads out there — will have trouble refusing. Dock Street Brewery and Passion Works are welcoming all (of age) students to a free-admission educational beer-tasting night at UPenn's Christian Association house. So ditch that case of Natty Ice and listen as Rosemarie Certo, owner and founder of Dock Street (701 S. 50th St.), schools the collegiate masses on how to decipher brewing styles. Make sure you bring both your college and state IDs to participate. Reserve a seat at 215-746-6350 or upennca@dolphin.upenn.edu. Christian Association, 118 S. 37th St., upennca.org, dockstreetbeer.com.

Manayunk chef/restaurateur Derek Davis has asked Yards founder Tom Kehoe over to dinner — and you're invited, too. Davis and chef de cuisine Josh Sobel are presenting a four-course meal paired with the Philly brewery's best offerings. They'll start off with steamed Prince Edward Island mussels in a lemongrass-herb broth with frites, followed by grilled head-on shrimp with butternut squash risotto, basil emulsion and fried sage. The main attraction is a roast pork loin with a lavender-thyme crust; a white chocolate gelato float with almond brittle and amarena cherries will wrap things up. Kehoe's bringing Yards' Saison, Thomas Jefferson Tavern Ale, IPA and George Washington Tavern Porter to the party. Derek's Restaurant, 4411 Main St., 215-483-9400, dereksrestaurant.com.

The biannual South Jersey Restaurant Week, organized by SJ Hot Chefs, kicks off this week, and this time around the promo features dozens of restaurants serving four-course prix-fixe menus for $25 or $35 (excluding tax and tip). Cuisines range from Italian to Indian to Thai; participants include The Little Tuna, Joe Pesce, Tre Famiglia, Los Amigos, Kitchen 233, Blackbird, Caffe Aldo Lamberti and many more. For a full list of SJ Restaurant Week eateries, check out sjhotchefs.com/restweek.

Calling all German beer aficionados: This weekend, Memphis Taproom will roll out a lineup of ex-tah-ree-mah-ly rare beers from the Franconia (northern Bavaria) region of Deutschland. They'll start by busting out firkins from lauded labels like Mahr's Brau and Brauerei Spezial, plus three other selections on Saturday, with an additional six hard-to-find Teutonic brews appearing on Sunday, both in firkins and in bottles. To mark the Oktoberfest-y occasion, Memphis chef Jesse Kimball will be cooking up a special menu of German specialties (kassler ripchen, sauerbraten, rollmops) throughout the weekend. Memphis Taproom, 2331 E. Cumberland St., 215-425-4460, memphistaproom.com.

Reading Terminal Market is turning a city block into a farm for its annual Harvest Festival. Celebrate the arrival that autumn chill with a cornucopia of activities. Pumpkins, hay and corn stalks will line Filbert Street, which'll also boast an on-site hay ride for kiddies and adults alike.  To complete the festive mood, treat yourself to locally sourced hot apple cider, fruit, veggies and cheese. Reading Terminal Market, 12th and Arch streets, 215-922-2718, readingterminalmarket.org.