Fogo de Chao Philly: Best of Brazil Review

Longtime readers know that I'm a fan of Brazilian BBQ, with Fogo de Chao being the clear winner in Philly. In fact, back in my grad school days, I'd set up regular "Meat Fests" with the guys. But what exactly is Brazilian BBQ? Expect quality cuts of beef, lamb, or pork grilled open-flame, in the churrasco tradition.

The founders of Fogo de Chao grew up on a traditional Southern Brazilian farm in the Serra Gaucha. They left for Rio and Sao Paulo to formalize their churrasqueiro training and built their first restaurant in the countryside of Porto Alegre in 1979. They subsequently opened their second restaurant in Sao Paulo, with the first U.S. restaurant making its way to Dallas, Texas. Of course, the expansion went nationwide, including to the City of Brotherly Love.

Clockwise from Top Left: Fresh Cheese & Salad at the Market Table | Seasonal Carrot & Ginger Soup of the Day | Fresh Fruit at the Market Table | Feijoada Bar | Leg of Jamon and Charcuterie at the Market Table

In addition to the fabulous meats, one of the highlights about the Fogo de Chao experience has to be the Market Table & Feijoada Bar. Seasonal salads, exotic vegetables, imported cheeses, smoked fish, cured meats, stews, rice, and fruit will set the stage for an explosion of fresh flavors, even before you've had your first cut of meat from the gaucho servers.

Clockwise from Top Left: Picanha, Crispy Chicken Thighs & Pork Sausage | Mammoth Beef Rib | Bottom Sirloin 

But obviously, you're here for the meat. No overnight marinade or aging is needed at Fogo - it's that fresh and allows the quality cuts to shine. Turn your coaster from red to green (duh, green means go!) and the gauchos will swarm your table, ready to cut you a slice to your requested temp! Expect plenty of sirloin steak, ribs, bacon-wrapped chicken or filet, ribeye, Parmesan-crusted chicken, sausage, and even lamb!

My favorites had to be the Picanha, which features the prime part of the top sirloin, the ribeye, and the mammoth beef rib. The lamb is also incredibly tender and wonderfully grassy, perfect to pair with some of their house-made chimichurri. You're also served plenty of sides, including some warm pao de queijo (Brazilian cheese bread), crispy polenta fries, garlic mashed potatoes, and caramelized bananas. Don't forget to turn the coaster back to red or the food will continue to come out!

If you need more than caramelized bananas to satisfy your sweet tooth, Fogo de Chao has got you covered with a slew of desserts. We enjoyed the ccreme brulee, classically prepared, with a sweet sugar crust on top of smooth vanilla custard.

This gamut of glutony equates to the Full Churrasco Experience and is priced at $54.95 during dinner. But now until the end of August, Fogo de Chao is kicking off the "Best of Brazil" for only $39! Your dinner will showcase eight cuts of Brazil's finest meats, with full access to both the Market Table and the Feijoada Bar! Seem like it's too much to handle for lunch? For only $15, they offer the Gaucho Lunch, which includes the Market Table and Feijoada Bar "only." Other concepts kicked off by Fogo de Chao include Bar Fogo, which introduces Brazilian-inspired small plates, wines, and cocktails. So be sure to stop by for Happy Hour as well!

FTC Disclaimer: Thanks to Fogo de Chao Philadelphia for hosting me. Regardless, my opinions are mine alone and, therefore, unbiased.

Corner Bakery: Philadelphia Review

The business district of Center City tends to be a ghost-town on the weekends. So when the GF's folks were in town, we were surprised to see that the Corner Bakery was open on a Saturday morning. Needing some simple fuel for the typical tourist walk, we stopped in.

There's plenty of seating here - clearly capable of taking in the business crowd during the work week. 

Mac n Cheese & Caesar Salad Combo [$8.69]

The GF decided to go with the mac n cheese & salad combo. The macaroni was nicely al dente, with a sharp cheddar sauce coating the noodles - a bit wet for my taste, but certainly to the GF's liking. It came topped with bread crumbs and grilled bread on the side.

A side of caesar salad was decent - lettuce, shreds of Parmesan, and bread crumbs - hard to go wrong here.

Anaheim Scrambler [$7.89]
Scrambled eggs, smoked bacon, tomatoes, green onions, cheddar, avocado

I was in the mood for a breakfast sandwich so went with one of their scrambler sandwiches. A melange of creamy avocado and scrambled eggs was accented nicely by the bite of green onion and the crispy bits of bacon. The cheddar brought it all together within the house-made bread, grilled on a panini. I was hoping for a side of home fries, but they were out shortly before noon.

So if you're looking for some simple fare with some house-made bread, check out Corner Bakery! There's no Panera on the west-side of City Hall, so this will definitely do! 

City Tap House: Logan Square Review [2]

If I'm looking to catch a game or enjoy some pub grub, City Tap House on Logan Square is one of my favorite spots to post up. Nothing wrong with enjoying tasty grub, executed with technique! So when some friends from Michigan were in town, we had to pop on in to catch the State game.

Honey Goat Cheese Flatbread [$12]
Sliced red onion, pistachio pesto, rosemary, truffled honey

I decided to finally try one of their flatbreads and was surprised at the caliber of the crust. The dough was nicely seasoned and had great leoparding. The pistachio pesto was on point and tempered by the sweet truffled honey. The bite of sliced red onion was a nice counterpoint to the funk of the goat cheese. 

Tap Burger [$14] + Bacon [$3]
Pineland Farms ground beef, Lancaster rustic cheddar, agrodolce onions, beer gastrique, toasted brioche

The Tap burger was well-seasoned and had a nice salty crust on the patty, which was juicy in its own right. The sharp cheddar and the sweet and sour elements from the onions helped to make for one delicious bite. I love a good brioche as well, nicely studded with sesame seeds. The accompanying basket of fries were also well-seasoned and nicely crisp. I enjoyed the accompanying aioli as well, perfect for dipping the fries (as well as for some of the remaining crust of the flatbread!).

So if you're looking to catch the rest of the Eagles' season or laugh at dismal 76ers, I'd highly recommend grabbing a table at City Tap House. Plenty of room, TVs, and delicious pub grub. 

Grand Traverse Pie Company Review

This is part of a series of posts for Michigan 2014.

Other posts in this series include: Tony's Original Restaurant, Whitehouse, Cops & Doughnuts, Levi's Food & Spirits, Genji's, Clam Lake Beer Company, and Grand Traverse Pie Company.

In addition to being known for cherries, Traverse City as a whole is scenically set on a gorgeous blue lake. So what better setting to have grab some lunch and pie from nearby Grand Traver Pie Company?

Spinach with Goat Cheese Salad [$7.49]
Baby spinach, blueberries, red onion, apple, cinnamon roasted pecans, goat cheese, honey mustard vinaigrette
  

The GF went with the spinach and goat cheese salad, which seemed pretty standard, but had a nice mix of apple and cinnamon roasted pecans added in for texture. The honey mustard vinaigrette was sweet and creamy, with the moist grilled chicken and tangy goat cheese providing some heft to each bite.

GT Grilled Cheese [$6.99]
Cheddar, Havarti, cherrywood smoked bacon, sourdough

I went with the grilled cheese. Sandwiched between two thick, buttered slices of sourdough were crisp bacon and a nice melange of cheddar and havarti. The tart acidity from the tomato really made each bite. This came with a dill pickle and a pat of creamy mayo-based slaw.

We had to get some pie as well so stopped by to peruse the multitude of offerings. 

Cherry-Peach Crumble Pie [$3.29] a la Mode [$1.50]
 

The cherry peach crumble offered a nice mix of sweet and tart, with the sugar crumble providing texture against the creamy vanilla ice cream. Nice.

Grand Traverse Pie Company seems known for their pies, which are homey and tasty. But their other offerings are on point as well. 

Gyu-Kaku Philadelphia Review

If you're familiar with Korean BBQ, you'll be at home with Gyu-Kaku, which is a chain of Asian BBQ joints that have opened up across the nation and even in Canada. Branded as Japanese Yakiniku BBQ, think of it as DIY cooking of marinated meats and veggies, all from the comfort of your table. 

It's a sleek and modern space, with plenty of seating and even a bar up front. You can order a la carte, or even opt for the set courses. I'd recommend going a la carte as the savings encountered by ordering the set courses are minimal at best. And who knows, you might encounter poor service resulting in missed courses, as we did. 

Whenever you do Korean BBQ, you're hoping for a good venting system. Gyu-Kaku Philly has a decent one, but fair warning. Your clothes will still smell like BBQ so check your coat if that's an issue! 

Kobe Style Course for 2 [$115]
Hot oil seared salmon, edamame, gyu-kaku salad, miso soup, garlic fried rice bibimbap
Kobe "style" rib-eye, hanger steak, filet mignon, flap steak, assorted vegetables
S'mores 

First things first. As I alluded to above, we were never served the salmon or edamame. Even when we brought this up to our 2nd server (more to come on that), all we received was a reluctant "I don't know what you were served." Seems to be consistent with the issues noted with service on Yelp. Coupled with the minimal savings by going the set course route, it definitely wasn't worth it for us. Regardless, let's get on with the food! 

Miso Soup 
 

We started off with miso soup. This iteration was fairly standard, but I appreciated that it wasn't overly salty and had plenty of tofu as well. 

Gyu-Kaku Salad 

The salad was a mix of sliced cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, spring mix, and hard boiled eggs. 

Garlic Fried Rice Bibimbap

The standout in terms of taste and presentation was the garlic bibimbap. Mixed tableside, the crisp rice at the bottom known as nurunji (socarrat for the Spanish and tahdig for Persians) was definitely present and offered wonderful textures. The bits of egg and garlic-sesame oil seasoning helped to create a delicious, and substantial bite. 

 Assorted Vegetables

Gyu-Kaku starts the grilling off with assorted vegetables as the cooking time takes longer. This includes some zucchini, red peppers, mushrooms, onion, and corn. 

Kobe 'Style' Flap Steak

The flap steak was marinated in a sweet and savory sauce and studded with sesame seeds. Cooked for just about a minute, it was tender, but still had toothsome bite. 

Kobe 'Style' Hangar Steak

Even though this isn't real deal Japanese kobe beef, you can't deny the marbling on the beef. The hangar steak was definitely one of our favorites.

Kobe 'Style' Filet Mignon 

The filet was expectedly tender and juicy.

 Kobe 'Style' Ribeye

The ribeye was a cut bit thin for my liking. It wasn't marinated, perhaps to showcase the cut.

Pork Belly [$5.95]

Obviously, I had to try their pork belly as well and it's a must order in my mind.

On the grill, it cooks crisply, yet still has an unctuous richness to it. 

S'mores

The meal ended with s'mores. While I appreciated that they continued to make use of the grill, the Hershey's chocolate, marshmallows, and Graham crackers seemed pretty low budget for a restaurant that was charging over $100 for a set course. It also doesn't seem to go quite well with the theme of Japanese / Korean BBQ. 

We also encountered issues with service. Our original server was friendly enough, but she left during the middle of our meal without any word to us. We waited a good 30 minutes until we eventually flagged a random server down. Eventually our second server, Jason, took over without an explanation. He was nice enough, but as I mentioned earlier, when questioned about the missing courses, he simply noted that he didn't know what we had earlier. Hopefully service has improved since we last went. 

Overall, if you haven't had the chance to enjoy Asian BBQ, Gyu-Kaku is a decent bet. They also allow you the option of enjoying some higher quality meats than you'd find at your standard Korean BBQ joint. 

BurgerFi: Philadelphia Review

The block across the street from Reading Terminal Market has undergone quite the transformation, with a new hotel and some chain restaurants setting up shop. One of those is BurgerFi, which specializes in the fast-fresh food craze a la Shake Shack.

Similar to Five Guys, BurgerFi has a myriad of Coke products on offer for your quaffing pleasure.

They even have real Mexican cokes with cane sugar for purchase as well. Separately from Coke Free-Style machine of course.

BurgerFi Cheeseburger [$6.57]
Double natural Angus burger, double American cheese, lettuce, tomato, BurgerFi sauce
  

The GF went with the regular cheese burger, which featured two Angus patties - well-seasoned and juicy. Fresh lettuce, tomato, and melted American cheese rounded out each bite, with the BurgerFi special sauce providing a mustard-based tartness that was nice. This was all housed with a soft Martin's potato roll. 

BurgerFi Brisket Burger [$9.97]
Double natural 28-day dry-aged ground brisket, Swiss cheese, blue cheese, lettuce, tomato, pickles, BurgerFi sauce
  

I went with the brisket burger, which featured a double patty of 28-day dry aged brisket, which was surprisingly dry. The Swiss cheese was nice, but I wasn't sure where the blue cheese was. Disappointing on both the meat and cheese front.

100% Wagyu Kobe Beef Dog [$4.97]

On the other hand, the kobe beef dog had great snap and was grilled nicely on the flat top after being butterflied. Sure it's hard to taste the wagyu-kobe essence when it's ground up for a hot dog, but the beefiness was undeniable. And because a true hot dog doesn't have ketchup, I went with grilled onions and mustard.

Alternative Style Fries [$3.94]
Fries, grilled diced onions, American cheese, mustard, BurgerFi sauce 

Because "Animal Style" is so In-N-Out, BurgerFi features "Alternative Style" fries. But you won't find this on their regular menu, because it's a secret menu item! So for an extra 99 cents, your crisp, fresh-cut fries can be topped with a tangy, savory blend of grilled diced onions, American cheese, and mustard. Rich and delicious.

Onion Rings [$3.97]

Don't miss out on the onion rings either. While I found a decent pool of oil at the bottom of the tray, these huge rings were stil perfectly crisp, with a great malty batter.

So while there are a myriad of offerings over at Reading Terminal Market, if you're not looking to brave the crowds or need a quick bite during your weekday lunch, be sure to check out BurgerFi.

Wagamama: Heathrow Airport Review

This is for a series of posts related to a London 2014 trip including: 

The Ledbury, Founder's Arms, Fishcoteque, Borough Market, Fortnum & Mason Diamond Jubilee Tea Salon, Tayyabs, Giraffe: Heathrow, Park Plaza Westminster, & Wagamama: Heathrow.

While at Heathrow Airport in London, we decided to satiate our appetite by stopping at Wagamama, a London-based restaurant chain featuring a variety of pan-Asian dishes.

The interior was spacious, sleek, and clean. Plenty of seating for those looking to relax and dine during a layover. 

Super Green Juice [3.40 Pounds = $5.57]
Apple, mint, celery, lime
  

It was an early morning, so I felt the need for a freshly juiced concoction. The super green juice was refreshing - the tartness of the apple and the freshness of the celery were punched up with the addition of some herbaceous mint and bright lime. 

Full English Breakfast [8.45 Pounds = $13.85]
Sausage, back bacon, roasted tomatoes, fried eggs, sourdough toast  

Being a British-based chain, Wagamama also offers the full English breakfast, sans the beans or some good old blood sausage. Still, the thick-cut sourdough was topped with fried eggs. The back bacon was nicely fatty and the sausage was hearty. I appreciated the roasted tomatoes, which imparted some acidity to each bite.

Breakfast Yakisoba [6.50 Pounds = $10.82]
Teppan-fried soba, bacon, egg, cabbage, mushrooms, tomato 

The GF opted for the yakisoba, which featured nicely al dente noodles with great chew, fried on the teppanyaki grill. Creamy scrambled eggs were interspersed with a melange of fatty bacon, savory mushrooms, tomatoes, and cabbage. Very comforting.

If you're looking to grab a quick bite at Heathrow, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Wagamama. It's not finicky and offers a variety of options to cater to all palates.

Wagamama: Heathrow

London Heathrow Airport
Terminal 5
Heathrow TW6 2GA 

http://www.wagamama.com/restaurants/heathrow-terminal-5