Fogo de Chao: Philly Review

When I was in grad school a few years back, I organized a few meals for the guys in our program. Pastafest at Maggianos and Meatfest at Fogo de Chao were some of the highlights. It had been awhile since I'd been to Fogo de Chao, so the GF and I went out to treat two of our friends out for their respective bdays.

Fogo de Chao has several locations, including one in Center City. The interior is expansive and emanates a standard steakhouse, with high ceilings and wood throughout.

You can opt to get just the salad bar for your meal here for $24.50. And despite my love for all things carne, even I wouldn't be disappointed with the myriad of options here at the salad bar. Crispy, crunchy bacon, ripe cherry tomatoes, veggies galore - it's quite a sight. 

Fresh mozzarella, sun-dried tomatoes, prosciutto, manchego, baby Swiss, and cured salmon anyone?

 

Fresh baked bread, corn salad, or ripe tomatoes?

How about an entire wheel of Parmigiano-Reggiano?

And fairly recently, Fogo de Chao added some hot sides to the salad bar mix. They offer black beans, coconut haddock, and red potatoes currently. 

But the salad bar wasn't the only component of our lunch. Because we had to try the onslaught of Brazilian meats.

Lunch ($34.50 pp)

Pão de Queijo

Meals come with a variety of sides that are constantly replenished, including what are essentially gougeres, or warm cheese bread. And the bane of my existence because they take up room that I had previously reserved for Brazilian meat. Really - I can eat three baskets on my own. Crusty on the outside and airy pockets of cheese within, they are simply delicious. 

Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Garlic mashed potatoes are also on offer, with some chili seasoning on top.

Polenta Fries 
 

The polenta fries here are also delicious - crispy on the outside, and perfectly creamy within. They are topped with parmesan to add a nice salty component to each bite. 

Caramelized Bananas
 

A dessert of sorts, caramelized bananas also come out with everything else - a palate cleanser perhaps?

We're almost there folks. But first, a shot of my first plate from the salad bar. Roasted red peppers, garlic cloves, and assorted veggies, fresh mozzarella, manchego, and bacon.

Red means stop.

But we know his this belly rolls - green means go! In typical Brazilian BBQ style, the servers come to your table, armed with entire shanks of meat, ready to be cut onto your plate. So why don't we start with the sirloin cut. (FYI: all of my requested cuts were perfectly medium-rare)

Garlic Picanha 

Fogo offers two preparations of their signature steak, which is the prime cut of the top sirloin. This was the more robust garlic-seasoned version.

Picanha 

And here is the traditionally seasoned cut of the picanha. The cap was gorgeously marbled and imparted great flavor into each bite. 

Alcatra 
 

Similar to the picanha, the alcatra is a special cut of top sirloin and had great beefy flavor as well.

Fraldinha
 

This bottom sirloin was even more redolent with bovine flavor and was quite robust. But let's move on to the filet ...

Filet Mignon

The GF's favorite cut was nicely tender, had great flavor, and was well-seasoned.

Bacon-Wrapped Filet Mignon

A bacon-wrapped version? Yes, please!

Beef Ancho
 

But let's move on to my favorite cut of beef - the ribeye. Cut from just the cap, this was well-marbled and melted in my mouth. Be sure to get a few of these on your plate!

Cordeiro

There are two lamb preparations on offer here. This was from leg and was sweet, grassy, and tender. They also offer rack of lamb, which I did not have this time around.

Bacon-Wrapped Frango

They also prepare frango, or chicken, two ways - one standard as well as a bacon-wrapped version. Not my favorite bite, but it's hard to compare when there are better cuts of meat available.

Lombo 
 

Pork loin is also on offer, with a rich Parmesan cheese crust. Over the top perhaps though. 

Costela de Porco

Unfortunately, the pork ribs here were a bit dry. 

Costela 

But the beef ribs are redolent with bovine flavor. Nice.

Linguica 

The cured pork sausage had great snap and was juicy inside. But at this point, I was feeling like a sausage myself.

Chimichurri 

Pro-tip: You can ask for sauces to be brought out! Herbal chimichurri for your meats or steak sauce, perhaps? 

Mint Jelly
 

Or if you need some mint jelly with your lamb, Fogo has that on hand as well.

And on your way out, be sure to grab some of their dark chocolate, a digestif of sorts. 

Fogo de Chao offers great service and a variety of ways to satiate one's appetite in a truly American way, courtesy of Brazilian BBQ cuisine. True, this is obscene gluttony at its finest, but hey, if it's on offer, nothing wrong with trying anything once, or twice ... or three times - right? Just be sure to hit the gym. After the requisite post-meal nap of course.

http://www.fogodechao.com/index.php?id=163  

Route 6 Review [2] *NOW CLOSED*

This is for a series of posts for Stephen Starr restaurants including:
Alma de Cuba, Barclay Prime, Butcher and Singer, Continental Midtown & Martini Bar, The Dandelion, El Rey, El Vez, Jones, Parc, Pizzeria Stella, Route 6 [1], Route 6 [2], & Square Burger.

With the demise of Stephen Starr's Route 6 a few months back, I had to take a trip down memory lane. The GF and I previously went to Route 6's Lobster Month, when those delicious crustaceans were half off. So when the GF's folks came in to town, we knew we had to take them back to Route 6. Despite it being November, the deal was still going on to a certain extent. "Almost" half-off lobsters were de rigeur for the month! 

As you can see, prices weren't exactly half, but close enough. In fact in my eyes, a $64 three-pounder for only $35 was practically a steal.

Oyster Crackers
Horseradish
  

This time around, we did get the a mason jar filled with crunchy oyster crackers and a pat of horseradish with great kick.

Sangria Special

The GF had a fall sangria special with apple cider and maple blending together harmoniously. In fact, she had two - consider it the pregame for the Justin Timberlake concert at Wells Fargo later that night.

Crispy Fried Little Lobster Tails [$22] [$16]

Of course, we had to get two orders of the crispy fried lobster tails. The GF's folks enjoyed these just as much as we did - succulent crab with great seasoned breading. And we can't forget about the green tabasco aioli - I could drink a bucket of that.

Steamed 3 lb. Lobster [$64] [$35]

The GF's mom went with the steamed lobster, which I helped dismantle. The steamed iteration of the 3 pounder was moist and had the clean, sweet flavors of the crustacean on full display. Beware though. For those not in the know - when you get to the "tail" portion, some tomalley (essentially the liver) may spill out. I consider it the foie of the lobster, but the GF's mom was a bit perturbed.

Wood-Grilled 3 lb. Lobster [$64] [$35]

The GF's dad and I both went for the wood-grilled iteration. The cherry wood imparted some fruit notes and the grilling helped to add smokiness to the lobster meat. No tomalley here for obvious reasons. Just good old lobster meat ready to be dunked in the drawn butter. We were both ready for our 2nd three pounder after we were done.

Lobster Roll [$24] [$16]
Fries

The GF went with the lobster roll again - a nicely buttered roll with great chunks of lobster meat throughout. The fries were especially crispy and arrived in a cute little pail.

Fries [$5]

We opted for several sides. For $5, you get a huge basket of fries - nicely salty and crispy. Definitely a great choice. 

Coleslaw [$5]

The coleslaw was a favorite as well. The slaw had bite to it and wasn't overdone in mayo, but was nicely creamy.

Same as before, I don't know if I would be willing to pay top dollar prices for lobster when it's not lobster month. At first I thought it was the amount of lobster you pry out of the shell (not exactly 3 pounds worth), but really I'll pay top dollar for real deal Kobe or even wagyu despite the price per ounce. Rather, it's the fact that lobster is so abundant and gets marked up so easily. With lobster rolls aplenty - and at reasonable prices at Luke's Lobster - I can't imagine paying $60+ for a lobster on a normal night. Apparently the rest of Philly agreed. But knowing Stephen Starr, I know something special will come up in its place. 

Route 6
600 N. Broad Street
Philadelphia, PA 19130
(215) 391-4600
www.route6restaurant.com  

Pete's Famous Pizza Review

On a recent takeout kind of a night, I stumbled upon Pete's Famous Pizza on GrubHub. What exactly caught my eye? The goliath grinders, which house a multitude of heart-clogging items, including mozzarella sticks, steak, chicken fingers, fries, and cheese. Essentially Primanti Brother's on steroids, the description of the grinder was highly reminiscent of the gut-busting 'Fat Beach' sandwich from the Grease Trucks by Rutgers University in NJ. Yes, my knowledge of calorie clogging meals extends to places I've never actually been to.

An added bonus? I appreciated that their takeout bags showcase 

the fact that they use delicious Amoroso's rolls.

Ultimate Goliath Grinder ($9.25)
Chicken fingers, mozzarella sticks, french fries, steak, bacon, pizza cheese, pizza sauce

This grinder is indeed a behemoth-sized mess. The chicken fingers are crisply fried and juicy. The mozzarella sticks have girth, with a mess of mozzarella covering creamy french fries, 

smoky bacon, and steak. 

The pizza sauce helps to brighten up the grinder a bit, which is encased by a crusty Amoroso's roll. Still, this is clearly not a light dish. Expect to take a nap right after and definitely don't expect to be able to run a marathon right after.

Cheese Steak ($6.25)
Sharp provolone, fried onions

The cheese steak is decently seasoned and contains juicy steak, funky provolone, and a nice amount of onions. The roll serves as a perfect vehicle to house the ingredients. A decent iteration, this is at least a B+ or A- in my book. Could do with a bit more meat and cheese.

Vegetable Pizza ($12.50)
Large 14'' pizza, mushroom, onions, green peppers, broccoli, spinach, tomato, extra cheese.

On the strength of the grinder alone, I decided to give Pete's another try so I could sample their namesake 'famous' pizza. Unfortunately, this is where the praise ends. The prices were really surprisingly cheap - and it's clear why this is the case. This pizza was horrid. The veggies were sparse as was the cheese. I thought there was supposed to be extra cheese on this pizza? I'd hate to think what a regular cheese slice was like. Definitely nowhere near on par with a NYC slice. In fact, the crust made it clear that the dough was frozen. In fact, even by frozen pizza standards, this was a D-.

Angus Burger ($4.50)
American cheese, lettuce, tomato

Their burgers aren't exactly stellar pickings either. Advertised as 100% Angus, I expected more. This was ordered medium and came well-done. The patty itself was substantial for the price, but the meat had a funny taste - lighter fluid? There was also no seasoning and the patty was very dry.

Appetizer Sampler ($12.99)
Four mozzarella sticks, onion rings, three Buffalo wings, two chicken fingers, four jalapeno poppers.

They were out of jalapeno poppers, so opted to give us two additional chicken tenders instead. The tenders were nice - crisp and juicy. The mozzarella sticks were crisp and huge, housing a nice amount of salty mozzarella. The buffalo wings weren't my favorite. While they were meaty, they were very dry and had no buffalo sauce on them. No blue cheese dressing was provided either. The onion rings were paltry, with just a few broken pieces containing a subtly sweet batter. 

French Fries ($2.50)

The french fries were decent. Nicely crisp on the outside and creamy inside, they were lightly seasoned with salt.

Beer-Battered Onion Rings ($3.99)

The beer batter was subtly sweet and it's clear that a separate order is needed to get decent onion rings. The crisp rings are huge and accompanied by a mayo-ketchup mixture to dip into.

I'd order from Pete's Famous Pizza again, but definitely not for their pizza. In fact, they would do better to change their name to Pete's Famous Grinders and add a few more funky goliath-type creations to the mix.

http://petesfamouspizza.com/