restaurant update.

so i've gone to eat at quite a few delish places and just haven't had the time to mention them, so here is a quick update.

good dog, philadelphia.
went with liz and erica on a thursday night. reputed to have the best burger in the city. and while the roquefort stuffed pattie was an excellent touch, it just cannot compare with rouge's burger. but still a damn good burger at a damn good bar.

italian bistro, philadelphia.
went with liz for lunch on a saturday- had their crab and avocado salad. a whole half an avocado filled with jumbo lump crab meat over fresh greens with tomatoes and cucumbers. absolutely delicious.

fogo de chao, philadelphia.
went with liz and erica for lunch on a tuesday. while they are famous for the meats they keep coming around with, their salad bar is damn good as well - although it was kind of sad that there was no fruit. but honestly, i'd be willing to go there just for the salad bar. the meat was awesome - beef, pork, lamb, chicken and all different cuts, and all you can eat! a great deal for lunch at $30.

la viola, philadelphia.
went with theodore for dinner on a thursday night. we were able to get a table without reservations right away because there were only two of us. mussels in garlic and white wine sauce was fantastic. my sausage and mushroom pasta was delicious, theodore's homemade spinach gnocci was good but a little disappointing.

fork, philadelphia.
went with theodore, ben and tiffany on a saturday night. their little tapas selection is great, and all of our food came out excellent. i had braised duck breast, theodore had mushroom risotto, ben had the hangar steak (which came with very yummy yucca frites) and tiff had the salmon. everything was cooked perfectly and it was a very good meal. fork has been my favorite restaurant in philadelphia for some time now, but i haven't had the opportunity to go since sophomore year so i was very happy to go again, and with such great company.

copa banana [south street], philadelphia.
went with liz and erica on a thursday night. we all had their burgers, which were good. i ordered mine medium rare, which it was, but my burger was cold when it got to me, so that was disappointing. also got green beans instead of the fries and those were cold, soggy and tasted funny. would have been a not-so-pleasant experience if it weren't for their giant delicious mojito. mm!

chef geoff [downtown], washingtonDC.
went with amyT on a sunday afternoon. we ordered 3 appetizers : pita w/ hummus, duck spring rolls, shrimp and calamari misso fritto; and amy had a burger while i had a crab cake sandwich. more mojitos for me, and sangria and beer for amy. it was great since we got there around 3ish and the place was pretty much empty so we sad around, ate, drank, gossiped, and exchanged stories and relationship woes for hours. the appetizers were definitely the highlight of the meal.

next up? liz, erica and i want to make it to rouge again, and try out melograno. and, my brother john is coming to town in late april and it's rumored we have reservations to amada, which i have been aching to try for over a year now. and lastly, le bec fin, the most high class, expensive, well-reviewed restaurant in philadelphia has just given up their fixed menu and 2-seatings-a-night ways for an à la carte menu and are trying to cater to a younger hipper crowd. perhaps it's worth a try? hmm..