What to Eat This Weekend: A Little Good, a Little Bad, a Little Something Else
A bit of moderation might be in order after the week we've all had. Or maybe what you really need is a Bloody Mary and some more fried chicken.
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It’s been a long couple weeks, hasn’t it? Between the Super Bowl, the parade and whatever else you did in between, I’m guessing you consumed more than your fair share of chicken wings, pizza, roast pork and beer.
When you have a week like that, you gotta make a choice. Are you going to try to turn things around and get back on the straight-and-narrow? Or are you just going to lean into your debauchery and keep it rolling? We’ve got suggestions for both kinds of people.
If You’re Looking to Repent Your Evil Ways…
- Pure Fare is like a modernist culinary temple — the kind of place you go when you know that you just can’t go another day mainlining foie gras. It’s a place for garlicky kale and carrot noodles, for chard and falafel. It’s not a vegetarian restaurant at all — there’s plenty of chicken and fish available — but it is a place where healthy eating is the watchword. So if you feel like a wild rice bowl with kale and avocado or a nice quinoa porridge is what you need to get yourself back on track, then get thyself to Pure Fare and start feeling better.
- Or how about a happy hour? Because V Street does one seven days a week, from 5pm to 6pm, with a $4 beer, a couple of $7 wines and a specialty cocktail for the same price. They’ve also got food like shishito peppers with miso mayo or char sui green beans with ginger mustard for five bucks.
- Most grandmothers will tell you that there’s no problem that can’t be solved with a nice bowl of soup. I mean, not MY grandmother (her advice suggested two fingers of whiskey, followed by two fingers more), but I think soup is the generally accepted consensus on this matter. And this being Philly, we’ve got some excellent options. This week? We’re suggesting pho because pho is everything you need right now: delicious, filling, cheap and, what with all those vegetables floating around in there, kinda healthy, too. We made a list of all the best places to eat pho right now, and you should check it out.
For Those Who’d Prefer To Keep On Sinning…
- Okay, now that we’ve taken care of all the healthy eaters, the rest of us can keep right on having fun, right? And where better to start than at Redcrest Fried Chicken? Go for the $10, chicken-only, half-chicken deal with a side of spicy honey, or maybe a whole buttermilk with garlic aioli, mashed potatoes and some biscuits of you want leftovers for tomorrow (which you absolutely do).
- Looking for a new brunch spot? Of course you are. Well good news — Danlu is launching their new brunch on Sunday. So if you’re looking for Taiwanese sausage omelets and a sriracha-spiked bloody, this is your spot. Pro tip: Danlu takes brunch reservations so, you know, make the call.
- If you haven’t checked out Ratchada, you should. First, because it’s lovely. Second, because they’ve got beef jerky on the apps menu and Thai beef jerky is awesome. Third, because any place with a dish called “Pork Jungle” is a place I want to hang out. And finally, because they serve something called Young Girl on Fire which is a cornish hen, stuffed with spiced rice and then set on fire tableside. How can you NOT want to try something like that for yourself?
- And finally, here’s a weird one. On Sunday, Cake Life Bake Shop in Fishtown is offering a class in erotic cookie decorating. Yes, it will probably be just as weird as you’re imagining. And I’ll just leave it at that.
