Reviews
Not Built For Love: 24 Reviewed
On the floor at 24, the servers moved like they were on rails, following paths just a couple months old but already worn into the […]
Aiming For The Middle: Cinder Reviewed
I go to Cinder on a gray afternoon, looking for comfort and distraction, and find it at the bar—two giant TVs showing football on one […]
Dinner At The Fish Riot: Royal Sushi And Izakaya Reviewed
There are restaurants you go to because you’re hungry, and restaurants you go to because they’re cool. There are restaurant you go to because they’re […]
Alpha And Omega: Scarpetta Reviewed
Along the arc of a graph reading “Why Is My Restaurant Not Good?,” two opposite mistakes hold down either end of the bell curve. On […]
The Authenticity Trap: Harp & Crown Reviewed
On a cold night in December, we threaded our way through the crowds on Sansom Street and found the unobtrusive door. We pushed through the […]
A Whole Lot More Of The Same Old Thing: Aqimero Reviewed
Look, I’m not pissed off about my meals at Aqimero. To be pissed—for my experiences to rise to the level of actually making me angry […]
The Three-Umbrella Problem: Bop Reviewed
I ate the mandoo at Bop and they were fine. Tasted like a thousand other dumplings at a hundred other American-Asian restaurants in a dozen […]
Endless Summer: Tiki Reviewed
It’s way too early to be writing this review, and I don’t care at all. Best thing about being a critic? That moment when you […]
A Fish Story: Blackfish Revisited
The dining room at Blackfish in Conshohocken is white, but not cold. Not icy, the way some white, restaurant-shaped boxes can be. The dark wood […]
Breakfast of Champions: The Dutch Reviewed
Breakfast is the last great, untouched frontier. Of all the meals available to us (lunch, dinner, supper, elevenses, fourthmeal, midnight snacks, etc.), breakfast is […]
The Time Machine: Jansen Reviewed
My wife, Laura, hated Jansen as soon as she walked through the door. To be fair, she actually hated it before she walked through the […]
Buying Cool: Wm. Mulherin’s Sons Reviewed
Wm. Mulherin’s Sons is the best-smelling restaurant I’ve been to all year. It’s pretty, sure. Big, new, shiny, polished, fitted out with rich woods, artisan […]
The Mathematics of Sandwiches: Stove & Tap Reviewed
On a Sunday night, Stove & Tap is busy. Not full, but I’m not really sure there would ever be enough people dining out in […]
The Revisit: Opa
When Opa first opened, it was loud, brash, crowded and dull. The kitchen seemed incapable of dependably executing the most basic dishes. The cooks were […]
What Lies Beneath: Double Knot Reviewed
Breakfast, 9:30 a.m. // Like Garfield and 10,000 novelty t-shirts, I don’t do mornings. Particularly not ones that haven’t snuck up on me accidentally—the sun […]