Where We’re Eating: Resurrection Ale House

It’s always a nervous time when a longtime chef leaves a neighborhood favorite. That was the situation at Resurrection Ale House when original chef Joe Chmiko left for New York after nearly three years at the Graduate Hospital neighborhood restaurant. But his replacement, Rhett Vellner, has done more than just stay the course. His calamari isn’t the throwaway dish found at so many lesser restaurants, but an intriguing dish of fried polenta and stewed tomatoes. The quinoa and duck confit play well together, revealing more flavor with every bite. Gone are the days of diners getting annoyed each time a dish disappeared from the menu, because now it’s just excitement over what’s coming next. Well, that and relief over knowing that the award-winning fried chicken isn’t going anywhere.

Resurrection Ale House
2425 Grays Ferry Avenue
215-735-2202

First appeared in the April 2013 edition of Philadelphia magazine