Texas-Style Brisket in Bucks County, and More Philly Restaurant News
Plus, fall openings to keep an eye on and a cookie sale to support Planned Parenthood.
BBQ platter at Holy ‘Que in Bucks County. / Photograph by Christopher Devern
A revamped menu of BBQ at Holy ‘Que Smokehouse
Feeling like some BBQ? With this weather (and this upcoming weekend), of course you are. Summers are made for barbecue. And I’ve got some good news for you if you’re out in Bucks County because Holy ‘Que Smokehouse has relaunched itself with a revamped menu of Texas-style brisket and pulled pork sandwiches, and is celebrating National BBQ Month (also called May) by offering free sides with the purchase of any platter. So if you’re out on the road and looking for ribs, brats, brisket, pulled pork or smoked turkey, you can score a free side of pintos, mac and cheese, cider slaw, creamed corn or cornbread, too. Happy Barbecue Month to one and all.
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Forîn gets bigger and boozier
Forîn Café in Kensington is opening a second location with drinks and an expanded menu — it’s set to open this fall at 2525 Frankford Avenue.
The new all-day spot (just called Forîn) will be slightly larger than the original; and have extended hours and a bar and a cafe menu that focuses (as always) on local suppliers and producers. The coffee will be from Moonraker, the bagels from Kismet, the wine from Mural City Cellars, etc.
No hard date yet, but stay tuned. We’ll be watching.
Hook & Master’s outdoor patio opens for the season
Staying in Kensington for a minute, Jose Garces’s pizza/tiki seafood experiment, Hook & Master has just opened its outdoor patio for the season. They’ve got space for nearly 50 guests there, and the whole menu is available for those of you who like eating Chicago pizza and grilled octopus in the sun.
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A cookie sale to support Planned Parenthood
Night Kitchen Bakery is selling “Sugar and Spice & Reproductive Rights” cookies with all profits donated to Planned Parenthood.
From Night Kitchen: “As we watch our Supreme Court Justices backslide on precedent set over forty-nine years ago, we will continue to aid in the community effort to defend a woman’s right to make decisions about her own body. With your help, Night Kitchen Bakery can further these efforts.”
It’s an excellent cause and the cookies look delicious. They’ll be available every day between now and the end of June at Night Kitchen, at 7725 Germantown Avenue.
The new Peabody restaurant space, coming to Temple University in fall of 2022 / Photograph by Betsy Manning
GLU Hospitality and Temple University team up in North Philly
The team at GLU Hospitality (who have been focusing recent efforts in and around NoLibs), are setting their sights on North Philly by teaming up with Temple University to remodel a big space on Cecil B. Moore Avenue.
The new restaurant deal was announced just last week. By fall, the old Draught Horse at 1431 Cecil B. Moore — formerly the oldest bar on Temple’s campus — will transform into a brand-new “modern grill and sports bar” called The Peabody.
It’s a big space—6,000 square feet, with (eventual) seating for 40 at the bar, 150 on the floor, 50 more in a private dining room, plus outdoor seating expected to be installed along Cecil B. Moore Avenue.
GLU has their usual team on deck to staff the new place when it opens. Menus are being put together by Culinary Director chef Hee “Chino” Chang. The booze is being handled by the team that designed cocktails for Vesper, Figo and Leda And The Swan. But GLU owners Tim Lu and Derek Gibbons are working on this project not only with Temple’s president and management, but with the actual school. Once it gets up and running, The Peabody will serve as “an educational and career development tool for the School of Sport, Tourism and Hospitality Management so that students can learn through hands-on food and beverage courses and internships.” What’s more, GLU is working with current and alumni artists on the space, and Temple’s Klein College of Media and Communication will have students working with Kory Aversa (who handles PR and marketing for GLU) to learn how to do opening PR and handle new restaurant launches.
The new spot is planning to launch with lunch, dinner, and happy hour, as well as weekend brunch to be added later. The menu will lean American (burgers, steaks, pastas) with draft beer, classic cocktails like martinis and old fashioneds, and canned stuff like cider and hard seltzer.
Stay tuned for more info on The Peabody as it comes.
