The Long-Awaited “Italian Food Disneyland” Is Finally Opening

A rendering a Eataly’s new King of Prussia location / Rendering courtesy of Eataly

Howdy, buckaroos! And welcome back to the weekly Foobooz food news round-up. Just a few quick things to get through this week, including (but not limited to) Eataly’s arrival, Jansen’s departure, a goodbye to Bánh Mì & Bottles, AI sommeliers, Joey Baldino in South Philly, and an unusual one-man Restaurant Week. So let’s get right into it, shall we? We’ll kick things off this week with …

Eataly, Finally

This has been a long time coming. But Eataly — the global retail/restaurant behemoth and Italian food Disneyland — has announced that it will be opening in King of Prussia on Thursday, October 2nd, at 3 p.m.

Can I tell you how long this thing has been a part of the background radiation of Philly’s restaurant scene? Back when Philly Mag still had an office on Market Street and I still had a desk at that office, we would joke about how every time something good happened in this city or every time Philly was “discovered” by some out-of-town food writer, there would be a rumor that Eataly was coming. I wrote about this phenomenon back at the end of last year, saying:

“Every time that happened, there’d be a spike in articles all asking some version of, ‘What the fuck is happening in Philly?’ And a few months after that, like clockwork, there’d be a rumor of some big-time, fancy-pants celebrity chef looking to come to town and show all us rubes how things were done in the Big City. And around Foobooz World HQ, the joke was always that we’d know we’d truly made it as a food city only when Eataly finally got around to opening here.”

As I said then, the joke was always that it was never going to happen. That, outside of Paris or actually in Italy, Philly was probably the last place an Eataly belonged because there’s nothing an Eataly can offer that we don’t already have.

And yet, there is an Eataly in Paris. And there are 11 of them in Italy. And now there’s going to be one at the King of Prussia Mall.

Eataly KOP will be 21,000 square feet, offering everything from a proper, sit-down restaurant with indoor and outdoor seating for 200 to quick-serve counter setups — plus a retail operation and its own wine shop. The restaurant is called La Pizza & La Pasta, and it is focused (unsurprisingly) on pizza and pasta. Specifically, on Neapolitan-style pies and “a curation of regionally-focused cuisine – including beloved favorites like Burrata alla Caprese, Tagliatelle alla Bolognese, Bucatini Cacio e Pepe, Tiramisù, and more.” It also has its own bar program with Italian cocktails, zero-proof options, and a wine list.

The counters are for eating on the go. There’s a Lavazza cafe, a pastry counter, another just for gelato, and Pizza Alla Pala — a place for slices of Roman-style street pizza, panini, and farcita. And that’s all in addition to the freshly baked breads and focaccia, a salumeria, a cheese shop, a meat counter, house-made pasta and a billion acres of imported Italian products.

Okay, so to be completely honest, now I’m kinda getting excited about the place, too. If for no other reason than to see how they can make all of this work together, with the kinds of crowds a KOP location will draw, without the wheels just falling completely off.

The KOP location will be the 17th North American spot for Eataly, and the first in Pennsylvania. And they’re celebrating the opening with 10 days of tastings, demos, and parties. No word on specifics yet, but you can keep an eye on things here. I know I’ll be watching.

In the meantime, what else is happening this week?

Bomb Bomb Is Coming Back Back

Bomb Bomb’s iconic sign / Photograph by Kae Lani Palmisano

Here’s some good news for anyone with a taste for seafood and South Philly restaurant history.

It looks like Joey Baldino — of Palizzi Social Club and Zeppoli in Collingswood — is moving forward with the reopening of the former Bomb Bomb BBQ Grill at 1026 Wolf Street.

The original Bomb Bomb (named after a double firebombing of the place that happened way back in the bad ol’ days) had been open for decades, right there on the corner of Wolf and Warnock, with its cool double-bomb neon, barbecue ribs, and Italian food. But it closed right at the end of last year and has been dark ever since.

Enter Baldino. He knew the place from back in the day. As a matter of fact, he’d loved the place since he was a kid. So when he heard it was closing, he stepped in and decided to keep the tradition going.

The new (official) name will be Bomb Bomb Bar, but Baldino is hoping to keep the classic South Philly neighborhood spot pretty much the same as it’s always been. He’s describing his new version as a “corner bar and seafood grill,” with a crab-and-calamari-heavy menu in the dining room, snacks and sandwiches at the bar, and a welcoming, neighborhood vibe.

There’s no hard date yet, but Baldino has been in the space for a little while now, and the announcement on Instagram says “Fall, 2025,” so I’m going to guess the big day will be fairly soon.

As always, you’ll know more when I know more.

And Now, AI Sommeliers …

Panorama wine bar has recently become a SommeliAI customer / Photograph courtesy of Panorama Wine Bar

As anyone who’s a regular reader of this column knows, I like to keep an extra-special eye on the ways that modern technology is impacting the restaurant industry. Specifically, I’m concerned about the robots and AI that are taking restaurant jobs.

I mean, there were the wok robots at WokWorks. The most soulless Wawa concept imaginable. The AI cookbook author with imaginary Philly roots. And that’s just to name a few. And now, local entrepreneur Julian Rinaldi has launched SommeliAi — an AI wine app meant to take all that pesky (and expensive) human interaction out of choosing a wine to go with dinner.

Here’s how it works:

“Diners simply scan a QR code with their phone or tap a restaurant’s iPad to access rich, AI-generated tasting notes, pairing suggestions, and detailed wine profiles. The app includes a chatbot feature, allowing customers to ask something like: ‘I’m looking for a Northern Italian red wine with soft tannins and floral notes that’s under $100.'”

“AI-generated tasting notes” is a worrying phrase all on its own. But the chatbot? That’s stepping directly into the fancy shoes of a captain or sommelier — the trusted person on the floor who has dedicated some (or all) of their professional life to becoming an expert in hopes of being able to offer that knowledge to you, the diner, at the table.

Yes, I understand that having a sommelier on staff is expensive. Yes, I understand that restaurant profits are thin to begin with, and saving money through automation almost always seems like a good idea on paper. And yes, I understand that not every restaurant out there needs (or can employ) a full-time wine expert on staff. But offloading this labor onto an app seems to me like removing the very sort of human connection that hospitality is built on.

Just look at this year’s Best of Philly winner for Best Sommelier, Jamie Harrison Rubin, and the super-approachable, laid-back, unpretentious wine experience he’s creating at Southwark’s Winewark. Sure, you may (or may not) get a reasonable pairing suggestion out of something like SommeliAI, but even if the machine nails it, there’s still something cold and inauthentic about said suggestion coming from an LLM that understands everything about data analysis but nothing about actual wine.

Me? I’m an idiot when it comes to wine. First, because my tastes run in other directions; but second, because I have always trusted in those smarter or better educated than me to do the choosing. And even when I’m led terribly astray, I at least learn something (what I don’t like) and know that the suggestion came from a place of honesty and an urge to help. I’m not sure I’m willing to trade that connection for the possibility of a higher successful return rate on potential wine matches.

But you can make your own call. This app is already being deployed at restaurants and wine bars around town, including Panorama, Calandrino’s Old City Vino, and La Famiglia Ristorante. Odds are good you’re going to run across it sooner or later. Because the future waits for no one.

Now who has room for some leftovers?

The Leftovers

The last dish of Jansen’s final menu will be the Love Cake made with brownie, caramel Bavarian cream, milk chocolate mousse, and chocolate ganache. / Photograph by Gab Bonghi

Looks like Bánh Mì And Bottles might’ve shut down on South Street. Not sure what happened here (or why reservations are still being accepted), but I’m looking into it. Not a lot of details at the moment. Consider this a developing story.

Out in Mount Airy, though, I can tell you for sure that Jansen is in its final days. September 27th is last call at David Jansen’s New American restaurant, and they’re currently running a final menu of all the crew’s greatest hits. We’re talking tuna tartare with rice crisp and snow pea, scallop Wellington with caviar and champagne beurre blanc, cream of pheasant soup (which is seriously old-school), beef filet with crab fondue and pommes dauphine, and “Love Cake composed of brownie, caramel Bavarian cream, milk chocolate mousse, and chocolate ganache” to cap things off.

It’s a helluva menu to go out on. And you can get the whole thing for $125 a head. They’re also doing à la carte. But just be quick about it, okay? The 27th is almost here, and after that, Jansen will just be a memory.

Hama chili / Photograph courtesy of Uchi

A couple weeks back I told y’all about Texas sushi specialist Uchi finally making its way to Philly and warming up with a couple of preview dinners around town. As promised, now I’ve got details for you on the last one.

Uchi will be collaborating with River Twice for a one-night-only dinner on Wednesday, October 22nd, starting at 5:30 p.m. The menu will be a wide-ranging seven courses, encompassing everything from broccoli rabe with chicken schmaltz and sour cornbread with black truffle and Maine uni to a shellfish boudin blanc with koginut and octopus Bordelaise. It is wild, it is weird, and you can check out the whole menu right here if you need any convincing. You can also make reservations at the same link. Tickets are $125 on the floor and $150 at the chef’s counter. And this one should be double-fun because Uchi is coming to Philly from Austin, and Randy Rucker, chef at River Twice, also came to Philly from Texas many moons ago. “I’m excited for them to bring their unique style of cuisine to Philadelphia,” Randy says. “And even more excited to have more Texans around.”

If you’re not going to be spending September 27th bidding adieu to Jansen with cake and pheasant, here’s something else to put on the calendar: From noon to 4 p.m. on Saturday the 27th, Sor Ynez will be hosting their second-ever Tamaliza. This event (which benefits the Mexican Cultural Center in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month) will bring together chefs from restaurants like El Mictlan, Gabriella’s Vietnam, Little Walter’s, Kampar, Korea Taqueria, and Rex at the Royal, who will all gather to offer their unique takes on tamales in competition and celebration. The Tamaliza is open to the public and PAYG. More info can be found right here.

And finally this week, it takes a special kind of chef to declare his own one-man Restaurant Week. But Townsend Wentz is exactly that kind of chef. So from yesterday (September 22nd) through the end of this week (Sunday, September 28th), Wentz and the crews at all his restaurants around town (Townsend on East Passyunk, Caribou Cafe in Midtown Village, Oltremare in Rittenhouse, Oloroso in Center City, A Mano in Fairmount, and The Hayes on Walnut Street) will be doing their own “Restaurant Week-style” promotion. This basically means a different three-course prix-fixe menu served at each restaurant for just $45 a head. The menus look good, too. Butternut squash tarte tatin at Caribou, coq au vin at Townsend, Faroe Island salmon, and rosemary panna cotta at Oltremare — and that’s just a couple highlights.

Reservations are suggested. And the fun ends this Sunday. So don’t miss out.