Thanks to gingerchildren for writing up her crush of the week on Todd Barry because it got me to visit his website and discover the wonder that is his Receipt Museum. I too am a fan* of Mr. Barry and the fact that he SAVES HIS RECEIPTS AND THEN WRITES SOMETHING FUNNY ABOUT THEM might make me entirely too happy for words. Is that sad? Probably yes.
Todd Barry is a sensitive guy, really sensitive. Other guys will patiently read your poetry if you ask, but Todd will actually ask you if you write poetry before you bring it up. And if you don’t, he’ll encourage you to do so. He’ll call you up daily and say things like “Hope you’re writing poetry today!” That said, Todd still has it in him to be “mega manly.” Like when he walked into this East Village restaurant and ordered a bowl of “meat soup.” Hearty, delicious meat soup. The perfect way to fuel up before diving into a seventh re-read of The Collected Poems of Octavio Paz, 1957-1987: Bilingual Edition.
This is just one of his receipts, you should totally stop over at his Receipt Museum and check out the rest. Also buy his records and go see him perform live.
I’d also like to note that he ordered a turkey burger. It’s a kind of burger so this is totally relevant to the scope of this blog.
*You can see on my Last.fm chart for last week that I listened to Todd Barry more than anything else. That’s a thing.
My life is much like that Biggie song “party and brunching” so I introduce you to a new series that I hopefully don’t forget about in a month. Basically I’ll just be sharing with you the brunching I do to recover from the party the night before. See party and brunching, get it? This series is going to be a total disaster, I can feel it. That’s something to look forward to at least.
I will keep this first installation of “party and brunching” short and savory. You will find an ongoing theme when it comes to me and brunch, I like it savory. If I could get a side of a silver dollar pancake or something, I would but usually I have to choose between the sweet and the savory. Savory will always win. Have I used the word savory enough? Ok now I have.
This sandwich was perfect. The bread was hearty and substantial enough to hold up against the yolk of the egg. Oh salty pork roll, how I love you. I’m so grateful to have come to Philly and gotten to know you so intimately. Serious high five for this sandwich. The potatoes were great as well. Not the roasted, crispy breakfast potatoes that are the norm. Instead they were soft and laced with sweet onions. I enjoyed them immensely.
Of course The Tap has a lot of other excellent brunch options. They’ve got your French toast, if you like it sweet, and usually a special omelet of the day. A friend of mine enjoyed bacon, egg and cheese on a bagel. Don’t forget their excellent selection of draft beers as well.
Standard Tap901 North 2nd Street
Philadelphia, PA 19123-2301
(215) 238-0630Brunch: Saturday & Sunday 11am to 3:30pm
I just booked my flight to LA for MaxFunCon and in celebration of this I am writing another MFC related post. Can you feel the excitement! This is quite possibly the best cure for bummer snow days at work.
Jordan, Jesse, Go! or JJGo has become one of my favorite podcasts. Shamefully, while I have been a fan of The Sound of Young America for many years, I only came around to JJGo since their live show in Philly last September. I regret not loving this podcast sooner but better late than never. Jesse Thorn and Jordan Morris make a wonderful duo of hilarity and they have great guests coming from the world of comedy.
I am sharing with you the thing that started it all for me which was their visit to Philly for the Fringe fest. This is sligthly FWTS related because it involves Philly and a hoagie (as seen in the picture above). While the Philly part starts 20 minutes into the audio, you should also listen to the first half because it features Jim Gaffigan and who doesn’t love that guy. The hoagie intervention at the end of the podcast is my favorite part because it features both JJGo and the dudes from You Look Nice Today, another of my favorite podcasts and MaxFunCon performers. For us suckers at work during a day where we should all be celebrating the snow in a bar, listen and enjoy.
Quick update, I have now determined that Rite Aid is my go-to place for Red Vines. The Rite Aid on 10th and Market had not one but three different kinds of Red Vines! They had mixed red and black bites, jumbo licorice twists and regular Red Vines.
I was glad to find these lovelies because movie night is not movie night without Red Vines. And yes this food blogger has a thing for ridiculous flavored Pringles like Taco Night. Also, discounted Valentine’s candy. Not shown: heart shaped Ring Pops.
I have found a reason to love the snow. Two words: snow day. I just had two of them. I have come to realize that snow days are really just an excuse to drink during the day. Here are some tips for daytime drinking during a snow day. Also pretty photo heavy.
1. Find a dimly lit bar with a big window to watch the snow. Bonus points for having a sweet jukebox.
The Royal Tavern has both of the above. Dimly lit but has a big window so you get a feel for the snow without actually feeling the snow. I still hate being out in the snow, but I definitely like it better when I’m sitting in a bar.
2. The bar must offer some kind of warm drink involving whiskey or rum.This is also a warming mechanism. I have found that having a small amount of whiskey flowing through my veins this winter has made me a warmer person. Oh and drunker. Funny how that works.
In this instance The Royal offers a hot cider with rum. Oh and a cinnamon stick which some of my friends may or may not have taken home with them to reuse. Weirdos.
3. Indulge in some kind of comfort food. Preferably a childhood classic and a large serving of french fries. Winter = carb overload. Don’t worry, you will walk it off when you realize that Septa has shut down and you must walk most of the way home.
Vegan Sloppy Joe at The Royal. Look I can eat vegan, I swear! It was good but not great. I think I like my Sloppy Joe a little more on the sweet side. This was more on the spicy side. I still ate the whole thing. CARBS! Their fries are excellent.
4. On the second day of daytime drinking, keep it close to home. You will be exhausted from your previous snow day. Drinking indoors can be exhausting work.
Many of my wonderful South Philly and West Philly compatriots met me at my favorite bar in the city, Johnny Brenda’s. Yes it’s my favorite. You can quote me on that.
They were offering an emergency brunch. I really appreciated this because I was craving something breakfasty.
5. Move to the more brunchy cocktails. You need to slowly sip on these so take it easy. You will be marathon brunching. So have a few cups of coffee and enjoy a mimosa or Bloody Mary. Also hydrate with some water. Basically you will have like 20 beverages in front of you. This is ok.
6. Eat only dishes containing pork and potatoes. Protein for energy and carbs to absorb the booze. Right? Ok, it’s just a good combo. Also alliteration.
Do you see how much pork they have on this menu? Love. You can also get 3 different kinds of potatoes. FRENCH FRIED POTATOES, SMASHED POTATOES, AND GRATIN POTATOES.
One friend followed my strict rules and ordered the Cubano. This is a must try at JB’s. Hot pressed sandwich with pork and cheese. Fries = potatoes, in case you forgot.
Unfortunately, not all of my friends could heed my advice. Vegetarian friend got the french toast. Very good and if you prefer a sweet breakfast this will do it for you.
This is the perfect kind of breakfast for me, ham and cheesy grits. I have mentioned my love for JB’s grits. And again I will beg them to BRING BACK YOUR SHRIMP AND GRITS. COME ON!
Crispy ham, creamy grits and yolky egg.
7. Make sure you do all of the above with awesome friends who will travel miles in the snow for you and brunch for 3 hours.
This is what you get when you play around with my camera while I have stepped away. Ok clearly this logic is false because none of them were holding the camera but still they were accomplices. Seriously though, thanks dudes for making my snow days so epic.
Oh look another meating of BCP, Philly’s premier burger club or something.
Next week we are checking out Devil’s Alley. They have several burger options, including a homemade veggie burger and a turkey burger for you redmeataphobes. Also they have Golden Monkey on tap. This is going to be one for the record books. Maybe there will be some drunken hookups after burger club. One can only hope.
I forget that January and February can be the coldest months in Philly. To escape the cold I find my thoughts wandering to someplace warmer. That place tends to be California and when I think about my home state I can’t help but think about my favorite burger. So here is a slide show from the In-N-Out group Flickr pool. Just because it’s been on my mind.
I swear I am only doing this for my mom who sometimes reads this blog. Also, this was so much fun to be a part of and I like sharing.
I was asked to be a part of the first Food Faceoff (read first) with Philly Mag’s Restaurant Club. This is a series where the Restaurant Club will compare a classic Philly dish with the new kid in town. Doesn’t that sound like fun? Don’t you wish every faceoff was like this? You know instead of like this:
So this faceoff was all about burgers and who better to help with such a task than moi. I thank Joy and Ashley for letting me be a part of this fun challenge. I was happy to try the Rouge burger again because it has been a few years since I last had it. I tried to have an open mind about this burger because I already knew that I had a bias because of my love for the Village Whiskey burger. See here and here.
I really wanted to love the Rouge burger. I remember being blown away by it’s flavor the first time I ate it. This was not the case during the faceoff visit. No flavor. It’s like they had some crazy flavor reducer gun in the kitchen that took away any possible deliciousness of the burger. Even with the gruyère and caramelized onions as toppings, still nothing. It wasn’t inedible but dude it was a bummer. I am not one to usually share negative reviews on my blog. I just really enjoy talking about things I love. BUT for $16 dollars, Rouge you better step it up. You can’t rest on your laurels forever. I am only saying this because a number of folks have asked why burger club hasn’t met there yet and this is why. Overpriced and overhyped.
Oh National Mechanics, I am so grateful for you. When I find myself in Old City feeling scared and out of place, I know I can count on you. You also have the loveliest holiday decorations in all of Philly.
We are very luck to have National Mechanics. Paul, the owner, is a great supporter of all things Philly and he is kind enough to offer his bar to groups in need of an event location. I’ve been to several of these events and they never fail to be fun and awesome. I also want to give a big thanks to our waitress, whose name I can remember sorry! There was another big group there that night and she handled both of us like a champ. She was wonderful. I was especially appreciative of the very kind welcome they gave to burger club the night of our visit. It was the perfect location to celebrate burger club’s 10th meating!
TRENDS:
Top hits:
Bun
Fries
Tied: cheap/service
Top Gripes:
Tied: patty under seasoned/bun
Fries
IN SUMMARY:
National Mechanics has been on my burger club visit list for some time because of their veggie burger. I really wanted to go somewhere where both meat and non-meat eaters alike could come together for the momentous meating. It is also the only place I order a veggie burger over a beef burger. You heard right. It’s just straight up veggies. Burger club members described it as a “veggie latke,” “stir fry patty” and “more of a salad on a bun.” I think the point they were trying to make is that there is a ton of veggies in this patty. It’s all veggie. VEGGIES! Serious colon cleanser. Sorry but it’s true. I don’t think this blog has ever seen the word veggie used so much. Though not all in our burger club crew were a fan of the texture. They wished it were more burger like and I can understand that.
National veggie burger
The National burger is your basic bar burger. The 8oz Angus patty is grilled and comes with a nice char. One of the big gripes with this burger was that the patty wasn’t seasoned enough. Also in a tie for first in both the gripes and hits categories was the bun. Some folks really loved the bun and others thought it overwhelmed the burger. I liked the bun and while it was a substantial bun it was very soft. I think the patty could have used a little more seasoning. Oh the big plus with this burger is that during happy hour it is $6.00! The veggie burger is the same deal. This is the best burger deal in the city.
National burger with cheddar and bacon
As I had somewhat promised, I did have some great giveaways just for coming to burger club and filling out a report card. I got a few goodies from a friend of FWTS and fellow burger club member, girlscantell. You might remember we did a blogiversary giveaway that involved Sara’s amazing burger diagram. Another friend and loyal member of burger club, Kate, donated some really cute burger inspired earrings. The Rizz won them and they are going to look great on him. It’s really fun giving away stuff, I totally felt like Oprah. You get a burger, you get burger, you get a burger… You get the picture. It was a great night and I am still amazed at every burger club that people are actually interested in attending. It is my most favorite thing to do so I thank all of you who have attended the meatings, joined the Facebook group or followed along on FWTS. I appreciate your support and enthusiasm for burger club.
I don’t even know where to begin with this. Let me start here, Marc from Burgatory interviewed Marc Maron about burgers. Yes comedy people love burgers and I’m so excited by this interview that I can’t contain myself. I WANT TO WRITE THIS WHOLE POST IN CAPS LOCK JUST TO SHOW HOW EXCITED I AM but I won’t.
You should totally read the interview first. I’ll wait.
Now that you’re done I’m going to list some of the highlights for me:
Maron knows a thing or two about burgers, “Well there are different kinds of burgers…you’ve got your fast food type of burger, or diner type of burger or you’ve got your fancy burger.”
Maron likes In-N-Out. I don’t think I have to go any further with that, you all know how I feel about INO.
Maron finds cooking meditative, “I find cooking very meditative and it captures my focus and I do it to step down all of my anxieties. We have very little control over most things in life but if you get going with cooking at least you have control for a half-hour.” So very true. I love cooking when I’m feeling stressed.
The whole interview is great and I can’t thank Marc, from Burgatory, enough for sharing it with us. I have been listening to Maron’s podcast for awhile now and it’s one of my favorites. You should totally subscribe to it ASAP. Thanks to WTFpod, I watch this video at least once a day. It is the funniest thing to come out of 2009.
And while I am linking to youtube videos, you should also check out Maron’s Angry Chef web series.
This interview is a great segue into a series that I hope to do where I highlight different food related items that are connected with folks performing at MaxFunCon. As I mentioned before, I AM ATTENDING MAXFUNCON! You know who is going to be at MaxFunCon (MFC)? Marc Maron. See how it’s all related? I always hoped to somehow combine my love of food with my love of comedy and I hope to do that with this series as well as continue building up my excitment for MFC.
I have been telling a lot of people that I will be attending MFC because I pretty much can’t think about anything else. About 98.2% ask me what it is so I will explain it to you all now. As stated on the MFC website:
“MaximumFunCon is a gathering of creative people who wish to be more awesome”
That’s all you really need to know. Awesome people getting together to be even more awesome. It is hosted by Jesse Thorn America’s Radio Sweetheart™ and lord of Maximunfun.org. Basically Jesse has gotten some of his amazing and talented friends together for a weekend of entertainment and fun. Even better he has given us, Johnny Q Public, the opportunity to be a a part of this amazing weekend.
If this sounds like something you would enjoy, which it totally should or we shouldn’t be on speaking terms anymore, you should register to come. The price includes all food, beverages, lodging and entertainment for the entire weekend. I hear it get’s very boozy, the food is excellent AND DID I MENTION THE ENTERTAINMENT! I would love to see some Philly folks at MFC. We could do the Mummer’s strut or something, show them how we do in the Illadelph.
OH man the nerd off on @wfmu between @hodgman and Patton Oswalt makes me so happy. They are talking about Dr. Who! 9 hrs ago
So worth the all ages annoyance to see Small Black back up Washed Out and hearing "Feel it all around" live. And in bed at a reasonable hour 10 hrs ago
Salvation is mine, the bar upstairs is open. 11 hrs ago
"Cake will always be superior to pie. Yes, I'm sorry. For one very simple reason, FROSTING!. Y'all forgot about frosting. Frosting trumps all. Have you taken leave of your senses? You're gonna put whipped cream up against frosting, don't make me laugh. Whipped cream?...Here's how good frosting is, when you are eating it out of the can you feel shame. Must mean it's pretty good. Must mean it's too good, you're not supposed to eat it like that." Paul F. Tompkins on Freak Warf
