The Nana Test: La Fontana Della Citta

On one of the recent beautiful November nights, we took the opportunity to grab an outside seat at La Fontana Della Citta, an Italian BYOB near Rittenhouse Square. We've walked past a million times and seen it both empty and packed, leaving us to wonder - is that place any good?

La Fontana can be classified as an average BYOB that suits the purpose of an Italian meal. It’s not the place for special night out or a particularly dynamite experience. But, if you just want a decent bowl of penne, like I did, you’ll walk away pleased.

Let’s take La Fontana Della Citta through The Nana Test.

Atmosphere: Nothing especially unique. The outside seating was a bit too dark, even for November. The meal could have benefited from some more warmth from the waiters, too. Friends have told us that it gets quite boisterous later in the evening when a youthful crowd drowns their pasta with wine. The menu hints at this with some odd warnings such as a two credit card maximum per table, a $16.95 minimum per person after being seated and a request to leave promptly after paying your bill. 3 out of 5

Simplicity: La Fontana has an expansive menu covering just about every Italian dish. The presentation is basically, "here is your dish to eat." Kristy’s gnocchi lacked the ideal fluffiness, but the vodka sauce hit the simplicity notes. Olive oil for the table (which only came after we asked for it) was terrible and could have been a store brand for all I know. Too simple. 3 out of 5

Gnocchi in a blush sauce with random chunks of mozzarella cheese. That last part was awkward.

The sauce: Arrabiata is one of my favorite sauces and I've found many lacking spiciness, or worse just come with a hot pepper on top. La Fontana’s had a deep red sauce flavor with just the right amount of spice. The sauce sums up La Fontana in a nutshell - I could make their dishes better at home, but then I would have to spend the time to make it. In other words, La Fontana gets the basic job done in a pinch. Side note: Di Bruno's homemade jar of arrabiata is a great option for an Italian night at home. 3 out of 5

Penne Arrabiata

Serving size and bread: As the cornerstone of a great Italian meal, it's surprising that La Fontana completely neglected this area. The bread tasted like stale Wonder Bread. Terrible. The serving size hit the Goldilocks note, though - not too much, not too little. 1 out of 5

Antipasti: For only $10, La Fontana provides an above average portion and solid variety of meats and cheeses. The actual antipasti though was a microcosm for the meal - neither great nor bad. 2 out of 5

Antipasti

The secret sambuca test: Our little guy was ready to get going so we did not have a chance to grab an espresso or digestif. I did overhear the waitress tell another couple that they have house red and white wine for guests that don't bring their own. I’ll give the benefit of doubt and assume they had some sambuca. +1

Overall score - 13 out of 25

*Kid friendly? While we did not eat inside, we think La Fontana would be fine with a kid, especially if you're on the early side. It's not a high-end BYOB.

On a related note, we've quickly realized that outside dining is a godsend for newbie parents. It's been a great way to check out restaurants, keep the baby occupied and store the stroller. We're hoping it's a short winter and/or more restaurants will continue to embrace the needs of parents.
 

Gennaro's: Is this Pizza Better than Pizzeria Beddia?

Philly has taken center stage in the nation's Pizza Wars with Bon Appétit naming Pizzeria Beddia the best in America. Sadly, we have not been there yet, and with the lines now reaching preposterous levels, I am not sure we will at all. Anyone want to wait in line and deliver us a pie?

That leaves us chasing the best of the rest, which are probably just as good, like Pizzeria Vetri, Pizza Brain and Square Pie (our current favorite). An overlooked place to throw into the mix is Gennaro's Tomato Pie in South Philly.

Mike Giammarino's cash only, no reservations BYOB serves Philly a little slice of the old NYC Italian pizzerias such as Patsy's or John's of Bleecker Street. It makes sense, considering his family owns Lombardi's in Brooklyn and he ran the Center City spinoff that closed in 2005.

Giammarino returned to Philly in 2013 to open Gennaro's and we're glad he did. His thin crust pies are on par, if not better than, many of the new joints popping up everywhere. Gennaro's low key, neighborhood vibe is enjoyable as well.



We ordered two styles - the white pizza with mozzarella and ricotta cheese and our favorite plain tomato pie with mozzarella, crushed tomato and olive oil. Both were fresh with the distinctive thin crust providing a nice crisp bite.

Old school NYC pizzerias are known for delivering delicious charred taste out of coal-fired ovens. Lacking its own coal oven, Gennaro's suggests cooking their pies a little longer to mimic the flavor. Our pies tasted more burnt than charred so we'd skip that step.

Gennaro's has a new spot on Passyunk Square called Grace & Pat's that serves up "Grandma Style" pies. If the thicker, but not Sicilian thick pizzas, are anything like my Italian grandmother's then I will be a regular visitor. Craig Laban is a big fan. Has anyone been yet?



*Kid-friendly? Yes, Gennaro's is very casual and a fine place to bring kids. There are fun, vintage photos and decor on the walls, and of course the food is right up any kid's ally. It's not huge and the tables are tight, though, so you might want to leave the stroller in the car or by the door.

A Nana Test First: Zeppoli Earns the Perfect Score

A year ago last month, the inspiration for The Nana Test, my Italian grandmother, passed away. The Nana Test began as a simple and different way to grade Italian BYOBs not just on the quality of the meal, but on their ability to replicate the classic, Italian, family-style food experience that my Nana fostered.

Zeppoli's namesake dessert, as Zeppole = fried dough

Since her passing, The Nana Test has become much more than a gimmick on our blog. It's now an opportunity to find restaurants that can rekindle the great times we shared and the lessons she instilled in my family.

The Nana Test has seen its share of hits, but the perfect score seems to be an impossible ask. Do I need to temper my seemingly unrealistic expectations? Or can a 15 minute trip over the bridge to Collingswood, NJ, prove that a perfect score is possible?

Zeppoli, the intimate Collingswood BYOB that soared to legendary status in 2012 with a "Best New Restaurant" nomination by Bon Appetit, has been on our "must" list for years. It's only fitting that we finally visited right around the time of my Nana's anniversary.

The combination of perfectly-executed food, lively conversation with friends, free tastings and plenty of wine all led to thoughts of meals with my Nana. The night felt more like an event than just a meal. Chef Joey Baldini understands the soul of the Italian food experience.

There is no greater compliment that I can bestow on Zeppoli than to say you’d make my Nana proud.

Here's how the perfect score breaks down:

La Viola: Where You End Up with More Pasta After the Bill Arrives

I went to La Viola recently to try one pasta and instead ate three. Here's how.

A year ago my father called me about a pasta so delicious that he thought about ordering another.

While he went against his gluttonous instincts, I did not, but only because he accidentally told me the wrong thing earlier that night - the orrechiette alla romano instead of the fusilli estiva.

Newest obsession: Fusilli estiva at La Viola

By the time he discovered the error and texted me an emphatic and expletive-ridden correction, I had finished an espresso and was about to pay the bill. (The hostess actually came to take the bill twice!) But the fusilli was the sole reason we came to La Viola, so I had no choice but to order a second entree. It also didn't hurt that the average orrechiete made me wish for a more memorable pasta.

The homemade fusilli with cannellini beans, sausage and white onions in an olive oil sauce is one of the best pasta dishes we've had on the Nana Test. I could have ordered a fourth dish to go, ha!

How did the rest of the meal fare in The Nana Test?

South Street West: So Tasty, So Crepe!

South Street West's restaurant row continued to expand during 2013 with the openings of spots like Miles Table, So Crepe and, most recently, Entree. We haven't seen or heard much about Entree yet - have you?? This blog post gives a little history about the chef's Ardmore roots and sourcing of ingredients from Italian Market vendors. 

I've become a fan of So Crepe for Sunday brunch with girlfriends. It has a short menu of sweet and savory crepes, plus 4-5 daily specials. The crepes are plenty big enough for a meal; I'd recommend getting one savory each and then splitting a sweet for the table. Both times I went with a party of three we did this and it was plenty of food. Also, with a few coffees or juices added in the bill was only around $35 total, so it's very affordable. 

My favorite crepe so far has been the "So Chevre" with goat cheese, honey and walnuts (below). The crepe was nice and light, stuffed with plenty of cheese and just enough nuts. I couldn't finish it all and it tasted great heated up in the oven for dinner the next day. Other savory options include brunch-ish ingredients like ham, eggs and cheese, as well as shrimp, chicken, salmon, veggies and even hot dogs. Last visit, I tried a special crepe with leeks, swiss and bacon, which was less photogenic but also hit the spot. 

So Chevre with honey and walnuts, with a little spinach on the side

Fiorino: A Hidden Gem in East Falls

East Falls seems to be the Philly neighborhood without a food identity yet, at least in our minds. It's stuck between Center City and Manayunk without the panache of either.

Lamb shank special at Fiorino

We're not familiar with any food options in East Falls beyond In Riva (which we like) and Johnny Manana’s - not for the food but the central location and colorful exterior. Major Wing Lee Grocery Market has received notoriety for its $3 hoagies. Anyone suggest we go there for Hoagie Quest?

It's against this backdrop that we visited Fiorino and discovered a top contender in The Nana Test. We probably never would have even heard of Fiorino if a friend had not moved in down the street.

Franco Faggi is the owner and chef of Fiorino, which specializes in the cuisine of Romagna, his native homeland in Italy. Franco also offers FREE cooking classes (minus $10 for the supplies). Wow. We'll be looking to check that out.

Let's get to The Nana Test.

Melograno Takes The Nana Test

We wrote about Melograno in 2010 and thought it would be fun to do an update by giving the Center City restaurant The Nana Test.

As a reminder, The Nana Test is our unique way to grade Italian BYOBs. It consists of five elements that best describe meals my Italian family shared at my Nana's house while growing up. Each restaurant is graded according to five criteria and given a score between 1 and 5 (5 being the best).

Let’s see how Melograno fared.

Atmosphere: The big front windows are inviting if you get a seat near the entrance and the open kitchen is lovely if you’re in the back. We’ve had loud conversation over the years and no one seemed to notice or care. Importantly, there is never a push to rush the meal, which creates a relaxing atmosphere. Great place to eat out with a group of friends or on a date; reservations are recommended, especially after summer ends.
Score: 4 out of 5

Simplicity: Melograno has an appealing mix of dishes ranging from pasta to meat to fish. While a straight pasta with red sauce is not on the menu, you can find amatriciana and cacio e pepe - two simple dishes - alongside more elegant options like sweet potato ravioli or char-grilled quail. One of our favorites is the Pappardelle Al Ragu di Cinghiale, or wild boar pasta. It’s a simple dish usually done well.
Score: 4 out of 5

Pappardelle Al Ragu di Cinghiale

Pizza Brain in Fishtown for Food & Fun

We are very excited about all the new pizza places opening in Philly. Our last pizza post was on Bufad at 13th and Spring Garden. Today, the infamous Pizza Brain!

Pizza Brain is two things: a great local shop for slices and full pies of straight up good pizza AND and home to the world’s largest collection of pizza memorabilia (as certified by the Guinness Book of World Records).

Forbes Waggensense

The red and white pies have a slew of funny names and creative toppings. We went with one classic, the Forbes Waggensense with mozzarella, fontina, grana padano, fresh basil and smoked pepperoni, and one inventive pie, the Queenie Delouche with fontina, goat cheese, mozzarella, shiitake mushroom, portabella mushroom, garlic, and fresh rosemary. These pies are BIG (16 in.) so two was plenty of food for four people.

The Forbes was unpretentiously awesome. Thin crust, fresh red sauce, tasty pepperoni and delicious basil. I'm originally from a NJ town close to New York and prefer the thin crust NY-style pizza. This was one of the first pizzas I've had in Philly that reminded me of that.

Bufad Helps Kick Off a New Pizza Wave in Philadelphia

There's another wave of awesome pizza hitting Philadelphia. Thank goodness because we would not be the first comment that this city isn't exactly flourishing with good take out pizza. Sure, there are plenty of restaurants to get fancy pizza - Stella, Zavino, Osteria - and they are all great. In the next few weeks, we'll cover a few of the less-nonsense spots we've tried lately and will definitely be going back. 

Interior - handful of tables for 2-6 people, plus bar stools. 

Bufad was opened February 1 by the folks behind Prohibition Taproom. It's a straight up yet kinda funky 30-seat pizza shop at the corner of 13th and Spring Garden that was packed on a Thursday for lunch when I went (the photo is from after most of the crowd left).

The menu includes fancy-sounding starters that I didn't try, 3 salads, 6 personal size pizzas and a chalkboard of specials, including a soup and panini of the day and several inventive square slices, such as beet with ricotta and salsa verde.

Giorgio on Pine Leads in The Nana Test

Giorgio on Pine is an Italian BYOB located just off Broad Street on, you guessed it, Pine Street.

This is the first time we've put a restaurant through the Nana Test with a large group of 15 people. [Click for our previous Nana Test reviews.] Did Giorgio’s live up to a true large Italian family experience? Yup.

Atmosphere: Giorgio's is your typical small BYOB with tables close together. Conversation throughout the restaurant was plentiful, relaxed and loud like any Italian meal should be. A highlight of the night was a couple sitting next to us who asked why our group of 15 was there (answer: dinner before a Mask & Wig show). This led to a hilarious exchange about members of each party dating, the pleasures of drinking wine and fond experiences with the laugh-so-hard-you-cry Mask & Wig club.

Any place that enables such a conversation gets a perfect score on the atmosphere portion of the Nana Test. My family would fit in at Giorgio's anytime. 5 out of 5 points

Mr Martino's Trattoria: Like Eating at Home with Nana?

Mr Martino’s Trattoria is a small Italian BYOB located on East Passyunk Ave across from Cantina Los Caballitos. We heard about it from South Philly friends because of its long history of serving simple homemade Italian dishes.

Marc and Maria Farnese are the co-owners with Maria being the sole cook (don't call her a chef!) and Marc the host. A true Italian husband/wife combination that is ideal for The Nana Test.

Atmosphere: Mr Martino’s is casual and intimate. The all-wood interior is like an old time saloon filled with antiques collected by Marc and paintings. It’s both charming and purposefully out of step with today’s modern décor. Early on a Friday night we shared the place with only two other parties, so it is not ideal for larger parties with loud conversation. We heard every creak in the decades-old floors.

Mina Cucina: Suburban Italian BYOB

Mina Cucina Rustica is a tiny BYOB located in a small shopping center in the Spring House/Ambler area of Montgomery County, Pa. Local residents might recognize the Wawa across the street that has been there for more than 20 years.

Exterior photo from Patch.com

We heard about Mina Cucina through my parents who have been many times and known the Bompartito family since my father coached their son in high school. The family also owns A Taste of Italy, a Di Bruno Bros. type store that is quite popular in the area.

Clearly, Mina Cucina was an ideal candidate to put through the paces of The Nana Test.

Blue Belly BBQ in Queen Village

Well folks, the great Philadelphia barbecue race has some new additions. Michael Klein of the Philadelphia Inquirer has the details on the two newest spots, Fette Sau and Bubba's Texas BBQ. Even my suburban work town, Ardmore, has jumped on the wagon with Barbacoa.

If any of the above places can match or surpass Blue Belly BBQ in Queen Village it's going to be a delicious race to eat up.

Blue Belly, an entrant from the Giuffi brothers of Cochon fame, opened late this summer. According to its website, Blue Belly brings a Northern approach to barbecue that includes multi-regional styles.

Sounds good to us since we are not barbecue aficionados who argue over preferences and intricacies of the four main types of barbecue. We love all types of barbecue. And Kristy did win a Zokos pot luck contest for her BBQ chicken sliders so we've got some cred.

Inside Blue Belly BBQ

The Atmosphere

Blue Belly is a tiny corner spot at 6th & Catherine with a cool atmosphere. You can choose to sit at the counter, one of a few picnic tables or get takeout (a popular choice according to the host).

We love counter seating so we jumped on the open spots one Sunday afternoon. The chance to chat with the chef and watch our food being made always enhances the entire food experience.

Win $100 to Ulivo from CityEats.com! Contest ends 10/21

Last weekend, we revealed a new series that will review Italian BYOBs in the Philadelphia area according to the "Nana Test." We already wrote about Ulivo in Queen Village as part of that series and now, thanks to CityEats, our loyal and hungry readers have the chance to win $100 towards your own delicious "Dream Dinner" at Ulivo, too.

It's SO easy. There are 3 ways to win:

1. All existing email subscribers to 22nd & Philly are automatically entered. Yay for you!

2. Anyone else who registers for email updates from 22nd & Philly between now and October 21 will also be entered to win. Sign up right here or at the top right column of your screen.

3. Go to the 22nd & Philly page on Facebook and share this post with all your friends so they can enter, too.

If you sign up for the email AND share this post on Facebook, you'll be in the running twice. Entry deadline is October 21, 2012 at midnight. We'll put all entries into a hat and pick a winner to be announced October 22.

Why is this worthwhile? $100 is a big deal people, and at a BYOB like Ulivo it will go a long way. You'll see in our review that Ulivo is worth the visit. Don't believe us? Our friends at Two Eat Philly loved Ulivo, too. Here is the current seasonal menu on CityEats.com.

A few rules:
1. The $100 has to be spent in one sitting so we recommend going in a party of 3 or more people in order to spend that much. That's the beauty of a BYOB. Your friends will thank you.

2. The winner must make his/her reservation through CityEats.com, a website created in partnership with the Food Network to book reservations and get a sense for the restaurant experience before you even go.

Who wants in?? Start signing up and sharing on Facebook today!

Ulivo is Up First in "The Nana Test"

Bucatini all'Amatriciana

Our recent visit to Italian BYOB Ulivo was good timing, as we just launched a series of reviews according to "The Nana Test" - a set of criteria that compares local Italian restaurant experiences to traditional Italian dinners with the family at grandma's house. Each item is rated on a 5-point scale, with 5 being the best.

Keep in mind that Ulivo's menu changes seasonally, so we had the Fall 2012 menu. If you go another time of year, some things may be different.

Here is how Ulivo fared in The Nana Test:

Introducing The Nana Test: A New Way to Review Italian Restaurants

Some of my all-time favorite meals were at my grandmother’s for home-cooked Italian food. She sets the standard for any Italian meal I eat. Her sauce is just incredible and it is the reason I started licking my plate clean at a young age. Don’t even get me started on her pasta aioli.

Even more important than the actual meal, though, was the environment. Her cooking brought the family together and embedded in us the importance food has in creating positive memories and traditions. They are the foundation of our blog and the prism through which we look at the Philadelphia food scene.

This city and its suburbs are lucky enough to have a long list of cultural restaurants that could remind any of us of our grandmothers' cooking. It’s one reason why a series of posts on Italian restaurants has long been a goal of ours.

The struggle has been to come up with the right way to evaluate them. The perfect idea hit me like a rolling pin to my head while cooking my own pasta the other week: The Nana Test.

The Nana Test consists of five elements that best describe meals my family shared at my Nana's house. We will focus primarily on BYOBs, each graded according to these five criteria and given an overall score between 1 and 5 (5 being the best).

Sidewalk Dining at Audrey Claire

Why oh why did it take us 6 years to eat at Audrey Claire??
— 22nd&Philly (@22ndandPhilly) June 16, 2012

That was our final tweet on a recent Friday night. A last minute decision to grab a bottle of white and dash over to Audrey Claire at 20th & Spruce before the rush finally, and deliciously, broke our streak.

A neighborhood mainstay for Rittenhouse Square and Fitler Square since 1996, Audrey Claire is a no frills, cash-only BYOB that is packed most nights. It only takes reservations Sunday - Thursday so either go then, arrive early on the weekend, or join the crowd that gathers outside waiting upwards of an hour for a table.

Our Take on Craig LaBan's Favorite New American BYOBs

Despite the snow, this week is a hot one for the The Philadelphia Inquirer's food section, with restaurant critic Craig LaBan releasing his updated list of four-bell establishments, as well as his top picks across a few key categories for local eaters. While an expert review from LaBan has been known to make-or-break a restaurant's immediate future, we often hear people comment that they read them with a grain of everyman salt. The majority of us aren't quite as worried about whether the chef's complex inspiration shines through or the flavors display the intricacy of a snowflake. Good food, strong drinks and pleasant service is all we ask for.

On this blog, we've always admitted to having an untrained eye and simply reporting back whether a restaurant meets the average person's expectations. In light of Mr. LaBan's newest "it list" of restaurants (which we willingly read and appreciate, with the aforementioned grain of salt), here are our takes on a few of his favorite New American BYOBs, released today. Tomorrow he'll reveal his favorite gastropubs, Italian, full service New American and more, so we'll provide a similar summary of our views.

Light, flaky skate. My favorite at Pumpkin.

Pumpkin - The menu changes each week but Pumpkin maintains a hallmark of fresh, local ingredients, lovely presentation and creative mix of seasonal flavors. The $35 tasting menu on Sunday is the best deal; check out our review for recommendations on who to take with you and other key things to know before you go.

Blackfish - I'm sorry, but it just wasn't that amazing. It wasn't bad... we had great fun with friends but the food just didn't knock our socks off like other reviews have claimed (except the beignets, I'll give 'em that). Perhaps that's why we haven't been motivated to write about it. I know, we should go back. Maybe.

Matyson - We went about two years ago and I remember it being good - and a little bit noisy - but that's about it. For whatever unrelated reason it never made the blog but yes, we can vouch that it is good. Top 5? Eh, I guess not in our book otherwise we'd remember it better.

We have not been to The Farm and the Fisherman or Fond yet. On the list.

LaBan's list only looked at "New American" BYOBs, but of course there are dozens more in Philadelphia serving international cuisine. Among our favorites are Koo Zee Doo, which we recommend to anyone who wants to deviate from the norm with rich Portuguese flavor and menu options. Melograno is also a top Italian BYOB pick, but perhaps it will make LaBan's Italian list tomorrow. Here are all our BYOB reviews for browsing at your leisure.

Be back tomorrow with the rest of LaBan's top picks...

Neighborhood thai at Sawatdee

We were sitting out on our stoops one Saturday night chatting with neighbors when Bradd suggested we try the area's new thai BYOB, Sawatdee. Our party of five rolled down to 15th and South with a handful of beers and no reservation but the staff at Sawatdee didn't think twice about shifting some tables around to accommodate us.

Sawatdee turned Pico de Gallo's old corner spot into a little neon green haven of good food for low prices. In addition to dinner, they have a three-course lunch special for $9.95 and offer take-out. I recommend a reservation for dinner because it always looks packed when we walk by. It's probably not big enough for a large group, but is a fun spot for a party of 4-6 friends.

Shrimp Pad Thai

The appetizers we started with were all very satisfying: Ka-Nom-Jeep (chicken and shrimp dumplings), Por-Piah-Sod (spring roll with crabmeat, sausage and a lot of other stuff) and Satay-Gai (grilled marinated coconut curry chicken with peanut sauce). The dumplings were my favorite of the three - nice and light, not rubbery. While chicken satay always seems a little boring to me at parties, Sawatdee's peanut sauce was such a big hit at the table, I think some spring rolls ended up dipped in it, too.

I tend not to get very adventurous with thai food, mostly because I just love shrimp pad thai. Sawatdee delivered a solid rendition of the traditional dish (listed as Pad-Thai-Gung on their menu) so I cleared my plate and left happy.

943, an Argentine/Italian BYO in Philly

Update: We're bummed to report that 943 closed in early 2013. We're hoping chef Pascual lands somewhere awesome soon. We'll be first in line to try it out. 

Long-time readers of 22nd & Philly know we started the blog to share our experiences with the food culture and restaurants in Philadelphia. Our focus on the overall "experience" comes from the belief that memorable meals are defined by more than just food. If you think back to your favorite meals, you are sure to uncover fond recollections about the conversation, people and atmosphere, too.  

This defines our recent visit to 943 in a nutshell.

Several weeks ago we shared tweets with fellow food blogger, phillyfooddude, about going to 943. The exchange led to a visit that lasted more than three hours and who knows how many bottles of wine. It had all the attributes of a great experience, including good company and conversation on top of excellent food.

943 opened earlier this year and is located in the heart of the Italian Market.  Much like one of our other favorite BYOs, Portuguese-inspired Koo Zee Doo, 943 brings a unique food culture to the city with its Argentine/Italian blend.