A Walk Through Philly

A few sunny Sundays ago, my friend Emily drove in from Westchester and we took advantage of the beautiful day to take an extended walk. The walk started at my apartment, involved some beer drinking at Belgium Cafe, and ended at The Dandelion where we crashed tea and boozed instead.
The tour was dictated by Emily who spent the first few years of her life in Fairmount and hasn't spent too much time there since. She was literally taking me down memory lane.

Here are some images from out walk

A mural by Shepard Fairey

I have no idea how we got lucky enough to have one of these so close to our front door (its located on 26th and Girard), but let's take a closer look:

love it



Part of a mural by Isaiah Zagar

another part: I love how he incorporate broken bits of trash into his art

Deviled eggs at The Dandelion. They were mustard curry delicious and I can honestly say that I've never had better devilled eggs. I didn't even know devilled eggs could be that tasty!! I would go back just for them!

Murals in North Philly

Some of the best murals (in my most expert opinion) are located in North Philly where a lot of people do not venture on a daily basis. I however, have a few different routes that take me to work everyday that take me by some amazing murals. Here are three that I love. Unfortunatly the quality isn't amazing since I took them from my iphone while in my car on cloudy days...but work with me, ok?

this last one is my favorite, and so powerful

Mural Near Drexel's Campus and Spring Garden Bridge

I passed this lovely mural on the way home from playing Frisbee at 38th and Filbert a few weeks ago. I was riding my bike towards the Spring Garden Bridge going up 31st St and there it was. I just loved it.

Pho Hoa

Last week involved a lot of Pho (pronounced Fuh, but last week we went to Pho Hao for the first time with some friends. The interior is like a sports bar themed Pho restaurant with big flat screen TVs that were playing Dancing With The Stars and Sports.

We started with some non Vietnamese drinks: Chinese beer and sake.

As pictured above, same and Josh both got the crunchy nest of noodles with various stir fried chicken and veggies instead of the baby birds you typically find in nests. The crunchy noodles softened in a sauce and were quite delicious.

However, I was not very happy with my Pho. Unlike at Pho Nam, it did not come with basil, jalapenos and sprouts. I also went for the adventurous Pho with tripe in it and I was disappointed by the chewy stringy texture that wasn't even accompanied by anything near a tasty taste. The beef in my Pho also could have been rarer.

My Pho

Dylan's Pho

okay, so I didn't love it but as you can see that didn't stop me from devouring most of it

I wouldn't run back to Pho Hoa in a hurry. There are many more Pho restaurants to try and I've already established that I love Pho Nam and will probably run back there before trying any other places without a recommendation!

Beer Alert!

This great website outlines all of the beer related activites leading up to Beer Week. Click here to Enjoy!

From My Drive Home: Scenes From North Philly

Mural Arts

Love the Old PGW sign...I'd love it more if they hadn't bogarted all my money this winter

This Sunday I had the good fortune to be invited to the first annual Chestnut Hill Rotary Club Chili Cook Off by my new friend Jaime and her parents (who are members). The cook off featured 12 different chillies from local vendors and caterers. The selection was varied and I was amazing at the different varieties of chili! Below is a picture of the vendors offering my third favorite chili: a chili with chocolate (like a mole) and beer made with cheerios.

The chili was good enough to inspire a future trip to Mount Airy where Earth Bread and Brewery is located. I can't wait to spend an afternoon trying their other dishes and their beer!

Jaime trying some chili while on crutches = talent

Alligator Quinoa chili - not my favorite but very original

My next favorite was the pulled pork by Blue Monkey Catering from Bucks County PA. Its flavors were so intense that I wished I hadn't tried it first. Afterwards, I tried some very excellent chilies of the more traditional brand that just couldn't stand up to it and paled in comparison. Equalling this fine chili was none other than the poblano green chili. Its chef kept his beans on the side. He served up a mean dish of baked beans with ham next to the poblano chili sprinkled with chips and some type of red pepper corn. It was very different and very amazing. The baked beans alone could have won a prize, and along side the spicy poblano green chili it was a match made in heaven. His chili also took home first place.

After trying twelve different chilies (and of course seconds of the pulled pork) Jaime and I somehow managed to split a black bean brownie (not as sensational as its cooks at Food For All claimed it would be but quite moist) we also had room for some cask pale ale from a local brewery. As my blogging skills are a little out of practice I do not remember the name of the brewery. This is unfortunate as the beer was excellent. My B.