It looks like the tapas trend is headed our way — the folks behind Nectar, Tango and Basil (Scott Morrison, Michael Wei, and chef Patrick Feury) plan to open Maia sometime next year in Villanova (789 E. Lancaster Ave.). Apparently this “European small plate” restaurant will be quite the establishment — it will also include a bar, a dance floor, and a conference center.
A few new restaurants had a presence at the annual WC restaurant festival:
Coming soon from the people who brought us Kildare’s: Doc Magrogan’s Oyster House (site) at 117 E. Gay St. in West Chester. Based on both the Kildare’s connection and what I have read about this place, it sounds to me like a kitchy, Awful Arthur’s-style place where the bar scene is just as if not more important than the food. They’ll apparently have live music as well — local band Blue Sinatra is already slated to play 11/10 and 12/22.
Glassboro casual sports bar & grill Landmark Americana (site) is opening a second location at the corner of Gay & Darlington Sts. The concept is pretty straightforward.
While admitting that I don’t have all the details, I have to say that from a food standpoint, the Oyster House & Landmark don’t seem like that much of a boon for WC. There are already plenty of good bars or bar/grill type places in town — one or two more good restaurants (BYO!), however, could take the area to the next culinary level. It’s a shame that neither of these looks to be much more than another casual watering hole.
One other quick WC note — Canadian chain The Pita Pit has opened at 139 W. Gay St. Falafel anyone?
The long awaited Susanna Foo Gourmet Kitchen is close to reality — estimates say a mid-October opening is in the works. The Philadelphia City Paper has an interesting description of this highly anticipated establishment:
The third restaurant from Food Arts Silver Spoon Award recipient Susanna Foo, the SFGK offers Asian-style tapas and Chinese antipasto dishes in a family-friendly suburban setting. Organic green tea, fresh-pressed soymilk and buckwheat play integral roles in this heart-healthy dumpling house, making surprise appearances in such dishes as Mongolian lamb pillows, steamed diver scallop dumplings and spinach and bean curd pot stickers. The bar menu, similarly, features small plates with options like sesame shrimp toast and Szechwan dan dan noodles with braised pork sauce. (via citypaper.net)
Next door to Foo’s will be Fleming’s Corporate Steakhouse Chain. (OK, so I added a bit to the title). Look for an October 27th launch date there.
The September issue of Philadelphia Magazine has a brief piece entitled “Pig Out”, listing the top 10 Italian style pork sandwiches in the area. As far as the ‘burbs go, Angelina’s Italian Kitchen in Pottstown ranks #2 and Soprano’s Deli & Catering of Broomall ranks #3 — however it is an omission that makes the biggest mark in our book.
How did Luigi and Giovanni’s of Newtown Square not make the list? For our money, their Italian-spiced pulled pork sandwich, with a slice of sharp provolone and lots of homemade roasted red peppers on luscious, chewy, sesame-seeded Italian bread, is one of the best — if not THE best — sandwich around, pork or otherwise. It’s available out front of the store on weekends, and some weekdays as well. If you’ve never had the pleasure, it is worth the detour. (3601 Chapel Road., 610-353-2080)
The Paoli Diner will soon open in the spot that formerly housed Pizzeria Uno on Lancaster Ave. (just east of 252). No specifics are available, but we assume this will be a traditional diner. They are currently hiring.
Here’s a fun fact: The Frazer Diner was originally called The Paoli Diner and located in Paoli before it moved to Frazer in 1957.
The 27th annual West Chester Restaurant Festival is this Sunday, September 17th (rain date 9/24). This is a great event with over 60 restaurants offering every kind of food imaginable, plus over 100 booths of crafts, shopping and other info. There’s live music, a beer & wine area with local spirits, and general merriment among the many attendees. This is a great event for all ages — get to W.C. on Sunday if you can!
