Common Wealth

Common Wealth (319 Market Street) was the destination for brunch on one lovely Sunday. I really like the feel of the place. The establishment was cute and homey. Since it was the holiday season, there were christmas lights up and a tree by the front window.  The restaurant was kind of empty for a Sunday afternoon except for a large party in the back. I guess alot people don't like going out when it's cold. Well, I suppose it is better that way. We had good customer service and a suitable environment to talk. Below was what I ate. Of course, as like many of my brunch excursions, I experienced both savory and sweet goodies.

I ordered the Parfait Stuffed French Toast (house-made challah, sweetened vanilla greek yogurt, walnut streusel, and cinnamon maple). It came with home fries and ketchup on the side. The toast was overall good. Although the toast was describe as stuffed, I didn't see anything inside/between the toast nor did I see any walnut streusel. It was more like fluffy bread marinated with a sweet goodness that it didn't need any syrup. The French Toast was topped with what I assume was melted butter which went well with the sweetness of the toast. The home fries were small diced potatoes fried with some greens and onions. The potatoes were fried on the outside and soft in the inside. They were not crispy but nonetheless very tasty.

Parfait French Toast

For the table, we got Shrimp and Grits to share. The dish came with the perfect amount of shrimp (5). Everyone was able to get a shrimp with some grits. This was first time I ever tried grits. I thought I would enjoy it because it looked like the texture of cream of wheat, oatmeal, and porridge and I like all of those things. I was wrong. I didn't like the grits. The taste was okay, but it was the texture that I did not like. It tasted like warm cottage cheese with many tiny little grains and some mildly bigger pieces in it. The shrimp and gravy on the hand were delicious. The shrimp was cooked to perfection and the gravy was very flavorful. I can see myself coming back to this place again to try other things if an opportunity presents itself aka if I am around the area.

Shrimp and Grits

The Twisted Tails

As a pre Thanksgiving dinner, two of my friends and I went to The Twisted Tails (509 South 2nd Street). I thought it would be a nice place because it had good reviews and live music on Tuesday nights. The restaurant had both inside and outside seating. Inside, the bar was located at the center of the establishment. There were tables in front of, to the left, and to the right of the bar. We were seated at a table away from the entrance side, away from the live music, and to the right of the bar. The serving sides were on the smaller end. The waitress, who had someone tailing her, recommended two plates per person.  On a side note, I pondered if the person following the waitress was a trainee, supervisor, or a stalker. It was just so weird that the waitress didn't introduce that person following her. Okay, back to the purpose...the food. We ordered 5 plates in total and received 3 complimentary desserts. I would like to apologize for the picture quality in advance. It was fairly dark in the restaurant.

Dinner came with complimentary house popcorn. I think the popcorn was made with bacon grease along with other things. It was fresh, very savory, and addictive. I also thought it was the best food of the night.

House Popcorn

The Crispy Cauliflower Flatbread with yogurt, almond, and parsley was okay. I was expecting flatbread made from cauliflower; however, we got a crispy dough with cauliflower, yogurt, almond, and parsley on top. I was disappointed that the crust was not made from cauliflower. I have been hearing good things about using cauliflower as a substitute for crusts and been wanting to try it. I became more disheartened with the fact that the dough was fried. The flatbread was like a big circular fried wonton skin. The fried dough was way too heavy for me. I wished it was just regular flatbread. The cauliflower floret along with the other topping were okay. Nothing really positively stood out for me.

Crispy Cauliflower Flatbread

The Roasted Pumpkin and Burrata Cheese with cinnamon, maple, and bourbon wasn't a favorite. I am usually surprised with the pumpkin dishes at restaurants. They had always exceeded my expectation. I decided to give this pumpkin dish a try. Unfortunately, I was wrong about this one. The pumpkin was heavily seasoned with cinnamon. I think this was my second time having Burratta and it's alright. It comes in a ball. The outside is mozzarella and firm while the inside is like cottage cheese and has a cream flavored. In my opinion, this cheese have a more milky taste versus an aged taste. The pumpkin was warm and the cheese was cold. I didn't think it was a good combination at all. I thought the dish would have been better if it was just a piece of roasted pumpkin.

Roasted Pumpkin and Burrata

The Crawfish Mac 'n' Cheese with aged cheddar and toasted breadcrumb was a little watery. I think the sauce is one of the most important factor in a mac n cheese and this sauce failed me. It was not creamy and it was bit too salty. On the bright side, the macaroni was cooked well and tender, but then again, since the dish was salty we could not really eat much of it.

Crawfish Mac 'N' Cheese

The Mushroom Fricassese Gnoochi with basil, ricotta, and parmesan was interesting and grew on me. The gnocchi tasted different than any other gnocchi I had in the past. The gnocchi I had before were somewhat firm and chewy. These gnocchi were more doughy. They were shaped into little rectangles and pan fried on the top and bottom. While two sides of the gnocchi were somewhat crispy, the rest was soft and more crumbly when you eat it. As I ate them and got use to the texture, it wasn't bad. They were unique, but good and tasted well with the parmesan, basil, tendered mushroom, and ricotta. I would say this was my favorite dish of the night except for the free popcorn, of course.

Mushroom Fricassese Gnocchi

I didn't eat the BBQ Smoked Ribs. According to my friends, the BBQ Smoked Ribs was okay.  I did get to taste the Celeriac Slaw that came with the ribs. It was very bland. The dressing tasted like watered down  mayonnaise.

BBQ Smoked Ribs

When the waitress came to take the finished foods always, she asked if we were done with the mac 'n' cheese. My friend commented yes and told her that it was salty. The waitress came back shortly and offered us complimentary desserts to make up for the subpar mac 'n' cheese.  One of the dessert was a thick coffee and chocolate ganache thing with whip cream on top. The dessert was rich in coffee flavor which was nice, but I didn't like the consistency of the ganache. I think it would be better if it was more airy and mousse like.

Coffee and Chocolate

The other desserts were Pumpkin Cheesecake and Sorbet. I thought the cheesecake was good. It was creamy, not too sweet, and there was pumpkin flavor from the puree. By all means, it wasn't spectacular but nonetheless delicious. The sorbet was okay. There was a sweetness to it, but I thought the lemon flavor was too strong.

Pumpkin Cheeesecake and Sorbet

Overall, unfortunately, I wasn't impressed by the foods. One of my friends had been there before and stated she had the mac 'n' cheese as well as other foods and they were delicious. She remember the mac 'n' cheese being creamy, but the one we got was watery. I am not sure if we ordered the wrong foods or if we came on a off night.

Cafe Olé- Shakshuka

Cafe Olé (147 N 3rd Street) is a Mediterranean cafe offering coffee, tea, baked goods, breakfast and lunch foods, and Shakshuka. The cafe had a good number of seating outside and inside. It was quite busy when my friends and I visited the cafe for brunch. There was a continual flock of people ordering take out drinks and foods. 

Three of us shared the Vegetable Shakshuka. Shashuka as described on the menu is "a staple of Middle Eastern cuisine featuring three eggs poached in a lightly seasoned tomato sauce." Cafe Olé's Shakshuka is from a family recipe originating from Tunisia and has been passed down to many generation. I was very excited to try the Shakshuka because it looked delicious from the yelp pictures and it seemed like something I would like (l love eggs and tomatoes). The Vegetable Shakshuka supposedly had spinach, chick peas, potatoes, and mushrooms; however, my friend and I noticed that there were no potatoes. We were disappointed but later excused that fact because we asked for two servings of bread which essentially made up for the missing starch. The flavorful and delightful tomato sauce was served with bread. The bread reminded me of the one from the Cafe Fulya featured on this blog and unfortunately closed down. It was soft and airy inside, but hard and somewhat crispy on the outside. The bread soaked in the warm tomato sauce was amazing. The runny yolk from the eggs definitely positively added to the eating experience. In addition, there was a small bowl of feta cheese soaked in olive oil that come with this order. I am not sure if we were suppose to pour the cheese into the Shakshuka or dip the bread into the cheese. I just ended up not touching the cheese. I really enjoyed the Shakshuka. It was so tasty and hearty.

Vegetable Shakshuka

Of course, one of friends and I were being fatties and decided to share something sweet together. We got the waffle and fruits on the breakfast menu. It wasn't as good as I hope it to be. The waffle wasn't crispy on the outside and the dough was subpar. My friend commented that the dough tasted like pancake mix. I agree. It tasted like pancakes made in a waffle maker. It was dissatisfying to get a waffle that tasted like pancakes. On the bright side, the fruits were fresh and sweet.  Overall, I would like to come back for more Shakshuka and to try other things on their menu such as the pastries and sandwiches. 

Waffle and Fruits

Liquid Nitrogen Ice Cream

During the summer, my friend told me she saw a sign that Happily Ever After was offering liquid nitrogen ice. I wanted to try it. We went together on a hot day. I watch too much youtube videos so I was expecting something along the line of that I saw on the dragon breath liquid nitrogen ice cream videos. I was expecting to see my breathe as I exhale after eating the ice cream; however, that was not what I got:( 

The ice cream here was made with liquid nitrogen to produce a denser and creamier ice cream. I would say its' consistency was in between ice cream and gelato. We ordered the green tea flavor ice cream. Although there was no dragon breath action, the ice cream was still good. As for the dragon breath to happen, the ice cream would have to be coated with liquid nitrogen. Maybe one day, I will get a chance to try it.

Green Tea Liquid Nitrogen Ice Cream

Race Street Cafe- Gardenburger

Race Street Cafe (208 Race Street) contrary to its name is more of a bar. When you enter, you walk up the stairs. The bar is in the front and curves around and to the right of the bar is the seating area. In the middle of the room, there were tall tables and chairs. Against the wall are normal height tables and chairs.

Gardenburger

I ordered the Gardenburger. It came on a pita with lettuce, tomato, red onion, and pickles with ketchup and spicy honey mustard. It is suppose to come with French Fries but for extra, you can substitute the regular fries with sweet potatoes fries or a side salad. I decided to get the sweet potatoes fries. Everything was delicious. The sweet potatoes fries were very crispy on the outside and tender in the inside. I ate the gardenburger with spicy mustard sauce. Although I am not sure what the burger was made out of, the texture can be passed as meat. I am assuming it was seitan. It was very tasty on the soft and fluffy puff bread with the fresh vegetables and pickles. I practically engulfed the dish within a few minutes aka I finished eating first than everyone else. Honestly, I was surprised by how much I would liked this place because it only had a 3.5 star on yelp and the place was less packed than I expected to be on a Friday evening. I am glad I came here and would definitely like to come back. 

Veggie Skillet at National Mechanics

After working out one day, we decided to head to National Mechanics (22 S. 3rd Street) to try their skillets. I got the veggie skillet and it was delicious. The ingredients were so simple yet it was made so good. I am definitely going to come back for more or I am going to try make it myself. 

Veggie Skillet

The veggie skillet came with two poached eggs, spinach, broccoli, mushrooms, oaxaca cheese, and potatoes. When you break the poached eggs, the yolk oozes over the potatoes and veggies. The way the potatoes were cooked were delicious and addictive. It tasted like little cube French fries. I never had oaxaca cheese before. I thought it was chewy and good. The vegetables were tendered and well flavored. I just love how everything went so well together in the dish. And the egg yolk from the poached egg really added to the dish. This was very satisfying. 

I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream for Ice Cream

After rollerskating, my friends and I went to Franklin Fountain (116 Market St.) for ice cream. The line was long and extended out the door; however, it went by quite fast. Since it was later in the evening, most of the popular favors were sold out. I wanted to try cherry almond walnut, rocky road, or ginger but later discovered that all three were sold out. Then I decided to get the Maple walnut but that got sold out, too. Finally, I decided on the hydrox, but as I got toward the front of the line it sold out. My friend suggested that I try something new and the only flavor we were not sure of was Whirly Berley. After googling it, we found out it was basically chocolate and salty caramel. I got the Whirly Berley with a handmade waffle cone. You can either get the ice in Chinese looking take out boxes or in a waffle, sugar, or regular cone.

Whirly Berley Ice Cream

The ice cream was awesome but I cannot say so for the waffle cone.  The Whirly Berley was creamy, rich, chocolaty and have little crystallized caramel in it. I didn’t really taste the saltiness of the caramel. Nonetheless, everything blended well together. I was licking/eating the ice cream non stop until I finished it off completely. The waffle cone was hard and hard to chew. It was not somewhat crunchy like what I expected a waffle cone to taste like. I want to say it is stale but it’s not. It was just super hard. I guess I should have just stuck with only the ice cream which this place is known for. No more cones for me in the future.

Tasty Grilled Veggie Sandwich

Some of my friends and I were wondering around Olde City one evening and couldn’t decide where to eat. Then one of my friends found a yelp check in discount ($10 off $30) for JJ Bootleggers (35 S. 2^nd St). Of course, we went there because that’s how we roll. The place was quite packed. We had to wait like 20 minutes for a table. There were not a lot on the menu I could it eat---it was basically between 2 salads, 4 appetizers, and the grilled veggie sandwich. I decided on the veggie sandwich. And although this place is known for moonshine, no one at our table ordered it because we are cool like that.

Grilled Veggie Sandwich

The Grilled Veggie Sandwich came with lettuce and different grilled vegetables (squash, red pepper, kale, and onions) as well as a side of French Fries. The grilled veggies were tendered and seasoned well. I enjoyed the vegetables especially the kale. The French fries were good, too. It reminded me of McDonald’s French fries except they are not as greasy and there wasn’t a surplus of salt sprinkled over them. It was a pleasant dinner. The veggie sandwich definitely made up for the limited vegetarian options. I would rate the sandwich a 5 out of 5. I would totally recommend this to all my fellow veggie lovers out there.