Restaurant Review - The Hungry Nomad

Sabrina’s Cafe and Spencer’s Too-Fairmount/Art Museum (Philadelphia, USA)

July 26, 2012 1 Comment

Saturday morning, stomach and fridge empty we decided to go out for brunch. With the help of Yelp we found out that one of the best rated brunch places was right next door. So with a hop, skip and a jump we ended up outside of Sabrina’s Cafe. The restaurant and outside was packed and the wait was over an hour long. But we got offered to sit at the bar and quickly made our way through the restaurant to the back. It was a perfect place to sit since I had a great view of everything that came out of the kitchen. And boy, did everything look tasty!

Our order was taken right away: the burger special for the Count and huevos rancheros for me. After a few minutes of food-watching we were served with what I rate as the best huevos rancheros I’ve ever had. It was presented differently than your typical huevos rancheros. It was served with two blue corn tortillas topped with a smoky chorizo sausage sauce finished with lime sour cream and spicy red pepper guacamole and 2 fried eggs with a side of hash browns and fried jalapeno peppers. I don’t think I need to go on about how amazing this meal was for the photo below explains it all. It was such a large serving but I polished my plate clean. Needless to say I could barely walk after since I was so full.

The Count’s burger special was served with a side of coleslaw and hand-cut fries. He was also very happy with his meal and he is known to be quite the burger snob. He said it was one of the best he has ever had. I can’t really give you details of the tasty burger because I confess I was so into eating my dish that by the time I looked up he was done with his. I could only take that as an indication of how good it was. But I think the photos are an accurate image of the tasty burger.

Everything that came out of the kitchen looked amazing. And every patron looked extremely happy. It is just one of those feel good places with good, rich and filling food in a great environment. In fact it was so good, we have already been there twice since. I guess you can say we are big fans!

Sabrina's Café and Spencer's Too on Urbanspoon

Philadelphia, USA

Osteria- Fairmount/Art Museum (Philadelphia, USA)

July 25, 2012 2 Comments

It has almost been a month since our move to Philadelphia and I have settled in familiarized myself with the city and the dining scene. After some research online I found the top 50 best restaurants in Philadelphia on PhillyMag‘s website. Determined to find out for myself I started my culinary adventure at a James Beard Foundation 2010 Winner Osteria.

Jeff Michaud won best Mid-Atlantic Chef in 2010 and the restaurant was nominated for the ‘Best New Restaurant’ in 2008. Not surprising given that everything from the decor to the wine and house made pasta was beyond perfect.

We went on a Friday night with reservations…a good thing since the place was full. The restaurant is beautiful. It has a rustic yet industrial feel to it. The best part was the glass covered patio looking onto the church next door. It was quite the experience.

As soon as we were seated, we were given our regular menu and an ipad for the wine list. That was a first. Is that what restaurants are doing these days? Anyway, I found it to be a bit confusing and wonder what the not-so-tech-savy crowd would do when selecting their wine.

The menu offers homemade pastas, thin crust pizzas and wood grilled meats and fish. We skipped the antipasti and went straight to ordering our entrees: the lombarda pizza (thin crust pizza with baked egg, bitto cheese, mozzarella and cotechino sausage- $18), the robiola francobolli (postage stamp ravioli served with royal trumpet mushrooms, butter and thyme- $16) and the farfalle pasta (farfalle pasta served made with smoked chorizo, zucchini and aged goat cheese- $16). See Menu

The Lombarda pizza was served exactly as it was described on the menu. The crust was perfect and crispy yet not burnt on the bottom. A few burnt bubbles on the top but not enough to ruin the taste. The flavors of the cotechino sausage and baked egg with the cheese blend and sprinkled herbs made for a perfect combination. The Count and I both loved it and found ourselves eyeing the last piece. I of course always get the last piece since the Count is too nice to say no (but mainly because there was so much more good food to come).

The primi pasta dishes were both delicious. However, we both agreed that the robiolla francobolli was the better of the two dishes. The dish was creamy and covered with butter and Parmesan cheese and quite literally melted in my mouth. It was the first time I tried such a pasta and thoroughly enjoyed every bite. I would have licked the plate if I could but it was a classy joint so I held myself back.

You can really taste the freshness and superior quality of all the ingredients in each bite. Hand made pasta is just something else and in my opinion should become the norm in all Italian restaurants.

Dessert consisted of the butterscotch bonet and chocolate flan with pistachio gelato. When our server described the butterscotch bonet I pictured something resembling a creme caramel. Hence, my surprise when I took the first bite. It was very rich in texture and nothing like a creme caramel. It was doughy and very heavy, drizzled with caramel sauce. It was the one thing I did not like all night. But of course it depends on personal preference.

The Count ordered the chocolate flan and advised me against the butterscotch bonet. So, with eyes that said ‘I told you so’, he refused to share his dessert. You may remember that we refer to him as Count Chokula for his love of all things dark chocolate. Of course he gave in and ended up sharing with me as he always does! That’s what husbands are for afterall. The chocolate flan was warm and gooey in the middle. It tasted like a flourless chocolate cake. The combination of the chocolate and pistatchio gelato made for a perfect dessert.

Glass-covered outdoor seating overlooking the church

Berkel slicer

Brick pizza oven

Vintage Faema Coffee Machine

Osteria was the perfect way to be introduced to Philadelphia’s dining scene. It was one of the best Italian meals I have had to date.

France, Gourmand, Paris

Le Troquet (Paris, France)

October 19, 2011 1 Comment

Today I’d like to share with you a long overdue post on one of the most lovely restaurants I visited during my trip to Paris. Le Troquet is one those places that just make me happy, I could’ve eaten there everyday that trip and be extremely content.

Le Troquet is a small charming restaurant in the 15th with traditional cuisine, and as my local friend told me, always super busy. On the day we visited the place was packed. Lucky us, we managed to get a table without a reservation. Ha!

The restaurant offers a 3-course menu, but you can also order some extra side dishes. All dishes are written down on chalkboards which together with the friendly service, the very good food and the homely presentation of the dishes themselves give the place an effortless warm French vibe. On the whole, I’d say Le Troquet is a great restaurant for a relaxed, cosy dinner with your date or some good friends.

Le Troquet
21, Rue François Bonvin
Metro: Sèvres-Lecourbe

France, Paris, Travel

Eat and Drink at Le Fumoir in Paris (Paris, France)

December 2, 2010 No Comments

What can be more amazing then sipping on a glass of white wine in the evening while staring across the street at the magnificent Louvre? Ahhh Le Fumoir. I had the pleasure of working just a couple of blocks away and found myself on many of nights having a post-work glass(es) of wine at le Fumoir. For me there is nothing more beautiful than the louvre at night glowing under yellow lights. Having a glass of wine while taking in so much history and culture is priceless (the crowd isn’t so bad either so make sure to do some people watching). The decor inside is interesting… books line the walls giving the impression that you are dining in a library. Although I have never had a chance to eat at this fabulous spot I have seen the food they serve and it all does look delicious. I myself like to settle back for a glass of the Sancerre.

6 rue de l’amiral Coligny 75001 Paris