1 night in Philly, where should I go?

I prefer Amis to Osteria, although both are great. We love the pastas at Amis and the pizza at Osteria. Another restaurant to consider is Barbuzzo. Also Italian - small plates. I've been there twice in the last month and had excellent meals both times.

randihowie in Philadelphia

Dinner recommendation for Saturday night in Concord, NH with a foodie 8 year old

LexPatti and Dave, thanks for the suggestions! I think we're going to try the Granite. (I like that they have half portions on the menu, which will work well for my son).

randihowie in Northern New England

Dinner recommendation for Saturday night in Concord, NH with a foodie 8 year old

Chowhounds from Philadelphia are going to passing through Concord on a Saturday night. We are staying at the Centennial Inn. Our 8 year old will be with us, but he is a foodie in training and a very adventurous eater. He's been going out to nice restaurants in Philly and NYC all summer.

We were just in the Lakes Region last month and liked the food when we kept it simple at Town Dock and the Tilton Diner, but were disappointed in the Thai/Sushi place everyone raves about. (Among other things, our 8 year old thought his avocado in the sushi rolls was "too hard").

Based on the board's recommendations, I was thinking of either Sunny's Table or the Granite at the hotel. But I am worried that the Granite is too formal for a little kid. Any thoughts?

Thanks!

Randi

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Town Docks Restaurant
289 Daniel Webster Hwy, Meredith, NH 03253

randihowie in Northern New England

Chowhound from Philly needs recommendations very near the Hilton in Market Center

He did great! Came in 8th in the k-3 blitz tournament (speed chess), and tied for 20th in the k-3 regular chess tournament.

randihowie in Dallas - Ft. Worth

Chowhound from Philly needs recommendations very near the Hilton in Market Center

I am back from Dallas and wanted to thank everyone for the great suggestions. We ended up having very little time to explore the food scene in Dallas, but we did go on a bit of a barbeque tour. We fell in love with Texas barbeque (chopped brisket in particular) and fried okra!

For lunch the first day, we went to Mike Anderson's, which we loved! We had chopped beef brisket, pork ribs, fried okra and baked beans, with strawberry fanta (which I had never had before). My son loved their sauce so much, we took a bottle home. My son also thought the ribbing he took for wearing his Phillies shirt was pretty hilarious.

The tournament that first night ended late, and we were looking for dinner at around 9 pm. We asked the concierge about Fuel City Tacos, and he basically said that it was too sketchy a neighborhood to take an 8 year old at night. So he directed us to Taco Cabana, on Lemmon, which was okay, but at least I saw how to get to Mia's and Uncle Julios.

For a late lunch/early dinner the second night, we went to Sonny Bryan's, which was good, but we liked Mike Anderson's better. I was really tempted to try the korean taco stand next door, but we never got the chance.

The third evening, we had a little more time and went up to Peggy Sue's near SMU. I really loved their barbeque (we tried the pulled pork and the beef brisket) and their tangy sauce, but my son still preferred Mike Anderson's.

For our fourth evening, we went to Mia's on Lemmon. I tried the brisket tacos, because that was supposed to be their specialty, but I just didn't care for them. It had something to do with the combination of flavors for me. Their beans and rice were really good and I did think the place was really cute.

This morning, we were going to go for breakfast at the Market Diner, but we forgot to set our alarm clock and didn't have time to go before having to leave for the airport.

All in all, it was a good eating trip. My son fell in love with Texas bbq and cannot wait to go back for the next national tournament in Dallas in November. Maybe then I can get to the Bishop Arts district!

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Uncle Julios
1125 N Union Bower Rd, Irving, TX 75061

randihowie in Dallas - Ft. Worth

Chowhound from Philly needs recommendations very near the Hilton in Market Center

Thank you for all of the helpful suggestions. I will let you know how it works out.
One more question - is it worth making the trip to Traildust Steakhouse if we end up having time to do that?

randihowie in Dallas - Ft. Worth

Chowhound from Philly needs recommendations very near the Hilton in Market Center

I am going to be in Dallas with my 8 year old for the first time ever to be at a 4 day chess tournament. The tournament is at the Hilton in Market Center. We are both very excited to eat like Texans, and to try bbq, tex mex, and steak, but don't know if we'll have much time to venture very far from the hotel. We are looking for recommendations within 15 minutes or so of Market Center.

Thanks!

randihowie in Dallas - Ft. Worth

Need rec for a quick, good early sat night dinner near 34th and 8th with a tired 8 year old

I am a Philly chowhound taking my son to an all-day chess tournament at the New Yorker hotel, on 34th and 8th. The tournament is on a Saturday and will end sometime between 6 and 7 pm. My son is a foodie, and likes all kinds of ethnic food, but is likely to be very tired and will not want to travel far for dinner. I know that this is not the best food area in NYC, but any suggestions are appreciated.

Thanks!

Randi

randihowie in Manhattan

El Limon - Conshy

My son and I went last night for an early dinner. I had three tacos - the carnitas, asada and pollo - and they were all delicious. My son had a chicken burrito, which was also really good. I didn't have a margarita, but I did have a Mexican coca cola (yum!). The owners were so nice to us. The place was empty when we were there, so I hope it does okay. We will definitely be back.

randihowie in Philadelphia

Need a rec for dinner in Center City with another couple next Friday

Last time we went out with these friends, we went to Amis and all LOVED it. Now the couple is expecting somewhere great again, and I am not sure where to go. The other couple is not a big fan of Jose Garces, I don't feel like a Stephen Starr place, and I don't want to do something as much of a scene as R2L.

Open table has lots of openings at reasonable times (except Osteria, which would have been a good choice). I guess that's late July in Philly for you.

Open for suggestions.

randihowie in Philadelphia

Vietnam Cafe in West Philly?

Thanks, everyone, for the input.

We did go to the Vietnam Cafe last weekend and really enjoyed it. It was actually better than I expected. I was surprised at how big and nice the place was, and we liked that they had a parking lot. This was the first Vietnamese place that I took my kids to that they absolutely loved - my younger son couldn't eat the spring rolls fast enough. We had the spring rolls, grape leaves, meatballs, lemongrass beef on vermiccelli, house special on vermicelli, and chicken on broken rice. Other then the chicken on broken rice, which I didn't really care for, everything else was delicious. Their version of Vietnamese Lemonade (actually limeade) was also especially good - really tart and light.

Because Vietnam Cafe is a little closer than either of the other Vietnamese places we love (one in Chinatown and one in Paoli), this will probably become our go to vietnamese place for now.

randihowie in Philadelphia

Vietnam Cafe in West Philly?

Thanks for the input!

randihowie in Philadelphia

Vietnam Cafe in West Philly?

Has anyone been? Is it good?
It looked like there was also a small pho restaurant nearby on 42 and Spruce. Is that any good?

Thanks!

randihowie in Philadelphia

Help finalizing itinerary in Rome

Maureen - thanks for the advice. Armando Al Pantheon said that they were closed all day Saturday (I thought they were open for lunch), so I am going to make a reservation for Monday dinner there.

I love the idea of going to the Jewish Ghetto for lunch on Sunday. Do you have any recommendations on where to go that might be open on Sunday? The one name I'm familiar with there is Giggetto (hope I didn't mangle the spelling), but it seems to get very mixed reviews on this board.

randihowie in Italy

Help finalizing itinerary in Rome

Hi. I am traveling to Rome with my husband and two boys (7 and 10) in a few weeks.
We'll be there for 3 days before traveling to Venice for a Med cruise.

We're staying at the Albergo Cesari, on Via Di Pietra, near the Pantheon.

After spending a lot of time reading this board, here is our food itinerary so far:

Saturday morning arrive.
Saturday activity: hopefully sleep and walk around hotel vicinity
Saturday lunch: Armando Al Pantheon (reservation pending)
Saturday evening: walking tour of city highlights - ends near Trastavere
Saturday dinner: Ivo or Marmi in Trastavere

Sunday activity: Tour of Coloseum and Palatine Hill
Sunday lunch: ?
Sunday afternoon activity: leaving this one open. Maybe Villa Borghese if we're up for it.
Sunday dinner: Taverna Dei Fiori Imperali (we have our reservations already)

Monday: Tour of Vatican and St. Peters Basilica
Monday lunch: leaving this one up to our guide
Monday dinner: Somewhere low key in the Piazza Navona area - maybe Da Buffetto or Pizzeria Montecarlo (do I need a reservation for either?)

And of course lots of Gelato (will make sure to try Gioletti and San Crispino)

Does anyone have a recommendation for Sunday lunch near the Coloseum?
Any other recommendations?

Thanks!
Randi

randihowie in Italy

Baked on Main - Doylestown

It's on 22 South Main Street. It's just a storefront with counter service, and their menu is really limited. It's the perfect place for a quick lunch or a late-night snack.

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Main Street Cafe
126 E Main St, Elkton, MD 21921

randihowie in Philadelphia

Baked on Main - Doylestown

My kids and I found ourselves in Doylestown this afternoon and, because Jules Thin Crust looked closed (it actually wasn't), we went to a little storefront window called Baked on Main. It has apparently been there about 2 months. The owner couldn't have been nicer and was so friendly and nice to my kids. The pizza was really good - cooked in a stone oven right in front of us. We had a flatbread pizza with pineapple, bacon, mozzarella and spicy thai sauce and a baked bread with sweet sausage, roasted red peppers, carmelized onions and mozzarella cheese. I enjoyed the flatbread pizza in particular because I hadn't ever had that combination before.

It was such a nice experience that I wanted to help them out and help to publicize the place.

Randi

randihowie in Philadelphia

Question about the grand tasting menu at Vetri's

I have never been to Vetri's and would like to go for my husband's birthday in February.
We have the choice of going on a Thursday night, or on a Friday night.
If you go on Friday, you can only get the grand tasting menu.
I know that it is supposed to be amazing. However, we've had the tasting menus at Amada and at Chifa and have come away feeling way too stuffed - almost sick.
Does anyone have an opinion on how the tasting menu at Vetri's compares? Is it too much food? Is it to amazing to pass up?

Thanks!

Randi

randihowie in Pennsylvania