Need Something To Do Tonight?

Hey everyone! Looking for something fun to do tonight? Tonight (October 6, 2011) Chinatown will be holding Night Market. John and I attended one that took place in University City,  which we blogged about, and it was a great time. No worries if you don't enjoy Asian food because there will be a wide variety of choices. Not only will the restaurants and shops be included, but food trucks as well. The event begins at 7pm and ends at 11pm at 10th and Race under the big archway.You can expect a wide variety of food, as well as music and arts.

See you there!!! Pictures to follow :)

For more information go to :
http://nightmarketphilly.org/
or
Inquirer Article

Philly Restaurant Week!

We just wanted to make sure that everyone knows that this is the 2nd (and last) week of the Philly Restaurant Week event. It's a really great deal to take advantage of. You can enjoy lunch at all of the best restaurants in the city for just $20.00 and a three or four course dinner for $35.00. There is a website that lists all of the restaurants who are participating as well as their menus for the event. The site also makes it extremely easy to make a reservation through OpenTable. The event will be over on Friday so go out and try and new restaurant this week. All of the menus looked amazing so it will be difficult to decide where to go. Reservations are going fast so make them ahead of time and be prepared to make a night out of it because the restaurants are super busy!
Last Friday we went to Ristorante Panorama and I would definitely recommend trying it out because their menu had tons to choose from. The fact that they have 120 wines on tap doesn't hurt either :) Tonight we are going to Positano Coast by Aldo Lamberti. Reviews on both of these restaurants are sure to follow.

Happy Restaurant Week!
Website: http://www.centercityphila.org/life/RestaurantWeek.php

The Boston Pie Experiment

  A few months back I was searching on the internet and found what I thought would be a great opportunity for John and I. It was a call to all home chefs to compete in the ultimate pie bake-off. The only set back was that it would be held over six hours away in Cambridge, MA. Even with the knowledge that we would have to travel a pretty far distance I couldn't help but sign up!
  Not more than a day later we heard back from one of the guys who runs the Food Experiments that we could consider ourselves official competitors. From that moment on we worked hard to come up with table decor and a great product. We already knew that we would be making my Great-grandmother's Blueberry Crumb Pie but the true question was how we were going to travel such a far distance with enough pie to feed 300 people. We decided that individual pies would be the easiest and neatest way to serve our pie.
  The week leading up to the actual contest was, to say the least, very hectic. All we could think and talk about was the competition. We began by purchasing our table cloth which showcased our team name (Bones N' Rose of course) and what we were making. We also did a few test runs to ensure that our pie was up to competition standards. Early Friday morning we began baking and continued until about 1:00am. Our living room was literally lined with Blueberry Crumb Pies. Saturday morning we threw in two more batches then hit the road for Boston!With our two massive coolers filled to the top with pies and our bag of decorations we were on our way to our first competition. After a very long drive we finally made it to our hotel and rested before the big day.
  The morning of the competition was very nerve racking. We worried how many contestants would also be serving blueberry inspired pies (the answer to that was two others), and how people would react to our pie. We showed up at the Middle East Club ready for the day. We were happy to see that we were one of the first teams there. As soon as we saw the tight space we knew our table cloth wasn't going to work. This made me upset but I couldn't let it ruin the experience.  At last moment I sent John out on a wild hunt for a red table cloth. Luckily he came back with a perfect red table cloth. We set up our half of a table and were ready to go!
  As the everyone started to pile in we noticed how overwhelmed people were by the size of our pies. Everyone else had their pie scooped into tiny 2oz. solo cups. Ours were prob four times that size! Other than that we were very happy with the way our pies tasted and our table presentation. It finally came time for me to go on stage to present our entry. Although I was very nervous it didn't end up being all that bad. At the end of the day we didn't place in any of the categories but had a great time and felt like it was worthwhile experience. We can't wait for our next competition!

For more information about the Food Experiments go to:
http://thefoodexperiments.com/

Philly Night Market

 We have been so busy moving into our new apartment that we never got to blog about a GREAT event that we went to in the beginning of June! We heard about Night Market through the owner of Plenty, which has become one of our favorite spots to eat. She told us that she was invited to have a table at the event and that we should check it out because it was going to highlight some of the best vendors in Philly.
  When we looked at the website (listed at the end of this post) it said that there probably wouldn't be much parking available so we decided to hop on the subway and head down to University City. We were so excited when we walked up to the parking lot completely filled with food trucks and tents, all serving samples of their best dishes! We were amazed by how many people were at the event and didn't know where to look first, let alone where to eat. We noticed that some of the lines were extremely long so we took a lap around the parking lot to see what was being served before we decided to wait in any of the lines.
 While we were wandering around and looking at what was being offered John saw someone who looked very familiar. I didn't believe him at first but when I turned around I couldn't believe it. It was DUFF!!!! Duff Goldman from Charm City Cakes and the well known show Ace of Cakes! I was even more surprised when John said he wanted to go over and talk to him. I was a little shy and didn't know what to do. Nevertheless we went over. He ended up being extremely nice and cool to talk to. He gave us a lot of great advice and I am definitely happy that John made us go over! We even took a picture (at the end of this post)!!!!
  After composing myself from the excitement of meeting Duff we looked at the last few vendors and then decided to try Dapper Dogs. We both has one of their signature hot dogs and they were both delicious. I ended up taking off most of the toppings because I like my "dogs" plain but John enjoyed his in all its messiness.
  By the time we were done eating we noticed that the skies were getting super grey and the winds were beginning to pick up quickly. I know it sounds like a movie but it was seriously scary. All of the tents were shaking and one of them even started to blow away! We decided to make one last attempt at dessert. This was definitely a great decision because the Butterscotch Krimpet Bread Pudding from MidAtlantic Restaurant and Tap Room was amazing. We quickly scarfed down the small piece and headed for cover.
  We wish we could have tried more of the food because it all look and sounded so delicious but it didn't seem like a good idea to stand out in the parking lot in the thunderstorm and down pour! we hope to be able to go to the next Night Market in August.

For more information go to:
http://www.nightmarketphilly.org/

                             

Who Wants Cupcakes?

 This past Memorial Day Weekend John and I were in New York City for the Phillies game. On our LOOONNGGG trek to our hotel we passed by a bakery called "Baked by Melissa." We didn't have the time to stop then but we made sure to stop in on our walk back to our bus stop. At first glance it seemed like an ordinary cupcakery until we walked in...
  Baked By Melissa specializes in mini cupcakes and when we say mini we mean super mini. These cupcakes are at the very most two bites. They are no larger than a quarter in size but still manage to pack tons of taste. Not only does this bakery offer a different shape and size in their cupcakes but they also have a wide selection in flavors. Some of the offered flavors include Peanut Butter & Jelly, Chocolate Chip Pancake, S'mores, and Mini of the Month (this month was Strawberry).
  After noticing the sign for the bakery it was easy to tell that their signature cupcake is Tie-Die. This cupcake is very simple in ingredient and flavor, however, its vibrant color is what sets it apart. The cake is actually tie-dyed and the icing is a simple white with confetti sugar. This was one of the five flavors John and I tried and we loved it!
  We chose to buy a half dozen of the miniature cupcakes, but after finishing them we both agreed that we could have finished the half dozen on our own easily because of the size. The flavors we tried included: Tie-dye, Peanut Butter & Jelly, Red Velvet, Chocolate Chip Pancake, and Strawberry. The box cost us around $6.00 and even though it seemed a little expensive it was definitely an understandable price because of the Times Square location and detail in each cupcake.
  We would DEFINITELY recommend that you stop by Baked By Melissa if you are ever in New York City! There are four locations, which can be found on their website listed below.

526 7th Avenue
New York, New York 10018
(Between 38th & 39th)
www.bakedbymelissa.com