Category Archives: Coffee

Returning to Ray’s Cafe and Tea House

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When I lived in Philadelphia before, Ray’s Café and Tea House was a reliable go-to spot for food, tea and coffee. The food was always consistently good and simply prepared and the coffee and tea selections were always something special.

Ray’s Cafe & Tea House

Before moving to Philly, Holly and I were visiting my family here and Ray’s was high on my list of places to take her. As things worked out, we were only able to stop by for coffee, which, of course, was delicious, but it wasn’t the full experience.

For one reason or another, in the year-plus we’ve been living in Philly, we hadn’t gotten to Ray’s. That all changed during our winter break when we had the time to go to Chinatown to have lunch there. It probably had been about five years since I a meal there and I was curious to find out if it is still the awesome Taiwanese restaurant it had always been.

I’m happy to report that our recent visit lived up to my fond memories.

For lunch, we ordered two of my favorite dishes: the leeks boxes as an appetizer and the sesame shrimp with broccoli for an entrée. The leek boxes are similar to pan-fried dumplings and are stuffed with egg, glass noodles, and, of course, leeks.

Leek Boxes

Sesame Shrimp

We also tried Ray’s take on one of Holly’s favorite dishes (from when she lived in Taiwan) and shared a bowl of beef noodle soup. Holly really enjoyed the taste of the broth, the tenderness of the beef, and the nicely chewy noodles.

Beef Noodle Soup

As I remembered, everything was fresh and nicely prepared. Most of the dishes at Ray’s are pretty simple and I mean that as a compliment. Nothing if overly fancy and the care of the preparation shines.

We finished our meal with a couple of siphon coffees (Ray’s web site has a good explanation of the process). Holly had a Japanese Charcoal Roasted coffee and I had the Hawaiian Royal Kona. An argument could be made that this is the best brew in the city, although we’re lucky to have so many great local options. The coffee always comes in a unique mug and is accompanied by a small cookie.

Siphon Coffee

I’m glad after several years that Ray’s is a good as I remembered it to be and won’t be waiting too long to get back.

Ray's Cafe and Tea House on Urbanspoon

An Evening of Coffee and Digestives with Slow Food Philadelphia

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On December 13, 2012 we attended a Slow Food Philadelphia Seminar on Coffee and After Dinner Spirits/Digestives, featuring Joe Cesa of Philly Fair Trade Roasters. This was our third Slow Food Philly seminar of 2012, and we can’t recommend these seminars highly enough. At $20 per person ($25 at the door), we think this is an amazing value for two hours packed with learning and tasting, all with an emphasis on local and sustainable food and drink.

Joe Cesa spoke passionately about fair trade coffee, which clarified what fair trade is all about and why it is important, especially in regards to the living and working conditions of the farmers. Then we watched the short documentary, After the Harvest: Fighting Hunger in the Coffeelands, in which we learned more about the lives of the coffee growers straight from the people themselves. Between hearing Joe speak and watching the film, we were all very moved about the human experience involved in the coffee industry.

While we watched the video, Joe’s assistant Bobby came around with samples of four different Philly Fair Trade coffees: Costa Rica Medium, Nicaragua Full City, Guatemala Dark, and Decaf Mexico. We were already big fans of the Costa Rica Medium, and after trying the others, it remained our favorite. We were impressed by full flavor of the Decaf Mexico, though, and would definitely recommend it to decaf drinkers. Joe also shared some tasty Market Day Canelés to enjoy with our coffees.

We had some internet problems while streaming the video, and a few times had to pause the video to let the buffering catch up. Interestingly, this technical difficulty turned into a wonderful opportunity for discussion. As this was a smaller-than-usual group, we were able to interact in a more intimate way, and everyone there was very engaged in the topic.

Now, let’s not forget the booze. Joe Brandolo of Slow Food Philadelphia brought an excellent selection of after dinner drinks for us to sample and talked about the benefits of digestives after a meal. The spirits included Jacopo Poli Mirtillo Blueberry Grappa, Argiolas Limonsardo Tremontis, Nardini Aquavite di Vinaccia Bianca Grappa, Giokarinis Samos Ouzo, St. John Commandaria, Nardini Aquavite di Vinaccia Riserva Grappa, and Centerba Toro. Tom and I both started with the Ouzo, which Joe explained was actually an apertif. It was better than any Ouzo either of us had had before and we quite enjoyed it. After the Ouzo, Tom tried the Nardini Aquavite Riserva from Veneto, and I tried the Centerba Toro from Abruzzo. Tom had never been a grappa fan, but the Nardini turned him into a convert. I truly enjoyed the Centerba (“100 herbs”), which was fantastically herbal and complex, with a pale green color. Most of what we were able to try is not easily found in Philadelphia, so we appreciated Joe sharing with us.

Since we already buy Philly Fair Trade Roasters coffee as part of our commitment to supporting locally roasted coffee, it was wonderful to meet Joe Cesa in person, and it was great to recognize Bobby the following Saturday manning the Philly Fair Trade booth at the Fitler Square farmers’ market. We love that this seminar in particular has helped us make deeper connections with our community and with the local businesses that support sustainability and slow food values.

Previously, we attended Slow Food Philadelphia seminars on The Art of Making Chocolate Bean to Bar with Philly Love Bar, which also included an excellent Scotch tasting/pairing, as well as a seminar with Philadelphia Distilling, where we learned more about some of our favorite local spirits, including Bluecoat Gin and Vieux Carré Absinthe. We truly appreciate these seminars, between the educational aspects as well as the connections we make to the people doing good things in the Philadelphia area. We’re looking forward to more seminars next year!

One Year of Being in Philly Part 2

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It has been quite a wonderful year of discovering and enjoying all our neighborhood has to offer. We started this blog about 3 months after moving here as a way to share our eating and drinking adventures. So far, it has skewed a bit more to the fun stuff we have cooked at home, but we’re thinking that we want to include more of our eating out adventures in the future. And there’s no reason not to. We have so much to celebrate in our neighborhood and beyond.

Here’s a list of some of our favorite places in what we consider “our neighborhood.”

Within 1/3 of a mile:

As I mentioned in part one, the last place I lived had very little within walking distance, so the fact that every place I’m about to name is within 3/4 of a mile gives me great pleasure. And the fact that there are so many places within that range that I feel compelled to subdivide the list into smaller sections speaks to the great wealth and variety of places. This list is by no means exhaustive. There are still many places we are looking forward to trying.

I mentioned Pub & Kitchen and Jet Wine Bar in my last post. The owner of Jet opened another place right across the street, Rex 1516, which very quickly became a weekly go to spot. Rex 1516 is the type of neighborhood bar I always wanted to have. Very friendly staff, excellent selections of beers and wine, and an adventurous cocktail list, as well as an adventurous bartender.

On that same block, there’s a good Thai restaurant, Sawatdee. A block closer is a new pie place, Magpie, and one of our favorite special occasion restaurants, Pumpkin BYOB. Quite a couple of blocks!

Also close by, are a few places we like for breakfasts and brunches: Marathon Grill, La Va Café, Spread Bagelry and Parc Restaurant, Bistro & Cafe.

Parc Restaurant, Bistro & Cafe

Also within 1/3 of a mile is another favorite spot, C19. They specialize in Venetian-inspired cuisine but also focus on fresh local ingredients. They have a great wine list and super friendly staff. Another good Italian restaurant nearby is Roberto Café, a BYOB the features Italian comfort food.

Finally, Twenty Manning Grill has been a convenient spot for us when we’re in the mood for cocktails and bar food.

We usually go to 2 farmers’ markets on Saturdays. One is at Rittenhouse Square, which is just a few blocks away. The other is at Fitler Square, which is about 1/2 a mile away.

Summertime Farmers’ Markets Goodies

Within 1/2 of a mile:

A little farther away are a few excellent places for wine and food: a.kitchen, Tria, and Tinto, and a couple of places for beer and food, the neighborhoody Grace Tavern and the legendary Monk’s Café. But let’s not forget cocktails: Franklin Mortgage & Investment Co., which specializes in upscale and classic cocktails in a speakeasy setting, and Village Whiskey, which has one of the best bourbon lists in town.

Dandelion Pub is a British Pub that has great food (rabbit pot pie!),  nice selection of beers, and interesting cocktails. D’mitri’s is a Greek restaurant we’ve been to only once but really enjoyed.

After moving in and before stocking up, we needed breakfast and discovered Ants Pants Café, a small, cozy restaurant with Australian inspired coffees. This has become our go-to breakfast place, and I usually can’t resist their Bacon Stack.

Bacon Stack at Ants Pants Cafe

Also within 1/2 a mile is the place that was awarded the Best Gelato in the World by National Geographic, Capogiro Gelato.

Capogiro Gelato

The Outer Reaches (within 3/4 of a mile):

If we’re in the mood for beer and feel like wandering, we’ll find four excellent beer bars: Good Dog Bar and Restaurant, Nodding Head Brewery and Restaurant, The Sidecar Bar and Grille and Resurrection Ale House. We haven’t yet had any food at Nodding Head, but enjoy their house brewed beers. The food at Good Dog provides interesting twists of pub fare. We often head to The Sidecar or Resurrection for brunch, but the food has been great whenever we go.

The Sidecar Bar & Grille

That’s 30 wonderful places all within 3/4 of a mile! We’re lucky to have so many great places nearby but it’s difficult getting back to some of them. While writing this, I kept thinking “we don’t go there often enough” for most of these. Both Holly and I enjoy walking, so this radius is by no means the extent of our adventures.

Philadelphia Locally Roasted Coffee

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When I lived in Long Beach, CA, Tom and I were fond of a local coffee shop called Polly’s Gourmet Coffee. The wonderful thing about Polly’s is that they roast their own coffee daily, right there in the store, using a 1929 roaster brought over from Germany after WWII. You could smell the freshly roasted coffee from a block away. When you entered the store, there was a chalkboard that would tell you what coffee was brewed that day, and each of their many varieties were all labeled with the roasting date.

So, when we moved to Philly, we made an effort to seek out locally roasted coffee. I found an article in the Philadelphia City Paper that set me on the right track. I would say that there’s nothing quite like Polly’s, but there is a great deal of locally roasted coffee if you know where to look. In this post I’ll share what I’ve found so far.

Green Street Coffee Roasters is a Philadelphia-based, small batch, specialty coffee roasting company. Tom and Chris Molieri started Green Street Coffee Roasters in July of 2011; Chris had acquired a passion for coffee roasting after spending a year living and working in Portland, OR. I’ve only seen the coffee in a handful of places, but my favorite spot to buy it in Center City is Metropolitan Bakery. [Update 11/7/12: Green Street is also available at the Rittenhouse location of Di Bruno Bros.] You can also buy their beans online.

Re-Animator Coffee is a small, locally owned and operated micro-roaster based in the Fishtown section of Philadelphia, started in 2011 by roaster Mark Corpus and partner Mark Capriotti. Their coffee is also only available in a handful of places, but I usually get it from Sue’s Produce Market or Green Aisle Grocery. You can also buy their beans online; within Philadelphia, it is delivered free via bicycle.

Philly Fair Trade Roasters specializes in small-batch organic Arabica coffee, hand-roasted locally in Philadelphia on a daily basis. Roastmaster Joe Cesa has been roasting coffee in Philadelphia since 2002, previously as the proprietor of Joe Coffee, which closed in 2009. I find the PFT coffee a little easier to come by than Green Street or Re-Animator; I usually get it at the Fitler Square Farmer’s Market or Pumpkin Market. You can also buy their beans online.

Rival Bros. is a Philadelphia roaster specializing in custom blends of small batch roasts. Lifelong friends Jonathan Adams (of Pub & Kitchen) and Damien Pileggi started Rival Bros in 2011. You can enjoy their coffee at their mobile coffee truck, or you can order their beans online. I usually get it from the truck, but I did order online once and it arrived promptly after roasting day.

Old City Coffee is a 100% Philadelphia operated business, roasting only high grade Arabica high-grown coffee, in tiny batches. Old City Coffee, Inc. was founded in 1984 as a one-person operation, by Ruth Isaac, at its original location on Church Street. It opened its location at Reading Terminal Market in 1988, where all the roasting takes place currently. You can buy their coffee at either of the two locations or order online. Of all the coffee places in Philly, the Reading Terminal Market location of Old City Coffee is the one that reminds me most of Polly’s in Long Beach; I just wish I were able to go more often when they’re actually roasting so I could inhale that aroma of fresh roasted beans, and I wish there were a more relaxing spot in the busy market to sit and enjoy their coffee.

Chestnut Hill Coffee Co. is a café and roastery based in the Chestnut Hill neighborhood of Philadelphia. Inspired by the best of European and Seattle cafés, the café opened its doors in 2005, and in-house roasting began one year later. DiBruno Brothers used to carry their beans, but I can’t find them there anymore. In Center City, their coffee is served at Marathon Grill and at Cake and the Beanstalk, but I’m not sure where you can buy the beans other than at their café in Chestnut Hill (conveniently located near the regional rail station). They have an online store, but at the time of this writing, it is not yet operational.

Blue Water Coffee is roasted in the Germantown neighborhood of Philadelphia. I know very little else about it, but you can buy beans from Ants Pants Café, either in the restaurant or online. I have also heard it is available at Café Estelle. [Update 11/7/12: Café Estelle is now closed.]

La Colombe is probably Philadelphia’s most widely known local coffee. Founders Todd Carmichael and Jean Philippe Iberti conceived the idea of “culinary coffee” in 1985 while attending school and working in Seattle’s coffee industry. In 1994, they set up a roasting facility in Philadelphia’s Port Richmond neighborhood. La Colombe is very popular in Philly, so you can get it pretty much anywhere, but I prefer to buy it from their Rittenhouse Square café. You can also buy it online. Unlike most of the other, smaller roasters I’ve mentioned, the La Colombe beans aren’t labeled with a roasting date, so I’m quite wary about buying it at most stores, not knowing how long it’s been sitting there. I hesitated in including it on this list, as it is much more large scale than the others I’ve mentioned, with cafés all over the world, but it is certainly a very important part of the Philadelphia coffee scene.

So, after identifying the above, we’ve made an effort to get something different each time we buy coffee for consumption at home. I’ve avoided giving specific coffee “reviews” to any of the above, as it doesn’t seem fair after only trying each roaster a few times, with a different blend or variety each time. However, I will name a few favorites. By far our mutually agreed favorite is the Green Street Organic Mexican. It makes us say “wow” with every cup. We also really enjoy the Blue Water, both when we enjoy it at Ants Pants and when we buy it to brew at home. La Colombe’s Lyon was exquisite. We liked the Old City Blend from Old City Coffee, and I look forward to trying more of their selections. All in all, it’s really fun to keep trying new things. Lately, we’ve expanded our horizons to include New Jersey; currently we are enjoying an organic Guatemala roast from Grover’s Mill, and we’re also fans of the Garces Trading Company blends from Rojo’s Roastery.

Adventures in Cheese Steak Making

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Despite being a native Philadelphian, or perhaps because of, I don’t have a strong opinion about what a Philadelphia cheese steak is. I know many people have a very strict idea about what ingredients go into a cheese steak, but I have encountered so many variations over the years that I know that variety is a good thing.

I’ve made cheese steaks at home in the past but have not done so in many years. Last week at the Fitler Square Farmers’ Market, we saw that one of the vendors had steak sandwich meat. We already had our cooking plans for last weekend, but we decided that this weekend we would make cheese steaks.

Luckily, that vendor was there and had the meat. We decided to keep things simple this time, with the thought that we’d get the basics down this first time and be more daring in the future. We already had onions on hand from our CSA and mushrooms from last week’s visit to the Rittenhouse Square Farmers’ Market. After getting our meat at the Farmer’s Market, we went to Di Bruno Bros. to get good Provolone. They also carry excellent bread baked at Sarcone’s Bakery.

Making the sandwich is pretty straight-forward. We started by frying the onions and adding the mushrooms after a few minutes.

The chip steak was pretty thin, so we waited until we felt the onions and mushrooms were close to being done before adding the steak. We didn’t season it with anything more than salt and pepper.

There was more meat than we had anticipated and the balance between the onions and mushrooms and the steak wasn’t quite what we had planned for.

We cut the bread into sandwich sized portions and then layered the cheese.

Since the meat was thin, it didn’t take long for it to be done. We quickly transferred the mixture to the rolls. Our hope was that the heat from cooking would melt the cheese, but it didn’t. In the future, we might want to pop the bread and cheese into the oven for a couple of minutes to get the melting started.

We had it with a salad and paired it with The Lost Abbey Serpent’s Stout.

Overall, the sandwiches were quite good if slightly bland. A better balance of onions and mushrooms certainly would have helped as would having the cheese melted. Garlic, of course, never hurts anything. Even thought the meat was nicely done, it might have been a bit on the cold side when we added it to the pan and the initial sizzle died quickly. A hotter pan and/or more room temperature meat could also help. We also talked about marinating the meat in, perhaps, beer.

We had some of the meat, onion and mushroom mixture leftover, so the next morning, we made cheese steak omelets. We jazzed it up by frying up more onions, adding red bell pepper, garlic, and spinach. We pan toasted some of the leftover Sarcone’s bread and had some locally roasted Green Street Organic French Roast coffee.