Recently named Food & Wine Magazine’s “Top 10 Foodie Streets in America,” East Passyunk Avenue invites you to South Philly’s finest foodie event, Flavors of the Avenue. The best part is that you don’t have to visit each individual restaurant; they’ll all meet you on the Avenue between Dickinson and Morris! You’ll be able to try bites and booze from over 20 of the best restaurants on the block.
Philly PR Girl was invited for a little preview tour of the Avenue, and it was one of our favorite events all year! We tasted from over 10 restaurants: Noir, Will BYOB, Le Virtu, Tre Scalini, Stogie Joe’s, Birra , Mamma Maria, Cantina los Caballitos, Plenty, Lucky 13, Ms. Goody Cupcake, and Paradiso! Yes, we ate a lot!
The night began with introductory cocktail hours at Noir and Birra. Noir served a sweet cherry cocktail with fresh, spring items such as watermelon feta salad, arancini (fried rice balls filled with prosciutto and cheese), and moules frites. Birra’s braised short rib ravioli and bread pudding were so delicious. Appetizers continued at Will BYOB with the most beautiful soup presentation; it was a spring green gazpacho with grapes, almond streusel, acacia honey foam, nasturtium, and orchid root powder. You can never go wrong with tacos at Cantina los Caballitos or appetizers at Plenty.
Our next stop at Le Virtu had porchetta (roasted local pork shoulder) and wine. The pork was amazingly tender with an incredible crispy skin. Some bites at Fuel lightened our stomachs with their hummus and caprese skewers. We went right back to Italian food at Tre Scalini, and we were in for an authentic treat with their trippa in umido, which means tripe stewed with tomato and onions. Speaking of authentic Italian food, Mamma Maria Ristorante served us Fettucine alla Mamma with chicken in creamy sun-dried tomato alfredo sauce. Of course she couldn’t let us leave without a taste of her famous limoncello!
Though we were stuffed, we couldn’t pass up Stogie Joe’s meatball sandwiches or wings at Lucky13. The meatball sandwiches were presented as a deconstructed version in small cups and served with a slice of sesame Italian bread. What a great party idea! The night ended with wild boar pate, which was definitely an interesting experience at Paradiso. The ginger cocktail is also a must-try there!
You can order your tickets online at http://www.visiteastpassyunk.com/flavors.htm. Tickets are going fast and 5-hour VIP tickets are already SOLD OUT, but there are still 4-hour general tickets for only $30.
I already have my tickets! Can’t wait 🙂