Four Course Friday

So it’s Tuesday… but Friday’s dinner is still rolling around in the back of my brain, so I HAVE to share it with you guys!  As I mentioned last week, it is restaurant week here in Philly, and I was lucky enough to follow up my Three Course Thursday with a Four Course Friday! 

My Friday was pretty excellent, if you’d allow me to back up for a minute.  At 4pm, my seniors decided to send us home!  Considering our dinner reservations weren’t until 7 (and the fiancee doesnt get out of work until 6:15…) I did what any normal girl would do with a few hours to kill would do: SHOP!

I started here, at the cutest little second-hand shop on Chestnut Street.  Everything was an additional 50%!  Unfortunately I didn’t find anything in my size, despite my most valient efforts

Next on my shopping tour of Center City was Ann Taylor Loft in Liberty Place.  I may or may not have walked out with this cutie… picture it in black though.

I found banana republic too, and got an olive green turtleneck for $13!!  Fabulous.  No pic though… it was only a turtleneck!

Right outside of Banana was a gorgeous stretch of Broad Street… check out the sights:

The Union League is one of my favorite buildings in Philadelphia.  I attend an SJU dinner there every year, and the history and beauty of the building blows me away. 

Finally, it was time for dinner.  I was meeting Robert at the restaurant we chose – Smokin’ Betty’s on 11th and Sansom.  It was a cute place, with a bbq theme.  While I was waiting for Robert to get there, I sipped on a raspberry lemonade cocktail, which was DELICIOUS!  It was so sweet and light, and it reminded me of summer!

Unfortunately, this was the last picture I took of the evening.  I’m still a  little camera shy, even around my darling fiancee.  Any suggestions for getting over this fear while blogging?!

Anyway, our dinner was ah-maz-ingg!  The whole meal reminded me of my childhood.  My first course was a cheesesteak springroll.  While it wasn’t very bbq-y, it was so good!  The chinese restaurant in my hometown used to make something similar, and it brought me back to the good ol’ days!  It was paired with a yummy tomato jam that gave it a nice tangy flavor.  Robert’s appetizer was enough for a whole meal… 3 bbq sliders.  He didn’t seem to have any problem polishing them off though!  One was pulled chicken, one was beef brisket, and one was pulled pork.  I stole a few bites – I think the brisket was my favorite! 

There was a quick garden salad course, which freshened our palattes for the humongous plate of ribs heading our way.  I have always had a soft spot for good bbq, as my family vacationed in the south every summer of my childhood.  These ribs were perfect – delicious tangy bbq sauce, and the meat just fell off the bone.  Just thinking about them makes my mouth water!   About 6 big ribs were paired with grilled asparagus, and mac+cheese.  I ate all of my veggies (and Robert’s too!), and most of the ribs.  The mac was actually very garlicky, and not what I was hoping for… but I certainly didn’t miss it amongst all the other great food on the table! 

By the time dessert came around, we were both stuffed.  I only had room for a few bites of my chocolate mousse – it was so rich.  It tasted just like chocolate gelato, but it had such a fluffy texture.  It was truly divine.  Somehow I managed to find room for the whipped cream and berries that came with it though  

All in all, our dinner at Smokin’ Betty’s was so much fun, and a great dining experience.  Our server was so happy and enthusiastic, and the service was fast.  Both Robert and I agreed that it was a fun change from the typical italian BYOB that we usually frequent during restaurant week.  I highly recommend it!

Three Course Thursday

Yesterday was a good day.  Actually, this whole week has been a good week.  You see, it’s restaurant week in Philadelphia, and it puts everyone in a good mood.  Our team had made lunch reservations for Mission Grill in Philadelphia yesterday, and everyone was so excited to go. 

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The restaurant week special is always three courses (or more, depending on the restauarant) for $20 for lunch and $35 for dinner.  Since I rarely eat dinner out in the city, we always make it a point to go out at least once for restaurant week – but this was my first time going out for lunch during restaurant week .  It was a blast!

My meal was very yummy.  We had a choice for appetizer – either butternut squash soup or roasted pear salad.  Since I was having butternut squash soup for dinner (recipe coming soon!), I chose the salad.  I’ve never really been a fan of fruit in my salad, but this changed my mind.  Beautiful glazed pears topped off a bed of arugula and romaine, drizzled with a light vinegarette dressing.  And [the best part] two goat cheese crostini.  I have been OBSESSED with goat cheese lately, and these were perfect.  I hope I can remake this salad again at home! 

My main course was salmon over a mix of spinach, radiccio, and butternut squash (of course!).  The salmon portion was HUGE so I jumped at the opportunity to save half for dinner.  The other half of the salmon and all of the vegetables were a perfect lunch portion, and it was delicious.  The salmon was moist and well seasoned, and the squash… well I could eat squash every day!

Dessert left something to be desired though.  In my opinion – dessert makes or breaks the restaurant week choice… and this is a choice I take very seriously.  (I may or may not have been known to make a color coded spreadsheet one year!)  Since I don’t eat dessert in restaurants frequently, I like to make it count!  There were two options for dessert: chocolate volcano cake, and a chocolate/banana bread pudding.  I feel like chocolate lava cake is a little played out, so i went with the latter.  I was a little disappointed though… the pudding wasn’t nearly warm or chocolatey enough, and it reminded me of breakfast.  It was for the best though - this way I didn’t gorge myself on indulgent sweets at 2pm!  A few bites of this treat was certainly enough for me.

Overall, restaurant week lunch was a success.  I got to spend time with some coworkers outside of our cubicles, and I got to know some of the new staff a little better (very important when you spend 55+ hours a week together!)  I was a little disappointed that my meal in a mexican restaurant didn’t have more of a mexican flair, but it was so delish that I couldn’t be upset!    It was a nice 2 hour (!) break from busy season, and since I didn’t overindulge, I never slipped into that dreaded food coma.  What a fantastic lunch!

p.s. I’m sorry for not sharing pictures of my beautiful meal with you all.  I’m still new to the whole blogging thing, and not yet ready to bust out the camera in front of my co-workers!  I promise to start including pictures soon!