A Gourmand's Life

Quite honestly, my previous visits to Philadelphia haven’t gone very well.

The city’s culinary landscape has seen a gradual and sometimes painful evolution take place over the last decade. Once important, trendsetting restaurants like Le Bec Fin, Pasion!, and Susanna Foo, all shadows of their former selves when I visited, have slowly given way to a new breed of modern, chef-driven spots. Restaurateur Stephen Starr deserves a great deal of credit for this – in addition to building a mini-empire, he put Philadelphia back on the map as a serious food destination with Morimoto, and helped position Jose Garces as both the city's most well known and talented chef.


My visit to Philadelphia over the long weekend revealed a new and exciting culinary destination. Following a trend in many major cities towards the gentrification of once decrepit - if not downright terrifying - neighborhoods, Philadelphia has seen an explosion of new, exciting restaurants sprinkled throughout the city. Whereas as little as five years ago a trip to Northern Liberties, University City or West Philly would have involved running a gauntlet of burning garbage can fires, today one can choose among some of the most eclectic, exciting new restaurants in town.

A couple of years ago, Marc Vetri was one of the first of the pioneers to break ground in the changing neighborhood of North Broad, and the response by his admirers was immediate and fervent. This is where the chef of his eponymous restaurant opened a second, more casual place featuring hand-made pastas and pizzas baked in a wood-burning oven. Frankly, I was unimpressed by my one meal at Vetri, one of the many disappointments I have experienced in Philadelphia over the years. The food was Emilia-Romagna as seen through a scientist’s microscope, refined and twiddled with to produce a pallid and bland result.

At Osteria, Vetri lets loose; while there is invention and refinement, this is lusty, full-flavored food that is smartly executed. We began with Mozzarella in Carrozza with Olive Oil, Poached Pear Tomatoes and Capers. At first the flavor and presentation here was a little simple, reminiscent at first bite of the all too familiar fried mozzarella appetizers we all know and hate. But the dish grew on me, particularly the texture of the soft cheese within its ethereally fluffy egg batter. I have very pleasant memories of this dish.


Our other antipasti was an interesting dish, Sepia with Tomatoes, Fennel and Squid Ink Polenta. This was a lovely little pile of expertly stewed cuttlefish pieces served over polenta delicately infused with squid ink, sort of an imaginative play on the Venetian specialty of squid in its own ink over plain polenta. This was a captivating and delicious dish.


Osteria features both Pizza Tradizionale as well as Napoletane. In consideration of our girth, we limited ourselves to one of the former category, the Lombarda, which features Bitto and Mozzarella cheeses as well as Cotechino sausage and a baked, soft egg. This was an exemplary version of a traditional thin crust pizza, its edges perfectly charred in spots, the dough tasting of natural fermentation. The flavor combination was outstanding as well.


The lunch menu is limited here, so we were forced to finish with pasta and await a return visit for secondi and contorni. Chicken Liver Rigatoni with Cippolini Onions and Sage combines house-made pasta with a shower of crumbled chicken livers that have had their occasionally unpleasant murkiness cooked out of them. As delicious as this was, after awhile it appeared to be a bit one note, perhaps missing a bit of heat or acid.
 
 
By now I am sure you have gathered that Osteria is no ordinary...well, osteria. If not, the Pheasant Lasagnetta should convince. A perfectly portioned little dish with large chunks of subtly gamey pheasant nestled in fluffy pasta, this comes to the table with its topping nicely blistered and charred - another unusual and successful dish.
 
 
Italian cuisine can be a tricky genre - known for its simplicity, it can trick chefs into trying to elevate and refine it until its essence is lost. Vetri seems more comfortable working in this genuine, classical format, and it shows. This was a very nice meal, and I look forward to a return visit.