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Meritage's Dining Room

Meritage Restaurant recently announced their new Spring Tasting Menu, five courses of delicious delicacies. The full menu includes:

Chilled Cucumber Soup
with ginger citrus salmon crostini and Yuzu crème fraiche

Seared Diver Scallop
with shrimp ravioli, sautéed spinach and a lemongrass beurre blanc

Roasted Black Bass and Asparagus Flan
with sautéed pea shoots and Meyer lemon emulsion

Grilled New Zealand Lamb Chops
with fricassee of fiddlehead ferns and asparagus crushed potatoes

Flourless Chocolate Torte
with raspberry sorbet, rhubarb sauce and a sesame tuile

The dinner runs $45 per person, with an optional wine pairing (one class for each course!) available for $29.

Along with the new Spring menu, Meritage also launched their daily Happy Hour. The Rittenhouse Square restaurant will be dishing out $5 wines by-the-glass, $5 sangria, and $3 Lager bottles from 5pm to 7pm, with an ever-changing assortment of $5 snacks.

If the Kobe beef-stuffed grape leaves end up on that snack menu, get them. So delicious.

Meritage Restaurant & Wine Bar
500 S. 20th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103
(215) 985-1922
www.meritagephiladelphia.com

“The Phanatic Around Town” photo submission contest is already in its sixth week (time flies!). Check out last week’s winning pictures after the jump and remember to send in your best photos for a chance to win free Philly baseball gear! Continue reading for info on how to enter.

Week Six’s featured Phanatic Around Town location: Citizens Bank Park

This week’s featured statue is Citizens Bank Park’s aptly named “The Phillie Phanatic” and the deadline to submit your photo is Monday, May 24th.

Photo Op:
The Phillies are home all week long (six games), taking on the Pirates, Cubs and hosting a sold-out weekend series against the Boston Red Sox. Arrive early, or take a game break to stretch your legs, and head towards the First Base Gate, concourse level, to snap a picture of you and “The Phillie Phanatic” statue.

To submit your photo, upload it to our Visit Philly Facebook fan page or share it on Twitter using the hashtag: #Phanatic. Each week’s winners will receive free Philly baseball gear. Click here for all the details.

Who: You and a “Phanatic Around Town” statue.
What: Take a picture of you with the “Phanatic Around Town” statue of the week and share it with us via Facebook and/or Twitter.
When: Every week for 20 weeks beginning on Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Where: At 20 locations across the city, changing each week.

“Phanatic Around Town” Program [visitphilly.com]

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Photography On Display @ the Bus Stop Boutique

Now, through May 28th, Bus Stop is hosting the People of Ethiopia Exhibit, a photographic glimpse into the lives of the country’s people. The exhibit displays the works of Alden Blyth, a local architect who focuses his practice on low-income, inner-city housing. Blyth, who became fascinated by the people of Ethiopia during his travels throughout the country, captures a culture with honesty and integrity in his photographs hung along the walls of the boutique.

The 26 photos pull viewers into intimate moments of the exhibit’s subjects. Amongst the colorful, breath-taking photos with a vibrant Ethiopian backdrop, you’ll face the candid life of various tribe members and experience special events like wedding negotiations and church holiday services.

Oliberté Footwear & Photographs @ Bus Stop

Feel like taking a piece of this exhibit home? All photos are on sale for under $100– even when framed and matted. Want to walk out with even more? In concurrence with the exhibit, the Bus Stop is selling Oliberté Footwear, eco-ethical urban footwear made with leather from Ethiopia and–a first for footwear–natural rubber from Liberia.

For under $100, you can help create and sustain more jobs for inhabitants of Ethipoia. The shoes, which are only sold in small, socially-conscious boutiques like Bus Stop, are comfortable and stylish.

Though the shoes may stay, the exhibit ends with a closing reception on May 28th from 5:30-8:30 p.m.

Bus Stop Boutique
750 South 4th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19147-3121
(215) 627-2357
www.busstopboutique.com

Mama Mia Panini @ DiBruno's

Whenever I travel to a new city, I always ask the where their favorite place is to grab lunch. It is no surprise at all that in Philadelphia’s Center City, DiBruno’s is always highly recommended. It is one of my favorite mid-week lunch spots, and any errand is eagerly done if it means a trip there for lunch.

DiBruno’s not only offers a marketplace of beautiful imported cheeses and meats, but they have an upstairs cafeteria and an extensive prepared food section. Their locally made mozzarella tastes like it was made in a small home kitchen in Italy, and their breads are always fresh and delicious.

Treat yourself to the Mama Mia panini, a grilled sandwich filled with salty prosciutto, red juicy tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, and a touch of pesto. Grab a drink, a bag of chips from the stand next to the panini station, and for around $12, you are ready to eat. Enjoy it at one of the outdoor tables or sitting on a stool by the coffee. Either way, the people watching will be fantastic.

DiBruno’s at Rittenhouse Square is open Monday thru Friday, 9 AM- 8 PM, Saturday 9 AM- 7 PM, and Sunday 9 AM- 6 PM.

DiBruno Bros.
1730 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103
www.dibruno.com

Octu Vishnu: Winner of Best Art in 2008

This weekend, the Kensington Kinetic Sculpture Derby returns for another day of fantastic, imaginative, human-powered art.

Each year, the derby attracts over 6000 fans, all of whom get to shop over one hundred local art vendors, thanks to the Trenton Avenue Arts Festival. Along with the sculpture race, you can expect live music and discounted nibbles from local restaurants.

Ghostbusters from 2009's Derby

Last year, over 100 participants took part in the annual derby. You can check out an amazing collecting of photos via the derby’s official Flickr pool.

The festival kicks off at noon, with the parade starting at 12:30. For a full list of vendors and events, visit Kinetic Kensington’s official website.

The Kinetic Sculpture Derby & Trenton Avenue Arts Festival
Saturday, May 22nd, 2010

Kinetic Kensington [ Official Website ]

Musicians, filmmakers, dancers, designers, poets, actors, authors… if you’re creating art based on real life experience, First Person Arts wants you to participate in their upcoming showcase, First Person Raw.

The nightly showcase is part of the 2010 First Person Festival of Memoir and Documentary Art, running November 10th to the 14th.

You’ll get to perform at the Painted Bride, in their studio space, and share your craft with a hungry, eager audience.

Interested in signing up and sharing your story? Head over to First Person Arts’ official website and download the application form. All applications are due in by the end of the month.

Good luck, see you at the slam!

First Person Arts: Raw [ firstpersonarts.org ]

Four Points, Photo courtesy the hotel

The Four Points Sheraton in Northeast Philadelphia is hosting a murder mystery dinner theater, Death by Disco, and want you to help solve the mystery.

The show will be put on by Without a Cue, a production company here in Philadelphia, this Friday, May 21st. Guests can look forward to a DJ spinning 70′s disco hits, a dance contest, and of course, an evening of killer theater.

For dinner, guests have their choice of entree; bourbon barbecued chicken, grilled mahi-mahi with tomatillo, or linguine with capers and olives in marinara sauce. Dessert? You bet. Tiramisu. The entire evening costs $45, and a cash bar will also be available.

Reservations must be made in advance though, so please contact Michelle Vinitzky at Four Points (267-350-6011, mvinitzky[at]lodgian.com) if interested.

Four Points Sheraton [ visitphilly ]

Front view of the Philadelphia Museum of Art (photo by M. McClellan for GPTMC)

In honor of International Museum Day, the Philadelphia Museum of Art will offer free admission on Tuesday, May 18th. This deal includes the Cedar Grove and Mount Pleasant Houses that the Museum runs, as well as the nearby Rodin Museum.

Initiated in 1977, International Museum Day was organized by the International Council on Museums (ICOM) as a way of recognizing the important role that museums play in contemporary society.

For those of you who can’t make it out to a museum tomorrow, mark your calendars. This event is celebrated every year on May 18th. It might just be worth cashing in a vacation day next year in order to take part.

Octopus Ceviche @ Thirteen

The Terrace at 13, located inside the Philadelphia Marriott Downtown, is going to be hopping this summer. Philadelphia has dozens of incredible and fun restaurants that become even more lively in the nice weather, and the Terrace is no exception.

Close Up of the Shrimp Pizza @ Thirteen

Their new menu brings festive flavors from around the world, and highlights include shrimp pizza ($7), Octopus Ceviche ($4), & Chicken Banh-mi ($2.5 each). My favorite is the shrimp pizza, with just the right amount of garlic and lots of bright vegetables.

The specialty cocktails are really fun and summery too. Try the Candy Man cocktail ($4) made with Sky Raspberry Vodka, Simple Syrup, and Club Soda. It is garnished with fancy rock candy that turns the drink a fun color! There are also a few other fun drink specials, all priced from $2-$4.

Be sure to stop by!

Thirteen at the Philadelphia Marriott [Official Site]

The exterior of the Omni at Independence Park, Photo courtesy Omni Hotels

The Omni Hotel at Independence Park is offering up yet another arts-themed hotel package. Last week, I mentioned their family-friendly Arden Theatre package, which gives guests a chance to tour the Arden, see If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, and decorate desserts in the Old City hotel.

This second arts package is being offered Saturday, June 5th. Guests will stay over night in the Omni and attend the Pennsylvania Ballet’s production of Romeo & Juliet at the Academy of Music. After the show, you’ll be treated to a backstage tour of the Academy. The following morning, take a stroll to the National Constitution Center for a day at the Ancient Rome & America Exhibit.

Guests will also enjoy the hotel’s signature brunch at Azalea, with menu highlights like herb crusted roasted rack of lamb and slow roasted beef tenderloin.

This package is being offered at $349. For more information and reservations, be sure to call the hotel.

Omni Hotel @ Independence Park [ visitphilly.com ]