April 9, 2010
Inside Distrito
It’s been a busy couple of years for Philadelphia restaurateur Jose Garces. With his recent Iron Chef status and the opening of Garces Trading Company over on 12th and Locust, it’s no surprise that he was honored in ’09 with the James Beard Award for Best Mid-Atlantic Chef. In addition to making his mark in all of these new territories, Garces is also ramping up old favorites such as University City’s Distrito with a brand-spanking new and delectable weekend brunch menu.
Distrito’s vibrant and playfully-designed interior makes it one of the most visually exciting spaces around. Even still, the interior is nothing compared to what they put on the plate and in your glass. Try starting off with one of Distrito’s distinctive drinks, such as the Ojo Rojo, a Mexican hot chocolate with a hint of coffee, Patron and homemade whipped cream. Another apparent fan favorite was the Distrito Bloody Mary. Or, if you’re feeling more adventurous, the Blue Demon Mojito, made with rum, blueberries and fresh mint, is sure to hit the spot this spring.
Huevos rancheros - fried egg, roasted tomato, green asparagus, black beans
Tres Leches French Toast
As for the food menu, Distrito has a nice mix of Mexican-inspired breakfasts as well some more classic soups, tacos and enchiladas. If sweet is what you’re after, try the Torrijas or the Tres Leches French toasts. If you want to have the best French toast of your life, definitely go with the Tres Leches. And on the savory end, there are practically 2 dozen options, like the Steak and Eggs, Torta de Huevos (eggs over easy, avocado, Mexican cheese, bacon, beans & cream) or the Hamachi taco (yellowtail, chipotle sauce, avaocado, red cabbage and lime). Plates are reasonably priced, so treating yourself to 2 will not only please the stomach, but the wallet, as well.
Distrito Restaurant
3945 Chestnut Street Philadelphia, PA 19104
(215) 222-1657
www.distritorestaurant.com
December 17, 2009
This Saturday, our friend (we interviewed him, that means we’re buddies, right?) Jose Garces is hosting a special holiday book signing at his acclaimed Latin-Asian restaurant, Chifa.
Fans of Garces will be able to purchase copies of his new cookbook, Latin Evolution, and meet the chef for a signing. Plus, attendees will be able to enjoy free pork belly buns (from Chifa’s delicious Buns & Beer menu) and order drinks at Chifa’s bar, which will be open during the signing.
Chifa will also be selling special gift certificates, good for any of Chef Garces’ five Philly restaurants (Amada, Tinto, Distrito, Village Whiskey and Chifa). For every $250 gift card purchased, an additional $25 gift card will be included. Nice!
The signing takes place from 2pm until 4pm, Saturday, December 19th. For more information on the signing, or to just learn more about Chifa, visit Chifa’s official website.
Holiday Book Signing @ Chifa
Saturday, December 19th, 2pm – 4pm
Chifa
707 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106
(215) 925-5555
www.chifarestaurant.com
November 23, 2009
Newly crowned Iron Chef Jose Garces celebrates with some of his delighted fans. (Photo by Chris Sembrot)
The Next Iron Chef viewing party that Jose Garces hosted last night at Distrito quickly turned into a rocking victory party after Jose was triumphantly named The Next Iron Chef.
So, congratulations are in order to Chef Garces on yet another amazing achievement.
Way to go, Chef Garces — you’ve made us proud yet again!
Meanwhile, we’re thrilled that Philadelphia is lucky enough to have Jose Garces and his five amazing restaurants — Amada, Tinto, Distrito, Chifa and Village Whiskey — so that we can visit them whenever and enjoy the wonderful food and drink as often as we like.
AND we can’t wait to see what Chef Garces has in store for us next!
Iron Chef Jose Garces congratulated after the win. (Photo by C. Sembrot)
Chef Garces busts out the moves for some well deserved celebratory dancing. (Photo by C. Sembrot)
Don’t forget to check out our With Love Letters Q&A with Chef Garces himself, in which Jose reveals some of his favorites places to visit and things to do in Philadelphia.
Garces cooks up an ‘Iron Chef’ title [Philadelphia Inquirer]
Next Iron Chef Jose Garces’s Solid Technique Dominates Kitchen Stadium [Grub Street Philadelphia]
(Photos by Chris Sembrot)
November 16, 2009
Jose Garces, who we witnessed cook a Japanese feast last night en route to a berth in The Next Iron Chef‘s decisive finale, will host a viewing bash at Distrito Sunday night (11/22), starting at 8:30 p.m. The finale airs at 9.
Tickets are $50 apiece; call (215) 222-1657 to book your spot. Writes Michael Klein at philly.com,
Bill of fare includes Distrito food, including ceviche and guacamole and salsa Mexicana stations, and passed hot dishes such as lamb chops, adobo chicken and shrimp skewers, hongos huarache and a variety of tacos, beer, red and white wine, red and white sangria, and margaritas.
Unlike the kickoff party on the first floor that Garces threw when the show premiered, this fiesta will encompass the entire restaurant and will involve extra TVs.
We’ve already got our money on Jose for title of “The Next Iron Chef.” Whether Sunday will be a victory party remains to be seen — by all but Jose, of course.
Attend Garces’ Victory (?) Party [philly.com]
October 28, 2009
(Clockwise from left) McGillin's Old Ale House, Smiths and the Cantina at Distrito. (Photos courtesy of McGillin's Old Ale House, Smiths and Distrito)
With Phillies Fever (Phever?) sweeping the city, dozens of local bars are offering Phillies specials to go along with their TV-viewing opportunities.
And we all know it’s better to watch the game out with your friends than alone at home, so get out there!
We strongly suggest you get to your bar of choice early. Most bars will be crowded by the first pitch.
Note: The Piazza at Schmidts will not broadcast Game 1.
Phillies Specials
Cantina at Distrito: All World Series games will be shown on the first floor of Jose Garces’ Mexican outpost. Everyday deals include $10-and-under tacos, enchiladas and other Mexican bar food, plus $2 cans of Tecate and $3 cans of Modelo Especiale.
Smiths: Reserve your seat (for a fee) to enjoy $1 hot dogs, $1.50 corn dogs and a different drink special for each game (tonight is $4 Sam Adams drafts & $5 Jameson shots).
London Grill: Two 42″ HDTVs, $2.50 Budweiser drafts, four kinds of ‘Take Me Out to the Ball Game’ $3.50 hot dogs (beef, pork, buffalo and duck dogs)
McGillin’s Old Ale House: Philadelphia’s oldest tavern will serve red and white Phillies-tinis and the Phanatic Pheckin Bomb, upstaged only by eight HDTVs.
Gypsy Saloon (West Conshohocken): Inning-by-inning specials, including $0.25 wings, $1 Miller Lite and High Life drafts, 8th Inning home run free round, and $10 gift certificate if you stay the whole game.
Top 10 Places to Watch
Deal or no deal, these classic watering holes welcome sports fans throughout the year. Click here to view guide >>
Other Suggestions
Don’t miss versions one, two, three and four of our Places to Watch list.
GO PHILLIES!
October 19, 2009
Jose Garces with his Chefs at Village Whiskey (Photo courtesy of Garces Restaurant Group)
For those of you who are enjoying watching Jose Garces on The Next Iron Chef, there’s a way for you to get a little face time with Philly’s favorite fusion savant. He recently announced that his restaurants will be hosting a progressive dinner on November 11th, that will take diners from Amada, to Distrito for a few small plates, to Tinto for a couple more, then to Village Whiskey for a cocktail. From there, diners will visit Chifa before being returned to Amada for final flourish.
Sadly, at $200 a pop, this outing requires fairly deep pockets. However, I’m certain that it will be a memorable culinary experience, so if you do have the means, consider signing up.
For more information about this progressive dinner, or to make a reservation (which are required), please contact Brooke Everett at (215) 625-2506.
Check out the planned menu after the jump…
October 5, 2009
Distrito, one of five Jose Garces restaurants currently open in Philadelphia, hosted a viewing party for Chef Garces' debut on The Next Iron Chef last night. In Episode One, Chef Garces won a challenge and moved on to the next round. (Photo courtesy of Distrito)
Distrito [gophila.com]
Next Iron Chef City Challenge: Jose Garces (PHL) v. Seamus Mullen (NYC) [Eater NY]
October 2, 2009
Joes Garces made it to Round 2 of Eater’s Next Iron Chef City Challenge. Last week, he took down Baltimore. Today, Garces and Philadelphia are up against Seamus Mullen and New York City.
So head over to Eater and be sure to vote for Chef Garces and Philadelphia.
Also, don’t forget that Chef Garces is hosting a Viewing Party for the season premiere of The Next Iron Chef this Sunday night at Distrito at 8 pm.
There will be margaritas flowing, plenty of Cantina fare to munch on, and Chef Garces himself in attendance. It’s $35 per person and advance reservations are strongly encouraged — space is limited. Call (215) 222-1657 for reservations.
SPONSORED POST: Next Iron Chef City Challenge, 2nd Rd. [Eater]
September 18, 2009
Chef Jose Garces at Amada (Photo courtesy of Garces Restaurant Group)
Note: links were added to the interview during editing.
Chef Jose Garces rose to prominence in the food world after he opened Amada in Old City in 2005. In the four years since, Garces has changed the face of Philadelphia’s dining scene and, in the process, gained a lot of national recognition. To date, he’s opened five wildly successful restaurants in Philadelphia — Amada, Tinto, Distrito, Chifa and, most recently, Village Whiskey. Earlier this year, he won the prestigious James Beard Foundation’s “Best Chef Mid-Atlantic†award. And this fall, Chef Garces will compete on Food Network’s hit show The Next Iron Chef.
But for right now, he’s focused on Philadelphia…
With Love: Be honest: have you ever run up the Rocky Steps?
Garces: I live near the Art Museum and I take my 2 1/2-year-old son Andrés up the steps all the time.
With Love: That’s great. Ok, with that question out of the way, let’s get down to business. What do you love about Philadelphia’s restaurant and food scene?
Garces: Am I allowed to say “everythingâ€â€¦? Because I really do love it all — the little BYOBs all over the place, the grand restaurants for special-occasion meals, the classic hoagies and cheesesteaks, the late-night Chinese food in Chinatown, dollar dog days at the stadium, Sunday brunches complete with scrapple, and especially all the innovation with so many talented new chefs that’s growing all the time. With this much culinary talent in one town, there is always somewhere new to eat — if you can keep yourself away from your old favorites long enough to try it.
With Love: We will certainly accept “everything” as an answer — we agree! Ok, so when you’re not working at your own restaurants, where are some of your favorite places to eat in Philadelphia?
Garces: I love to visit my friends at their restaurants, like Marc Vetri at Osteria and Morimoto [at Morimoto]. And sometimes there’s nothing better than kicking back with my staff after a long shift at David’s Mei Lei Wah in Chinatown for some salt-and-pepper shrimp.
With Love: Sounds delicious. How about when you host friends and family from out-of-town; where do you like to take them? Are you especially hot on any one Philly neighborhood right now?
Garces: I love bringing them to the Reading Terminal Market for lunch and then shopping for ingredients that we’ll cook that night for dinner. And it just isn’t a trip to Philadelphia without seeing at least one of our beautiful parks — in the summer, we’ll play mini-golf in Franklin Square, and in the winter, Rittenhouse Square looks like a fairyland with all the Christmas lights in the trees.
August 24, 2009
Downstairs at Distrito, soon to be called the "Cantina at Distrito." (Photo courtesy of Distrito)
Starting on Monday, August 31, University City’s Distrito (which we love unabashedly) will turn its first floor into the “Cantina at Distrito,” a more casual and inexpensive version of its big brother on the second floor. The menu and hours are different, but the over-the-top fun atmosphere will remain.
Best part: menu prices don’t exceed $10, with cocktails ranging between $3 and $6. The University City college students will surely appreciate that.
From left to right: The Volkswagon Beetle on Distrito's first floor; and Jose Garces-crafted enchiladas. (Photos courtesy of Distrito)
Our friends at Grub Street Philadelphia have unveiled the Cantina’s menu, which includes “typical” (this is Jose Garces, after all) Mexican fare (enchiladas, guacamole) and, cocktails-wise, a few concoctions that should become very famous very quickly (e.g. the tequila and Red Bull-fused “Bazooka” shooter).
CLICK HERE to read more about the Cantina at Distrito. [Grub Street Philadelphia]
Distrito [gophila.com]
