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Fairmount's restaurant scene is gaining a wine bar, courtesy of and adjacent to London Grill. (Photo courtesy London Grill)

“I see London, I see France” is what you’ll say when owners Terry and Chef Michael McNally of London Grill open their second restaurant, Paris Wine Bar, next door on Thursday, February 9 with a reception featuring free hors d’oeuvres and live jazz.

Although “an ode to the winsome storefronts of Paris’ Le Marais neighborhood,” in Terry’s words, the comfortable lounge and cafe will focus on wines produced here in Pennsylvania.

Food-wise, Chef McNally’s cafe-inspired menu will include comfort fare like steamed mussels, mustard-crusted calf’s liver and his own take on the classic croque madame served with duck confit.

The 50-seater, adorned with French sconces, chandeliers and draperies from the McNallys’ personal collection, will be open Thursday through Sunday from 4 p.m.-midnight as well as for private events.

And, if you can’t visit the City of Lights this Spring, be sure to check out the wine bar’s outdoor cafe which will open with the welcoming of warmer weather.

Paris Wine Bar
2303 Fairmount Avenue
www.londongrill.com/paris

Kick the Monday blues at London Grill with delicious meatballs. (Photo courtesy London Grill)

Fairmount’s London Grill is giving you something to look forward to on Mondays.

Every Monday night, Chef McNally dishes up a sampling of three delicious meatballs for $6, with the flavors varying each week.

Some examples of the meatballs the chef has been known to whip up: Moroccan Tuna Balls with Tomato Jam; Veggie Balls; Pork meatballs with roasted poblano rajas; Lamb & Feta meatballs with rhubarb tomato sauce, Duck Meatballs with cherry mostarda, Chicken & proscuitto with tomato sauce and melted mozzarella; and Foie Gras Meatballs.

Pair your meatballs with one of London Grill’s local beers, including Dock Street Justin’s Moustache, Victory Helios, Yards Love Stout or Stoudt’s Fest Willie Sutton Lager.

Then you can head around the corner to Eastern State Penitentiary to take a Winter Adventure Tour.

Kick the Monday blues at London Grill! You officially have plans this evening.

London Grill
2301 Fairmount Avenue
www.londongrill.com

Let the pros at one of Philadelphia's top restaurants do the cooking this Thanksgiving. (Credit: iStockPhoto)

Can you believe Thanksgiving is a little over a week away? If the thought of crowded groceries, long hours in the kitchen and endless piles of dirty dishes makes you shudder, let the professionals at one of Philadelphia’s top restaurants handle your Thanksgiving dinner this year.

From sumptuous multi-course meals to belt-loosening buffets, there are plenty of delicious Thankgiving Day dinner options all throughout the city. You can even enjoy a gourmet dinner at home with a made-to-order meal-to-go.

Whether you’re eating in or taking out, reservations are booking up fast. Check out a few of our top picks for Thanksgiving in Philadelphia below:

Eat-In or Take-Out

• Percy Street Barbecue: Enjoy a southern-style Thanksgiving meal at home without any of the hassle with Percy Street’s “Smokin’ Thanksgiving Feast.” The take-home package includes a smoked turkey with gravy and homemade cranberry sauce, mashed sweet potatoes with bruleed marshmallows, cornbread and sausage stuffing, collard greens, baked apples and pecan pie. The feast costs $225 and feeds six to eight people. Turkeys are also available individually for $65 each. Order must be placed by Wednesday, November 16. Details: 900 South St., 215-625-8510

• Farmers’ Cabinet: Impress your closest friends and family members with pre-prepared Thanksgiving feast from The Farmers’ Cabinet. Each dinner comes complete with a smoked, 15-pound Lancaster free-range turkey, housemade gravy and cranberry sauce, braised kale, creamed pearl onions, green bean casserole, mashed mapled sweet potatoes, dried cherry and apple stuffing, Yukon Gold potato puree and pumpkin pie. $185, feeds six to eight people. Order now and pickup on November 23. Details: 1113 Walnut Street, (215) 923-1113

• Garces Trading Company: Throughout the holidays, Garces Trading Company will offer three special pies – Pumpkin Gingerbread, Bourbon Pecan and ABC (apple, bacon, caramel) created by Pastry Chef Jessica Mogardo. Pies cost $30 each and require 24 hours advance notice.

• LaScala’s: Let Chef Joe Nocella do the work this Thanksgiving with a delicious three-course feast featuring homemade ravioli, roast turkey, burgundy braised beef short ribs, warm apple cobbler and more. Seatings from 12 noon until 7 p.m. Take out is also available. ($35 per person, $15 for children 12 and under) Details: 615 Chestnut Street, (215) 928-0900

• Tavern 17: Bring the whole family to the Radisson Plaza Warwick Hotel in Rittenhouse Square for a delicious Thanksgiving meal. Full holiday meals are also available for pickup. Call for details. Details: 220 South 17th Street, (215) 790-1799

Delightful Dinners

• Supper: Chef Mitch Prensky is creating a delicious family-style Thanksgiving meal complete with farm-raised turkey, sweet potato soup with cinnamon marshmallow and sage, sautéed brussel sprouts with smoked bacon, potato puree with cheddar and horseradish, house baked pumpkin pie and much more. Three seatings are available at 2 p.m., 4:30 p.m. and 7 p.m. ($58 per person, $29 for children 12 and younger) Details: 926 South Street, (215) 592-8180

• 10 Arts by Eric Ripert: Experience a sumptuous four-course Thanksgiving extravaganza at 10 Arts by Eric Ripert. ($110 per person, $55 for children 4-12) Details: 10 Avenue of the Arts, (215) 523-8273

• Parc: Philadelphia’s own Parisian café on Rittenhouse Square will be hosting a Thanksgiving feast from 11:30 a.m. – 6:30 a.m. Enjoy holiday specials and a la carte menu items all day long. Call ahead for reservations. Details: 227 S. 18th Street, (215) 545-2262

There are plenty more meals to be thankful for below…

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One lucky uwishunu reader will get two jump-to-the-head-of-the-line tickets to Terror Behind The Walls followed by dinner at London Grill on us. (Left photo courtesy London Grill, right photo courtesy Eastern State Penitentiary)

Because we like to help you plan your nights and weekends, we’ve put together an awesome night-on-the-town prize package in Fairmount: two VIP tickets to Eastern State Penitentiary’s epic Halloween attraction Terror Behind The Walls plus a $50 gift certificate to nearby London Grill restaurant.

The Terror tickets are valid on November 4, 5 or 12; you take your pick. And they’re special Quick Passes so you jump right to the front of the line.

One lucky reader will receive the tickets and gift certificate, the makings of the ultimate first date, a fun fall night with a buddy or the perfect way to show off to a visitor what Philly’s got.

London Grill is just one block away from the penitentiary, and they have delicious Halloween-themed fare right now. Think Pumpkin bisque with duck confit and pumpkin seeds; Steamed black mussels with Oktoberfest beer, leeks and bacon; Halloween Harvest Trio, vegetables and roots pulled from the ground; and Count Chocula’s Chocolate Mousse.

The contest runs through Wednesday, November 2, and you may enter once per day, per e-mail address — so remember to return daily. Click here for the official rules. Good luck!

The contest period has ended.

Several restaurants in Philadelphia, including Supper, are toasting to the Jewish New Year with special menus available just for the holiday.
(Photo courtesy Supper)

Restaurants around Philadelphia are celebrating the first Jewish High Holiday of 2011 in high spirits, with special prix-fixe menus complementing their already delicious standard offerings. Our top picks are below.

L’Shana Tova 5772!

• Zahav: From September 26 to October 2, Chef Michael Solomonov will be dishing up a delicious five-course Rosh Hashanah menu, $45 per person. On the menu: Salatim and Hummus with house-baked challah; Matzoh Ball Soup yemenite style; Griddled Honey Cake with foie gras and apple; Coffee-Braised Brisket with turnips, chestnuts and pumpkin-saffron rice; and Honey Malabi with pomegranate syrup and apple sorbet.

• Supper: On September 28 and 29, you can feast on Chef Mitch Prensky’s five-course Rosh Hashanah-specific menu, $52 per person. Each course has multiple options, and everything is sourced from local farms for the ultimate fresh factor. Kugel of Egg Noodles with Linvilla Orchard Peaches? House-Baked Macaroons? yes, please.

• London Grill: On September 28 and 29, dine on three courses plus apples and honey for $35 per person, featuring “the best of Newish-Jewish Cuisine.” Sample menu items include Sweet Noodle Kugel, Matzoh Ball Soup, Sweet and Sour Brisket, Budapest Coffee Cake and Honey Cake. Fine Israeli wines are available as well as, new to Philadelphia, Crispin Cider, a premium natural hard apple cider.

• Delicatessen: Chef Michael Spector will prepare a special Rosh Hashanah menu September 29 and 30. Dishes include: Matzo Ball Soup, Butternut Squash Soup with Apples & Pomegranate, Slow Cooked Savory Brisket, Apricot Chicken with Honey & Thyme, Challah Stuffing with Figs & Pecans, Tsimmes with Butternut Squash, Sweet Potatoes, & Carrots, Braised Red Cabbage & Apples and Noodle Kugel with Figs, Apricots & Honey. They ask that you order up to 48 hours in advance.

• 1518 Bar & Grill: Choose from either a three-course ($19.50) or four-course menu ($25). For the former, you get either pork and lamb meatballs or hummus with pita and olives; mushroom risotto with grilled chicken or rib-eye steak with roasted potato and vegetables; and for dessert, flourless chocolate cake or New York cheesecake. For the four-course option, you start with soup (minestrone) and salad (choose from three: roasted beet with orange and goat cheese; grilled romaine with black peppercorn and parmesan dressing; or traditional Greek salad), followed by grilled salmon or tilapia and the same dessert choices. They’re both available over the next few weeks; just be sure to call 48 hours before.

The London Grill has geared up for a summer full of lobster. (Photo courtesy London Grill)

Lobster is a quintessential summer delicacy, and London Grill in Fairmount is squeezing the summer goodness out of every week of August by offering awesome lobster specials all month long.

The lobster dishes include: Creamy Lobster Bisque; New England Lobster Roll, a half-pound of lobster salad served on a New England roll; Half-Pound Lobster Burger served on a brioche roll avocado aioli; Lobster Bake, a half-pound lobster with corn on the cob, potatoes, mussels and chorizo sausage; and Whole Maine Lobster Dinner, a two-pound steamed lobster served with new potatoes, corn on the cob and drawn butter.

London Grill also offers a special three-course Lobster Dinner, a steamed Maine half chix lobster with a salad and dessert, for $23 per person.

Bonus: enjoy your lobster outside on the ample sidewalk seating abutting the picturesque streets of this charming Philadelphia neighborhood.

Says co-owner Terry Berch McNally, “You’ll be able to feel like you’ve taken a trip to Maine when you come visit 23rd and Fairmount.”

London Grill
2301 Fairmount Avenue
www.londongrill.com

Celebrate Bastille Day in Fairmount tonight with great French-themed drink specials.
(Photo courtesy London Grill)

The Fairmount French Fling Bar Crawl kicks off four days of Bastille Day celebrations tonight at 7 p.m.

Enjoy French-themed drink specials, like Kronenbourg 1664 beer and Mouton Cadet wine, at Fairmount bars and restaurants.

Locations include The Belgian Café, Bishop’s Collar, Bridgid’s, Fare, Jack’s Firehouse, London Grill, Rembrandt’s and Urban Saloon.

The event is just the prelude to nearby Eastern State Penitentiary’s annual Bastille Day Street Festival this Saturday, July 16, the be-all, end-all of the Bastille Day celebrations throughout Philadelphia.

Take tours of the penitentiary, watch a pet parade, bike parade, French fashion show, costume contest and so much more, all leading up to the Storming of the Bastille Reenactment at 5:20 p.m., which includes a real, functioning guillotine built for the occasion and the raining-down of 2,000 Butterscotch Krimpets from the prison’ medieval towers. It all kicks off tonight.

Vive le France!

Fairmount French Fling Bar Crawl
When: Thursday, July 14, 7 p.m.
Where: Bars throughout Fairmount
Cost: Pay as you go
More info: www.easternstate.org

Whether you’re a revolutionary or a royalist, there’s something for you in this four-day celebration of all things French, wrapping up with the tongue-in-cheek Bastille Day reenactment at the Eastern State Penitentiary, complete with functional guillotine.
(Photo courtesy Eastern State Penitentiary)

The annual Bastille Day Festival returns to Fairmount July 14-17 with four days of French-themed festivities, including movie screenings, drink and dinner specials, a giant street festival and 2,000 Tastykakes flung from the Eastern State Penitentiary towers in a grand reenactment of the Storming of the Bastille.

The festivities leading up to the July 16 street festival and main event kick off on Thursday, July 14 with a Fairmount French Fling Bar Crawl. Here are the highlights of the four-day fete:

Thursday, July 14 – Fairmount French Fling Bar Crawl

• The Fairmount French Fling Bar Crawl kicks off the weekend on Thursday, July 14th at 7:00 p.m. with Kronenbourg 1664 beer specials and Mouton Cadet wine specials at local bars and restaurants. Locations include The Belgian Café, Bishop’s Collar, Bridgid’s, Fare, Jack’s Firehouse, London Grill, Rembrandt’s and Urban Saloon.

Friday, July 15 – Fairmount Goes French Friday

Fairmount restaurants and bars will offer French menu items and beer specials on Friday, July 15th. The evening will also feature French-themed movie screenings from the Friends of Eastern State Penitentiary and Mugshots Coffeehouse.

• Art After 5 Bastille Day Party featuring Beau Django at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

• Mugshots Family Film night featuring Ratatouille!, including a free mini-cupcake with a French soda purchase.

• Trio, The Belgian Café, Jack’s Firehouse, Fare and Bridgids will feature French-inspired menu items and drinks all week and weekend long.

• London Grill hosts Fairmount Goes French Wheel of Fortune Night at 7 p.m. with France-centric trivia at the bar and fun prizes.

• A movie screening under the stars!! Cinema Francaise from Friends of Eastern State Penitentiary Park: watch Pepe Le Pew cartoons at 8 p.m. and Disney’s Hunchback of Notre Dame at 8:30 p.m. (free!) on the lawn behind the penitentiary.

Saturday, July 16 – BASTILLE DAY STREET FESTIVAL

Bastille Day Street Festival: 2-6 p.m., Eastern State Penitentiary, FREE.

This is the main event, the be-all, end-all of the Bastille Day celebrations.

Entertainment: Take tours ($12) of the penitentiary, watch a pet parade, bike parade, French fashion show, Peek A Boo Revue Can Can Dancers and costume contest, all leading up to the Storming of the Bastille Reenactment at 5:20 p.m. (see below).

Activities: There will be caricaturists, face painting, make and take crafts with the Fairmount Art Center, and a French Twists and Updos tent by Snip Salon.

Food & Drink: Guests can enjoy French fare from neighborhood restaurants, including The Belgian Cafe, Fare, Jack’s Firehouse, Luigi’s Pizza Fresca, Mugshots Coffeehouse, and Rembrandt’s, while DiBruno Bros. will be on hand with french cheeses. Kronenbourg 1664 Beer, Mouton Cadet wine, and champagne will also be flowing.

Storming of the Bastille: The annual storming of the Bastille is the festival’s main act each year, when dozens of French revolutionaries, armed with muskets and cannons, and singing “La Marseilles,” storm the grim walls of “the Bastille” (Eastern State Penitentiary) and drag “Marie Antoinette” (Terry McNally, co-owner of Fairmount‘s London Grill) to a real, functioning guillotine built for the occasion.

Position yourself below the raining-down of 2,000 Butterscotch Krimpets from the prison’ medieval towers. The storming takes place at 5:30.

Bastille Day After Parties

After the storming, the party spills into the Fairmount neighborhood, as restaurants and bars host great French dinner specials and alfresco celebrations throughout the evening. The epicenter of the after parties is London Grill, but the whole neighborhood participates giving you plenty of places to party like its 1789!

Also after the street fair, stick around for a Twilight Tour of Eastern State Penitentiary, offered from 6:30-8:30 p.m.

Sunday, July 17 – French Champagne Brunch

• French Champagne Brunch at participating Fairmount establishment: The Belgian Café will be serving up Belgian/French inspired fare, London Grill will feature a make your own Bloody “Marie” Bar, Trio will offer French-themed brunch with complimentary Mimosa or Framboise and Bridgid’s will host a BBQ from 2-6 p.m.

The full festival schedule is available online.

Bastille Day Festival
Where: Eastern State Penitentiary, 2020 Fairmount Avenue
When: Saturday, July 16, Starting at 2 p.m.
Cost: Free
More info: www.easternstate.org

Philly Beer Week includes some awesomely unusual events combining amazing beer and fun-filled festivities.
(Photo by G. Widman for GPTMC)

Philly Beer Week is fast approaching, kicking off this Friday, June 3 and taking over bars and restaurants throughout Philadelphia for ten days of sudsy celebrations.

Festivities range from special beer dinners to our With Love Beer Garden at the Four Seasons. You can check out our general Beer Week primer for an overview.

Plus, events of a funkier stripe — think brewer dunking, mechanical bull riding, a ladies beer tea and a beer boxing match — will highlight Philadelphia’s fun approach to craft beer.

Check out some of our top picks, below:

• Beer-lebrity Boxing at Kite & Key: Saturday, June 4, 2 p.m. Local brewers step in the ring for an epic series of boxing match-ups. Beers from all participating “boxers” will be featured on draft.

• Lefthand Arm Wrestling Tournament: Saturday, June 4, 7 p.m. Tournament starts at 9 p.m. The competition heats up at the South Philadelphia Tap Room as Lefthand Brewery searches for the area’s top arm wrestler. The catch? You can only use your left arm. The winner gets beer, gift certificates and everlasting bragging rights… or lefts.

• The Wire Quizzo with Johnny Goodtimes: Sunday, June 5, 9 p.m. If you, like so many others, harbor an unbridled passion for HBO’s gritty, Baltimore-based crime drama The Wire, join Quizzo master Johnny Goodtimes and North Coast Brewer Doug Moody for a night of Wire trivia at the Pub on Passyunk East (P.O.P.E).

• Punk Rock & Finger Sandwiches: Monday, June 6, noon. One of the original “off-center” brewers, Sam Calagione from Dogfish Head Craft Brewery will join Homebrew Chef Sean Paxton at Nodding Head for a lunchtime cocktail party complete with Punk Rock, Finger Sandwiches and optional black-tie party.

• Gong Show at Standard Tap: Thursday, June 9, 7:30 p.m. Prove your love for beer with poetry, song, dance, juggling, ventriloquism — you get the idea. Sponsored by Philadelphia Brewing Company, the show will reward top talents with prizes, but if you hear the gong, you’re gone.

More events, below.

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Tickets are on sale now for the event, Philadelphia's answer to the super popular Food & Wine Festival burger bashes.
(Photo courtesy 500 Degrees)

Everyone has a hankering for a good burger every now and again (and again). But what if you want to sample all of the city’s best burgers at a single event?

Enter the Philadelphia Burger Brawl, coming Saturday, June 4, tickets for which are now officially on sale.

Eighteen of the biggest burger boasters in the city will be at Meredith Elementary School in Queen Village grilling up their own most popular burger. Ticket proceeds go to Meredith Elementary to help the students get a refurbished computer lab.

You can attend this charitable event for $60, eat all the burgers you can handle and bestow your best Top Chef judgery upon them.

Competitors include: Chef Marcie Turney of Barbuzzo, Bindi and Lolita; Chef Matt Levin of Adsum restaurant; Top Chef contestant Chef Jennifer Carroll of 10Arts; Fairmount legend London Grill; Chef Daniel Stern of Midatlantic and R2L; Chef Chris Scarduzio of Table 31; Butcher & Singer; Pub & Kitchen; Good Dog; North Third; Alfa; Royal Tavern; Ladder 15; PYT; Paesano’s; Rouge and their sister restaurant, 500˚. Top Chef contestant Spike Mendelsohn will also be on hand with the famed burger from his Washington, D.C. restaurant Good Stuff Eatery.

Rob and Maggie Wasserman, owners of Rittenhouse Square’s Rouge — home to one of the city’s most famous burgers (is it the best? You decide.) — conceived and organized the event. Participating chefs have donated the ingredients necessary to construct their burgers, while Rouge has supplied the grills, charcoals, storage space and serving equipment for the event.

All-stars Food Network host Marc Summers, former Governor Ed Rendell and Fox29’s Mike Jerrick will be there to help elect the “Best Burger,” so wipe the ketchup from your drooling mouth.

Tickets are on sale now online. Don’t miss this exciting opportunity to combine popular culture, philanthropy and America’s favorite comfort food.

Philadelphia Burger Brawl
When: Saturday, June 4, 2-6 p.m.
Where: 725 S. 5th Street
Cost: $60
More info: www.philadelphia-burger-brawl.ticketleap.com