Do Mother’s Day brunch like a pro | Let’s Eat

We’ve found some last-minute brunch ideas for Sunday, in case you’ve put off Mother’s Day plans. Also this week, we’re visiting the two new cat cafes, checking in on Vetri Cucina at a milestone, and chatting up a diner owner who has an order of his own. All this and ... pickle pop tarts?

— Mike Klein

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You’ve been planning to go out to Mother’s Day brunch, but you’ve yet to hit the “reserve” button. Meanwhile, the books are full at many of the most popular restaurants, especially in the city — though you might slip into a swank spot like Forsythia, which had a few spots left for its $80 prix fixe. That crêpe stuffed with kale, pumpkin, caramelized onions, Époisses de Bourgogne, and truffle-pistachio honey sounds amazing.

I scoured reservation books through the region for solid ideas with decent availability; chains are not included. I’ve included keys to the reservation sites (”OT” for OpenTable, “Toast” for Toast, “Tock” for Tock, “R” for Resy).

Philadelphia: Bake’n Bacon (Toast), Bar Jawn (R), Buccann (O), Cantina La Martina (Tock), Kick Axe Throwing (Tock), Le Virtù (R), Macaroni’s (Tock), Queen & Rook Game Cafe (R), Superfolie (Tock)

Bucks County: Blue Point Grill (R), Founding Fathers (O), Piccolo’s Trattoria (O), Triumph Brewing (O), Villa Barolo (O)

Chester County: Arugula (O), Fellini (O), Hilltop Crab House (O)

Delaware County: La Porta (R), Lariele (R), Off the Rail (O), Ridley House (O), Sophie’s BBQ/Four Birds (R)

Main Line: Dandan (R), Fiore Rosso (Tock), Otto by Polpo (O), White House Tajine (O)

Montgomery County: Cantina Feliz (R), Coyote Crossing (Tock), Farm & Fisherman (R), Enza (R), Gauchos Prime (O), Bar Sera (R), Via 417 (O), Salt (O), Vallini (R)

South Jersey: Bistro DiMarino (R), Black Olive (O), El Mariachi San Lucas (O), Il Fiore (O), Il Villagio (O), La Catrina (O), Marblehead Chowderhouse (O), Naan (O)

☎️ Stuck? You can phone some restaurants. Most hold some tables from their online reservation service for walk-ins. Also remember that nowadays, it’s harder than ever to book a large party without a deposit.

🧑‍🍳 Cooking? Four noted Philly chefs — Joe Cicala, Chutatip “Nok” Suntaranon, Jose Garces, and Lou Boquila — shared meaningful Mother’s Day recipes with us at the outset of the pandemic. Cicala’s eggplant meatballs, Suntaranon’s pork, shrimp, and crab dumplings, Garces’ empanadas de verde con pollo, and Boquila’s octopus escabeche would be welcome additions to your repertoire.

Two cat cafes have opened, coincidentally on the same day and in South Philadelphia: Get a Gato (catty-corner from John’s Water Ice at Seventh and Christian), which is a true cafe with espresso, Colombian baked goods, and gifts, and Whiskers Cat Cafe (catty-corner from the old Melrose Diner at 15th and Snyder), a lounge. Each is a nonprofit trying to find homes for the city’s huge stray population; some days, there have been felines out the door.

Vetri Cucina, one of the most impactful Philadelphia restaurants of the last quarter-century, isn’t afraid to keep evolving, writes critic Craig LaBan, who says it remains a gold standard for destination dining. As Marc Vetri told him: “We’re not slowing down because the Philly restaurant scene is vibrant as ever.”

South Street West farm-to-table BYOB Pumpkin is marking its 20th anniversary by calling on chefs to contribute cabbage recipes to run as specials on Pumpkin’s prix-fixe menus.

Cabbage? “It’s used in every culture, every cuisine, all year round,” said chef-owner Ian Moroney, who, with Hillary Bor, opened Pumpkin on what was then a fairly unhappening block of South Street in 2004. Each dish will be on the $55 menu for one week, from Tuesday to Thursday.

The series will debut next week with Alex Yoon of Little Fish, the Bella Vista BYOB where Moroney and his father, John Tiplitz, made their mark decades ago. Later this month will be Ange Branca of Kampar, as she and Yoon mark AAPI Month. (Moroney’s companion, Sharon Thompson-Schill, used AI to create the Cabbage Patch Kid version of Branca, shown above.)

June’s chefs will be Diana Widjojo and Joncarl Lachman of Rice & Sambal for Pride Month, and the promo will continue through the rest of the year. See Pumpkin’s Instagram for dates and dishes.

Want to buy Bob’s Diner? Fine, says owner Jim Evans. Just don’t think of bulldozing it. The Roxborough landmark must remain a diner, and he tells Jenn Ladd why he’s laying down the law.

As an April Fool’s prank, Crust Vegan Bakery in Manayunk made pickle pop tarts, and the batch of 14 dozen sold out. Wait! Pickle pop tarts? “With the icing, it kind of becomes a bread and butter pickle,” cake decorator Jordan Fuchs told Jenn Ladd. Although owner Juli Van Brown says the pastries won’t be on the regular menu soon, there’s a chance of a reprise if the public clamors. One dilemma: Brown said she and co-owner Meagan Benz] could have “an uphill battle with our deco team.”

🥧More pie! Little Susie’s, the coffee and hand-pie specialist, will expand to Kensington-Fishtown this summer with its fourth location: 1772 N. Front St., under the El and right by LMNO and Kalaya.

The Fishtown-Kensington corridor can’t stop, won’t stop. Construction is underway on a long-planned boutique hotel taking over the former Fluehr’s Furniture Store at 2205 N. Front St. in Kensington. On the first two floors will be a “French-ish” restaurant with chef George Sabatino at the stove. Atop that will be two hotel floors (each with three rooms), private dining, and a roof deck. Starr alums Joshua Mann and Graham Gernsheimer (most recently with Loco Pez) are behind the project, which has no menu or name yet. For the look, they’re taking inspiration from the building’s history and beauty, Mann said. This is one block from Lost Time Brewing Co.’s forthcoming tasting room in the former Mighty Mick’s gym from the Rocky movies.

Nearby, sushi chef Mitsutaka Harada is tuning up for Friday’s debut of Philly’s first Sushi by Bou, the quick-and-quirky national omakase brand that offers budget priced one-hour experiences. (Chef David Bouhadana and partners premiered the concept six years ago in a 150-square-foot Manhattan hotel room.) Philly’s Sushi by Bou — say “Bou” as if you’re scaring someone — replaces the ownership group’s 10-seat Sushi Suite in the back room of Izakaya Fishtown (1832 Frankford Ave.). Sushi Suite’s Roaring ’20s look has been updated to ’90s hip-hop for a $60 (12-course) or $125 (17-course “Bou-gie upgrade”) offering. Cocktail pairings, too. The fancier, pricier Sushi Suite will relocate to Center City, probably late summer, and another Sushi by Bou is on the way to Rittenhouse later this year. Opening weekend is sold out; reserve on OpenTable.

🍣 Here’s a guide to the Philly area’s omakase experiences.

The Little Hot Dog Wagon. Would you order a hot dog, even a Sabrett’s, mainly to savor the kraut served on top of it? You might be tempted to do that at Dawn Demry’s new shop next to the BurgerFi in the food court of the Fashion District — an extension of her popular cart and wagon on the campuses of City University of New York and Columbia University, her alma mater. Foods pop under Demry’s sweet-and-zesty (but not sour) kraut, which she sells by the jar at the stand and through NYC supermarkets.

Demry was a social worker who led internships and career counseling at CUNY, but suffered through a number of budget-induced layoffs. Her uncle had a small hot dog wagon that he had never used. “I had been after this wagon forever, like, ‘Uncle Roy, please let me use it,’” she said. “Probably after about the fourth or the fifth time I was laid off, I couldn’t even get the words out of my mouth when he said, ‘Go ahead. Take it.’” That was six years ago, and she’s added a larger wagon.

The dog you see above is the Philly cheesesteak ($12), which stuffs a Sabrett inside a roll topped with steak, grilled peppers and onions, and cheese. There are turkey and vegan hot dogs and sausages, plus beef/turkey/veggie sausages and a burger made out of wild-caught salmon, plus fountain drinks and pineapple lemonade, and, for dessert, vegan cookies and carrot cake.

The Little Hot Dog Wagon, in the food court of the Fashion District, 901 Market St. Hours: 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Sunday. Last customer served 30 minutes before closing.

Almost Home. Last month, Robbie Doran took over the former Old City space of apparel company United By Blue with his syndicated coffee shop. Doran, who was in the New York spirits industry, quit and moved to Southeast Asia. Over there, he got heavily into coffee, working at a Thai farm and immersing himself in cafes.

Back in the States and living in Florida, he caught up with a friend in North Jersey who wanted to partner with him on a coffee shop. Doran decided to bike to New Jersey from Florida and turned it into a $35,000 fundraiser for other small businesses impacted by COVID-19. During the 1,800-mile ride, friends and loved ones frequently told him, “Rob, you’re one more day closer, almost home.”

Now with six Almost Home locations, Doran has plans to expand in Philly, where he opened last month with a full breakfast and lunch menu. Partner Glu Hospitality’s liquor license allows cocktails and wines, and the new location serves dinner Thursday to Saturday.

Here’s a sample menu, though chef Nihad Hajdarhodzic is mixing it up. Last Thursday, he put up a spring pasta dish, shown above, with local purple trumpet mushrooms, purple peas, Trevisan radicchio, tricolor local tomatoes, red sorrel, and mustard greens, all tossed with Agrumato lemon extra-virgin olive oil.

Almost Home, 205 Race St. Hours: 7 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday-Wednesday, 7 a.m.-9 p.m. Thursday-Saturday.

What happens to the leftovers from pop-up restaurants? Chef Kiki Aranita explains.

Chefs Valerie Erwin and April McGreger are taking preorders through May 9 for the Motherly Love Biscuit Pop Up, a benefit for the People’s Kitchen. McGreger’s biscuits and jam and Erwin’s sweet rice beignets, plus accompaniments, will be available.

The Vendors Association of the Southeast Asian Market at FDR Park, which is in the process of becoming a nonprofit, will benefit from a dinner organized by Roland Bui, though his Com.Unity, and Liz Barrella. Eight vendors representing Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Indonesia, and Thailand will cook a seated dinner on May 22 at 6:30 p.m. at the Bok’s new seventh-floor rooftop. It’s $150, including drinks from Philadelphia Distilling, San Pellegrino, Vena Spirits, Rupee Beer, and Two Robbers. The dinner is designed to highlight the people behind the market by setting a stage for them to talk about themselves and their journeys, according to Bui. It’s “an effort to emphasize that Southeast Asian cuisines do not have to be deemed ‘cheap,’” he says. Ticket info is here.

Chef Fran Costigan of Les Dames d’Escoffier will lead a vegan baking class from 5-8 p.m. May 21 at Drexel. It’s $85. Ticket info is here.

Pat’s King of Steaks has added breakfast sandwiches and what other item to the menu?

A) roast pork

B) pizza rolls

C) chicken cheesesteaks

D) birria tacos

Find out if you know the answer.

Have any family members carried on the tradition of the long-ago Minar Palace? — Jon C.

The Singh family’s Minar Palace at 1605 Sansom St. was one of Center City’s most popular Indian restaurants from 1991 until it was forced out by the wrecking ball in 2006. (The photo above shows it in 2003, three years after the remainder of the block was razed.) The site, now part of the Sansom building, is Adolf Biecker day spa. Minar resurfaced in 2008 at 1304 Walnut St. (now Grandma’s Philly) and enjoyed a 10-year run before the Singhs balked at a rent increase. Though owners Tarsem and Dharamjit Singh are retired, they offer small-scale personal catering. Email their son Daz at realtordaz@gmail.com with “Minar Palace inquiry” in the subject line.

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