BRUNCH

BRUNCH, BYO, duck, Eating out, Escargot, Food, French, Philadelphia suburb, Reviews

La Provence – Ambler, PA BYOB Series

May 25, 2021 ILoveEatingOut

If you are looking for fine French cuisine, La Provence is a spot for you to try. It is located in an old railroad track stop right on Butler Pike in Ambler, PA. The restaurant has both indoor and outdoor seating available, and reservations are suggested.

We were first greeted by our server and offered an array of water. We chose good ole’ tap. The liquid delight was delivered along with some freshly baked, warm French bread with a room temperature whipped butter. Very comforting indeed.

The Hubs is a true fan of escargot and whenever we go to a French restaurant, he is sure to order the edible snails. The escargot was served traditionally prepared baked with parsley-garlic butter for $15. He described them as “very good”. I on the other hand am not a fan of escargot so I passed on trying this dish. I do like eating out but there are a few things that I just won’t eat, and snails are one of them. I have tried them, and I just don’t like em’ but hey I’m not yuckin’ your yum. If you like them, get them!

Mmmmmmmm pate’ now you’re speaking my language. I know, I won’t eat snails, but I’ll devour a plate of pate’. To each his own my foodie friends! “Pate’ De Campagne” was on the appetizer menu so of course I had to partake. The pate is a pork and chicken country pate, served with a petite salad, cornichons, mustard, and red wine shallots for $14. I really enjoyed the array of flavors and textures. It was quite satisfying. My only critique would be that it only came with one little, tiny crisp of toast but the server brought me some more of their delicious sliced French bread and I didn’t even have to ask! I wonder if I made a face or said something to my husband and the server overheard me? Well, it’s for sure possible but I call that being super observant and that is perfect when you are dining out. Good job server friend!

For my entre I had “Mussels Marinieres” which is mussels served in white wine and garlic with a side of thin, crispy frites. Honestly, I cannot remember the exact cost but I believe it was $22. I went back to their website and I don’t see this on the menu so it must have been a special that evening. Anyway, they were the most tender, soft mussels I ever had. They were grand quality and cooked perfectly in a lovely broth which I sopped up with even more French bread and my salty fries.

My Husband ordered a chef special for the evening. It was a blood orange crispy duck served with braised purple cabbage and mashed potatoes. I tried this and it was mouthwatering. The duck was perfectly cooked, and the potatoes were so creamy just to die for. This was a pure masterpiece for I believe $29.

To finish off this fine meal we decided to share a creme brulee…of course we would get this, it is a French restaurant after all. BUT THEN the server described a dessert special that sounded fantastic, so we decided to try it. I don’t remember what it is called, and I have search and searched online. I have found numerous photos of this dessert but NO NAME! With the number of photos, I have seen online, it makes me believe it’s a “special” on many nights. So I guess you could say it’s “the not so special special” 😆…for $10 bucks.

The dessert was smooth and creamy (almost flan like) vanilla pudding served with a very thin (almost too thin) vanilla sauce. It was good and it was nice to try something different, but I think next time I’ll try the creme brulee for sure. Don’t fix it if it ain’t broken I guess. But no, seriously, it is important to try different dishes I truly believe.

So here are a few tidbits I think are important to mention. First and foremost, it does not seem like the best place to bring kids (or babies – gotta mention that too) so get a sitter and leave them at home. It is a very quiet, dark and romantic place. The outside is decorated so lovely with candles on the tables and lights strung about. So, save dinner at La Provence for a date night or even a nice evening out with some special friends. Second, its BYOB so be sure to bring your favorite French vin to your special dinner. And lastly, brunch is offered on Sundays. Perhaps if you must bring the kiddos, brunch could be an option but I’m not too sure yet as I haven’t experienced it myself. In closing, I give La Provence 3.75 out of 5 forks. Not the best but not a bad score. The food was good but not spectacular. The fries were a bit underwhelming and the dessert wasn’t my fave. The prices seemed fair for the food that was delivered, the service was phenomenal and the ambiance was lovely. I’m not over-the-moon about this place but it was still a nice, romantic spot and I’ll definitely hit it again. Totally worth a try.

Hey thanks for reading and eat out more often folks! Bon appétit!😉

Bloody Mary, BRUNCH, Eating out, Food, Philadelphia suburb, Restaurant, Reviews

BRUNCH SERIES! Stone Rose, Conshohocken, PA

September 8, 2019 ILoveEatingOut

It’s a Bloody Mary lovers dream I tell ya. I mean look at this Bloody sampler! I have never heard of such a thing and I’m not sure why. What an awesome idea. It included three different 5 oz glasses…their classic Rose Mary, the Spicy Verde and the Bloody Maria for only $11. The Bloody Maria was made with tequila and surprisingly it was really good. My fave was the classic and Dan’s fave was the Spicy Verde. It was also served with an extra glass with bacon and lemon and limes which is nice but like I always say, chuck a chunk of cheese in there or maybe a pickle and some celery too! Me likey the options. That’s one of the best parts…all of the fixins!

We started by sharing the Chef’s Daily Flatbread for $14. It was buffalo chicken and it was quite good. The crust was thin and crispy. It wasn’t soggy or overcooked. It was done just right. The chicken was tender, the scallions and arugula were fresh and the sauce was amazing. We confirmed the sauce was made in-house. It wasn’t very “buffaloey” though. It was spicy and somewhat sweet. It wasn’t what we expected…it was better.

I had the crab and avocado salad for $15. It included crab meat, avocado, mixed greens, a roasted pepper and crispy potato strips. It was very light and fresh. Note though that if I didn’t have some of the flatbread, I don’t know that I would have been satisfied. Now I do have a few comments both good and bad. Let’s start with the good first. The citrus vinaigrette was amazing. Aannnndddd that’s pretty much it for the good. Now the bad. The mixed greens were a little lackluster. Literally it was just a pile of greens…boring. It was saved by the delicious vinaigrette. The roasted pepper was a bit much. It was a whole pepper barely roasted. It needed to be roasted longer. The avocado and crab were fine although I didn’t have one piece of “lump” in my serving and the menu indicated it was lump. It was just a bunch of shredded crab meat. The crispy potatoes added nothing flavor wise and it’s texture over the crab/avocado stack just didn’t make sense to me. This dish was just boring and lacked finesse.

The hubs ordered the frittata which is the chef’s daily creation served with arugula salad and fresh fruit for $11. This frittata was made with red pepper, cheddar cheese and spinach. Personally, I’m not a frittata fan in general. It’s something that I would never order. Dan said it was good. He really enjoyed it. If you look at the picture, it looked a little brown on the bottom to me but again, the hubs didn’t complain one bit. He enjoyed the arugula on top and the fresh fruit consisted of a few slices of ripe cantaloupe.

On the day we went we were lucky enough to have great weather so we sat outside at one of the few tables they offer. We made a reservation but I don’t think you need it for brunch as it was not busy. I believe the evening is when reservations are needed. The servers were fabulous. They worked as a team and were very attentive. Our table was a bit wobbly and our server grabbed a wedge to put under the leg and quickly steadied it up for us. The food came out as ordered and in a perfectly timed manner. The stars of this meal were the surely the Bloody Mary sampler and the flatbread. It was a good experience but not a slam dunk. In conclusion, I give Stone Rose brunch 3.25 out of 4 forks. Thanks for reading folks and be sure to make an effort to eat out more often!

BRUNCH, Burger, Eating out, Food, Italian, Philadelphia suburb, Restaurant, Reviews

BRUNCH series! First review from Panache in Blue Bell, PA

August 24, 2019 ILoveEatingOut

Previously I reviewed Panache for dinner and it was a huge hit so I thought I’d start the BRUNCH series with this fab establishment and let me tell you this was no mistake.

It was Sunday morning at 10:30. We had a reservation but we certainly didn’t need one. It wasn’t like dinner when it is packed and always a wait. We started with a cocktail. I had a Ruby Red Spritzer for $7.00. It was champagne, pineapple infused vodka and a splash of pineapple juice. It was very fizzy and refreshing as well as STRONG my goodness! Dan had a Bloody Mary also for $7.00. I tasted it and it was fine for a regular Bloody Mary but for me, I prefer a Bloody with a little more pizzazz. Chuck a chunk of cheese and a pickle on a skewer and throw it in there! A crunchy piece of bacon or a fresh, crunchy piece of celery!

Ummmmm can you say dang good mini croissant? I have never been a huge fan of the croissant but these complimentary mini croissants have changed me. They were still warm and buttery and oh-so-good. The picture does not do them justice. We were given 4 croissants for the two of us. I let out server know how delightful they were and she offered us more. I wanted to say yes but my thighs said no.

The menu had a nice variety of meal choices. It offered Belgian Waffels, steak and eggs with Béarnaise sauce and your regular ol’ eggs with bacon or chicken sausage. Or you could get something lunchy like the Panache Burger (that’s what I had). If you are feeling like you want something a little different maybe try the Sweet Potato Pancakes or what Dan enjoyed the Shakshuka Merguez.

The Shakshuka Merguez was served in a piping hot cast-iron pan. It was as delicious as it was beautiful to see. It was served with two sunny-side up eggs baked with spicy tomato sauce and lamb merguez sausage for $13.00. I tasted the “sausage” and the sauce and both were yummy, however, I don’t really know that you call call it sausage. Their was no casing and it reminded me of lamb kofta which for me is fine because kofta is exotically delicious. But overall it was a home run for a new and exciting brunch entree.

I had the Panache Burger. I am a lunch kinda girl rather than breakfast. I know I know, what is wrong with me? lol Anyway, presentation was just okay but that’s fine because the burger was cooked perfect and that my friends makes for the perfect burger. It was served on a soft brioche bun which frankly is the only way to serve a burger. The fries were….well fries. Nothing special. A little drizzle of truffle oil and a sprinkle of parmesan and parsley could really elevate this plate. Don’t get met wrong, it was good. I bet they would have let me substitute the fries for a side salad. Maybe next time I’ll ask. OH just so you know, they have 1/2 price burgers during Wednesday happy hour so you have no excuse not to give it a try.

Panache did it again my friends. The atmosphere like evening atmosphere was lovely with soft Italian music playing in the background. Our server was kind and attentive. I had a question about the menu and since she wasn’t sure of the answer she quickly went to the chef to find out for me. Everything was timely and delicious. I did notice though that it wasn’t crowded like the evening and maybe because people just don’t know how good their brunch menu is? Well thank goodness I’m here to tell you! I give Panache brunch 3.5 out of 4 forks. Thanks for reading my blog all! Their is more to eating out than just dinner. Try some BRUNCH!