Eating out, Food, Philadelphia suburb, Restaurant, Reviews, scallops, steak

White Dog Cafe, Haverford, PA

There were four of us that met out for dinner at White Dog Cafe in Haverford. We started with Sandy Ridge Farm Deviled Eggs for $11 which included a half dozen, cage-free eggs with an assortment of seasonal fillings. Ours included caviar and chives, a crispy potato crumble and a blue cheese and bacon topping. These were fantastic and unlike any deviled eggs we had ever had. They were so creamy and the toppings were unique and complimentary.

Deviled Eggs

We also shared Parmesan Fries with truffle oil, grana, and chives for $8. They were cooked just right and were served with care. However, they could have used a bit more truffle oil. You could barely taste or smell the truffle oil but they were still tasty.

Truffle Fries

The Hubs ordered the Butcher’s Cut which was a filet mignon. It was served with locally sourced, shallot butter, house made steak sauce, truffle fries and arugula salad. The plate looked nice but the filet was overcooked. He ordered medium but there was no pink inside. The Hubs isn’t a complainer but I could tell he was a bit disappointed.

Filet

I had the Locust Point Farm Chicken served with goat cheese whipped potatoes, baby spinach and mushroom marsala for $27. Now this chicken could not have been cooked more perfectly! It was so tender and juicy and the skin was so crispy. The potatoes were a little runny but I think that’s because the chicken on top was so juicy. The flavors were divine. I would order this again.

Chicken

Our friends ordered Yellowfin Tuna Tartare served with avocado salsa, sesame soy emulsion and true leaf micro cilantro for $16 (no photo taken). They also ordered the special appetizer for the evening. It was a Tempura Battered Cauliflower all sauced up.

The special appetizer that evening

For their entrees they ordered the Cape May Scallops served with sweet corn ragout, basil charred tomato romesco sauce and almond crumble for $35 and the fish special which was swordfish with various accompaniments. They enjoyed their entrees although they (and we) struggled to finish them as we had so many apps and a few cocktails. We were even all so full and content that we skipped dessert!

Scallop meal and sword fish meal

The decor was very warm and comforting. There are a few rooms available for dining. We were seated in The Living Room. It was super crowded so make sure you make a reservation. There are adorable pictures of dogs a dog related art throughout the restaurant and I loved it. I even enjoyed my trip to the ladies room because I got to enjoy more of the dog related decor.

The bar is small and it was crowded. The bartender and the servers were personable, attentive and knowledgeable. It’s a great date place and a nice place for friends to gather. I do not think it’s a good place for small children so best to get a sitter. I give White Dog Cafe in Haverford 4.5 out of 5 forks. It’s a bit pricey but totally worth it. Thanks for reading folks and eat out more often!

duck, Eating out, Food, Philadelphia suburb, Restaurant, Reviews, scallops, steak

Blue Bell Inn, Blue Bell, PA

Busy so make a reservation if you plan to go. We started with an appetizer. We shared the Pan Seared Diver Scallops with Corn Puree, Summer Succotash and Bacon Jam for $17. This was very good however, it came with only two scallops. We suspected that it would have at least three for $17. Give me a break…what a rip-off. Sorry we devoured it before I took a picture because like I said, the scallops were delish.

I ordered the 14 oz. New York Strip with Potato Wedges, Creamed Corn and Black Garlic Butter for $39. Let’s be honest, for a steak to be good it has to be cooked properly. The steak I had was cooked perfect. 30 seconds more it would have been borderline over and 30 seconds less it would have been under BUT for $39 (please just make it $40 on the menu!!) the sides were VERY underwhelming. Come on…3 fried potatoes wedges!? That was literally 1/2 of a potato. And an obvious house-made creamed corn was very lose. Sadly I believe it was the same corn used in our appetizer. Boy that was a bummer. You can probably tell in the pic it was soupy. The flavor was there but it was more like a corn soup, not even worthy of the word chowder. And they must have just simply forgotten the black garlic butter. Oh and lastly, the 4 shavings of sea salt seen on the steak in the pic are not enough. Any chef will confirm you must season with salt and pepper…generously! What the heck! Boo on the sad presentation!

NY Strip

Dan had the Half Roasted Duck with Frisee Lettuce, Crispy Fingerling Potatoes, Pomegranate Seeds with a Grand Marnier Glaze for $32. Dan said it was good but I think he was being generous just to not get me going. He’s smart like that. I had a bite of the duck and the meat was dry. Sorry to say but it is true. Duck is supposed to be moist! The skin, however, was deliciously crispy as it should be. The potatoes were far from crispy and the lettuce was plain old boring. Presentation was nice but overall, I wasn’t impressed.

Half-a-duck dinner

Dessert was the cream brulee and a bull crap of a “cookie”. It was dry and tasteless. It was a disintegrating biscotti served on the side. The menu indicated that the cream brulee was to be served with a cookie of the “Chef’s Selection”. I said to Dan it’s probably a stale biscotti from a bulk Costco pick up. I know that seems harsh especially if someone there did bake it but it’s important that I am honest with my readers. And if by chance the person that did bake it reads this they will know the truth and maybe make it a little better or let it not get so stale before serving. The cream brûlée was okay. The sugar was a touch overdone but not ruined. The cream had a delicious flavor however the texture was a bit thick and not light in the least. Not terrible but definitely not award worthy.

Ehhh…Dessert

Drinks

Cocktails

The best part of the meal was the cocktails. Not really much more to say about this place. I am surprised and disappointed to say the least. They have such a good reputation but with the meal we were served, I’m not quite sure why. Now I have heard that the raw bar is very good so if that’s your thing, give it a try especially during their happy hour. A couple of people told me this was good. I don’t do raw so I won’t be back for that. Also a note that the clientele is of a more mature group so if you are looking for a good’ole hang out of a time, this isn’t your place. Its probably a good place to take your grandmother for her birthday. Sorry, not sorry. This place gets a 2 out of 4 forks. Thanks for reading and eat up folks!

All-Inclusive, Burger, Eating out, eggs benedict, Escargot, Food, Lamb Shank, Philadelphia suburb, Restaurant, Reviews, scallops, Tropical drink

The All-Inclusive Overindulgence

Let me start by saying I’m sorry I haven’t blogged in the last several days but I was celebrating my anniversary out of the country. But this blog is important to me so I want to take a few moments to say hello and let you know we will be taking my mother out to Pepperoncini in Conshohocken, PA to celebrate Mother’s Day and I will prepare a review and get it posted ASAP!

Quickly though I want to share That The Hubs and I just returned from a beautiful resort in The Bahamas. YES we overindulged on delicious rich foods, including an excess of red meat, strong coffee, a plethora of tropical cocktails, wine, sweets and soooooo much more. Can you say heartburn and indigestion?🥴 Here are a few of the dishes and drinks…

Delicious🤤

Once we returned home we went food shopping and got mostly healthy food to try to make up for the gluttony. We bought chicken breasts, ground chicken, snapper fillets, albacore tuna, carrots, celery, radishes, cucumbers, broccoli whole wheat bread, berries, grapefruit, bananas AND a few more items but mostly all good-for-you food. We needed to food-prep so I prepared some grilled chicken breasts, chicken meatballs, cleaned and cut lots of raw veggies for snacking and for a salad base and some light tuna salad. At least until our next meal out 🤣.

Wish me luck with the dietary “clean-out”. 😂 I’ll be posting my review for Pepperoncini ASAP!

Ohhh to be back there again 🌴🌞