The ice cream issue | Let’s Eat

As journalists, we’re about scoops. In this week’s newsletter, we go beyond mere ice cream into the specialty side of sweetness. Also, read on for news about Center City’s post-pandemic lunch scene, what might be the final days of a Penn campus landmark, and learn how a Philly brewery cleverly worked around a licensing issue. Oh, and this was not a good week for Instant Pot.

⬇️ Read on for a quiz and exclusive sushi news.

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— Mike Klein

We do love our ice cream (he writes, patting his belly). After deciding where to get the best ice cream in the region, and scouring the ranks of soft-serve shops, we weigh in on sweet specialties.

Deb and Dean Varvoutis, who’ve run the Magic Carpet food trucks on University of Pennsylvania’s campus for 34 years, are ready to retire and would like to find a buyer with Penn bona fides. Colleague Beatrice Forman wonders what’s to become of their “giant, healthy-esque cookies.”

The pandemic and its aftermath have sagged Center City’s lunch business. New colleague Ariana Perez-Castells checked in to see how restaurateurs are dealing with the lack of office workers. Oyster House’s Sam Mink, she found, has turned this new normal into a morale-builder for his employees.

Meanwhile, Old City’s Royal Boucherie (52 S. Second St.) has just revived its weekday lunch from Wednesday through Friday with French fare including salade niçoise, escargot à l’ail noir, and moules royale. Brunch is served on weekends.

Sweet Lucy’s Smokehouse in Northeast Philadelphia is smack in the middle of the traffic headaches caused by last weekend’s I-95 bridge collapse. With State Road closed, business has been cut in half at the start of its peak season, says Brooke Higgins, who’s owned the BBQ destination for 20 years with her husband, Jim. There’s a way around the mess: Take Rhawn Street to State Road and ask the police officer for permission to turn in. The Higginses have been down this road before when several years of I-95 construction created a series of detours. Meanwhile, colleague Joe DiStefano spells out how the bridge collapse created transport challenges for local food suppliers, including Dietz & Watson.

Summertime and the living is easier. Hira rounds up nine cookbooks from authors who know how to add playfulness to your kitchen while keeping recipes easy, breezy, and light.

Could this former firehouse on Howard Street at Cecil B. Moore Avenue in Kensington be a forthcoming restaurant from Mike Solomonov and Steve Cook? Follow my logic.

Two new omakase experiences are preparing to put the fish in Fishtown. (OK, it’s technically Kensington, but whatevs):

Sushi by Bou, chef David Bouhadana’s high-energy express omakase counters spreading nationally from New York, is coming to Philly. I’m told that there will be three locations, one of which is the former Omakase by Yanaga at 1832 Frankford Ave. September is the target. The others will be in Washington Square West and Rittenhouse.

Just a few blocks away, a newcomer called Yuhiro, offering hand rolls as well as an omakase experience, has just inked a deal to take over Mural City Cellars’ pop-up location on the corner of Susquehanna Avenue and Blair Street, just off Frankford Avenue. That’s also up for September.

Pizza Jawn owner David Lee landed in the bar business last week as he took over Manayunk Tavern down the street, at the corner of Main and Rector.

Lee and staff, mainly holdovers, are taking baby steps before the official launch of Bar Jawn. For now, you can indulge in this over-the-top burger: two 3½-ounce smash patties of 75/25 ground chuck from Carl Venezia’s Plymouth Meeting butcher shop, Cooper Sharp cheese, a custom seeded potato roll from Conshohocken Bakery, habanero dill pickles from Fishtown Pickle Project, and a house-made special sauce. A bar pizza, unlike the pies he sells at Pizza Jawn, is on the way.

Bar Jawn, 4247 Main St., opens at 4 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday, and at 11 a.m. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Kitchen is open till 10 p.m., bar later. Closed Tuesday.

In a making-lemonade-out-of-lemons move, Separatist Beer Project, just off East Passyunk Avenue in South Philadelphia, is hosting West Philly’s Carbon Copy for a summer-long pop-up. Colleague Jenn Ladd reports that Separatist lost its license temporarily over a snafu and had to close. But it struck a deal with Carbon Copy to take over the tasting room through August, at least. Separatist’s draft system is now stocked with 10 beers and three wines from Carbon Copy, plus one Ploughman cider. 🔑

Carbon Copy’s hours at 1646 S. 12th St. are 4 to 10 p.m. Monday, 4 to 11 p.m. Thursday, 4 to midnight Friday, noon to midnight Saturday, and noon to 8 p.m. Sunday.

Lilly’s Ferry, with a Middle Eastern menu, has replaced Victoria’s Freehouse on Front Street just off Market in Old City. Owner Anas Hamad, who emigrated from Jerusalem as a teen, kept the tin ceiling and brick walls and named the place for his 4-year-old daughter. Lots of sharing going on, not only with the staples (hummus, chicken shawarma, falafel, and tahini salad) but with barbecue platters including kebabs and lamb chops. For those who miss Victoria’s Freehouse, Hamad has kept the fish and chips. Full bar with seasonal cocktails.

Lilly’s Ferry, 10 S. Front St. Hours: 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday, 11 a.m.-midnight Thursday, 11 a.m.-1 a.m. Friday, 10 a.m.-2 a.m. Saturday, and 10 a.m.-10 p.m. Sunday; kitchen closes at 10:30 p.m. other days.

Fishtown Taps is bringing $5 beers, $6 wines, and $7 signature cocktails from 5-7 p.m. Tuesday through the end of August at nearly 20 bars, breweries, and restaurants. Details are here. Think of it as a river wards edition of the Center City District’s SIPS promotions on Wednesday.

The intersection of South Street and Passyunk Avenue in Queen Village is getting its own farmers market from 3-7 p.m. Thursdays through Thanksgiving. Ribbon-cutting for South & Passyunk Farmers Market will be at 3 p.m. tomorrow.

As a Father’s Day promo, Dolce Italian (1437 Chestnut St.) will offer a complimentary amaro flight to dads following their meals through Sunday.

The Living Room, an Ardmore BYOB live-music venue, will host pop-ups by Robin Cummiskey, who sells nonalcoholic beverages under the name Wallace Dry Goods, during the Cliff Hillis show on Friday and Kenn Kweder’s Fake Press Conference on Saturday. Cummiskey, seeking a permanent home for Wallace, will serve what she calls a “crafted mocktail” and will sell canned nonalcoholic beverages.

When a Phillies game last week was postponed because of the Canadian wildfire smoke, which ballpark vendor donated its entire day’s food to a Camden shelter?

A) Colbie’s

B) Chickie’s & Pete’s

C) Manco & Manco

D) Rita’s

Find out if you know the answer.

Where can I get the chicken sandwich from Foghorn & Fletcher since it closed? — @chikparmmie

The Foghorn chicken sandwich was just added — as in today, June 14 — to the menu at the Black Squirrel Pub & Haunt in East Falls, on Midvale Avenue around the corner from F&F and also owned by chef Art Cavaliere. This sandwich has turmeric pickles, house-made mayo, and black pepper honey. (Check Craig LaBan’s review of Black Squirrel. 🔑)

📮 Have a question about food in Philly? E-mail your questions to me at mklein@inquirer.com.

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