Craig LaBan’s favorite restaurants of 2022 | Let’s Eat

Counting down to the end of 2022, critic Craig LaBan recaps his dining highlights for us. Also this week: Two Robbers hard seltzer is opening a restaurant, the Passero’s coffee stand at Suburban Station is closing Thursday, and we catch up with chef Georges Perrier.

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Critic Craig LaBan reviewed his dining notes of the last 12 months and came up with his high points. Restaurant of the year: Her Place Supper Club in Rittenhouse. Chef of the year: Dionicio Jimenez of Cantina La Martina in Kensington. Read on to check out his favorites — such as new Vietnamese destinations, breakfasts, and a rising star chef. 🔑

Georges Perrier and Le Bec-Fin set the table for fine dining from the 1970 opening on Spruce Street, through its three decades on Walnut Street. In another installment of “The 86′d Project,” where we explore influential restaurants and chefs, we recap a remarkable career that ended 10 years ago. Perrier himself, photographed last month with his daughter, Genevieve, is alive and well at age 79, lest anyone think otherwise. 🔑

In a related article, Le Bec-Fin alums — many of whom moved on to glory — recall the olden days.

One of Le Bec-Fin’s signature dishes was galette de crabe, a riff on crabcakes. Deputy food editor Margaret Eby followed the recipe, which we share here.

Promise me you’ll be careful making the galette. Back in 1995, a hurried Perrier stuck his hand into his food processor and almost lost a few fingers. Talk about a chef putting himself into his work.

Other 86′d Project installments:

Panettone — crunchy on the top and cotton candy-soft on the inside, perfumed with citrus and vanilla, filled with pockets of dark chocolate — is a holiday tradition, as colleague Jenn Ladd writes. She watched executive pastry chef Danielle Seipp work her magic in the basement kitchen of the Four Seasons Philadelphia, and she shares some secrets. (Do not rotate your phone. The panettoni you see above are cooling upside-down.)

The Union League, the private club in Center City that dates back to the Civil War, is getting with the times. As colleague Jake Blumgart has uncovered, the Union League is planning a $25 million rooftop restaurant at Broad and Sansom Streets. Know a member? You may score an invitation when it opens in 2023.

Philly restaurant owners have only a few weeks to apply for streetery licenses if they want to keep their parking-spot patios alive in 2023, reports colleague Max Marin.

Permit applications for the new Outdoor Dining Program opened last month, and going legal will require complying with new rules that the city previously waived to keep restaurants afloat during the worst of the pandemic.

The controversial new regs — including securing a $1 million comprehensive general liability insurance plan and paying $1,750 for a license fee — are already in effect, but the Streets Department won’t begin enforcement until Jan. 9.

If a restaurant falls outside one of the city’s by-right “streetery zones,” owners will need special permission from the district councilmember to obtain a license.

Max says time will tell how many streeteries make the final cut. Some restaurants, including Cheu/Nunu in Fishtown (shown above), have already begun dismantling their al fresco dining structures well ahead of the enforcement deadline.

Two Robbers, the Philly-grown hard-seltzer brand, gets into the restaurant business this week in Fishtown. I checked it out the other day: Seltzers, beers, wines, cocktails are featured in a cool space across from Frankford Hall. Do not sleep on the smash burger, which the brothers-partners insist is the best in town.

In other bubbly beverage news: The Ambler brewery Forest & Main has expanded beyond its namesake corner to open a second taproom. Jenn explains how they’ve doubled down on their suburban roots.

Briefly noted

Nirvana Indian Bistro, now in Queen Village, Lafayette Hill, and Blue Bell, adds a Chestnut Hill BYOB location on Dec. 27. It will replace Mica at 8609 Germantown Ave.

Spuntino’s last night of service in Northern Liberties will be Dec. 30 as owner Salvatore Carollo is moving on, to be followed by Mike Fitzick of the Jersey Shore’s Bakeria 1010. Carollo encourages customers to book their final Spuntino tables on OpenTable.

The landmark Muffins luncheonette in Bridgeport is getting new life at the hands of Steve Sicilia and Paul Salamy, who have been best friends for 24 of their 26 years. Their breakfast cheesesteak (below) is a thing of beauty.

A dessert martini! Craig gives a thumbs up to the Flambo Crème, a version of the Trinidadian holiday drink known as ponche de crème, that co-owner Kevin Ramlochan pours at Flambo, 205 S. 13th St. The idea of a Caribbean Christmas in Midtown Village is alive and well.

Passero’s Coffee Roasters’ location at Suburban Station will close after business Thursday, a victim of the pandemic and its impact on SEPTA. What year did Passero’s open there?

A) 1987

B) 1991

C) 1999

D) 2002

For the answer, check out the story.

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