Table Talk: Bagel shop opens a Rittenhouse branch
Repurposed signage The marquee that hung for decades over the old Suburban Theater in Ardmore and later over the Ardmore Farmer's Market (before it moved up the street) has a new purpose.
What's new
Chestnut Street Philly Bagels (1705 Chestnut St., 215-299-9920), in the former Tokyo Lunch Box across from the new Forever 21 store, is a brand-new offshoot of the popular South Street Philly Bagels, on Third Street south of South Street. Aaron Wagner, whose family of New York émigrés also owns the Bagel Spot in Cherry Hill, has brought in Jonathan Yamini as his business partner.
For her restaurant-ownership debut, Sarah Levine has realized a longtime dream by setting up the quaint Luna Cafe (317 Market St., 215-309-3140), a 25-seat BYO (plus takeout) in Old City. Levine, a recent Drexel M.B.A., ascribes to the eco-friendly, fresh-and-local mantra where possible. Former colleague Jordan Andino, who was cooking at the Westin Hotel's Winthorp & Valentine while Levine tended bar, set up the American menu. Bucks County-bred chef Matt Cummins runs the day-to-day. It's open from lunch/brunch to dinner Tuesday to Sunday.
Brewerytown's new The Monkey & the Elephant (2831 W. Girard Ave., 484-343-3709), a coffee shop in the former home of Mugshots and High Point, is Lisa Miccolis' mission to help young people after they age out of the foster system. She employs them to give them work experience.
Repurposed signage
The marquee that hung for decades over the old Suburban Theater in Ardmore and later over the Ardmore Farmer's Market (before it moved up the street) has a new purpose.
It's the roof deck for the new Not Your Average Joe's (49 St. James Place, Ardmore, 484-708-1500). NYAJ not only shored up the marquee to support weight, but it also added a mezzanine level in the 30-foot building.
This NYAJ - the 22d in the chain, after its opening last year in Glen Mills - has an open, industrial look, bars on two levels (40 bottles of wine, 21 served by the glass, and 20 beers on tap), an enormous pizza oven, and a vast wall upon which old movies are projected. A flashback.
Food, made from scratch, hits major food groups - pizzas, sandwiches, entrées, entrée salads - and there is a decent gluten-free selection.
It's open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday to Thursday, until 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
Briefly noted
Bonchon, the new Korean fried-chicken specialist at 1020 Cherry St. in Chinatown, has a dilemma. It has been so slammed that management will not offer phone takeout orders until further notice. (In other words, it is open only for in-person ordering and pickup, and dine-in.) Also, the restaurant and bar are open only for dinner.
Passero's, the coffee veteran, says it will open a shop in mid-March in the Franklin (834 Chestnut St., the former Ben Franklin House).
Laurel (Top Chef winner Nicholas Elmi's East Passyunk BYOB) and Lo Spiedo (Marc Vetri's Italian destination at the Navy Yard) have made critic Alan Richman's list of the best new restaurants in America. Laurel was at No. 8; Lo Spiedo was at 24.
The Melting Pot's Center City location will bow out of its 10-year home at 1219 Filbert St., the parent company confirmed. No date has been announced.
