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Restaurant notes: Pennsylvania 6 opens; Little Baby's expands; Zoës arrives

Pennsylvania 6 - a bilevel bistro - now fills the spot at 114 S. 12th St. that last housed Tweed after time as Les Bons Temps, TPDS, Odeon, and Bistro Bix. It's named after the telephone number of the Hotel Pennsylvania in Manhattan (PEnnsylvania 6-5000), reputed to be the oldest still-working phone number in NYC.

Philly's Pennsylvania 6, an offshoot of a two-month-old PE6 in New York City, has a raw bar, cocktail bar with obligatory custom drinks, white Carrera marble-topped tables and bars, white subway tiles, antique mirrors, dark wooden accents, plush-red banquette seating, and large-scale photos of 1940s-era entertainers.

Chef Marc Plessis - who earned three bells from The Inquirer's Craig LaBan while at the Park Hyatt at the Bellevue's XIX - focuses on local ingredients with entrees topping at $26.

Plessis' specialty is crudos; menu includes Roasted Bone Marrow, with garlic-herb crust and red onion jam and a "luge" option – two ounces of Woodford Reserve to drink as it is poured down the hollowed bone; Duck Lyonnaise Salad, with braised duck leg, baby Yukon potato, frisee, poached egg and sherry Dijon vinaigrette; Lobster Roll with celery, green onion and mayonnaise on a buttered roll, served with duck fat fries; Pan-Seared Dorade, with artichoke barigoule, saffron and tomato compote; and Murray Farms Chicken, with royal trumpet mushrooms, English peas, Meyer lemon and rosemary chicken jus.

It's open daily for dinner; lunch and weekend brunch will be added later. Photos here.

Asian on South Broad. Chinamoto has debuted at 777 S. Broad St., next to Tashan. It's a mod, mod sushi operation with colorful lounge. Details and photos are here.

Asian in Center City. Another mod-looking Asian - a Japanese/Thai mix called Hokkaido - is new at 1316 Walnut St. Photos are here.

Mexican in Old City. The crew from National Mechanics has gone lucha loco at 207 Chestnut St. with the new Lucha Cartel. Info/photos here.

Little Baby's Ice Cream - riding a 16-percent-butterfat high since opening on the Kensington end of Fishtown last summer - has opened its second store, its so-called "Cedar Park Embassy" - at 4903 Catharine St. in West Philly's Cedar Park neighborhood. It opens weekdays at 3 p.m., weekends at noon. Also in the dessert department: Pinkberry - the franchise frozen-yogurt giant - will open its first Philly-area outlet on May 9 and it will give away froyo from 6 to 9 p.m. Location: Bryn Mawr Square shopping center (763 W. Lancaster Ave.). A second Philly-area Pinkberry store is on tap for Philadelphia International Airport in late May.

Zoës Kitchen. This quick-casual Mediterranean-inspired franchise rooted in Birmingham, Ala. - whose first restaurant in the region opened recently in Collegeville's Providence Town Center - has rolled out its second spot, in Marlton's Promenade at Sagemore (500 Route 73 south). Specialties include chicken kabob, a hummus plate, spinach roll-ups, and shrimp Tabouli. Two more are on the way: Newtown, on May 9 at 280 N. Sycamore St., and Bryn Mawr, on May 20 in Bryn Mawr Square at 763 W. Lancaster Ave. ("Zoë" is Zoe Cassimus, without umlaut.)

Strangelove's. Brendan Hartranft, Leigh Maida and Brendan Kelly are live with the beer-centric Strangelove's at 216 S. 11th St., which was Doc Watson's for eons before briefly slipping into ignominy with Blue Bear and The Butcher & the Brewer. Strangelove's beer program most heavily mimics Local 44, in West Philly, with 18 drafts and two beer engines. Same selection at the downstaiirs and upstairs bars. Former Catahoula chef Paul Martin is executing a fun, New Orleans-ish menu of apps, sandwiches and $18-and-under entrees, including his signature Shrimp Étouffée. It's open for lunch and dinner daily. Brunch is on the way. See menu here.

Quick bites. Mike Stollenwerk (ex-Fish) has surfaced as chef at Branzino, the Rittenhouse BYOB. Details here. ... Hot doughnuts can be found at the new Beiler's Doughnuts stand at Reading Terminal Market. ... Circles chef/owner Alex Boonphaya has been working out of his newer Northern Liberties location (812 N. Second St.). Bigger kitchen. He's just rolled out an a la carte menu of street foods of his native Thailand, in addition to Circles' menu. Details here. ... Plate in Ardmore closed after 10 years. Details here.

Your calendar. Taste of the Nation is Sunday, April 28.  ... Burger Brawl is Sunday, May 5. ... Center City Sips restarts June 5. ... The 2013 Vendy Awards are Sunday, June 8.

And... Saturday, April 27 is the last day for Scoop DeVille at 18th and Chestnut Streets. Details here. ... Lorenzo & Son's, the South Street pizzeria, is looking to reopen Monday, April 29 or thereabouts. Details here. ... Devon & Blakely, a sandwich shop, is finally under construction at 18th and Market...

Michael Klein can be reached at mklein@philly.com.