Dinner in Philly

My brother Roger and I rarely spend much quality time together, certainly not just the two of us, and never really have with the exception of the camping trip in Virginia he took me on when I was about 12! So the prospect of going out to dinner with him in Philly was one that brought be great joy.

I drove over to Roxborough where he and his wife and 2yr old daughter and energetic dog all live in a nice little house above Manyunk. Around 7:30 we headed downtown, our destination a little Mediterranean place called Dimitri’s. Luckily we didn’t have to wait to be seated in the small, dark crowded room, off the clean and recently revitalized street in the Washington Square area. In the noisy atmosphere with fantastic aromas floating our way from the open kitchen, we took a couple minutes to decide from the menu printed in bold on a stained, one-sided piece of card stock: we’d start with the avocado citrus salad, an order of the octopus, and an order of the smelt all to share. Perhaps we would order more- we’d see how we felt after that. The waitress opened the merlot we brought with us and we toasted to the evening.

The food came before we even had time to wonder if it was going to be much longer. To begin with the salad was a fantastic blend of flavors and textures. It was pretty simple: slices of avocado, orange and grapefruit on top of a bed of romaine with chopped, roasted almonds on top and a nicely acidic dressing. The lettuce provided the body, the orange and grapefruit were just the right degrees of sweet, counterbalancing the piercing dressing, the almonds brought incredible flavor and texture while the slices of smooth, ripe avocado brought the whole thing together.

The octopus was slightly disappointing, mainly because apparently it is normally something to rave about. I don’t know that I had ever tasted it before and was excited to do so. The meat it white and does not carry a strong flavor on its own. I don’t want to say it tasted like chicken, I mean it kind of did, but there was a distinct sense that it was something other, something from the sea- maybe it was the fact that some pieces still looked very much like tentacles! Anyways, it was grilled and served with an olive garnish and a lemon wedge and the meat was a little chewy. Roger said it’s usually better there.

The smelt on the other hand were awesome! They are little fish, maybe about three inches in length, and they were lightly battered and fried, served with a white dipping sauce, and they were delicious! They didn’t have an overwhelming flavor, but they were hot and crispy, with just the right amount of oil to let you know you were indulging in something fatty without feeling totally gross. Needless to say we polished those off pretty quickly.

As we worked our way through these treats, sopping up the tasty juices left on our plates with bread and pieces of grilled pita, we began to ponder what other menu we might sample. I was not ravenous, having just consumed a substantial amount of food but there was certainly room for more! The fried mussels the couple next to us ordered were enough to convince us to try an order, although we would have them steamed, and Roger felt pasta would be nice to ground the meal, so we got the pasta with escarole as well.

I have to say the pasta was not all that exciting, although it was appealing again in its simplicity- just linguini noodles with sautéed pieces of the leafy green and parmesan to go on top. The mussels on the other hand were phenomenal! They were cooked perfectly so that they practically melted in your mouth, and to my pleasure, unlike the little plate of fried, shell-less creatures we saw our neighbors receive, our steamed mussels came in their shells in a bowl full of the most wonderful broth. There were onions, green bell peppers, tomatoes, escarole and a considerable amount of spice all of which the little mollusks carried nicely.

And so we sat back, thoroughly full and enjoyed the last of the wine and each other’s company. Roger of course insisted on paying the surprisingly reasonable bill, but let me leave the tip. A walk around the block in the pleasant air was just the thing to relish our full bellies and the warmth of the wine, before hopping back in the car and headed home. Truly an excellent evening!