Dogfish Head -

by BS

Feed Us Back: Comments of the Week

– You ESers were in fighting mood, this week! Can’t we agree on anything? First up, Benito opines that no, the customer shouldn’t be the chef:

I figure if I’m going out to eat, I’m paying for someone (the chef or the corporate test kitchen) to figure out a set of ingredients that work well with each other and produce a good overall dish. The problem with something like this is that people often have an idea of what tastes good, but end up with something unbalanced and nasty. Like angel hair, a gloopy Americanized alfredo sauce, and slices of steak. Ugh.

But Cindy says, why not?

Well, I think it is a pretty novel idea that a restaurant is willing to prepare my recipe! This is an example of exceptional customer service! I love the idea.

– ESers are split down the middle on whether In-N-Out is worth the hype. Lauren:

Thank you! I am a Californian and have never understood the adoration of the In-N-Out burger. Whenever I travel and people find out I’m from L.A. I usually get people asking me about In-N-Out. I met some Canadians in Thailand who told me they were going to have a layover in L.A. and the one thing they wanted to know was where to get an In-N-Out burger. I couldn’t help but think they would be disappointed.

Jeanne @JollyTomato disagrees:

I wouldn’t choose In-N-Out for my last meal, but if someone offered me a chance to go there for lunch, I wouldn’t turn it down either. I think it just is what it is – a quintessential SoCal experience. And the fries are good too!

– Perhaps the only thing more foodie controversial than In-N-Out is raw kale. Maids:

The Crawl: Philly Beer Week

A successful pub crawl is a work of art. It’s something that you can only plan out so much. There needs to be “feel” involved. You need to know when to stick around and when to beat it for greener pastures. But when you decide to put together a do-it-yourself crawl during the thick of the drinking festival that is Philly Beer Week, your chances of success go up quite a bit.

Of course, this sort of thing is never fun to do it alone, so I recruited Dad to tag along. Though not as big a beer nerd as me, he was up for the challenge. Plus, having someone else with you means you get to taste their beer, too, so good for me. FYI…times are provided courtesy of my Foursquare check-ins. It all kinda got blurry towards the end, so this is the best evidence I have of my travels.

1:40 – Monk’s Cafe had to be the first stop of the day. World-renowned for its amazing collection of Belgian beer on tap, I was happy to find plenty of room at the bar, which isn’t usually the case. I decided to kick things off in style with a Petrus Aged Pale Ale. It was pleasantly sour (aged in oak barrels), aggressive and — at over $9 for a small tulip glass — pricey. I’m glad I had it early when I could still enjoy it.

2:55 – Soccer time, and it was on to McGillin’s! I’ve mentioned them before and I love the place because it’s fun and familiar. While they don’t have the exotic selection of beers like other bars in Philly, they do focus on having something from all of the local breweries. Eat locally, drink locally! I got to taste Victory’s new Summer Love, a special variety marketed in conjunction with Philly’s visitor bureau (yeah, we’re serious about beer in this town), which matched perfectly with some buffalo wings and onion rings. Also fun: Getting to watch the English goalie become a pariah in his home country.

After the jump, plenty more beer, I make a new friend and score some food from an Iron Chef!