summer recap: zombie-infused feast unfolds at zahav

This summer, James Beard award-winning Chef Michael Solomonov hosted his annual“Down the Shore” soiree, where he—for 2012—transformed his restaurant, Zahav, into a night of the living dead party with blood thirsty guests and more importantly, an incredible lineup of Philadelphia acclaimed chefs. 

I recapped this forever-memborable bloody bash over on OpenTable (click here to read the full scoop), where I may have forgotten to mention that the deadly affair concluded with zombie "burlesque" dancers (read: strippers; yes you read that correctly).

While I apologize for not snapping shots of them (I'm lying), I will leave you with some glimpses from the living dead party below.

plcb rebrands shop designs, tasting bar now included

If you live in Pennsylvania, or you've hit up a liquor store while visiting friends in my dear Keystone State, the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board’s (PLCB) shop designs are antiquated and we are surely in need of a recess from them. 

However, great news: The PLCB has heard our pleas. As part of its ongoing efforts to reform state liquor stores, the agency has re-launched approximately 18 stores throughout the commonwealth that now flaunt spacious, swanky interiors.

Read the full scoop on the new features — all of which is making booze shopping a bit brighter — in my  article I just scribed up for Drink Philly, available by clicking here.

dish tripping through los angeles, california

Call me a country-wide traveler as of late, but I was lucky to hit the West Coast (for the first-time ever, by the way) to explore the fine eats and drinks of Los Angeles, California. 

Full stop-by-stop, bite-by-bite adventure (which was mostly tackled in 24 hours!) is available here.

LA visits included: The Standard, The Roger Room, Sweet Lady Jane, ink (Top Chef's Mike V's haunt!), Pinkberry, The Terrace Café in Venice Beach &  Napa Valley Grille.

More peeks after the jump from our whirlwind WC adventure below. Also, it's important to note that next California go-around, I am not missing the cupcake ATM.

summer recap: philly's forum of the (brewing) gods

While we have just sped into September 2012 (fall's a-coming—hallelujah), I'm itching to take a lil' breath and get reflective of what threw down these past warm-weathered months.

Perhaps I shall begin at when I caught some of the US of A's Brewing Gods file into a beer-savvy forum early June, as part of Philadelphia's Annual Beer Week celebration. Of course, I'd be giddy over catching any creditable brewmaster chit-chat about what he (or she) does best. But, at this particular forum, Greg Koch of Stone Brewing Co. was part of the festivities. (Did you know, he's an “it” advocate for better beer? Truth!) 

Click here to read the full skinny about what Greg and his brewing god-like comrades discussed during the summer beer talk. For the record, the mid-week round-table featured a role call of Colby Chandler of San Diego’s Ballast Point;  Mark Edelson of Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant;  Rosemarie Certo of Philadelphia’s Dock Street;  Paul Kavulak of Nebraska Brewing Company;  and of course, Greg Koch of Stone Brewing Company.

Fair warning: There was a hilarious bit during the few hours about marijuana-infused brews. (Say, what?) 

dish tripping through asheville, north carolina

Atlanta wasn't the only southern city I hit to tackle a lil' Dish Tripping action as of late, Asheville, North Carolina was included in this delicious mix too. 

The beautiful, free-spirit city—one nabbing the title of “Beer City USA" for three years running—offered us up a memorable brew-infused getaway, which my dear traveling comrade Sarah recaps the whole imbibing journey, pint-by-pint here.

Brewery & beer-centric pub visits included:  Nantahala Brewery, Pisgah Brewing,  Highland Brewery,  Oyster House Brewing Company,  Lexington Avenue Brewing,  Barley’s Taproom & Pizzeria, Asheville Brewing Company

dish tripping through atlanta, georgia

Earlier this year, our gang at Dish Trip flew down south to chomp through Georgia's cultural and culinary capital of Georgia—Atlanta!

The whirlwind, food-loving trip hosted more than 9 delicious stops, which are all lined up over on Southwest Airlines' Nuts About Southwest Blog. Oh yes, and there is a video recap (seen below), as well—which, I suggest, you should watch especially since I become one serious zombie in it!

Click here to read our stop-by-stop play-by-play. 

iron hill brewery & restaurant host first-ever culinary battle

My dear friends at Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant hosted their first-ever culinary cook-off mid-August, and it was a total pleasure to make the quick trek to their Wilmington, Delaware location to judge the kitchen battle.

Click here to speed over to their website to read my guest post where I recap the full competition. Don't skip watching the below video either, as crafted by my talented friend Gary Colyer (of Mizfam Photo.Video.Design).