My new favorite restaurant is Gardenia, which opened on Tuesday at the Philadelphia Art Alliance.
Charlie, Jess and I went to lunch there (it’s lunch and brunch only now) on Wednesday and Thursday. They have an “Artisan’s Table,” which is to “buffet” what Dom Perignon is to Boone’s Farm Apple Annie. The food is exquisite and the attentive service matches.
The Artisan’s Table on Wednesday featured mixed grilled shrimp (fabulous), salmon, roasted peppers, grilled and steamed asparagus, grilled eggplant, pasta salad with pesto, a Caesar and house salad (Charlie said the dressing reminded him of his grandmother’s, which was high praise), a huge plate of brie, raspberries, blackberries, pineapple, cantaloupe, and blueberries. Oh, they have dessert, too. Cookies with macadamia nuts and dark brownies…with raspberry sauce or honey to drizzle over them. Then, as you can see, they bring coffee in country French glassware.
Bonus feature: You can eat in their courtyard garden. (I contend that food tastes 50% better when eaten outdoors.) I’m hoping they leave that garden open all year in good European style. Just a few blankets for the diners’ laps and I’d eat ourdoors all year with the exception of a few days.
On Thursday the Artisan’s Table had another interesting mix prepared by the chef. There was a super tasty sliced filet with bleu cheese and crips onions rings. Smoked salmon. More of that fabulous shrimp. Berries. A huge block of cheese (which I love for dessert). Two salads again. Oh, and the brownies with raspbery sauce.
The manger told us that they’re planning to change the Artisan Table daily for a while, then they’ll probably do it every 2 or 3 days after that. That’s fine with me — it’s that good. It’s tasty, beautifully presented, and varied. We all oohed and ahhed as we ate there. The entire experience was that good.
I’m going to see if I can get my gang down there for brunch tomorrow. I think it runs the same as their lunch hours: 11:30 to 2:30. They’re open Tuesday through Sunday if I remember their card correctly. Lunch price for the Artisan’s Table is $20…and it’s worth every penny.
Gardenia
251 S. 18th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Tel. 215-732 3606
Lunch, Tuesday–Saturday 11:30am – 2:30pm
Brunch, Sunday 11:30am – 2:30pm
