Most new eating places want a transparent identification to succeed. However labels come simpler for some tasks than others — particularly in a neighborhood that stirs up preconceptions. So, if I instructed you that certainly one of my new favourite eating places was within the Italian market, one would in all probability guess that it serves both Mexican meals or Southeast Asian meals, two of the area’s present stalwarts, or the multi-generational style of Italian cooking that gave its title to the nook The town continues to be vibrant with tales of immigrant meals.
Alice just isn’t a type of. It’s a fashionable American restaurant and bar whose boundaries are outlined solely by the creativeness, various experiences and appreciable abilities of Chef and Proprietor Dave Conn. A charcoal-fired oven and seasonality are the weather that outline his menu, a flowing array of in another way sized dishes that slide seamlessly from carpaccio and crudo to large-sized sharing plates with none of the old school “antipasti” or “antipasti.” Demarcations which have lengthy organized our dinners into neat programs. Such labels might look like pointless formalities in at present’s eating places, the place the perfect meals trickle down and sharing is inspired.
Diners sometimes order between two and 4 programs at Alice, a classy, ethereal nook house previously occupied by Sicilian-inspired restaurant Monsù. It has been redesigned with an open kitchen bordered by a 10-seat bar and a 32-seat eating room immediately behind it, embellished in easy earth tones, uncovered wooden tables and brown leather-based banquettes. The brilliant colours come from Kuhn’s cooking, which pulls from a worldwide repertoire of elements and strategies gathered over his two-decade profession, from Indian-inspired flatbreads to hard-to-resist recent fries with shio koji and chermoula-marinated lamb. And bacon. An entire hen lined in butter with a burgundy truffle that I am nonetheless serious about.
In lesser fingers, there might be non-sensory combinatorial chaos. However Kuhn, 41, who grew up in Baltimore, is without doubt one of the greatest cooks many Philadelphians have cooked however by no means know by title. He has labored as a key participant behind the scenes for twelve years with José Garces (Amada, Tinto, JG Home, Garces Buying and selling Co., Volvér and Iron Chef), adopted by six extra in Stephen Starr’s El Vez.
Glimpses of lots of these stops are caught in Kuhn’s meals, in addition to homespun Jewish influences and a love of farmers markets inherited from his late mom, Alice, after whom the restaurant is known as. Her affinity for down-to-earth, hands-on consuming experiences is evoked in a picnic setting with scrumptious natural fried hen with house-made sizzling sauce and roasted Caraflex cabbage right here. (Which might have been excellent if my chicken was only a trace extra refined).
Kuhn’s first job as a youngster was at an Indian restaurant in Maryland, and he carried his love of naan with him, utilizing a standard recipe for the buttermilk-filled dough in unconventional methods, putting the tender flatbread over the coals for a lightweight garnish. However it’s the umami-powered toppings, from Spanish anchovy fillets with confit shallots and Aleppo peppers to spicy eggplant cubes topped with oceanic bottarga.
Kuhn’s mission is to place nice elements entrance and middle — I want he was extra decided to supply domestically. However when he finds a product he appreciates, whether or not it is child greens from California or specialty hogs from Texas, he actually does them justice. This even goes as far as to dare serve uncommon pork, a follow that many Individuals think about anathema. However the native Iberico from acorn-fed pigs is so scrumptious, that its flippantly cooked, richly marbled meat is the star of certainly one of Alice’s most distinctive dishes. A coriander-marinated carpaccio of brisa is kissed from the shoulder by charcoal, then sliced below an herby French dressing with garlic flakes, shallots and mustard flowers.
The highest of Alice’s menu, which is organized partly by temperature from chilly to sizzling (in addition to growing quantity), is filled with brilliant flavors and seafood. Saltwater dessert oysters from Barnegat Bay are illuminated by aquatic citrus cucumber. Glory Bay salmon is paired with a garlic puree of sesame ajo blanco and an herbaceous matcha inexperienced sauce steeped from tea sourced from neighboring Operate Espresso Labs. The “inexperienced salad,” a secular dish I normally ignore, caught my consideration with a twist of yogurt and inexperienced garlic on a Caesar, then saved me spellbound with crunchy artichokes drizzled with Parmesan cheese.
Nevertheless, Alice is at its peak, when the heat of the charcoal range is current, and the crispy Portuguese octopus marinated in piri piri with Jimmy Nardello chilli and preserved lemon puree is current; turning thick chunks of foie gras into melting pillows of richness atop toasted garlic bread with figs; Improve the deep taste of wagyu with parsley root puree and candy raspberry juice; Or roast half a lobster with Nora Chile Butter earlier than nestling its candy flesh alongside a pillow of coconut foam over toasted fennel.
The massive burger can also be a pure step up from Conn’s Kopa Oven from Slovenia, the place its charcoal firebox delivers a thick minimize of dry-aged, smoky-tasting beef for yard cookouts. With melted Cabot cheddar cheese drizzled on the edges, a drizzle of aioli and home BBQ sauce atop palpably caramelized Vidalia onions, and a poppy-dusted Essen Challah roll to border it, it is a next-level burger for positive.
However that was not a given for Kuhn’s fantastic eating instincts. I am glad the chef listened to his spouse, Sarah Kuhn, who insisted on placing the $19 burger on the menu to maintain Alice from getting carried away on treasured particular events. It is the form of comparatively reasonably priced choice for a menu that hits the $30-and-up vary for bigger dishes, and this formidable nook helps it keep its scale Spontaneous neighborhood enchantment, because the plentiful sidewalk seating and bar surrounding the open kitchen actually generate a pleasant, informal power.
Considerate cocktails additionally assist evoke this vibe with drinks that, just like the menu itself, are constructed round a signature ingredient. These embrace ashwagandha honey infused with tequila and pineapple for the Pura Mill, charcoal-roasted sea salt for the brown butter rum, absinthe to activate the genetic inexperienced clock, and the artichoke relish of Cynar within the film King Feddy, a Boulevard growth named in his honour. By Frederic Fedde, the previous chef and contractor who helped understand Kuhn’s imaginative and prescient of putting in a reside gasoline range for his restaurant. Even the glassware has a private contact. Drinks are served in lovely, swirly-textured glasses that had been hand-blown by Cohn’s childhood buddy, Evan Kolker.
The service workforce, overseen by basic supervisor Robert Scully, one other Tinto graduate, properly balances private heat with skilled polish, deftly guiding diners by way of a sensible checklist of 29 wines, most of them pure and food-friendly, half of that are refreshingly out there by the glass. . Consequently, they’ve grown best-selling choices from unusual picks like crunchy Ugni Blanc (Rembert), Pit Nat Riesling (Bio Bio), wild pink fruits from Cali Sangiovese (Stolpman) or silky Chilean. Pais (Pepino).
Both of those reds would work nicely with chermoula-marinated lamb (scrumptious, however not a terrific worth at $42 for a two-bone chop) or what could also be the perfect purpose to come back to Alice, a complete Paulette Rouge hen for 2 ($65). This unusual heritage chicken from Joyce Farms in North Carolina comes mottled and is basically boneless, aside from its wing bones. Balancing most taste with minimal cooking time, the brined hen is seared over charcoal to a crispy, golden crust in simply 12 juicy minutes, and served alongside earthy slices of hakkuri kale and a storm of recent truffles. It is rustic and splendid on the identical time, and simply amongst Philadelphia’s hottest new locations. (The slate-colored terracotta panels with uncooked clay edges from Connecticut artist Gene Herold replicate that aesthetic.)
In relation to dessert, Kuhn is without doubt one of the few scrumptious cooks of late with an upstart restaurant whose desserts do not disappoint. Alice introduced out excellent Bosc Tarte Tatin pears drizzled with bourbon caramel, blueberry upside-down cake (for summer season), and a collection of fantastic house-made ice lotions—one crammed with Ultimo espresso and fudge; And one other scoop of blackberry pie, crust and every part. Nevertheless, there’s nothing fairly as dreamy as a frosty metal coupe of absinthe ice cream, a grown-up tackle a slice of mint chocolate infused with natural anise liqueur, elegantly topped with a fluted, cocoa-dipped Chantilly cloud.
As soon as my absinthe coupe was cleaned and I impatiently packed the remainder of my truffle hen to go, I noticed that Cone had achieved one thing tough in an period the place manufacturers are king. In a neighborhood typically reserved for a number of particular forms of meals, he created a restaurant that defies simple categorization. However it works as a result of this unknown chef is lastly doing it his approach in his long-awaited first property — and every part he cooks seems scrumptious.
Alice Restaurant
901 Christian Road, 215-798-6766; alicephiladelphia.com
Dinner Tuesday by way of Sunday, 4:30 to 10 p.m
Mainboards, $19-$42 (outsized widespread gadgets, $65-$75).
Road parking solely.
Not wheelchair accessible. There are two steps on the entrance, though the lavatory is wheelchair accessible.
About 75% of the menu is gluten-free and all however two gadgets might be modified.
