This past weekend Slip and I had visitors: my parents! They came into town for my aunt’s wonderful birthday party on Saturday night, and then were here for father’s day on Sunday. We celebrated my dad by taking him to one of our favorite places to brunch, Kanella, a small Greek BYO in Society Hill. As usual, everything was excellent.

I had some OJ (the fresh-squeezed there can’t be missed, try it in a mimosa!) and one of their specials, a scramble made with swiss chard, a salty Greek cheese, and a savory Greek style pepperoni.

It wasn’t huge but it was just perfect and really hit the spot. My mom tried one of my favorites, to eat at Kanella or to make at home, shakshouka. This is eggs poached in a tomato and pepper stew, served with crisp grilled bread. She also got a side of bacon, which I must add was some of the best bacon I’ve had in quite a while.

Slip got a classic: the Kanella platter. That includes stuffed grape leaves, tabouli, falafel, fried eggplant, tomato salad, tzatziki, olives, and yummy pita bread. Nothing bad about that!

Finally my dad ordered one of the best and simplest things on the menu, the Cyprus breakfast. This includes 2 eggs fried in olive oil, halloumi cheese (amazingness), lounza (like Greek style Canadian bacon), and fresh bread. He also got a side of the homemade hot sauce— it was super spicy and very tasty! A tiny dab did the trick, but I would have liked to take an entire bottle home.

Everything was so delicious, as usual, and the weather was so nice to just enjoy a leisurely meal outside. After lunch we strolled down Spruce Street, enjoying a lazy Sunday afternoon. A great way to celebrate the greatest dad in the world!

Last night, due to the absolutely beautiful evening weather, Slip and I tried our hand at getting a table to dine al fresco. Naturally many of the restaurants in our neighborhood were full to the brim, with happy-go-lucky people enjoying the unbelievable Wednesday night air. Unfortunately the wait for an outdoor table at Dmitri’s was uber-long, but we opted for an indoor table and some really tasty food.

I like Dmitri’s because it’s really reasonably priced food and there are a lot of options for sharing. Plus, the portions are pretty big so you really get your money’s worth. We shared 2 appetizers and a main course— we were stuffed, but everything was delicious!

To start I ordered the Avocado Citrus Salad. It is incredibly simple, with fresh greens, avocados, grapefruit and orange segments, slivered almonds, and a super light citrus vinaigrette. Refreshing, really aesthetically pleasing, and a great starter.

Up next was the fried calamari, which we honestly scarfed down too quickly for me to snap a photo. It was great, with only a really light batter and a savory tomato basil dipping sauce.

Finally, we shared the Mediterranean Plate, which included beets, cucumber salad, lentils, hummus, really smoky baba ghanoush, olives, asparagus, and big hunks of roasted garlic.  This came with some grilled pita bread, which we also had delivered to our table with some fresh pesto at the beginning of the meal.

The plate was fantastic, filled with so many goodies. I especially loved the lentils and the baba, which was just so fresh and smoky. And the bread— one of my favorite things of the night. Somehow the chefs at Dmitri’s took plain old pita bread, must have brushed it with some olive oil and thrown it on the grill, and it was magical.

One of the best parts of the night? We sat near the open kitchen, which smelled like a really good grill cooking up fresh whole fish. It was intoxicating. And after we filled our bellies we got to take in the balmy evening air, walk by the adjacent Fitler Square Park, and head home. A perfect date night!

A few weeks ago I headed down to Society Hill to grab brunch with some friends at Kanella, a quaint and incredibly charming Greek restaurant with classic Cypriot dishes. The restaurant was featured on Food Network’s The Best Thing I Ever Ate for their Cyprus Plate (what I had— it was amazing!) and is definitely worth heading to for brunch. You get to avoid the long hassle of a wait at places like Sabrina’s, plus the food is really unique and fresh. I’m heading down to Kanella with some friends tomorrow, so to prep for what I’m going to order it seemed time to post our Big Greek Brunch.

We started off with some big, fresh, French presses of coffee and the Kanella platter with grape leaves, tabbouleh, falafel, fried eggplant, tomato salad, tzatziki, olives and warm pita:

Then for brunch everyone ordered up a variety of plates, meaning we all got to taste a ton of delicious Greek food. Lindsey got the Malohwa, described as a savory flaky puff pastry that was indescribably delicious— something I am definitely considering ordering for tomorrow. It was served with rich Greek yogurt and a spicy tomato salad, a winning flavor and texture combination.

Brett ordered one of my favorite things to cook or eat, shakshouka— eggs poached in a spicy tomato stew with some crusty bread on the side. This definitely lived up to my expectations of the classic Mediterranean dish.

Adam got the Tachinosalata platter, full of Mediterranean flavor— hummus, tahini, falafel, fresh veggies, and pita bread.

Erica ordered one of my favorite things of the day, the Cyprus Crepe. This was a paper thin crepe stuffed with a subtly sweet Greek cheese, almost like ricotta, drizzled with mulberry syrup and blueberries. It was delicate and delicious.

Finally, a few of us ordered the Cyprus Breakfast— two eggs fried in olive oil, lounza, halloumi cheese, and fresh bread. Lounza is kind of like the Greek take on Canadian bacon— perfectly cooked and salty. Halloumi cheese is one of my favorite things— it’s hard to describe well because it has an odd texture that is almost rubbery but yet it is absolutely divine. This halloumi, also salty in a lovely way, was fried and served up with the rest of the dish and some fresh vegetables. This was a Greek homerun.

I can’t wait to go back tomorrow— my biggest challenge will be deciding what to order! At least I know the French press coffee and ultra fresh orange juice are a beautiful and tasty way to start my morning.

On mother’s day I had the pleasure of joining Slip and his family for a celebratory dinner at Dmitri’s Fitler Square location. It is in a really beautiful location, which is perfect to stroll to on a nice spring day, through Fitler Square Park, and situated in a quaint little green walk-up with blue awnings and twinkling white lights.

The menu is fun, and definitely a good place to meet for drinks.  The restaurant offers a lot of small plates so it’s a fun place to try a lot of different things. We shared a few small plates to start.  The calamari is crispy and typical, but really well done.

We also shared the grilled vegetables, which were a nice mix with a good bit of feta cheese in there, too.

People also really enjoy the grilled octopus here, as well, although it’s just not my thing. Slip’s parents loved it.

Slip’s mom had the citrus and avocado salad, which looked beautiful and delicious.

She also had the classic Greek spinach pie, which tasted really yummy, too.

I had the grilled salmon, which was simple and delish. The platter comes with some rice (which was bland), and escarole with garlic (that was a special touch).

I loved the rice pudding for dessert— it is one of my favorites, even though I think a lot of people are not really fans of this traditional dessert. Slip’s mom ordered some kind of almond orange torte which was perfection.

Bottom line: If you’re in the Rittenhouse area and need somewhere to meet up with friends for some drinks and small plates (maybe al fresco) this is your spot.