Philadelphia, PA

This past weekend, my friend Sally and I celebrated our 6 month friend-iversary. 6 months really isn’t all that long for BFFs but we also had a rough week. Really, we were trying to justify spending the money on a fancy dinner at Patou in Old City, on Market Street. Fabulously French, Patou, the second venture by acclaimed Chef/Owner Patrice Rames of Bistro St. Tropez, offers the bright flavors of the Cote d’ Azur. With rustic painted walls and rot-iron chairs, you’d think you were in France itself. The dining space is open and tables are spaced to leave plenty of room between parties. If you sit towards the kitchen in the back, you can actually watch them cook while you eat.

The menu is limited however it changes regularly. It’s separated into 3 courses; first (appetizer), second (main entree), third (dessert). The prices are what you’d expect for fine dining, but they even offer a 3 for $30 where you can have all three courses for $30, which can work out to be a good deal depending on what you order. Unfortunately, Sally and I were too full by the time we were done our entrées that we didn’t even make it to dessert.
For my first course i had the Fricassée, pan-roasted wild mushrooms in a creamy bordelaise sauce with a touch of truffle oil. I never used to be a big fan or mushrooms, but this dish was simply fantastic! I would have been satisfied with just that as a meal, which is probably why they offer a similar entrée version; the vegetarian entrée (unfortunately, the only vegetarian entrée) had the same roasted wild mushrooms with escarole, caramelized onions, orechiette pasta, shaved romano and truffle jus.
We passed on dessert, even though the Île Flottante (pillowy french meringue with crème anglaise) sounded quite tempting. I suppose we’ll have to make a trip back, only save some room.
Chef Rames Likes to offer a warm inviting atmosphere so when not cooking he roams the dinning room to mingle with his patrons. Be sure to say hello and give your compliments.

Patou, Old City Restaurants, Dining in Old City, French Restaurants in Philadelphia