Fall is Officially Here

Little Nonna’s

My mom, sister and I recently went to one of our favorite places to dine, Little Nonna’s to celebrate my sister, Catherine’s opening night of the opera, The Barber of Seville at The Academy of Music!

This restaurant is owned by the famous Marcie Turney and Valerie Safran who also own the restaurants and shops on 13th street, such as: Barbuzzo, Lolita, Open House and many more!

Little Nonna’s offers traditional, Italian-American cuisine located in Midtown Village. This restaurant seats 40 inside the restaurant and 40 in the outdoor garden, so reservations are hard to come by! I love the atmosphere of Little Nonna’s because it has an old charm to it that reminds me of being in my Italian grandmother’s home having one of her well-known Italian meals.

To start, we all shared the Antipasta which included: seasonal vegetables, Italian meats, fennel and chickpea salad, Italian olives and grilled bread. There was so much offered and it was only $17! It was definitely worth it.

For my entrée, I ordered the Rigatoni con Zucca which had fennel sausage and roasted butternut squash in a pumpkin-puree sauce. It was the perfect fall dish due to its comfort and seasonal flavors!

My mom got the Pan Seared Potato Gnocchi which included: wild & cultivated mushrooms, English peas, tarragon, leeks and baby tomatoes. My mom especially loved how the gnocchi were cooked, nice and browned. Catherine got the Eggplant Parmesan which was served with Japanese eggplant, mixed basil pesto, marinara and burrata cheese. She loved the presentation of the meal and loved the pesto!

If you’re looking for authentic, comforting Italian food, Little Nonna’s is the place to be! My family will definitely be back : )

Indian Cuisine

Minar Palace

Every month I meet up with my friend, Ducky to catch up on each other’s lives. Whenever we meet up, we like to go out somewhere authentic to eat and a staple to a local, Philly restaurant. This time, she picked Minar Palace, which offers traditional, Indian cuisine. I’ve never had Indian food before, but I willing to try anything!

Minar Palace is at 13^th and Walnut, which is considered the Midtown Village of Philadelphia. This restaurant offers fresh ingredients with prompt service. Ducky and I agreed to both of these traits! We thought the food tasted great and thought the staff was very friendly and helpful.

A Minar, you can order anything off the buffet line for $12.99 or pick from the menu. We both picked from the menu because we both had our eyes set on something before we arrived.

To start, Ducky and I both had Naan which is a Tandoori Bread that is made of unleavened white flour which was served nice and warm. We didn’t want to eat too much though because we wanted to accompany them with our meal.

I got the Chicken Jalfrezi which included: boneless chicken cooked in a mild curry, garnished with fried onions, green peppers and tomatoes. I got this dish because I love chicken and because the sauce wouldn’t be too spicy! The sauce was just right! The dinner was served with basmati rice which was a great combo to soak up the sauce.

Ducky got the Lamb Vindaloo which included: lamb cubes cooked with chunks of potatoes in a highly spicy curry sauce. She got this because she loves lamb, as well as potatoes. She said the curry was very spicy, but she loved the taste of it all!

Now I don’t know much of the Indian restaurants here in Philadelphia, but I do recommend going to Minar Palace if you are in search of one! The food and service is worth it!