Allora (Dining In!)

When 2020 arrived, Jay and Ken had high hopes. Dining out, hitting the beaches, etc. Alas, COVID-19 put a dent in ALL of our plans.

So happy that we could dine in at Allora, 892 Route 73 North, Marlton, NJ 08053 (856-596-6882), on Friday, September 11, 2020. With friends Karin and George, and Jay's mom, we enjoyed a leisurely lunch, and we were so happy to get together again. It was great to see Mark! Thanks to Taylor for a wonderful dining experience!

Appetizers shared:

Suppli and Calamari - so excited to see them again that Jay forgot to take photos. The suppli were wonderful and the calamari was cooked to perfection!

Entrees shared:

Crab Cake Salad Special, with apples, goat cheese, and walnuts. Everything was fresh and flavorful.

Shrimp and Crab Meat Fra Diablo - just the right amount of spiciness. Again, very flavorful.

Veal Saltimbocco - tender. Instead of pasta, we selected the risotto, which was creamy and a perfect complement to the veal and spinach. George and Ken shared a portion. Shown is a 1/2 sized portion.

Everything was wonderful. Social distancing guideline were met. We look forward to our next visit.

Wines enjoyed:

Il Villaggio (We’re Back!)

Finally able to dine outside, we visited Il Villaggio, 211 Berlin Road, Cherry, Hill, NJ 08034 (856-795-1778), with friends Karin and George, on Friday, June 19, 2020. So happy to enjoy a 3 hour leisurely lunch again.

Hot, fresh bread was brought to the table, with tomato pesto. So good.

Ken enjoyed the Broccoli Rabe Sausage, sautéed in a roasted garlic olive oil, with grape tomatoes. Jay and George enjoyed 6 Blue Point Oysters each, which were fresh and delicious. Yummy!

Karin enjoyed the cucumber gazpacho, which was perfect for this warm day.

Entrees enjoyed:

Jay focused on the Veal Mare Monte, with jumbo lump crabmeat, spinach, roasted peppers, white wine, in a citrus lemon sauce, with capellini. Very good.

Ken had the Chicken Parmigiana with a side of scallops, which were cooked to perfection.

Karin enjoyed the pasta special - ravioli.

George enjoyed the homemade gnocchi with porcini cream sauce.

We finished our meal with cannolis (Karin and George) and strawberry gelato (Jay).

Wines enjoyed:

We were so happy to be able to get together for lunch again. Dining al fresco was wonderful!

Bhan Thai

Dinner on Friday, March 13, 2020, brought us back to Bhan Thai, 4330 Dearborn Circle (Cambridge Crossing), Mt. Laurel, NJ 08054, 856-234-4202, since Ken has been craving their wings and Martini Shrimp.

We enjoyed the following:

Bhan Thai Fish Cake

Jay requested extra spice

Phu-ket Wings - They were good, but not as crunchy as usual

Martini Shrimp - All for Ken!

While looking at the screens, Jay noticed a dish which Ken ordered - the Green Curry Fried Rice with Chicken, and a fried egg on top. Ken couldn't finish and took most of it home for later...

Jay enjoyed the Crying Tiger, five chilis. It was the PERFECT amount of spiciness! Yum!

Wines enjoyed:

Ginger Asian Cuisine

An early dinner took us to Ginger Asian Cuisine, 7 Wilkins Station Road, Medford, NJ 08055 (609-853-7888), on Sunday, March 8 2020. As always, we had a wonderful meal. We were quite surprised at how full it was, but the servers were still attentive and welcoming.

We loved the fried noodles, with duck sauce and hot mustard. Ken ordered a spring roll with his meal.

Jay loves the hot and sour soup:

Ken says the ribs are his second favorite, but he orders it most of the time! So meaty and tender.

Jay wanted something different so she ordered the Rainbow Shrimp. Huge! Half went home for another meal...

Ken has been craving the Bangkok Cow, which was tender as usual...

Dressing for his salad...

Wine enjoyed:

Love this place and the people! 

Bistro SouthEast (Philly)

On a whim, Jay and Ken decided to visit Bistro SouthEast, 1824 South Street, Philadelphia, PA 19146 (267-758-2838), on Saturday, February 22, 2020. We took Patco and saved on tolls, parking, and stress. We had a wonderful meal and are planning more outings to Philly!

We shared the Roll Sampler with one tofu, one shrimp, and one lobster summer roll, as well as spring rolls:

We always love the Thai Sweet Chili Wings...

Ken wanted a Banh Mi, so he devoured the BBQ Pork.

Jay wanted to try something different, so she ordered the Rice Plate with Lemongrass Pork Belly, half of which went home for later...

Wine enjoyed:

Everything was fresh and flavorful! We love this place!



While walking back to Patco, we noticed quite a few BYOBs on South Street between 18th and 16th Streets that looked very interesting including:

Pumpkin
https://www.pumpkinphilly.com/

Sophie's Kitchen (Philly)

After a rocky start (parking is ridiculous!), Jay and Ken celebrated George's birthday for lunch at Sophie's Kitchen, 522 Washington Avenue, Philadelphia, PA , on Saturday, February 15, 2020. We enjoyed everything!

We shared the following:

Muhk Bom-Bpong - deep fried calamari tossed in salt and black pepper, served with sweet chili sauce. Fried to perfection!

Slaab-Mohn Bom-Bpong - deep fried chicken wings served with sweet chili sauce.

Bong-Gkeah Bom-Bpong - lightly battered, salted & black pepper season shrimp, served with sweet chili sauce. Yum!

Lobster soup special - LOTS of FLAVORFUL lobster, in a beautifully seasoned broth.

Chha-M'Nauh - Beef with pineapple. Seasoned to perfection and very tender.

Beef skewers

Plov-Gkong-Gkaeb-Bom-Bpong - lightly battered frog legs, served with black pepper and lime sauce. Jay and George were quite impressed!

The wings were so good, we ordered them again!

Wines enjoyed:

We will return!