i'm behind on my blogging about restaurants so hopefully today i'll get to post a whole slew of mini reviews of the places that we've been in the past 3 weeks or so.

cavin's birthday was in the beginning of april, and since we've been living with the 'rents, i thought it would be nice to get out and do something, so i not-so-secretly made a reservation to amada, with high expectations. before his birthday date night, i kept dreaming of a philly version of jose andres, since amada was created by another jose, jose garces, and because, quite frankly, i was missing the dc dining scene.

i already posted a reply to don rock's post on the alleged fantastic restaurant on donrockwell, but it bears repeating below:

QUOTE(DonRocks @ Jan 24 2008, 11:15 AM)
I went into Amada with high expectations, given that its chef, Jose Garces, was a 2007 finalist for the Best Chef, Mid-Atlantic James Beard Award.

Eleven dishes later, and $240 poorer, I can say with confidence that Amada - at least on this night - wasn't even as good as the downtown Jaleo, and considering that it's a much smaller operation, that's saying something.

The highlights of the evening were the Sangria, a glass of Godello, the dip brought before the meal, and the dessert. In between came an armada of courses, ranging from decent (Albóndigas ($11), Amada's Empanada ($12) Chipirónes A La Plancha ($5)), to mediocre (Pulpo A La Gallega ($11), Boquerones ($12), Piquillos Rellenos ($12), to poor (Gambas al Ajillo ($9), Entrecote A La Plancha ($15)), to inedibly salty (Patatas Bravas ($4), Caldo Gallego ($7)).
. . .
Cheers,
Rocks.

QUOTE(purplesachi @Apr 9 2008, 12:22 PM)
i wholeheartedly agree about amada. politburo and i went this past saturday and the best thing i had that night might have been the dessert (banana torrijas). nothing was memorable, except the extremely saltiness of every dish we tried (boquerones, pulpo, patatas bravas, etc). the pato con datiles (duck confit flatbread) could have been any meat other than duck and it was extremely greasy. the hamachi special was seared too much, creating a rubbery, tough texture to the fish. and the dip brought before the meal was reminiscent of canned tuna and capers swimming in an excess of mayo and olive oil.

on top of the mediocre food, there was a very loud table at the front (next to the window) that almost started a fight with the table nearest to them (because they were asked to keep it down a bit). the waitress knew they were loud yet didn't do anything about it.

i'll give tinto a try, but i don't think i'll be heading back to amada any time soon. *sigh*

yeah, so basically that's it. oh, i did neglect to mention my thoughts on the seating. while the space inside is quite cozy and warm, there are many tables that are up against the wall, so that there are chairs on one side, and bench seating on the other. while i don't mind the padded benches, i DO mind the fact that when you sit on them, they sink down so that you are basically a whole foot lower than your dining companions at the other end of the table. it really makes for awkward conversation (cavin sitting up high staring down at me) and i felt like i was a little kid again, barely being able to see above table height.

amada
217 Chestnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19106
Phone: 215-625-2450

Labels: philly, restaurant