Talula’s Daily Supper Club is Steven Starr’s newest addition to the Philadelphia food scene. Located next door to the famous Talula’s Garden, this rustic restaurant offers diners a wonderful new food experience. The restaurant includes a market where customers are greeted by scents of warm bread, freshly roasted coffee, and local farmstead cheeses. At night, the market transforms into a beautifully decorated restaurant that serves a pre-fixed five-course meal that changes monthly to reflect the season. Each dish showcases local farm ingredients and is cooked in the open cottage kitchen. This month’s menu is titled “Tribute to a Montreal Spring,” and it is absolutely delicious.
Course One: Spring Chicken Tartine and Artichoke Soup
The first course is a spring chicken tartine that includes a confit hen, a buttermilk ramp dressing, and sunny side quail egg. This dish is full of flavor, texture and melts in your mouth. Not only is it delectable, but it is also beautifully plated. Next is a creamy artichoke soup, which included caviar, crispy artichoke hearts, and a Parmesan dill palmier for crunch. It is absolutely decadent and compliments the first dish impeccably. For someone who is not typically a fan of artichoke, this dish completely swayed me.
Course Two: Mushroom Risotto
The next course, a special addition to the menu, is a risotto with mushroom and a vinaigrette drizzle. The risotto was cooked to perfection and the vinaigrette added a perfect subtle flavor. The mushrooms on top were a nice touch, adding more texture to the dish. The hidden pistachios added a perfect crunch to every other bite.
Course Three: Steak Frites
The main course is a skirt steak with morel butter, steak fries, and a green garlic Chermoula sauce. On the side was a creamy Béarnaise sauce for extra flavor. Cooked at a stunning medium rare, I could not put my fork down.
Course Five: Cheese Palate
Next is the beautiful cheese course to cleanse the palate before dessert. This course is an innovative version of a bagel with cream cheese, including an everything bagel baguette crisp with aged cheddar cheese and maple-smoked duck rillettes. The cheese plate is the perfect addition to the menu and sets up dessert nicely.
Course Six: Carrot Cake Madeleine
The last and final dish is a carrot cake madeleine with ginger ice cream and candied pecans. I would never think to pair ginger ice cream with carrot cake, but the two strong flavors balance out each other exquisitely. It was a flawless end to a fantastic meal.
If you have not yet been to Talula’s Daily Supper Club, I suggest making a reservation now. There are still two weeks left to try April’s menu, but I can almost guarantee that any month will serve a delicious, beautiful feast.