Nick Elmi’s New Pop-Up Pairs Fries With Octopus and Caviar

Fifi’s Fry & Co’s caviar-topped French fries / Photograph courtesy of Fifi’s Fry & Co.

Howdy, buckaroos! And welcome back to the weekly Foobooz food news round-up. Just a few quick things to get through this week — including (but not limited to) PHL airport updates, big news from Friday Saturday Sunday, a Sky High collab dinner, a celebration for National Doughnut Day, and some accolades for Almanac. So, before we all head out to get some sun, let’s kick things off this week with …

Nick Elmi’s Fancy French Fry Project

Nick Elmi and Fia Berisha of BE Hospitality (Lark, the Landing Kitchen, etc.) are doing a full takeover of the Landing on Saturday, June 21st, from 3 to 9 p.m. with a pop-up of their new French fry-based concept, Fifi’s Fry & Co.

Couple things about this new project …

First, they are taking their fries seriously. These are russet potatoes, hand-cut into half-inch fries, brined for two days, then steamed, then twice-fried (like proper frites must be). Berisha and Elmi set out to make the perfect French fry and then built a concept around that one, singular achievement. All of which is exactly the kind of dedication bordering on madness that I truly appreciate.

Second, they’re then serving these fries in baskets with various upscale toppings. Like tuna poke with furikake and a yuzu-kombu emulsion, caviar with cured egg yolk and yogurt powder, a snow crab and Old Bay dip, or octopus braised in XO sauce. Which, again, is completely bonkers in just the right kind of way.

The partners are planning on additional pop-ups throughout the summer, but this one on the 21st? It’s Fifi’s debut. There’ll also be burgers, fried chicken sandwiches, and wines by the glass, but the fries are the big draw. So make the trip if this sounds like your kind of thing. I have a feeling it’ll be worth the drive to Bala Cynwyd. More details here.

Friday Saturday Sunday Is Expanding

Friday Saturday Sunday’s dining room / Photograph by Jason Varney

Or at least owners Chad and Hanna Williams are hoping to expand. They’re looking at taking over a former residential building at 2048 Rittenhouse Square (conveniently zoned for commercial use, according to Naked Philly), which is situated basically right around the corner and kinda behind the existing restaurant at 261 South 21st Street.

They met with the Center City Residents Association recently and laid out a really ambitious plan for a full three-story expansion into the new space — one that includes everything from a first-floor private dining room and short five-seat bar to a new second-floor open kitchen with counter seating and a dedicated third-floor lounge and sunroom.

All of this will add to the footprint of the already-existing (and award-winning) Friday Saturday Sunday. So, it’s not a separate restaurant but rather an extension to create a bigger, bolder FSS.

The cats from Naked Philly got a look at the proposed design by Stokes Architecture and noted that there were connections between the new space and the original on the second and third floors, but a separate street entrance to the first-floor private dining space. It basically means more room for FSS’s tasting menu (at that open-kitchen chef’s counter), more room for sipping cocktails (in that third-floor lounge), and, hopefully, some space for doing à la carte in the existing space.

Granted, this is only a proposal. There are still a lot of meetings to go to, a lot of paperwork, and a lot of hoops for Chad and Hanna to jump through. And, this being Philly, those hoops will all have hoops of their own. Last time I talked to a restaurant owner about getting a serious restaurant open in this town, he told me that the timeline these days is something like two years from having an idea on paper to actually opening the door. And that’s if everything goes smoothly. So, I’m guessing we’re not going to be seeing an opening announcement any time soon.

But still, even just the potential of this kind of an expansion for one of the best restaurants (and bars) in this city is an exciting thing to consider. And something to look forward to, no matter how long it takes.

Now what else is happening this week?

Oyster House and Randy Rucker at PHL

Inside Oyster House’s new PHL location / Photograph courtesy of Oyster House

For any of you still willing to brave air travel in this day and age, we’ve got a double shot of news coming out of PHL this week.

First, Oyster House is now officially on the roster for the PHL Food & Shops “Founded in Philly” program. Sam Mink’s beloved institution is currently up and running in that connector area between the B and C concourses, and they’re serving a menu of Oyster House classics, martinis, locally sourced raw oysters and a spread of egg sandwiches and avocado toast to round out their all-day operations.

And while some may balk at the idea of pre-gaming a flight with raw shellfish washed down with a bucket of gin, I actually think that coming home to something like that sounds pretty nice. I’m usually happy enough with a stale soft pretzel, but this sounds much nicer than that.

Next up, there’s Randy Rucker (of River Twice and Little Water — which I recently fell in love with) who has a deal with American Airlines and is designing a series of dishes for the airline’s Admiral’s Club and Flagship Lounge at PHL.

The Admiral’s Club is for fancy folk who are American Airlines members. The Flagship Lounge is for super-fancy folk traveling internationally with business or first-class tickets. And for these, Rucker will be designing one dish each quarter — to go along with the usual board of fare offered to the jet-set, which I imagine is like omelets made from bald eagle eggs and cheeseburgers dipped in molten gold or whatever.

Anyway, Oyster House and Rucker’s plates for the swells are just the start of PHL’s re-Philly-fication. I already told you about Matt Cahn from Middle Child signing on to provide menu inspiration for the new Chase Sapphire lounge. There’s also a new Federal Donuts getting ready to open, and a full-on Middle Child airport location already in the works.

If this keeps up, no one will even have to actually come into Philly to sample some of our best restaurants. They can all just hang out in the airport and say it’s like being here.

In News That Should Come as a Surprise to No One …

Danny Childs and Rob Scott behind the bar at Almanac / Photograph courtesy of Almanc

It looks like Almanac, the Japanese American fusion cocktail outpost (and Wagyu hot dog specialist) that sits above Ogawa Sushi & Kappo in Old City, has been tagged by Bon Appétit as one of their “Best New Bars of 2025.”

The reason this shouldn’t be surprising? Because it isn’t like BonApp has been shy about showing the place its love. In the past couple months, it has appeared twice online (on the same day, here and here) and in print in last month’s issue, and now it’s right there at the top of a list of the nine best cocktail bars of the year, holding its own alongside such heavy-hitters as Schmuck in New York and Lee’s in Houston.

Also, though, it shouldn’t come as any surprise because Almanac really is as interesting a place to drink as anywhere in America right now. Its premise is so simple: What if classic cocktails were … Japanese? And from that simple point of departure, Slow Drinks pioneer Danny Childs and the crew assemble a list of thoughtful innovations and digressions that turn a simple dirty martini into a showcase for Japanese vodka, rice shochu, tomato, and sherry, and serve an omakase cocktail that’s a bespoke mix of foraged ingredients, Japanese spirits, and each customer’s wildest cocktail dreams.

This is a place where cocktails are treated with as much seriousness as any chef’s seasonal menu. Which exists more like a forest apothecary than any mad scientist’s lab. Where seasonality, terroir, balance, and experimentation are prized above all else. Plus, it has a food menu that I just adore — short, sweet, to-the-point, and filled with proven winners (chicken wings, sandwiches, the aforementioned hot dog) that are addressed with as much creativity and trans-Pacific inspiration as their liquid counterparts.

Joseph Hernandez, BonApp’s drinks director, talked with us a little while ago about the judging and selection process and what Almanac was doing, specifically, that made it so special. And I think he nailed it when he talked about the place’s approach to service:

“I recently saw Rob [Almanac’s Head Bartender, Rob Scott] speak about the concept of ‘Omotenashi’ from Japan, a hospitality ethos with roots in traditional tea ceremonies. It’s a concept that starts from the doorway of an establishment and all those touchpoints, big and small, that contribute to a guest’s overall experience. In practice, that concept threatens to be too formal or too obsessive with details, but my experience of Almanac is that it’s [a] guiding set of principles that helps people feel at ease over their cocktail experience. It’s a jewel box of a bar in the heart of Philly, but nursing a cocktail inspired by the current phase of the moon while chowing down on a chic Japanese-style hot dog is an incredible escape from the world, if only for the night.”

Now, who has room for some leftovers?

The Leftovers

Rocco Weiss, owner of The Bakery / Photograph by Rich Cordisio

Looking for a way to celebrate National Doughnut Day? Of course you are. And so are the folks from The Bakery in South Philly, which is why they’re giving away free doughnuts to the first 50 people in line on Friday, June 6th, starting at 7 a.m., and then $1 doughnuts (with the purchase of a coffee) for everyone until 2 p.m. — or until all the doughnuts sell out. Nice, right?

And in case y’all haven’t heard of The Bakery (it’s at 2300 South 3rd Street), you should really check the place out. For the past year, owner Rocco Weiss has been carrying the torch of traditional doughnut-making in a space that had been two different neighborhood bakeries (first, Heirs Bakery, then Baker Brothers) for decades.

And Weiss didn’t just pick up the space. He also bought 15 or 20 of the original recipes from the previous owners so he could keep up the tradition of hand-crafted, yeast-risen doughnuts. Then he added a few new-school recipes of his own, added a coffee service — and weekly “Friday Pizza Nights” with a menu of four different Sicilian pies, which are announced on The Bakery’s Instagram on Thursdays during a very short window until they sell out, then are available for take-out or dine-in (BYO encouraged) on Friday evenings.

So yeah, it’s a pretty cool place. You should check it out.

Speaking of coffee (and bakeries), Jezabel’s is throwing a coffee rave to celebrate the beginning of its 15th anniversary year. On Sunday, June 15th, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., it’s gonna be a non-stop daytime party, with espresso drinks, Argentine snacks, and live DJ sets. It’s gonna be a blast. And honestly, a “coffee rave” sounds like an awesome idea, so I hope more people get in on this kind of action.

Here’s one you’ll want to make plans for in advance: Nok Suntaranon from Kalaya just announced a one-night-only collab dinner with Jean-Georges Vongerichten at his Jean-Georges Philly location at the Four Seasons. It’s happening on June 26th. It’ll be a “carefully curated family-style dining experience, masterfully crafted by both chefs.” And the menu will be a combination of Nok’s southern Thai flavors and JG’s modern French techniques that’ll start with a spread of dumplings and move on from there through a multi-course exploration of both chefs’ repertoires.

This truly is one of those once-in-a-lifetime kinds of dinners. Vongerichten is a legit legend with restaurants all over the world. Kalaya is inarguably one of the best restaurants in the city right now, and Nok is riding a huge wave of success that is absolutely deserved. Getting to experience a dinner done by the two of them together? That’s not the kind of thing that happens every day. So if this sounds like your kind of thing, keep an eye on the Jean-Georges site. Reservations will be available through OpenTable and should be opening up any day now. And you don’t want to miss out on getting a seat at the table.

For people who love food documentaries, Philly legend chef Valerie Erwin will be interviewing Emmy-award-nominated producer Debra Freeman about her film Finding Edna Lewis. The documentary, which you can watch on PBS, follows Freeman as she explores the life of chef Lewis through interviews and cooking with chefs, farmers, and cookbook writers whose work was shaped by “the mother of soul food.” The film screening and interview is presented by Les Dames d’Escoffier Philadelphia and will take place Friday, June 13th, at 5:30 p.m. at the Van Pelt-Dietrich Library located at 3420 Walnut Street on Penn’s campus. Tickets to the event are $40, and you can get them here.

Finally this week, here’s an unusual one for y’all — an interesting intersection of food and fashion. On Sunday, June 8th, Manzanita (the West Philly “contemporary vintage” boutique) is kicking off the launch of their “Butter Vintage Collection” with an after-hours event.

The Butter Collection is “a nod to warm nostalgia, buttery-soft textures, and the joyful color of the season: butter yellow,” according to Manzanita’s founder, Dorit Avganim. And to celebrate that, Manzanita is teaming up with Party Girl Bake Club for a one-night-only event that’ll be all butter sculptures, cake, charcuterie boards, cake, tasty drinks, live music, vibes, cake, fashion, and more cake.

Seriously, Avganim will be rolling out the new collection. Party Girl will be providing the food. There’s a curated gift bag raffle, vintage shopping, the debut of Party Girl’s pretzel focaccia and sculpted butter “bread-and-butter service” (with pre-orders available), and more. The party starts at 5 p.m. To attend, all you have to do is sign up via this Google Form and pay $46. The dress code? Butter yellow, of course.