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Within the past 50 years, many people have influenced the way Americans dine out and cook at home. James Beard and Julia Child had strong hands in championing what we now call American cuisine.
Both would have approved of every mouthful in each dish I sampled at Stateside, a two-month-old new American gastropub on East Passyunk Avenue. Under the direction of chef George Sabatino, the kitchen prepares an array of splendid fare sourced from local farms and purveyors.
Stateside is so all-American, you will not find Scotch whiskey or British gin. The staff is dedicated to serving cocktails prepared with small artisan batches of Bourbon and rye or a martini made with Bluecoat gin.
I like a Rob Roy, but since Stateside does not stock Scotch, the barkeep made me a perfect Manhattan made with Bullett Rye ($12), which I fell in love with on the first sip and nursed throughout dinner.
The manager advised Edward, Sandy and me there would be a 30-minute wait. The place was packed, so we found seats at the bar.
The atmosphere was a tad too dark for me to adequately describe the decor. However, I liked the exposed brick behind the bar and the hanging lights. It could have been a whitewashed room because the food is the star at Stateside.
The menu is mostly little plates, but has three entrées. We shared rabbit rillettes ($8), pork liver terrine ($11) and salt-roasted beets ($7).
I have eaten pork and duck rillettes in France and at The Four Seasons Hotel. Sabatino cooked the juicy rabbit in fat, seasoned it, pounded it into a rough paste, topped it with a slightly sweet, homemade pear conserve and scooped it into a cute small glass wide-mouthed jar. He topped the rillette with a sprig of microgreens and buttery croutons. Edward and I were into the rabbit.
I don’t think I have ever tasted pork liver. The terrine imparted a rich, nicely seasoned flavor and texture that Edward and I found most agreeable. Baguette and pickled vegetable slices were served with the pate. Sandy likes chicken liver pate but nixed a taste of this marvelous appetizer.
Red and yellow beets were rubbed with salt and roasted before they were cooled and diced. Sabatino trimmed the salad with microgreens and drizzled on a light dressing made with pomegranate seeds. Sandy adored it and so did I.
Our server told us happy hour runs until 7 p.m. if we wanted an order of buck-a-shuck oysters. We should have ordered two dozen of the tiny, salty glistening oysters harvested from the Pacific Northwest.
The bartender recommended a Montoya Zinfandel from California to pair with Edward’s steak dinner. The three of us pronounced it rich and fruity — the perfect go-with for a rare steak.
Cap steak ($23) is akin to hanger steak but much more tender. Sabatino seared it perfectly rare, sliced it and topped it with a light creamy sauce made with in-house-smoked bone marrow. He surrounded the beef with a wine-infused pan juice reduction and placed a mound of Swiss chard on the plate. Even Sandy who does not care for rare beef inhaled her slice.
Sandy and I shared a bowl of tiny, steamed Manila clams ($16) with house-made Andouille sausage in a sauce so fine, I used spoon and polished it off. The clams married beautifully with the spiciness of the sausage. We also enjoyed Brussels sprouts with heady mushrooms ($7) with our entrées.
Service was as fine as you would get in an upscale, white-tablecloth restaurant. Two barkeeps gave us cloth napkins, changed our flatware for each course and kept an experienced eye on the entire bar, which was filled to capacity.
Stateside was a pleasant surprise. Where can you find an all-American list of spirits and a chef, who smokes his own ingredients and has assembled a menu that although European in inspiration, is made with local products?
Three extraordinary tips of the toque to Stateside. SPR
Stateside
1536 E. Passyunk Ave.
215-551-2500
statesidephilly.com
Contact the South Philly Review at editor@southphillyreview.com.
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