The Triangle

Issue date: 7/23/10 Section: Arts & Entertainment

Media Credit: Adam Rothstein Though the dessert list is not very extensive, the lemon curd martini made for a worthwhile option, served in a martini glass and topped with whipped cream and fruits.

When I arrived at Drexel three years ago, I recall being told not to venture too far off campus. However, what was once a neighborhood deemed unsafe has now largely been purchased by the University of Pennsylvania, and since then, the areas around 40th Street and beyond have slowly transformed into a more college-friendly area.

I am now a junior at Drexel, and for the first time this past week, University City Dining Days gave me the motivation to take those baby steps past 40th Street and discover how much more there is outside of Drexel's bubble.

University City Dining Days is celebrating its fifth anniversary by responding to unforeseen popularity and demand and extending its promotion from one week to two weeks. From July 15 to 29, an unprecedented 29 restaurants located in West Philadelphia are participating in this three-course dinner promotion, offering entrees at $15, $25 and $30 to entice students and Philadelphia foodies alike who may not otherwise have thought to fit these incredible restaurants into their budget.

The restaurant at which I dined this year is called Marigold Kitchen. Located at 501 S. 45th Street, Marigold Kitchen is a three-story house that has been transformed into a restaurant. Imagine walking into someone's living room filled with a dozen white-linen covered tables. Then imagine walking upstairs to the bedroom and having the same setup. This is Marigold Kitchen in a nutshell: a fine dining experience paired with the comforts of being at home.

Marigold Kitchen offers a dining experience that I feel every student must be exposed to at least once. As diners settle in, they are first served a cool cucumber bisque topped with smoked bacon foam - a little bit of an oxymoron. I've never had a hot cucumber soup, but the chef made it work. The bisque resembled something more of a creamy potato soup, with only a hint of cucumber, if you let the soup linger long enough on the tongue. As for the foam, it made the amuse bouche fun and it added more flavor to the bisque without taking away from the actual soup. Moving on to the first course, the champagne braised escargot was a delight. It was a mixture of escargot and mushrooms tossed in a rich, buttery sauce sat atop a crispy polenta cake that didn't yield too much of a corn flavor, but acted as a textured component of the dish instead. Not feeling something too rich? The peekytoe crab is another option offered. Completely opposite from the escargot, the only way to describe this dish is fresh. Perfectly molded, the bottom layer consists of brunoise cucumber, then brunoise mango and finally a layer of shredded crabmeat. What's nice about this dish is that all the flavors are very light and delicate; nothing is too bold.

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