joel m. eichen d.d.s.

Posted on Thu, Aug. 07, 2003

MarketBasket | Dessert blitz at the Ritz
Edited by Barbara Sadek


JONATHAN WILSON / Inquirer


There's your run-of-the-mill sweet tooth that periodically seeks a
small treat to tide it over until the next craving. And then there's
the monster sweet tooth possessed by those like me who feel helpless
in the face of the decadence presented at the Ritz-Carlton dessert
buffet.

Every Friday and Saturday from 8 to 11 p.m. in the elegant Rotunda
that is the hotel's lobby, an array of cakes, cookies, pastries,
puddings and more is laid out on tables just inside the Ritz-Carlton's
Broad Street entrance.

Until recently, the buffet was billed as one for chocolate lovers, and
there is still plenty derived from the cacao bean for those who so
indulge.

But now there are abundant non-chocolate sweets, too, as well as
made-to-order crepes with fillings ranging from berries and other
fruits to flavored creams and slivered almonds. Some of the desserts
recently featured were miniature lemon meringue pies, banana creme
brulee, and multi-layered mousse cakes.

The buffet is $15 a person, a bargain for such a selection. The
Rotunda also offers a light dining menu of snacks, salads and
sandwiches just in case your sweetheart (uh, dining partner) doesn't
share your sweet craving.

The Rotunda at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, 10 Avenue of the Arts (just
south of City Hall), 215-523-8000.

- Barry Zukerman


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Morimoto's two brews
Oregon brewer Rogue has teamed up with famed Philadelphia/New York
chef Masaharu Morimoto for two new Morimoto signature beers. True to
Rogue's reputation, they show off their advertised flavors - hazelnut
and soba (buckwheat) - with none-too-subtle power.

Both are clearly well made, but our tasting panel found the hazelnut
beer so dominated by the toasty nut taste that it seemed closer to an
after-dinner liqueur than to a food-friendly beer.

I found the buckwheat beer more promising for a food pairing, with a
unique flavor reminiscent of barley tea.

22-ounce bottles, about $4.99 each. At the Foodery, 10th and Pine
Streets, 215-928-1111, and the Wegmans Wine and Spirit shop at 240
Nassau Park Blvd., West Windsor (near Princeton), N.J., 609-919-9370.

- Craig LaBan


--
Joel M. Eichen, D.D.S.
Philadelphia PA

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teeth in question so take
this advice within its proper
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