City Tavern

I've shied away from virtually all We The People activities thus far, having been permanently scarred from the last Bicentennial what with commemorative commode accouterments ("the seat of our forefathers") and throngs vying for overpriced knockwurst not to mention being snookered into standing in the freezing rain to watch the Liberty Bell moved to its current resting place. Then I thought, "What better way for a restaurant critic to honor the framers than to eat where (if not what)

George Washington ate here. So did Ben Franklin, John Adams and a host of the other toasts of 18th-century Philadelphia. And so, as of yesterday, can you. In what its proprietor described as a "soft opening," historic City Tavern in Independence National Historical Park unlocked its doors to the public yesterday after an 18-month hiatus. Now anyone can eat - or just stroll through - where the nation's founders plotted the Revolution, pondered the Constitution and quaffed pint after plentiful pint of ale, stout, Madeira, claret and burgundy.

In 1777, when the Continental Congress celebrated the first anniversary of American independence here, it's possible - based on recipes from that time - that thick cream spooned over short biscuits with a strawberry or two could have been part of the fare. It's doubtful, however, anyone would have thought to add the blueberries, which were native to the Colonies. But that's exactly what City Tavern operator Walter Staib has happily added to his summer menu, to make a perfect red, white and blue Fourth of July dessert.

It's the age of the duopoly, in which two restaurant concepts share a building, a liquor license, management, and many fixed costs. While chains mostly practice this (such as McCormick & Schmick and William Douglas Steakhouse, and Blue2O and Chili's, both in Cherry Hill), an independent team is giving it a whirl across from the Willow Grove Naval Air Station in Horsham with the new naBrasa , a Brazilian steak house, and Iron Abbey , a gastropub. The site (680 N. Easton Rd.)

The National Governors Association is in town, and Pennsylvania's Ed Rendell decided to give his colleagues an "upscale, 18th-century experience" at one of the country's oldest political hangouts. For his dinner last night, Rendell chose the City Tavern at Second and Walnut Streets, modeled after a Federal-style tavern constructed at the dawn of the Revolution. For the out-of-town guests, which were to include President-elect Barack Obama, Rendell did not request a special menu - the standard at such banquets - but asked that attendees be allowed to choose from chef-owner Walter Staib's circa-1773-inspired a la carte menu.

When Mayor Rendell cuts the red ribbon today at the City Tavern, at 2nd and Walnut streets, it will be a special moment for Walter Staib and his wife, Gloria. The Staibs have spent more than $300,000 to restore the Colonial-style restaurant, which has been closed since New Year's Eve 1992 but whose history goes back 220 years. Because historical accuracy was a priority, they spent months of painstaking research into the tableware, music, clothes and cuisine of Colonial times. Rendell and his party will launch the restaurant's new life at a private luncheon today featuring salmon, potato pancakes, field greens salad, raspberry sorbet and filet mignon, all washed down with champagne.

A menu note at the recently revived City Tavern in Society Hill promises a "culinary experience inspired by the customs and foods of 18th-century Colonial America. " An unusual menu it is: painstakingly researched, stocked with game dishes, pork dishes, smoked meats and fishes. At dinner, not a single chicken entree is offered: Quail, turkey and duck reign. Credit for the building's handsome renovation goes to Walter Staib, a Bryn Mawr restaurant consultant who rescued City Tavern from more than a decade of dreary fare dished up by a succession of institutional food services.

Lovers on the lam How's this for a Valentine's Day splurge? The evening begins with a romantic carriage ride around Old City while you sip spiced wine or hot apple cider. When you disembark at City Tavern, you are presented with a bouquet of long-stemmed roses and a glass of champagne. You then make your way to the dining room where you and your beloved sit down to a five-course "aphrodisiac" meal. Think smoked trout, lobster tail, roast duckling, filet mignon, lobster, shrimp and scallop pie. City Tavern, at 2nd and Walnut streets, will serve up this Valentine's Day package Feb. 12-14.

A violent thunderstorm lashed Philadelphia last night, but inside City Tavern it may have been difficult to notice. Members of the First Troop, the light cavalry unit formed by Philadelphia volunteers in 1774, threw a party for George Washington, serving as president of the Federal Convention. Fifty-five men attended the dinner at the tavern, on the west side of Second Street between Chestnut and Walnut Streets. The diners consumed - or at least ordered - a prodigious quantity of beverages, including 54 bottles of Madeira, 60 bottles of claret, 22 bottles of Porter, eight bottles of cider, 12 bottles of beer and seven large bowls of punch.

In Miracle at Philadelphia, a history of the convention whose delegates wrote the Constitution in Philadelphia during the summer of 1787, Catherine Drinker Bowen quoted an unnamed traveler of the 1780s thus: "A veritable torture during Philadelphia's hot season is the innumerable flies which constantly light on the face and hands, stinging everywhere and turning everything black because of the filth they leave where they light. "Rooms must be kept closed unless one wishes to be tormented in his bed at the break of day, and this need of keeping everything shut makes the heat of the night even more unbearable and sleep more difficult.

It's the age of the duopoly, in which two restaurant concepts share a building, a liquor license, management, and many fixed costs. While chains mostly practice this (such as McCormick & Schmick and William Douglas Steakhouse, and Blue2O and Chili's, both in Cherry Hill), an independent team is giving it a whirl across from the Willow Grove Naval Air Station in Horsham with the new naBrasa , a Brazilian steak house, and Iron Abbey , a gastropub. The site (680 N. Easton Rd.)

The National Governors Association is in town, and Pennsylvania's Ed Rendell decided to give his colleagues an "upscale, 18th-century experience" at one of the country's oldest political hangouts. For his dinner last night, Rendell chose the City Tavern at Second and Walnut Streets, modeled after a Federal-style tavern constructed at the dawn of the Revolution. For the out-of-town guests, which were to include President-elect Barack Obama, Rendell did not request a special menu - the standard at such banquets - but asked that attendees be allowed to choose from chef-owner Walter Staib's circa-1773-inspired a la carte menu.

One by one, the plates emerged from the City Tavern's kitchen - goulasch soup with a kiss of sour cream, and a salty, pink slab of fleischkase , a sweet pork loaf, overlaid with a sunny fried egg; and pan-seared Munchner veal bratwurst (scented with chive), and Schlachtplatte , a tripod of seasonal sausages (mild weisswurst, bacony Allgauer, and a beef number) over mashed potatoes and imperative German weinkraut. I'd asked Walter Staib, the tavern's manic proprietor, for a preview of his Oktoberfest menu, which you can sample yourself starting today, and through October.

Employment recruiters are in short supply, but Michael W. Jalbert knows just where to find more - among the ranks of the laid-off brokers in the troubled mortgage industry. "They're not afraid of getting on the phone," said Jalbert, the optimistic president of MRI Network, one of the nation's largest recruiters of middle management. "When things like that blow up, we have to take advantage of the opportunities," he said, putting away a hearty breakfast last week at the Down Home Diner, blocks from MRI's corporate headquarters in Philadelphia.

EVEN THOUGH George Washington has a city named after him, no other metropolis played a larger role in his life than Philadelphia. Many of his most significant triumphs and failures as soldier and statesman happened here. And yet, despite his affinity for the area, he was instrumental in killing the city's dream of becoming the new nation's permanent capital. In 1775, the Continental Congress commissioned Washington as commander in chief of the Continental Army. He was so eager for the appointment that he wore his French and Indian War uniform to the Assembly Room at the Pennsylvania State House (later renamed Independence Hall)

1681 ? William Penn is given title to Pennsylvania in a land grant from King Charles II. He pledges to provide asylum for persecuted members of the Society of Friends and the oppressed of all nations. 1682 ? Philadelphia is chosen as the name of the future city. Meaning "City of Brotherly Love," the name is copied from a city in Asia Minor mentioned by St. John in the Book of Revelations. In late October, Penn and a large congregation of Quakers arrive at New Castle after sailing from England in the Welcome.

By noon yesterday, the waitstaff of Old Original Bookbinder's - some with 30, even 40 years of service - were trickling in, teary and haggard, summoned by late-night phone calls. Co-owner John E. Taxin, 34, had called to tell them he was closing up - not reopening the nostalgic, 109-year-old institution after the New Year's break. Now they were here, nearly all 70 of them, to get the rest of the story. "We've got families and stuff, too," said longtime broiler cook Kevin Partt.

They are words repeated daily in thousands of restaurants across the country: "Let me tell you about our specials. . . . " Frequently more puzzling than enlightening, restaurant specials - especially a rambling list recited by a waiter who doesn't give the prices - can be a roadblock as well as an adventure for diners. Some customers see them as the chef's inventive whim. Others suspect they're expensive leftovers. Are specials really more special than items on the regular menu?

The city's hotel, restaurant and tavern associations have joined forces to oppose a bill - which apparently has strong support in City Council - that would forbid smoking in most public places, notably restaurants. "They have awoken a sleeping giant," said Joe Mallamaci, president of the Licensed Beverage Association of Philadelphia, which represents nearly 300 bars. Although Councilman Michael Nutter's proposal would exempt bars that are not attached to restaurants, the association - still smarting from Council's 1994 approval of the liquor-by-the-drink tax - fears that lawmakers could target bars in the future.

Lovers on the lam How's this for a Valentine's Day splurge? The evening begins with a romantic carriage ride around Old City while you sip spiced wine or hot apple cider. When you disembark at City Tavern, you are presented with a bouquet of long-stemmed roses and a glass of champagne. You then make your way to the dining room where you and your beloved sit down to a five-course "aphrodisiac" meal. Think smoked trout, lobster tail, roast duckling, filet mignon, lobster, shrimp and scallop pie. City Tavern, at 2nd and Walnut streets, will serve up this Valentine's Day package Feb. 12-14.