James

Of the four dishes I had at James, two of them were truly delicious (and perhaps deserving of Philadelphia Magazine's rank of 3rd best restaurant), but the prices are very steep for the amount of food on the plate. I wanted Wendy's afterwards.

As far as the decor, I was pleasantly surprised to walk into such a modern, trendy, yet calm atmosphere that I would expect to see more of on Rittenhouse Square, not in Bella Vista. It was beautifully, yet simply decorated, with hardwood floors and dark tables and furniture (picture above is behind the bar, not the main dining room).

Swiss chard stuffed quail breast - This was one of the two best dishes of the evening. The quail breast was lean and soft, and the seasoned swiss chard was the perfect flavoring.


Hand cut tagliatelle, duck ragu, shaved chocolate & orange - What a disappointment. Philly Mag said to order this, the waitresses at James said it was the most popular item on their menu,...perhaps I was thus expecting too much. The tagliatelle was thin and obviously homemade, but there was barely any duck, and if chocolate & orange weren't listed on the menu, I wouldn't have known they were part of the dish.


John Dory with onions, apples, and brussels sprouts


Dover Sole "Veronique" - This was the second best dish of the evening. It was simply prepared but my taste buds loved it: olive oil, peeled grapes, and some sort of cream that tasted like hummus. The picture makes it look much larger than it was, but it was more like over-sized sashimi than a filet of fish.


Both desserts didn't taste like anything. I was afraid I had a stuffy nose or a cold, but nah...the desserts were just lacking flavor. Salty Caramel Semifreddo & Pumpkin Tart