Another trip to Philadephia means another trip to the Dandelion to top up on Well’s Bombardier and Robert Aikens’ British comfort food. This time we were shepherded to the Man’s Best Friend bar to a long table with an upholstered bench seat on one side facing the room and chairs on the other. The decor in the room was basic pub decor on acid, with dog art and ceramics on every available surface.
 |  |
Drinks were ordered first and problems were encountered immediately. As with the last visit, the Bombardier was cloudy and did not look like a good pint. This has been a recent issue and hopefully will change soon. A previous highlight for my kids has been the fizzy RIbena in cans but the Dandelion had run out for this visit. The alternative was diluting Ribena which would not be a problem except that it was obvious that the bar staff did not know how to prepare it. What turned up was a glass that was half the deep blackcurrant purple, half the clear solution of unmixed water.
Starter was Roasted Sea Scallops. This is a constant on the menu but varies depending on the accompaniments. This version featured curry roasted cauliflower & purée, pickled raisins & pistachios. As with previous visits, the scallops were wonderfully tender and the overall dish was well balanced. The plump pickled raisins were a delight. Good as it was, it was not on a level with previous iterations, with the original version with black pudding still the best.
Starter was Roasted Sea Scallops. This is a constant on the menu but varies depending on the accompaniments. This version featured curry roasted cauliflower & purée, pickled raisins & pistachios. As with previous visits, the scallops were wonderfully tender and the overall dish was well balanced. The plump pickled raisins were a delight. Good as it was, it was not on a level with previous iterations, with the original version with black pudding still the best.
Chosen main was a relatively simple option. Duck Bolognese sauce was served with strozzapreti pasta, troughs of pasta designed to catch the sauce, and topped with freshly grated Parmesan cheese. The crowning glory was a fried duck egg and as someone said on Twitter recently, what food isn’t improved by being topped with a fried egg, especially when the soft yolk runs into the other flavours on the plate. The tomato sauce was good but it wasn’t obvious what the benefit was from having duck as opposed to more conventional flavours like beef or lamb.
Overall verdict.
The Dandelion continues to deliver good quality British comfort food. However, the pub still goes dark at sunset and that definitely makes eating there much less enjoyable. The drinks do not seem to be getting the same level of attention as the food and that is worrying, showing a lack of attention to detail. The Bombardier has not been good for two visits and it cannot be difficult to train someone to mix Ribena properly. Right now, we will continue to go but would like to see the experience return to the level of previous visits. I’d really love to see the lighting turned up as a long-term change.
Overall Rating - 3/5
The Dandelion continues to deliver good quality British comfort food. However, the pub still goes dark at sunset and that definitely makes eating there much less enjoyable. The drinks do not seem to be getting the same level of attention as the food and that is worrying, showing a lack of attention to detail. The Bombardier has not been good for two visits and it cannot be difficult to train someone to mix Ribena properly. Right now, we will continue to go but would like to see the experience return to the level of previous visits. I’d really love to see the lighting turned up as a long-term change.
Overall Rating - 3/5