Bistro 7, Chef-Owner Michael O'Halloran's Modern French BYOB on N. 3rd and Market Street in Old CIty

[DonRocks]

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Dropped into Bistro 7 -- a well-regarded BYOB in Old City -- Saturday night and ended up having what I've come to expect at well-regarded Philadelphia BYOB's: a very good but not great meal in a comfortable setting for -- given that you bring your own B -- a reasonable price.  I was disappointed that they do not offer their $65 vaunted tasting menu on weekends, as it apparently slows turnover, but a friend and I  cunningly schemed to order enough of the menu that, by sharing, we ended up with a mock tasting menu for what turned out to be exactly the same price.

A chilled green vegetable soup with buttermilk stuff and tomato sorbet may have been the big winner, though my companion pronounced the relish garnish "too sweet."  Gnocchi was fluffy, fried and accompanied by a fresh vegetable ragout, and worked.  And foie gras with a cocoa marshmallow may be an idea whose time has come.  Jacketing oysters in quinoa before frying probably isn't.  Entrees were fine.  The peach and blueberry thing with cinnamon pastry crust would have been excellent at a more earthy-crunchy place; here it seemed to lack refinement.

The setting was small and pleasant and very green, the service perfectly fine. A decent spot if you're in walking distance.

Our Saturday night dinner at Bistro 7 was quite nice--man, that BYOB concept is killer! I certainly enjoyed polishing off a bottle of Grgich Hills chardonnay all by myself--without having to pay the usually ridiculous restaurant markup. The favorites of the meal were the duck mousse (more like a pate, and SOOOO delicious) on the charcuterie plate, the gnocchi appetizer (done very classically, and just about the only version I've had recently that compares to Proof's), and the glazed duck legs with lentils. The venison was good, though cooked too much for my liking, and the scallops were perfectly respectable. The pear tart was the only major letdown--it was served with a creme fraiche that had black pepper in it (I also thought I tasted thyme, but the chef said it was just pepper). It was WAY too savory for such a sweet dessert, so the flavors were all mixed up and, frankly, not tasty at all.

Dinner was at Bistro 7 for a pleasant meal. Highlights were gnocchi with butternut squash and walnuts, short ribs with mashed and swiss chard, Chinese style bbq salmon with shitake risotto. They said that the menu changes weekly and unfortunately it is not available online as far as I can tell. If you go know one thing, this place is LOUD.