FYI Philly visits Fond, Nanu's Hot Chicken and Samuel Gritz Public House

This week on FYI Philly, we have good food, good company and some great memories.

Samuel Gritz Public House is a new hang with history in Queen Village
The Samuel Gritz Public House is a new corner bar in Queen Village with lots of character.

The building dates back to 1926 and the new owners did a complete renovation to expose some of the historic space while modernizing the dining room and bar area.

The menu is a mix of elevated casual fare for any occasion.

There are small plates for an evening out or entrees meant for a more formal dinner, and the outside seating offers a great spot to enjoy one of the craft cocktails or local brews.

Samuel Gritz Public House | Facebook | Instagram
629 South 2nd Street, Philadelphia, PA 19147

Fond BYOB is back! City favorite now in the suburbs
For more than a decade, Fond BYOB was a dining destination on Passyunk Avenue.

Now the husband and wife chefs are bringing those flavors back, to Wallingford, Delaware County.

Husband and wife chefs and owners Lee Steyer and Jessie Prawlucki-Styer shuttered the South Philly Fond and moved to Delaware County during the pandemic.

They say they immediately began looking around for a place to open a restaurant near their new home.

He handles the savory side of the menu, which he describes as eclectic American with French technique.

Dishes include a classic beef burgundy- braised short ribs, done with carrots, celery and onions, red wine served on a parsnip puree; and a short rib rilettes breakfast sandwich.

It's 100% braised short ribs, whipped together, chilled then pan seared, almost like Scrapple.

It's topped with cheddar cheese and a sunny egg and served on a parmesan aioli- slathered brioche bun.

Jessie specializes in desserts. She makes a butternut creme brulee with roasted butternut squash and pumpkin pie spices blended with custard.

It's caramelized and topped with cardamom-whipped cream cheese and a Palmiere cookie.

Her peanut praline serves as a bed for a malted milk chocolate mousse with dark chocolate on top.

It's layers and layers of chocolate and peanut butter with a peanut brittle on top.

The couple's new spot on Providence Road had been a French Moroccan restaurant.

They were looking to buy; the previous owner was looking to sell and so they took the restaurant over, staff and all, for 2 weeks. Then they flipped it to Fond BYOB, without interruption.

The only meaningful decor addition is a nostalgic menu on the wall from a restaurant in Reading run by Lee's great-grandfather then grandfather.

For Lee and Jessie, the new venture is all about putting family first, opening a restaurant that's a short commute from their home while recreating a city favorite in the suburbs.

The couple hasn't completely left the city, though.

They still have The Dutch, a breakfast, lunch and dinner spot in East Passyunk.

Fond BYOB | Instagram
21 N Providence Road, Wallingford, Pa. 19086

The Dutch | Facebook | Instagram
1537 S 11th Street, Philadelphia, Pa. 19147

Nanu's Hot Chicken finds fast growth with Nashville-style hot eats
Nanu's Hot Chicken recently opened its ninth location in the area, this one on Ridge Avenue in Roxborough.

With just over a year under it's wings, the chain is on a roll with its Halal Nashville-style hot chicken sandwiches, sides, and desserts.

Started by a close-knit family from Pakistan, Ikram Rashid and his brothers named it after their youngest brother Adnan -- nicknamed 'Nanu' -- who was born with Down Syndrome.

Heat levels go from mild to reaper, and smoothies cool things down with flavor combos that let you build your own.

Nanu's Hot Chicken | Facebook | Instagram
6151 Ridge Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19128
215-261-2011

Portal opens in Philadelphia's Love Park
Portals, a bridge to a united planet, has opened one of its art installations at Philadelphia's Love Park.

The structure acts as an interactive and immersive experience using webcams to connect Philadelphians with other cities around the world through a similar portal in that city.

Currently, the Philadelphia portal connects to Vilnius, Lithuania, Lublin, Poland, and Dublin, Ireland.

The portal opens to each city in 3-minute loops.

Portals | Facebook | Instagram

Cafe Cuong tops new list for authentic Vietnamese banh mi and coffee
The 'Inquirer 76' is the first annual list of spots around town 'defining the dining scene'.

Cafe Cuong in South Philadelphia made the cut and has been owned and operated by the same family since 1989.

Using decades-old family recipes, they made their reputation on two Vietnamese staples -- Vietnamese coffee, and banh mi, those famous 'Vietnamese hoagies'.

Husband and wife team, Kim and Chinh Lam, have been running the business since their three sons were very young.

They make other varieties of banh mi, like lemongrass grilled pork, braised chicken with sauteed scallions, and a vegetarian made from tofu with a light soy.

Cafe Cuong
811 S. 8th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19147
215-574-0527

Concihairge brings the salon to your doorstep
Stephanie Cleck is the Founder and CEO of modern hair salon Concihairge.

Concihairge brings all hair services to the comfort and convenience of your home or other locations.

The service spans the Philadelphia region, ensuring a celebrity-like feel.

Each appointment begins with a consultation following your service of choice.

After Cleck's first child was born in 2009, she struggled to find a stylist to do her hair at home.

That sparked her entrepreneurial adventure in Northern Virginia, where her husband was stationed in the Navy.

After talking to some of her new mom friends and also struggling to get to the salon, she used her cosmetology background and brought the salon to them.

What was once a one-woman show turned into a successful business once her family moved to Philadelphia in 2014.

The business now has a headquarters in Pottstown and eight regional stylists specializing in extensions, keratins, and color.

Concihairge can be a one-stop shop for the whole family or a girls' day in with the option to book a hair party.

The family's connection to the military is part of the Concihairge mission and offers 10% off to all military families all year round.

You can visit the Concihairge website to book your appointment.

Concihairge|Instagram |Facebook

One Tank Trip to a new museum repping Philadelphia sports and more
The DePace Sports Museum of Champions has one of the largest and most memorable collections of sports memorabilia in the world.

It not only focuses on Philadelphia teams, but on all sports and the significant moments in history.

The memorabilia started as a hobby but has grown into a destination collection.

The non-profit is currently open for free tours with an appointment, and it's planning a grand opening in the spring of 2025.

DePace Sports Museum of Champions | Facebook
483 Hurffville - Cross Keys Road, Sewell, NJ 08080

Destination chocolate at bean to bar maker Moka Origins
Pay a visit to the newly updated Moka Origins chocolate and coffee factory to find out about their public tours and sweet experiences.

The space specializes in chocolate and coffee roasting on-site at the Honesdale shop.

The business operates with purpose, paying a premium for the beans to support the cacao and coffee farmers struggling with poverty.

Moka Origins | Facebook | Instagram
952 Bethany Turnpike, Honesdale, PA 18431

Pocono Television Network | Facebook | Instagram/

Mickalene Thomas: All About Love on view at Barnes Foundation
Mickalene Thomas: All About Love reveals the evolution and revolution of Thomas' artistic practice.

"She's an artist who has, over the past two decades, created artworks that shift the paradigm in how we see Black women," says Renée Mussai, independent curator for the exhibition.

There are a few early self-portraits of the artist on view, including a work called Afro Goddess Looking Forward.

"She works through a Black feminist prism of desire," says Mussai. "There is a very palpable sense of visual pleasure and visual liberation."

When viewing Thomas' work, Mussai says visitors will see "a gaze by a Black queer woman."

There are nearly 50 works on display.

"She's one of those incredibly skilled multi-disciplinary artists who creates these monumental artworks," says Mussai. "This is her time. This is a time where Black women can occupy this space in all of their glory."

She says that Thomas' works are "not only rupturing the canon, but suturing it with a new visuality."

Rhinestones are part of her visual signature.

"Those rhinestones play and speak with light, so they create a kind of glimmer and a sparkle, and the works become very much alive," she says.

Thomas' muses are all part of her inner circle.

"There is an homage to her mother, Sandra Bush. There is an homage to former lovers and friends. There is a recurring chorus of muses who kind of accompany us through the different thematic rooms of the exhibition," she says.

In addition to painting, photography and collage, visitors will see site-specific work and a video installation.

Mussai says the exhibition is really "an invitation to be transformed" by the presence of Thomas' artworks.

"And I'm hoping that visitors will feel that same sense of both empowerment but also a sense of nourishment," she says. "Immersed and accompanied by this chorus of powerful, strong, beautiful women."

Mickalene Thomas: All About Love is on view through January 12, 2025 at the Barnes Foundation.

Mickalene Thomas: All About Love | Tickets
Barnes Foundation
2025 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia, PA 19130