This Week at the Herdic House
We hope everyone had a sparkling and safe Fourth of July this past week! Over at our House, the kids collected ample candy at an afternoon parade, and then spent the twilight romping in the glow from the city’s fireworks display, playing tag with a group of kids on Lycoming College’s practice field. It was a lovely day and quite the birthday celebration, and by Saturday morning, the terrifying booms had let up, and life was back to normal—far better than many people are faring elsewhere in the world, that’s for sure. Here at the Herdic, we’ve been making the most of the sweet corn that arrived just in time for July 4th—the corn and tomato stack is back on our menu (heads up for all those who called to ask!) and we’re gearing up for the height of the harvest.
The Blue Plate this week is a summery summary of summertime: our favorite organic fettuccine from Pasta by Deb, tossed with roasted tomato, sweet corn, cream and bacon and finished with slivered basil and parmigiano. It’s $18 at our House, and $20 to go, like always—but, per usual, our number of to-go orders will be very limited. And for dessert, we’ll have some cute little blueberry tartlets finished with a scoop of vanilla ice cream…
Come join us for our Thursday happy hours at the bar, from 5-7 pm, with $1 off all beers and $2 off wines by the glass. Plus we’ll be serving our Thursday night feature that pretends to be healthy, all while loaded with the tangy umami of ranch dressing: house favorite Herdic Pittsburgh salad, this week served with spicy grilled tenderloin tips, fresh-cut fries, grated cheddar and parmesan ranch. Plus, Hannah will be shaking up full moon-style white cherry and blackberry margaritas at the bar, in honor of the Buck Moon…
There’s no such thing as summertime blues around the Herdic, unless you count the twinge of melancholy we feel when we realize that all the summertime goodness must inevitably end. How can you be blue when you’re dipping your head in the trickling waterfall at the end of the Jacoby Falls trail? When you’re feasting on ice cream from Eder’s, harvesting berries on the roadside, and paddling about in clear mountain streams? (And believe us, if you’re not doing these things with your summer, then you’re missing out, folks!)
But we’ll still be getting some blue on in our kitchen this week, as we get in the first of the blueberries from the awesome folks at Bridge Avenue Berries in Allenwood. Every summer micro-season is our favorite season around these parts, but the delectable berries from Bridge Ave might be the favorite among favorites. Check them out in a handful of blue features we’ll be offering on Friday evening…
- Fresh blueberry mojitos
- Chilled blueberry soup with fresh raspberries and lemon yogurt
- Fried green tomato and lump crab stack, served over a roasted tomato aioli
- Grilled red snapper served over sweet corn risotto with a shiitake-haricot vert ragout and caper chimichurri
- Brown butter cake with rum peaches, blueberry sauce and whipped cream
P.S. We’ve finally confirmed the cornerstone of our Tuscan Picnic menu for next Friday: Holly at Misty Mountain Farm guaranteed that they could provide us with a few “porchetta” roasts that we’ll wrap up with lots of herbs and spices and slow roast for a deliciously crispy, savory main course. So keep an eye on our Facebook page for the debut of that Tuscan menu later today, and come join us for an awesome evening of Italian food on the patio…