Ira Glass Was Wrong!

Ira Glass is convincing on many fronts. But does anybody else remember when he gave a big yawn to the cupcake trend in an interview in BUST? (Side note: I can't find a copy of the interview right now--can you? I need to remember those carefree days of early '08.) Moreover, in the interview, Glass claimed that BUST's readers would agree: cupcake trend = over. Well darn it, Mr. Glass, it's a year-and-a-half on, and I still don't agree. Maybe there are too many cupcakes in your Magnolia Bakery, Sex-and-the-City New York, but down here, our cupcake build up has been like good molasses: slow and sweet. Sure, we might finally be reaching our saturation point of cupcake shops, but I am still enjoying them. And the cupcake shop I'm loving the most right now? Buttercream Cupcake truck. The great thing about the truck's treats is they aren't an exercise in excess. Rather, they're normal-sized, with dollops of not overly sweet frosting in the center. The bad news? The truck moves regularly, and it's usually only in a given spot for a couple of hours at a time. Maybe it's just trying to avoid Ira.

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Shopping • Rittenhouse / Logan Circle

Chikara: Your New Obsession

Remember a couple of years ago when everyone was suddenly obsessed with Kaiju Big Battel, the monster wrestling league? It reminded us all that at its best, wrestling isn't overly ripped men with stringy, Gollum-like hair, it's tremendous athletes donning campy costumes and following ridiculous story lines. Well, ladies and gentlemen, I have a new wrestling obsession for you: Chikara. Taking place with relative frequency in South Philly, Chikara is some of the most gleefully ridiculous shit I've seen in this city in the last year: tag-teaming men in ant costumes, midget wrestlers, moves with eight-plus people working together...it's fabulous. And it's family friendly, too--nothing all that dirty, disgusting, or violent: just good ol' fashioned wackyness. The next show in Philly is on November 22, just in time for Thanksgiving. Because what I'm thankful for this year is definitely men dressed up like snakes and lumberjacks doing body slams.

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Landmarks • South Philly East

Sunday Supper

Recently I took a class that kept me away from home on Sunday evenings for eight weeks in a row. The first Sunday I was home again, my boyfriend informed me that in my absence he had developed a Sunday routine, and he was going to teach me how to enjoy Sundays in the new style. He told me that this included a beer-filled trip to the Foodery and a good dose of mindless TV, but that the whole evening begins with a sandwich from the Cornerstone Market. I was a little surprised--I had always viewed Cornerstone with a suspicious eye. Oh, it's cute, and it has a nice selection of gourmet groceries, but I feel like gourmet corner stores like that exist primarily to carve a deep gouge in my wallet the moment I'm too lazy to walk the extra 10 minutes to an actual supermarket. But oh, the sandwiches. The sandwiches are so worth it. Like this guy here: he's mozzarella, tomato, pesto and artichokes served on fluffy multigrain bread. The Italian hoagie comes with basil leaves criss-crossing the top. Guys, listen: get a Cornerstone sandwich. They've made Sunday my favorite day of the week.

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Shopping , Supermarkets • Northern Liberties

Frogurt in the Fall

Fall is not the time to eat frozen yogurt. And because I have great timing, I'd like to tell you about a place I recommend not eating frozen yogurt at: Sweet Ending. Yet another Pinkberry knock off, Sweet Ending serves up pour-your-own tart frozen yogurt in a clean-yet-cutsey shop near Rittenhouse. The yogurt is meh--not terrible, but not as good as other establishments doing the same thing, like Phileo. Sweet Ending's plain is great, the strawberry fakey, and the green tea wholly unpleasant (if you're ready to call foul, know that this is from someone who is a fan of green-tea frozen treats and knows what this not-for-everyone flavor is supposed to taste like). But here's some great news: not only is fall not the best time for frozen yogurt, winter isn't either, so you have six whole months before you even think about getting accidentally temped by this place.

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Shopping • Rittenhouse / Logan Circle

NSiaFLfaFHoSM

I love a good brunch. I also love GSD (Gettin' Shit Done), or, at the very least NSiaFLfaFHoSM (Not Standing in a Fucking Like for a Fucking Hour on Sunday Morning). Thus I tend not to patronize certain darlings of the Philadelphia morning-meal scene, at least on the weekends (Wednesday breakfast at Honey's or Sabrina's is amazing; Sunday brunch can be an exercise in patience so great that Yoda should have used it when training Luke). But let me introduce you to my new friend in GSD, NsiaFLfaFMoSM, and EABF (Eating Amazing Breakfast Food): Cafe Lift. Tucked up in the tumbleweed-feeling area known as Callowhill, Cafe Lift is a "Euro style cafe" owned by the same fine folks who opened another surprise in the area, the Prohibition Taproom. Cafe Lift's breakfast foods are big, rich, and satisfying--the last time I was there, I had a rich, wonderful pesto-swirled frittata that could have lasted me for three meals. And? No line. IDoETED (I Dream of Eating There Every Day).

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Restaurants • Spring Garden / Francisville