Philadelphia, PA - When the sun casts a shadow over Washington Square Philadelphia's Talula’s Daily, transforms for Talula’s Daily Supper Club which hosts diners from 6:00 – 9:30 pm in an intimate setting. There is a farm table that is perfect for a group of 8-12 nightly if you snatch up that reservation, as well as tables for 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 dinings simultaneously in the cozy 30 seats culinary setting.
Talula’s Daily is located on Washington Square next to Talula’s Garden, owned by Aimee Olexy in collaboration with Stephen Starr. Talula’s Daily aims to be an everyday go-to for wholesome food and drink. Market-goers are greeted by the scents of crusty, warm bread; freshly roasted coffee; and local farmstead cheeses of all shapes, sizes and flavors. They also offer wine by the glass, bottled and draft beer, and have a coffee bar serving atelier La Colombe, perfect for a pick-me-up or to linger longer at one of the café tables. The counter and refrigerated section also offer creative sandwiches for vegetarians and omnivores alike.
Aimee Olexy grew up in West Chester, Pa., and her early food memories remain vivid as ever. “My parents were pretty hippie,” she laughs. “Guitars and gardens and tie-dyes. We ate simply and naturally, picked blueberries and squash and hid in forsythia bushes for fun.” As a teenager in the late ’80s, she landed her very first restaurant job at Conshohocken’s Spring Mill Café, where she was waiting tables, sweeping floors and even doing a little cooking. It was here that Olexy first uncovered her love of making people happy as well as her fascination with cheese, one of many areas of expertise displayed at her restaurants. “I loved pronouncing them and sniffing them and making the cheese plates, even then,” she recalls.
The early ’90s saw Olexy earning her English Lit degree from St. Joseph’s University, next up was an educational journey in France, where Olexy attended l’Universitie du Vin in the Vacluse, forming the groundwork of her wine expertise and further fostering her love affair with Fromage. “I can remember every cheese and where and how they were made,” she says. “With food, I can remember everything.”
The year 2001 marked Olexy’s true arrival onto the Philadelphia restaurant scene with Django, a tiny 38- seat Society Hill restaurant that’s still, to this day, the only BYOB eatery ever to earn a four-bell rating from Philadelphia Inquirer critic Craig LaBan. In 2005, she decided to sell and relocate to Pennsylvania’s Chester County, they opened Talula’s Table in 2007. The Talula part is in honor of her daughter, Annalee Talula Rae. The “Table” refers to the gourmet-market-by- day’s nightly 12-person BYOB tastings, so incredibly coveted that reservations have to be made a full calendar year in advance!
Talula’s Garden, opened in partnership with Starr Restaurants in April 2011. Olexy’s energy can be felt throughout – from the cozy-chic décor and vibrant outdoor planter boxes to the elaborate pink-granite cheese bar inside, the restaurant is distinctly hers, no matter where you’re sitting.
In May 2013, Aimee opened Talula’s Daily in the art deco-inspired Ayer Condominium building next to Talula’s Garden. Talula’s Daily borrows queues from Aimee’s market-by-day, Talula’s Table and when the market closes, the restaurant opens with a seasonal, monthly rotating, family-style supper menu is offered, bringing a new style of eating to Philadelphia.
In an exclusive partnership with Anthropologie, the table-top setting for Talula’s Daily is brightened to be a colorful and refreshing collection of plates, serving pieces, cheese knives, glassware, and linens showing Anthropologie style in action.
Talula’s Daily Supper Club offers a one pre-set dinner menu that changes monthly and is shared on talulasdaily.com. The menu includes 5 courses for $55 per person. An additional beverage pairing is available for $35. They also offer a full beverage list including wines, local beer, and cockatails. The Talula’s Daily Supper Club menu reflects the best highlights of the season, showcasing superior local farm ingredients. March at Talula’s Daily Supper Club features “London Calling” menu by Chef de Cuisine Kyle Clark. Everything is cooked in the open Talula’s Daily cottage kitchen and the “Supper Club” experience is kind of like sitting in the kitchen and eating a home cooked meal (without any clean-up + with a private Chef)!
We elected for the beverage pairing including 3 wines and a finishing cocktail, all wines coincidentally coming from Austria, Germany. The meal began with a glass of sparkling Rose. This paired very well with the tender Beef Tartare enjoyed with homemade salt and vinegar potato chips. Up next, paired with a glass of white wine, was the Asparagus Bavarian salad with lamb bacon. This light and the leafy dish was balanced with rich Bavarian cream and asparagus souffle and salty crumbled lamb bacon.
The special menu addition for the evening was a handmade pasta pan-seared with a dollop of pesto and served on a pork ragu. With a pre-set menu this plate was a nice surprise to dinner. Next was a red wine taste for the main course, Yogurt-Marinated Fresh Cod which was packed with much more flavor than we expected served with roasted carrot puree and pistachios and a cooling side of cucumber raita.
We must admit we were most excited about the cheese course! Talula’s is very well known for its extensive selection of unique and rare cheeses. This course was paired with the cocktail titled The Turncoat made with local Bluecoat Gin, apricot liqueur, tonic water, and citrus. We sampled a tangy Camembert cheese paired with local honey, marbled Cheddar paired with pickled string beans, and a strong Roquefort blue cheese with fruit preserves. We were also served a cup of water crackers. The final course was the Jasmine Tea Creme Brulee with an almond walnut cookie. A shortbread cookie was also wrapped for us to take home!
After dining at Talula’s Daily Supper Club you will leave the evening satisfied yet wanting more, not overstuffed but certainly not hungry, and glowing with the joy of having just experienced something you will remember for many meals to come. Make your reservations via OpenTable to experience it for yourself.
And don't’ forget to stop by during the day! Talula’s Daily has all the essentials to stock your pantry: a wide variety of olive oils and vinegar, spiced salts, Italian pasta, European style butter, and more. Looking for the perfect cheese? Local. French. Stinky. Cozy. Sharp. Sweet. They’ve got it. And if you think you don’t like cheese, you just haven’t found the right one yet.
Talula’s also offers catering assistance for your last-minute get-together, elaborate wedding, and everything in between. Elegant hors d’oeuvres, buffet-style entrees, cheese boards with our charcuterie, little sweets, and personalized cakes are all available.
