The Cira Centre - aka the funky glass building next to 30th Street Station - is creating a culinary renaissance on this side of the Schuylkill with its newest addition, Rae. Set on the first floor of this post-modern (there's truly no shape that can describe it) structure, the restaurant is connected through an above-ground walkway to the train station.
Once inside, Rae has an inviting, spacious atmosphere, replete with leather-clad booths in cool aqua and gray hues. The posh d‚cor extends to the trendy curving bar that matches the open white space in the Center's lobby, making the Market-Frankford El seem miles away.
Rae's prices range from modest to "my parents are in town for the weekend so they're taking me out." Most unique about the Rae menu is that the food has an extreme range, from standard fare like the burger - an excellent choice to have with a beer on the go ($10) - to more adventurous dishes like the venison cheesesteak ($18).
Chef Daniel Stern of Gayle fame (voted one of Bon Appetit's Top 10 Hottest New Restaurants in the country) is known for his original culinary creations. His flair is evident in the platter of five rabbit nachos - empanadas stuffed with tender rabbit ($10). For shellfish lovers with deep pockets, the stuffed blue crab ($18) is divine, as the piles of jumbo lump crab meat were dipped in just enough of a special mayonnaise sauce to make the crab moist, but not slimy.
For diners on a budget who've just missed the R7 to Trenton on the way to New York, be sure to drop in for Rae's happy hour, which occurs every day from 4:30-7:00. You'll enjoy half-off drinks at the bar, which includes $3 imports and $5 cocktails that are both stiff and tasty.
If you're in the Cira Centre during lunch hours, Rae offers any combination of two "simple menu" items (soup, salad, pizza, panini) with a soft drink ($15) for an upscale lunch. Take advantage of the truffle pizza (regularly $16) or raw tuna pizza (normally $14) in this meal deal. Both of these thin crust pizzas are light and eccentric (the tuna pizza is covered with popcorn). Sticking with the common theme of keeping simpleton eats and sophisticated offerings side by side, panini options like the grilled cheese ($9) will satisfy picky vegetarians, while the duck confit ($12) or short ribs paninis ($12) will shut the traps of Philadelphia's finest food snobs.
However, the shining jewel (and most expensive menu item) is the venison stew ($52). With rich wintry flavors, this portion is not only large and appropriately cooked tenderness, but also original and filling.
As Penn expands eastward, Rae will become closer and closer within reach of the University community. Although the prices may be higher than at your typical neighborhood watering hole, the expansive bar stays open until 2:00 a.m. every day. Ten years down the road, Rae just may be the new Smokey Joe's.
