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Explore With Cassie

Lifestyle & travel blog finding the unusual out of the ordinary.

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  • Entertainment,  Explore with Cassie,  Food & Beverage,  Latest News

    Philly’s Landmark Americana Tap and Grill Delivers Good Grub

    July 4, 2018 /

    Façade of Landmark Americana Tap & Grill’s City Line locale in the heart of St. Joseph’s University campus. Story, photos by Sharon Kozden When life gives you lemons, add drinks, wings and ribs!  – In part, me. Just sayin’ before you read on … with apologies to Clement C. Moore ‘Twas the week before Super Bowl LII, when all through Landmark Americana Tap & Grill’s City Line location, all the sports’ fans were stoked and rocking the house. The wings were outstanding, all chicken, little bone, and my ten were divided between sauces mild with spice bite and honey barbeque sweet. The wings were all nestled, snug in their sauce, while not overly so…

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    Sharon Kozden

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  • Entertainment,  Explore with Cassie,  Food & Beverage,  Latest News

    Tasty Wings, Burgers and Beer at P.J. Whelihan’s Pub & Restaurant in Oaks, PA

    June 21, 2018 /

    Story, photos by Jill Beckel The newest member of the P.J. Whelihan’s brand, P.J. Oaks, will be your new go-to spot for happy hour, game nights and meeting up with friends. P.J. Oaks opened its doors in Montgomery County, PA in 2016. P.J. Whelihan’s Pub + Restaurant is part of the well-loved P.J.W. Restaurant group. Now with 14 locations in Pennsylvania and New Jersey and an additional 3 arena locations, P.J. Whelihan’s is quickly becoming a Philadelphia area staple. Known for a massive craft beer selection, an incomparable game-day experience, and of course, The Official Wing of Wing Bowl, P.J.’s demonstrates every day just how much #PJsDoesItBetter. We stopped by the…

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    Jill Beckel

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    Four Seasons Scottsdale Hosts The Lost Explorer Mezcal & Tequila Launch in Arizona

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    Meet Philadelphia’s Own America’s Next Top Model Christina Anderson McDonald

    January 30, 2018
  • Day Trips,  Destinations,  Explore with Cassie,  Food & Beverage,  Lifestyle

    Escape to Foodie Paradise at Bucks County Restaurant Week in Washington House Hotel

    June 6, 2018 /

    The Washington House Restaurant’s prix fixe menu tantalizes in its choices. Story, photos by Sharon Kozden “Going to a restaurant is one of my keenest pleasures. Meeting someplace with old and new friends, ordering wine, eating food, surrounded by strangers, I think is the core of what it means to live a civilized life.”  –Adam Gopnik I’m not sure why it took so long for Bucks County to establish a restaurant week comprising all of its towns. I’m just glad that 2018 was its inaugural year and that I was a part of it. Hopefully (and judging by what I tasted and witnessed), it’ll become a tradition for the ages.…

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    Sharon Kozden

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    Workhorse Brewing Company, a New Hidden Gem in the Philly Suburbs

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    Hopping into Spring with Fishtown Hops at Sugarhouse Casino in Philadelphia, PA

    May 9, 2019
  • Education,  Entertainment,  Explore with Cassie,  Food & Beverage,  Latest News,  Lifestyle

    The Place to ‘Vie’ was Philly Wine Week’s ‘Opening Corks’ Event

    May 24, 2018 /

    Hip hip valet (parking)! “The best way to learn about wine is in the drinking.” – Alexis Lichine Story, photos by Sharon Kozden I don’t do beer. Exception: when at Citizens Bank Park, cheering on the Phightins’. Neither is hard liquor my cuppa char. Exception: Margaritas. I just like reading drink menus’ whimsical “drinks with names” (as I call them) – creative descriptions of specialty cocktails. Same with cookbooks. Not being a cook doesn’t stop me from appreciating the photos, asides and foreign-sounding ingredients. So no brew. Nothing hardcore. What remains? WINE. Now we’re talking! Wine is in a glass (and a class) by itself, as was the 5th Annual…

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    Sharon Kozden

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    Eat and Drink Your Face Off in San Antonio, Texas While Exploring the City

    July 20, 2017
  • Explore with Cassie,  Food & Beverage,  Latest News

    Shake Shack’s Chicken Creation is White Hot Meaty Goodness!

    May 16, 2018 /

    Story by Kelly Kusumoto, photos by Colleen Cahill Shake Shack unveiled its newest item to an already difficult-to-choose-from menu. The “Hot Chick’n” sandwich made its debut and ever since it has been taking over sales at the King of Prussia establishment. Store manager Charlotte was kind enough to take a few minutes from her hectic schedule to tell us a little more about it. She said there had been more orders for the new sandwich than for their regular chicken sandwich and that it is on par with sales for their famous ShackBurgers over the past week. While we were waiting for our food, we overheard patrons say they’d rather…

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    Kelly Kusumoto

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    Fox 29’s Karen Hepp’s Tasty Talks Rocks at Yangming in Bryn Mawr, PA

    July 17, 2018
  • Explore with Cassie,  Food & Beverage,  Latest News

    Enjoy Upscale, Eclectic Asian Food at Yangming in Bryn Mawr

    March 28, 2018 /

      Run, don’t WOK! “we are the fortunate cookies, we who were flat but now curl moonlike around thick middles, cradling happy advice and lucky numbers in our crisp bellies” – Unknown Story, photos by Sharon Kozden While Walt Whitman sang his praises of the “body electric,” I’m here to sing similarly about Yangming’s foodstuffs eclectic. Yangming is an upscale, never-duplicated, well-known and loved establishment, offering an eclectic bounty of Chinese and Asian fusion cuisine. The cocktail offerings are creative, the wine list award-winning and the desserts a blend of either decadent or light. Indulge in the sweetest of treats or restrain with a fresh berry-based, naturally sugared more healthfhttp://yangmingrestaurant.com/reviews/ul choice. Lychee nuts…

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    Sharon Kozden

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    Gertrude’s Fine Dining Tickles Tastebuds in Breathtaking Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix, Arizona

    October 30, 2019
  • Explore with Cassie,  Food & Beverage,  Latest News

    Old Man Winter Is No Match for Zoup’s! Comfort Soup

    March 7, 2018 /

    “A Jewish woman had two chickens. One got sick, so the woman made chicken soup out of the other one to help the sick one get well.” – Henny Youngman Story, photos by Sharon Kozden Full disclosure: I don’t much care for soup. I fault my mom for that as well as for having sent me to charm school at 12 years of age. But that’s another story altogether, which I’ll reserve for my memoir. The onset of my soup-phobia began in childhood, when our soup staples alternated between thin chicken-noodle with two pea-sized bits of poultry of questionable authenticity. It’s alternative was chicken with rice, equally runny and with the same meager addition of a barely-there protein…

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    Sharon Kozden

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    Uptown Beer Garden Mutates Upside Down for Spooky Season with ‘Stranger Things’ Theme

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    Restore Medical Marijuana Center Opens Second Cannabis Dispensary in Elkins Park, PA

    March 27, 2019

    Catch a Buzz at PA’s Drexel University’s Academy of Natural Sciences Boozy Botanicals Art Deco-Era Event

    April 11, 2019
  • Destinations,  Explore with Cassie,  Latest News

    The Inn at Villanova: Brainstorm and Stay the Nova Way at New Hotel

    January 18, 2018 /

    Story, photos by Sharon Kozden I’m no architect, but am I “Wright” in vibing something “Frank Lloydian” at the eye-catching entrance? Arrows point the way. There’s a new kid in town – a new kid on the Main Line’s block. Erstwhile Villanova Conference Center, previously run by Aramark, closed in November, 2016. Fast forward to July 1, when The Inn at Villanova set out its welcome mat to public and community alike, proudly presenting a sleek, ultramodern and fully renovated 56-roomed hotel and conference center situated on the 32-acre site of the former Montrose Estate, home to its historic Montrose Mansion. Moreover, Villanova University is now firmly entrenched in the owner-operator seat. Boasting 14 innovative meeting rooms and a ballroom…

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    Sharon Kozden

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    Saint Benjamin Brewery Offers Craft Beer with a Side of History

    December 19, 2017 /

    Story, photos by Dana J. Prophet If you drive a bit past Temple University’s Main Campus, you’ll come to a brewery and tap room that’s within the Kensington section of the city. Saint Benjamin Brewery offers modern brewing techniques and also holds onto history that reaches back to the days of prohibition while presenting both distinctive and magical craft brews along with a menu of tantalizing food. The brewery is nestled within the middle of the street and it was also previously a historic carriage house and stables of the defunct Theo Finkenauer Brewery. Sadly, that brewery is now an empty lot. Fear not though because Saint Benjamin has all…

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    Dana Prophet

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  • Entertainment,  Explore with Cassie,  Food & Beverage,  Latest News

    Eighth Annual Audi Feastival Celebrates FringeArts 21st Birthday

    December 6, 2017 /

    Story, photos by Sharon Kozden “I think eating is one of the most delectable experiences of radiant, sweet, sour, hot splashes biting at your taste buds that you could ever have. Now imagine knowing how to maneuver and manage these flavors from a cook’s perspective. Pure power.”  – Christopher Staab I’m remembering with gastronomic bliss the evening of September 28th, when Audi FEASTIVAL joined FringeArts for what arguably deserves its reputation as Philadelphia’s “Party of the Year.” For eight years running, an assembly of over 75 of Philadelphia’s renowned restaurants and bars has combined their award-winning fare samplings with FringeArts raise-the-bar, always innovative entertainment, artistic and cultural wonderment. FEASTIVAL first came to light, life and belly (in…

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    Sharon Kozden

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