El Rey - Philadelphia, PA

Stephen Starr, about whom I have blogged in the past, owns 15 restaurants in Philadelphia.  15 restaurants that still create a buzz for many.  After visiting yet another this past Monday, I wondered how many I have visited.  Here's the tally:

1. Alma de Cuba - no
2. Buddakan - yes
3. The Continental - no
4. El Vez - yes
5. Jones - no (But will treat myself to a slow, leisurely lunch for one there in the late winter when my work madness is over)
6. Moriomoto - no
7. Pod - yes
8. Butcher and Singer - yes
9. Tangerine - no
10. Barclay Prime - no
11. Continental - Midtown - yes
12. Parc - no
13. Pizzeria Stella - no
14. El Rey - yes
15. Granite Hill (at Philadelphia Museum of Art) - no

Looks like I've hit a third of the restaurants.  I find that many, while "cool" to visit, are much ado about generally decent but often overpriced food.  El Rey was a case-in-point.  5:30p on a Monday night and no happy hour?  I guess if you're a Stephen Starr restaurant you don't have to do that, although it was empty when I left two hours later.

El Rey (or "king") is at 20th and Market Streets in the old Midtown diner location.  Starr didn't dump a lot of money into a renovation.  Seemingly the same formica, scallop shell counter and vinyl chairs.  Bad-turned-hip kitsch as in the chandeliers, faux rock walls, and black velvet Elvis and Jimi Hendrix.  The food was El Vez-ish.  The chips and salsa were fine - not remarkable - and the ceviche was good but not the best I've had. 

Truth be told, I went to El Rey because it is a Stephen Starr restaurant.  His name obviously draws.  Otherwise this is a diner-turned-cheesy Mexican place that remains in business "just because."  Chances are, El Rey will still be around if and when Starr opens restaurant number 16 in Philadelphia.

The counter at El Rey

(Oh, and Esquire Magazine's 2010 Hostess of the Year, El Rey's

Melissa Calcagni)